Nawakwi wins rape threat case
By Abigail Chaponda in Ndola
Sat 02 Feb. 2013, 12:30 CAT
CHIEF resident magistrate Collins Lundah yesterday convicted former UPND national youth chairman Joe Kalusa and fined him KR10,000 for threatening to organise cadres to gang rape FDD leader Edith Nawakwi.
And in an interview after Kalusa's conviction, Nawakwi said it was sad that women in Zambia were regarded as weaker vessels.
Kalusa was charged with one count of threatening violence.
Matters before court were that Kalusa, 40 on September 14, 2012, allegedly issued the threat in Ndola to the effect that he would organise cadres to "gang rape" the opposition leader.
Kalusa had vowed to organise UPND youths on the Copperbelt to 'gang rape' Nawakwi in order to teach her to respect married men like UPND leader Hakainde Hichilema.
His threats were issued after due to Nawakwi's criticism of Hichilema in the media.
In passing judgment, magistrate Lundah said out of the KR10,000, five thousand should be given to Nawakwi as compensation.
He said the KR10,000 should be paid within three days in default nine months imprisonment.
Lundah said he regarded every woman as his mother, sister and daughter, and that women should be respected.
He said that insulting a woman was as good as insulting one's mother.
"Politicians should always remember to talk about issues and not insult each other. Talk about issues that are affecting people and not who has children with who and who is having sex with who. Use civil language to each other and not insults," he said.
And Nawakwi said many children, women and grandmothers were being abused and threatened with permanent injuries where they live or at their work of places.
"I wish to commend the magistrate, he has set precedence. He has written the law that shall be followed from on onwards. Up until this point, our menfolk did not realise that verbal violence is a criminal offence under the Penal Code," she said.
Labels: CADRES, COURTS, EDITH NAWAKWI, JOE KALUSA, POLITICAL VIOLENCE, RAPE, UPND
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Kalusa vows to set UPND cadre rapists on Nawakwi
By Abigail Chaponda in Ndola
Mon 17 Sep. 2012, 10:20 CAT
FORMER UPND national youth chairman Joe Kalusa has vowed to organise party youth on the Copperbelt to 'gang-rape' FDD leader Edith Nawakwi "to teach her to respect married men like Hakainde Hichilema".
Kalusa, who angrily stormed Post offices in Ndola on Friday, said Nawakwi was a bigger 'pig' and did not have respect for men.
"The last time Nawakwi called our president HH, 'Kadansa'; we tolerated her. Today she has called our president a pig; we will not spare her this time around. She has made a very big mistake by calling our president a pig," he said.
"We are going to organise UPND youths on the Copperbelt to gang-rape Nawakwi in order to teach her to respect men like our president HH. She has gone too far."
Kalusa said Nawakwi should not be mudslinging people when she knew she had issues to sort out.
He said Nawakwi should behave like a mother and set good examples to her children by respecting men.
Kalusa, however, asked that the story be withdrawn because Copperbelt security officers called to question him on his statement before it was published.
"Where have you seen a person being interrogated before a story comes out? This is not good. Office of the President here in Ndola called, asking me if it was true that I was going to organise youths to gang-rape Nawakwi. So I think just drop the story," said Kalusa.
Reacting to Hichilema's verbal attacks on her, Nawakwi said Hichilema was "a male chauvinist pig who belongs to the dust-bin of the Stone Age".
Hichilema on Wednesday described Nawakwi as a hired gun of the PF, who seemed to have run out of meals to cook in the kitchen, adding that she should confine herself to the kitchen and stop attacking him.
"This girl Nawakwi, who is saying 'Hakainde has done this, Hakainde has done that...' What has Hakainde done? Nawakwi, the hired gun for the PF. That is all she is," said Hichilema. "It's too much of this Nawakwi. Please if you have run out of what to cook in the kitchen, go and look for something at the market."
Labels: EDITH NAWAKWI, JOE KALUSA, RAPE, UPND
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Pact, nation can’t be led by an under-five, says Sata
By Kombe Chimpinde and Abigail Chaponda in Ndola
Thu 30 Sep. 2010, 14:00 CAT
OPOSITION Patriotic Front (PF) leader Micheal Sata has said the Pact and the nation cannot be led by an 'under five' or immature leaders who lack experience and financial discipline.
