Maravi

MMD is a killer party, charges Kabayo’s grandpa

MMD is a killer party, charges Kabayo’s grandpa
By Roy Habaalu in Mongu and Mwala Kalaluka in Lusaka
Mon 25 Apr. 2011, 04:59 CAT

MMD is an inhuman killer party which has continued to mistreat the people of Barotseland, says the late Kabayo Kabayo's grandfather Philip Lubasi.

And Lubasi revealed that Shangombo district commissioner Masheke Kabayo, uncle of the deceased child Barotse detainee, opposed a family demand to conduct a postmortem of his late nephew because it was going to embarrass the government.

Meanwhile, government officials stopped Patriotic Front national chairperson Inonge Wina from providing assistance towards the funeral.

In an interview, Lubasi, who is the grandfather of the late 16-year-old Kabayo, a child Barotse detainee who died in police custody in Mumbwa on Friday, said President Rupiah Banda ordered the Mongu killings.

"MMD is a killer party that ordered the death of my grandchild. The command didn't come from the opposition and they (MMD) are still going ahead convicting our people. I pray to God to bless President Banda to have mercy on people who voted for him. Such things (killings) are the ones that are causing uprisings in North Africa," Lubasi said. "President Banda's style of leadership is unpleasant. There is no parent who can kill or mistreat his own children. He's a parent without love and we've not forgotten how he insulted us when he said he didn't solicit for votes from Western Province, he doesn't appreciate. How are we going to like him after refusing to spend his money in the province, what good things has he done for us to like him anyway? He should not forget that we're the ones who put him in power, his victory came from here."

He demanded that all the Barotse activists be released unconditionally.

Lubasi said Masheke opposed the family's demand to conduct a postmortem.

"In Mumbwa, your DC (Masheke) refused to conduct a postmortem but I insisted. He preferred money over his blood, money from MMD. He shouldn't forget that Kabayo was his child who can't be bought. Where is the Human Rights Commission when our children are dying? There is another juvenile who is suffering in prison," he said.

Lubasi said he was not satisfied with the manner the postmortem was conducted.
"I will challenge the results. How can they say results will be out after 14 days because samples have to be taken to UTH. There is something sinister, I noticed," he said.

Lubasi said it was shameful for Masheke, who was unavailable for comment by press time, to stop Inonge Wina from assisting the family.
"Kabayo stopped bo Mukwae Inonge Wina from giving us assistance because he is MMD. He said he didn't want anything from the opposition but we have asked our mother to come for the burial," said Lubasi.

Meanwhile, two of Kabayo's maternal uncles are suspicious over the close to two hours closed-door meeting held between two government officials and doctors shortly before postmortem was conducted at Mumbwa District Hospital.

Inambao Imasiku and Mukwamanda Lufwendo, who have frequently been travelling from Mongu to Mumbwa to attend the court case and subsequent illness of the deceased 16-year-old Barotse detainee, said they were bitter about what they had witnessed at Mumbwa Hospital.

Imasiku said in an interview from the funeral house in Limulunga that they were appalled by Kabayo's paternal uncle, Masheke, who is Shangombo district commissioner, after he tried to block medical authorities from conducting a postmortem on the boy.

"The DC Masheke Kabayo did not want a postmortem to be conducted but we refused because we wanted to know what had killed the boy," Imasiku said. "I was there when he said that there should be no postmortem while we were outside near the vehicle."

Imasiku said Masheke only backed out after seeing the pressure coming from those that wanted the postmortem operation to proceed.
"He said he had no objection if that is what the people wanted," Imasiku said. "It was painful that they could do that."

Imasiku narrated that later, Masheke and local government minister and Mumbwa Central MMD parliamentarian Brig Gen Dr Brian Chituwo went into a closed-door meeting with doctors.
"That closed-door meeting took one hour thirty to two hours," he said.

Imasiku wondered where Masheke had been all this time when the boy was in detention in Mumbwa.

"When the boy was detained in police custody he didn't even come and when we told him his response was not good," Imasiku said. "Where was he when he was needed to come and help the boy?"

Imasiku said the boy's relatives from the mother's side wanted to bring his body to Lusaka so that it was embalmed before taking it around Western Province in order to tell people to vote the MMD out this year.

The funeral procession taking the late Kabayo's body to Mongu left Mumbwa at 16:06 hours on Saturday and arrived in Mongu at 21:48. Burial was expected to take place at 14:00 hours in Limulunga yesterday.

Labels: BAROTSE FREEDOM MOVEMENT, MONGU

posted by MrK @ 1:28 PM