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Cops’ double standards alarming, annoying - TIZ

Cops’ double standards alarming, annoying - TIZ
By Moses Kuwema
Sun 06 June 2010, 04:00 CAT

TRANSPERANCY International Zambia chapter (TIZ) president Reuben Lifuka has said the double standards in the way the police are discharging their functions is alarming and very annoying.

Commenting on health deputy minister Dr Solomon Musonda’s shooting and wounding of PF cadre Jackson Musaka, Lifuka said the police seem to only act on political stimulus.

“I mean there are so many times that we have said the police seem to only act on political stimulus. They don’t seem to act on their own professional analysis of the cases. This is not the case that is even up for debate,” Lifuka said.

“The law is very clear. In an event of this nature - attempted murder and use of a weapon - the deputy minister should have been picked up. What the police are doing is that they are creating two justice systems for this country; one for the politicians and the rich, one for the poor and the unconnected Zambians.”

Lifuka said it was time the police became more professional in their work.

“The Zambian people will only gain confidence in what they are doing if they can see that they act, not by political stimulus or impulse but they act out of their own professional analysis of events and they do their work which is above board and they are willing to take responsibility for the action that is taken,” Lifuka said. “Clearly what we can read from this scenario is that probably they are waiting to brief the President about this incident before they move in to act. But that’s not the way we should administer our laws. Our laws should be administered fairly and equally. We should not have a law that favours ministers and the one that does not favour the ministers.”

Lifuka urged the police to move in and move in very quickly.

“If the trend is allowed, impunity sets in and what will stop ordinary Zambians from equally picking up weapons and doing what the deputy minister has done and challenging the system that why should they be picked up because it was in self defence?” Lifuka asked.

“I think we need to realise that even the violence we have seen in the political sphere is coming from the actions or lack of actions from the police or politicians themselves. If politicians took a strong stance against violence and demonstrated by being good examples themselves, we would not see this strain of violence which is creeping into the country.

We see the MMD cadres led by Mr William Banda threatening everyone, threatening people who are just expressing their views as the case was with honourable Ng’andu Magande recently. So does the government say we should also group together and protect ourselves from the militia activities of Mr William Banda and their cadres? No they can deal with this violence by taking leadership. Leadership is what is needed.”

Labels: CADRES, FRANCIS KABONDE, MMD, TIZ

posted by MrK @ 7:23 PM