And Sata has said the Memorandum of Understanding between PF and UPND, as the name implied, was not a statute and that if UPND were not comfortable with it, they were free to get out of it. In an interview with Voice of America on Tuesday evening, Sata charged that neither the Pact nor the nation could be led by an under five or inexperienced leader.
He was reacting to UPND youths on the Copperbelt led by their national coordinator Joe Kalusa who said that UPND would not allow him to lead the Pact as he was too tired and old.
"The whole point is experience in your field. In anybody's field, experience is more important. For example, the UPND was headed by an experienced manager the late Anderson Mazoka, they had 49 seats in Parliament. They don't have 49 seats in Parliament now. So there is nothing that can replace experience,” Sata said.
“If you look at all the great leaders of the world, they are not ‘under-fives’. They were matured people and matured people are not diverted by having seven mobile phones or seven cell phones they have seen, and when they speak, they know what they are talking about."
Sata was responding to a question on UPND having signed for a Pact with PF but were now questioning his credibility and ability to lead the Pact ahead of elections next year.
"I don't see a problem at all. The problem which they have, you know Zambia is suffering from high unemployment and the worry of people like Joe Kalusa is that if the president comes from a member of the Pact, let's say if PF produces a president, most of the jobs will go to PF people.
Labels: JOE KALUSA, MICHAEL SATA, PF-UPND
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UPND not interested in Pact anymore – PF
By George Chellah
Sat 25 Sep. 2010, 04:02 CAT
PF national youth secretary Eric Chanda yesterday said it is outrightly clear that UPND is no longer interested in the pact and have resolved to act as spoilers in the 2011 general elections.
Reacting to UPND national youth chairperson Joe Kalusa’s statement that PF leader Michael Sata is losing wisdom everyday, Chanda said the PF youths would no longer tolerate the insults from the UPND on Sata.
“As PF youths we cannot continue stomaching the insults being hurled on our party president Mr Michael Chilufya Sata and our secretary general Mr Wynter Kabimba by the UPND. It is outrightly clear from the insults that we have received on our senior leadership from the UPND that our colleagues in the UPND are no longer interested in the pact,” Chanda said.
“They UPND want to destroy PF and then leave us at the end of the day to join the MMD or simply act as spoilers so that they lessen our chances and let the MMD carry the day. But they will not succeed because the people of Zambia are carefully watching and they know the truth. They have actually exposed themselves too early.”
He said the insults from UPND that were being poured on Sata were unjustifiable.
“The UPND have tried to hide their bad faith by referring to PF vice-president Dr Guy Scott’s one off article that appeared in The Post where he explained the realities and challenges of the pact. I have said one off because Dr Scott’s statement only appeared once,” Chanda said.
“But what has the UPND or Mr Hichilema in particular got to say about Joe Kalusa’s continuous attacks and insults on our party leadership and the president in particular? Joe Kalusa, the UPND national youth chairman in what capacity can he go to insult the PF president Mr Michael Sata that he has lost wisdom?
“The Zambian people know very well that Mr Sata has done a lot for this country. He is the man of the people and the most capable man to rule this country from 2011 and years by. What has Joe Kalusa done for this country to warrant his attacks and insults on President Sata?”
He said it was obvious that the attacks and insults on Sata were sponsored by other people.
“We know that Kalusa, Mazabuka UPND member of parliament Gary Nkombo and Siavonga UPND member of parliament Douglas Syakalima have been planted by the UPND president himself Mr Hakainde Hichilema to destroy the reputation of president Michael Sata and Wynter Kabimba and to destroy the reputation of the entire PF. But they are bound to fail because PF is a mass driven political party. Our strength lies in the people themselves,” said Chanda.
“Anyone can see that UPND does not mean well to the pact. What UPND could have done if they were genuinely aggrieved or had any issues was to call for round table dialogue. But they have gone to the media in an attempt to destroy us. This we cannot accept as PF youths and we are saying if they are not ready to dialogue let them come out in the open because their real intentions are already known.”
On Friday, Syakalima, who is also Hichilema’s senior adviser, was quoted in the Times of Zambia as having accused Sata and Kabimba of not believing in the spirit of the pact.
“By saying that UPND should accept that PF has more MPs than the UPND and the issue of presidency only means that they don’t believe in the pact,” he said.
Syakalima said the claim by the PF that it had more members of parliament was wrong.
He said PF was no longer strong because most of its member of parliament voted with the MMD.
