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Govt Justifies Rupiah’s Blocking
Home Affairs Minister Edgar Lungu says former president Rupiah Banda was blocked from travelling to South Africa because his departure would be prejudicial to ongoing investigations against him.
Speaking when he addressed journalists in Lusaka today, Mr. Lungu says the worry of government is that there is a likelihood that Mr. Banda may temper with evidence and potential witnesses or sabotage the investigations against him altogether.
Mr. Lungu adds that the court order to allow Mr. Banda to travel was not communicated or shown to the Attorney General or other government officials hence the Immigration denying him exit.
He says government just learnt from the media that Mr. Banda’s passport was released by the courts without seeing the documentation allowing him to travel.
He has further disclosed that government has given standing instructions to different investigative wings to be alert and not allow Mr. Banda leave the country without clearance.
Mr. Lungu adds that if the court feels the investigations should be conducted under their supervision, this will be the breach of the long established need to separate the functions of the executive from the judiciary and defeat the rule of law.
He says Mr. Banda is still being probed by investigative wings such as the Anti Corruption Commission and the Government Joint Investigations Team on various allegations of public interest some of which require gathering information from witnesses outside the country.
Posted by
pat
June 8, 2013 at 12:30 pm
RB should wait to b creared.poor pepo are languishing in prisons for theft like a chicken but pepo like Liato RB HH who hav stolen from poor zambians ar still enjoing in the street.Lows where made for the poor.may God giv hop to the poor pepo in prisons
milly
June 8, 2013 at 3:54 pm
I had a lot of faith in MCS. I still do and feel he needs to rid himself of oppotunists and people that are working to put him in very embarassing situations.
Abena PJ
June 8, 2013 at 5:19 pm
Rupiah used to make others dance unjustly because he was drunk with power not realising that his abuse of power would haunt hime some day. This is his time to dance. His past arrogance has cought up with him.
Musukwa Kanjere
June 9, 2013 at 7:44 pm
You remind me of Chansa Kabwela, Zambian Airways (Nchito and mmembe), Shakafuswa, Chibombamilimo, including some state house staff etc. I ASK RB DID YOU TREAT EVERYONE FAIRLY?Those who kill by the sold die by the sold! PF check yourselves.
Dim Wit
June 9, 2013 at 7:53 am
Zambia is a wonder of all wonders! Not long ago we were all over doing the same to FTJ Chiluba at a huge cost to the tax payer and yet we did nothing to prevent future occurrence of the same! I personally think we are exposing our country to ridicule each time we waste resources inflicting pain on Ex – presidents! We achieved nothing with Chiluba’s persecution and we’ll achieve nothing with Banda’s persecution except to send them early to their graves! We seriously need to introspect as a nation and put in place good institutional frameworks that keep in check the performance of the head of state while in office. What is happening to Banda will happen to MCS and whoever rules this country thereafter if we maintain the status quo and when Elephants fight, it is the grass that suffers! Let us stop this waste! We have a saying in the Military: “Once a General, Always a General”. The office of the former head of state deserves respect!
Kalubemba
June 9, 2013 at 11:41 am
The court gives RB a green light and some above the law character over rules the Zambian courts.so RB is blocked at the airport that he will temper with evidence in South Africa or is it Nigeria. What cheap thinking? What image does it paint of our judiciary? What image does that create for our Zambia which is greater than any of these personal vendettas? It happened to Chiluba and it just sent him to his early grave.Is someone celebrating that Chiluba died? one more question what will Zambians benefit from an old man’s prison sentence that is if there will ever be one?
Henrique
June 9, 2013 at 1:09 pm
Cheap and arrogant behaviour indeed by the so called Home Affairs Minister who thinks he is above the law.
The biggest danger is the anarchy that will follow if the executive arm of the government disregards court orders and the rule of law.
You have an Attorney General that is not doing his job by advising his principals of the folly of their actions.
pemps
June 9, 2013 at 11:13 pm
Lock the chap he is a disgrace, we voted for him, he started dipping his dirt fingers in or coffers. chimangeni chikabwalala. If we lost money at chiluba’s time and nothing came out of it, it’s because we had people like RB who were blocking justice, and they thought they could take advantage of the same by crying so LOUD when time like this comes. My advice, let the law take it’s coarse. if you did nothing, why the worry?