He wondered why the PF could not accept reality that they had been losing to the MMD in Luapula Province.
Syakalima also said PF could no longer bank on its past glory because the “political pendulum is emotional and unpredictable.”
And Nkombo was quoted in the same publication as having maintained that Kabimba was an enemy of the pact and the Zambian people would blame him for breaking the alliance.
The Times of Zambia also quoted Kalusa stating that Sata had lost wisdom despite having served in government for a long time.
“As an old man, we expected Mr Sata to provide wisdom in the pact, but he has failed. If anything his statements in the media are showing that he is losing wisdom every day,” Kalusa said.
Copperbelt UPND chairperson Elisha Matambo told The Post that his party could survive without PF.
Labels: ERIC CHANDA, JOE KALUSA, PF, UPND
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Kalusa asks Prof Chirwa to join PF-UPND pact
Written by Mwila Chansa in Kitwe
Monday, July 20, 2009 7:41:00 AM
UPND national youth chairperson Joe Kalusa has asked MMD presidential aspirant Professor Clive Chirwa to join the UPND and PF pact, saying the door in the MMD is already too hard and cemented. In an interview yesterday, Kalusa said the door of the presidency in the MMD was not for noble people such as Prof Chirwa.
"Even people who are in Zambia like Katele Kalumba have given up and are dancing for Rupiah Banda's candidature in 2011, so I sympathise with Clive. How will he open that door when those in Zambia have failed?" he asked.
Kalusa urged Prof Chirwa to realise that there was nothing he was fighting for in MMD because even if he succeeded to become their candidate in 2011, he would still fail because the MMD as a party and government had damaged the country beyond repair and hence people had lost confidence in them.
"My humble advice is for him to join the pact now because if he comes at the eleventh hour, it will be too late for him. I admire him, he's got brains and can contribute to the development of this country, but he can only do that through the pact," said Kalusa.
He accused the MMD of condoning thefts and challenged them to explain where the railway line linking Luanshya to Ndola had gone.
"The best thing for the Professor is to stop pushing a cemented and closed door. It's... not for noble men like Chirwa."
And Kalusa hoped that Prof Chirwa had come back to Zambia for good, observing that it would be difficult for him to contribute effectively to issues in the country just by reading about the developments on-line.
Kalusa cited the recent nurses' strike as an issue that Prof Chirwa needed to see in person to appreciate how chaotic the situation was.
Meanwhile, Kalusa urged the women's movement not to depart from their core principle of representing voiceless women because people would conclude that they had been bought.
He said it was surprising that leaders of the women's movement had began changing goalposts immediately after their visit to State House.
Kalusa urged the women leaders to follow up reports that a woman in Kasama had given birth in police cells, saying they should take police to task for allowing such an occurrence.
Labels: CLIVE CHIRWA, JOE KALUSA, PF-UPND
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HH raised Mpombo from poverty, says Capt Moono
Written by Chibaula Silwamba
Wednesday, May 13, 2009 3:43:11 PM
HAKAINDE Hichilema raised George Mpombo from shackles of poverty in Masaiti village where he was drinking a local brew, opposition UPND chairperson for defence Captain Cosmas Moono revealed yesterday. And UPND youth national chairperson Joe Kalusa has challenged defence minister Mpombo to explain what he meant when he said UPND leader Hichilema will disappear from the Zambian political scene.
Reacting to Mpombo's reference to Hichilema as a spoiled child because of the latter's questioning of the mobile hospitals deal and his claim that President Rupiah Banda wanted a cut from the US $53 million deal, Capt Moono said UPND and Hichilema had greatly contributed to shape Mpombo's career, hence it was unfair for the Minister of Defence to demean the opposition leader.
"Mpombo should not say anything against HH because it is HH who has made him what he is. Mpombo was languishing in Masaiti village until UPND picked him as a councillor under [the late Anderson] Mazoka's leadership. The man was just wearing a grey suit with tropicals [flip-flops] and drinking local beer in the village. People were even reluctant to share beer with him until HH donated a Nissan Sentra, red in colour, which he was given and unfortunately, he didn't even know how to drive it. We had to teach him to drive that vehicle," Capt Moono explained.
"After that, we had problems to address public meetings with him because the man was not appealing in terms of appearance to the people in comparison with other candidates who were selected as councillors. HH donated money which we used to give Mpombo to buy the first suit. It was after he won these elections at council level that he became clean and MMD noticed him."
Capt Moono said Mpombo defected from the UPND and joined the governing MMD.
"In 2001, he became an MP on MMD ticket. [Therefore,] it is immoral for Mpombo to start insulting people of HH's calibre who he is supposed to kneel down and pray to," he said. "In fact, HH is a god for Mpombo here on earth because he is the one who resurrected him. He has no moral fibre to start talking against HH. These are the same UPND fellows who when they defect to MMD and they are given jobs, they become so big and forget where they came from."
He said Mpombo should realise that his government wanted to rape Zambia of its meagre resources by considering the purchasing of mobile hospitals.
"The mobile hospitals they are talking about are inappropriate technology to our country. It's not suitable. Chinese are not known to make durable equipment, durable vehicles. Therefore, with our roads, these equipment will not last," Capt Moono said. "So when HH is saying no to this idea, actually he is talking on behalf of all Zambians, especially the poor."
He wondered why President Banda was insisting that mobile hospitals were ‘a damn good idea.’
"The MMD government's insistence to push this project into our throat even when we are refusing leaves much to be desired," said Capt Moono. "In any case, why should the President become the chief buyer of the government? Where are the technocrats who have been employed to do these specific jobs? Since when have we got this culture where we have a President who is involved in every purchase?"
Over the weekend, Mpombo said Hichilema behaved liked a spoiled child not befitting a leader.
And Kalusa said the UPND was worried about Hichilema's life following Mpombo's remarks that he would disappear.
"We fear for the life of our president when they mention things like disappearing because people have disappeared before in unexplained circumstances. We don't want the same to happen to HH," Kalusa said. "You know Mpombo is in charge of defence and security. That worries us as UPND."
Kalusa also dared the government through the police to arrest Hichilema if they were convinced that he lied when he said President Banda and the MMD wanted a commission from the US$53 million [about K301 billion] mobile hospitals deal.
"We challenge Mpombo not to backpedal about his threats that HH will be arrested. What HH said is the truth. We are daring them to arrest him," said Kalusa. "The mobile hospital deal is a scandal and it needs to be probed."
Last week, Mpombo said Hichilema was an inconsequential political figure and he would disappear from the Zambian political scene just like a puff of smoke.
Labels: COSMAS MOONO, GEORGE MPOMBO, HAKAINDE HICHILEMA, JOE KALUSA
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COMMENT - Why do even the unions keep asking for jobs to be maintained? Isn't it clear that the dogmatic and ideological decision to privatise the mines has failed, and that this is no way to run an economy? The miners should not be asking for jobs - they should be taking over the mines, and the government must help them doing so. They can get them on so many things - violation of environmental and labour laws, and not last, on tax evasion (look who didn't pay the windfall tax and get them on that). It is a chance for the MMD to show they are not corrupt, and stand with their own citizens. Also, mining is a very inefficient way to create jobs - agriculture can create 10 x more jobs with 1/10th of the investment - which is why money should be poured from mining into agriculture, infrastructure and manufacturing.
Govt has failed to protect jobs for miners – Mukanga
Written by Chibaula Silwamba, Kabanda Chulu and Mutuna Chanda
Friday, May 08, 2009 4:39:50 PM
THE government has failed to protect jobs for the miners despite assurances, Kantanshi member of parliament Yamfwa Mukanga has charged. And Patriotic Front (PF) chairperson for labour Davies Mwila has said there is no justification for Mopani Copper Mines (MCM) to retrench workers when copper prices have started increasing on the international markets.
In an interview on Tuesday, Mukanga, whose constituents in Mufulira town have been hard hit by retrenchments of MCM, said people were desperate because they had no means of survival.
"[Labour minister Austin] Liato had lied that no company had notified the government that it will retrench workers but now people are losing their jobs at Mopani Copper Mines and this has shown that the government doesn't care about these people. People have no jobs while the government is watching from the terraces. That is not good, the government was supposed to get involved to ensure that our people are protected," Mukanga said.
"The President used to assure us. Even the ministers were assuring us but people are still losing jobs. A lot of people have been affected by the lay-offs by Mopani Copper Mines. So many people have lost their jobs at Mopani but the government has kept quiet. Government was supposed to protect them."
Mukanga urged the government to seriously look into the frequent retrenchments of the miners and come up with measures that would mitigate the sufferings of the people in Copperbelt Province.
And commenting on the decision by MCM to retrench 978 miners at both Nkana and Mufulira mines, Mwila said in Lusaka that President Rupiah Banda's government must be blamed for failing to protect its own citizens.
"There is no control from this government and investors are doing things on their own. Just recently, President Banda's ministers assured that there will be no job losses but this is contrary to what they said," Mwila said.
"When copper prices dropped, investors used that as an excuse to lay off workers but there is no justification by Mopani to prune workers since prices on the international market have started rising [US$ 4,600 per tonne] and their production costs are well below what they are selling these commodities."
On Lusaka economist Chibamba Kanyama's suggestion that redundancy packages should be revised to reflect investor challenges, Mwila said Kanyama was part of management and should not be taken seriously.
"Zambia Federation of Employers has been advocating that retrenchment package of two months salary for a year served is too much and Kanyama is also supporting that view, but what is that package when someone has just worked for five years because it comes to between K15 million to K20 million that will also be taken by banks since most loans are salary based," said Mwila.
"There is no need to review the Act on redundancy packages because workers are getting peanuts in fact it must be increased upwards to avoid workers becoming destitute."
United Party for National Development (UPND) national youth chairperson Joe Kalusa said mining investors in the country were playing the drums while the MMD government was just dancing.
Kalusa challenged labour deputy minister Simon Kachimba to disclose the deal he allegedly struck with the mines.
"The retrenchments at Mopani are not genuine since expatriates have not been affected and last week Kachimba said there will be no job losses but since people have been retrenched he should tell us what deal he struck with the mines for him to make that announcement," Kalusa said.
"Copper prices are still high but the MMD government has no control and they are playing double standards, it is like investors are playing drums and this government is just dancing instead of taking charge."
And Mineworkers Union of Zambia (MUZ) general secretary Oswell Munyenyembe blamed government for its sluggish approach in dealing with job losses in the mining industry.
Munyenyembe said the problem was with government because it was not eager to meet trade unions in the mining sector over the plight of workers in the industry.
"... We have been pressing to meet them particularly the President [Rupiah Banda] to give them the actual issues on the ground but they have not been forthcoming," Munyenyembe said.
"What is more confusing is that the minister of mines and the minister of labour are saying that they were not informed of the latest job losses at Mopani. Government is confusing its citizens."
He expressed disappointment with Mopani over the retrenchments arguing that the lay offs were not justified at the current copper prices.
"At the current copper prices we don't expect Mopani to be offloading those numbers," said Munyenyembe. "The recession is just an excuse."
National Union of Miners and Allied Workers (NUMAW) president Mundia Sikufele said it was difficult to trust the promises of a stop to job losses in the mining industry.
Sikufele said it was sad that miners were losing jobs.
"Companies and government will say one thing today and what happens after is different," said Sikufele. "I'm hoping that this is the last retrenchment."
National Energy Sector and Allied Workers Union (NESAWU) general secretary Yotam Mtayachalo urged mining companies in agreement with unions and workers to sacrifice certain conditions and benefits as an interim measure to save jobs.
"When times are hard, it pays to make tough and unpopular decisions which will be beneficial in future and this demands unity among the workers and leaders. The auto mobile workers in America have made such bold decisions to protect jobs of their members. It is better to be in employment than get meagre redundancy packages and offloaded in the streets," he stated.
Mtayachalo also called on Mopani to rescind its decision to retrench union branch leaders.
Kankoyo PF member of parliament Percy Chanda suggested that the retrenched miners could engage in small scale copper mining in the slug dumps and sell the products to Mopani.
He urged government to facilitate the practice by engaging Mopani to enable the retrenched miners to continue with their livelihoods.
He said while other retrenched miners in other areas could engage in farming, it was not possible for those who were retrenched in Kankoyo area because the soil was contaminated as a result of the emissions of sulphur dioxide.
On Monday, MCM retrenched at least 978 workers of whom over 500 are from Nkana in Kitwe and over 400 from Mufulira to ensure the survival of the mine.
The sources indicated that the mining firm had also closed some of its departments that included industrial engineering and In Situ at Nkana in Kitwe.
Labels: DAVIES MWILA, JOBLOSSES, JOE KALUSA, MCM, MUNDIA SIFUKELE, NEOLIBERALISM, OSWELL MUNYENYEMBE, YAMFWA MUKANGA, YOTAM MTAYACHALO
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