LEVY Mwanawasa was a great leader, Rupiah Banda was a great leader but now we have a monster in State House who is so scared of his own shadow, says Chishimba Kambwili. Kambwili said people should not downplay President Edgar Lungu’s involvement with the Chinese, as he is ‘Chinese’ himself. Speaking on ‘Let the people talk’ programme on Radio Phoenix yesterday, Kambwili said President Lungu and the PF regime would go to any lengths to deal with anyone who spoke against the Chinese because the country’s involvement with China was now deep.

“The people of Zambia must know that this country has now become another province of China and the Chinese are more important than Zambians,” he said.

Kambwili said he would however not stop talking for Zambians marginalised at the hands of the Chinese as witnessed in Luanshya where AVIC international workers sought for his intervention.

“I enjoy being treated like that, more especially when I have not committed any offence. When you are speaking on behalf of the people of Zambia and you are treated like that [detained and bundled in a van and driven to Luanshya], it’s a plus for me; it’s a blessing in disguise. You must remember that even Jesus Christ, the Son of God suffered for the people. Jesus was crucified for speaking the truth, and he was crucified for wanting to save humanity, it’s biblical that those who mean well, who speak on behalf of the people, are treated the way I was treated,” Kambwili said.

He maintained that home affairs minister Stephen Kampyongo and Luanshya mayor Nathan Chanda were behind his arrest.

“You are a member of parliament, seated at your house and then people come to say they have a problem and you speak to them but here comes a small mayor in the town who calls the police that ‘they had a meeting without a permit, arrest them’, calls Kampyongo saying ‘Ba Minister, here was an illegal meeting’ and then Kampyongo calls [Copperbelt police commissioner Charity] Katanga that ‘arrest them’…that’s the order of the day,” he said. “That’s why we say Inama yamwaiche tainona, the problem with my young man in Luanshya is that he is so desperate to be MP. He thinks when I am out he can automatically be there but leadership comes from God. I want to advise him that he is treading on dangerous grounds as people are watching.”

Kambwili said for one year he has not held any meetings in his constituency.

“The same mayor and Kampyongo have made it very impossible to do so. I am not even supposed to notify the police if I am holding a meeting. I have a right to hold a meeting in any place in my constituency but every time I want to hold a meeting, there is police on me,” he said.

“Even during MMD time, how many people came to my house for help? All sorts of groupings that have come to my house to complain about ill-treatment and poor conditions of service, and I have given them audience and have not been arrested, not only when I was in government…that’s why I say Levy Mwanawasa was a great leader, Rupiah Banda was a great leader but now we have a monster in State House, who is so scared of his own shadow. And any attempt for somebody to speak on behalf of the people, especially when it involves the Chinese, then, you are in trouble. The people of Zambia must know that this country has now become another province of China and the Chinese are more important than Zambians…. As I speak to you, my other co-accused are still in remand prison, they have met bail conditions, and we talk to their families, but because the magistrate they brought is from Ndola, he cannot go and sign the bail for them and he can only go there on Thursday. I cannot blame the magistrate. [But] there are magistrates in Luanshya and this is a simple matter, a misdemeanor and usually when there are cases of unlawful assembly, people just pay K54 and they are released.”

Kambwili said Chanda and Kampyongo’s desperation was shocking to all that were watching from a distance.

“Because people want to get at Chishimba Kambwili, they want to ill-treat Chishimba Kambwili, they want to mistreat him, others want to be MPs even when their time is not ripe, this is the end result,” he said.

“This is poor leadership being exhibited by President Lungu, his ministers and the young man in Luanshya called mayor. I have been briefed about all the meetings, all the meetings to plan my arrest were held at the mayor’s house. By the way, two, three boys were taken from the cells at night and taken to the mayor’s house so that he can tell them what to say and do but the boys told them that the honourable never called us, we just went there but they wanted them to say ‘the honourable is the one who organised everything for us to go to his house’…. Police were shocked. These boys were strong enough to tell them that we cannot implicate our MP who is doing a good job for us. I feel sorry for this young man (Chanda). I feel sorry for the unprofessionalism of the police because they are destroying a moral fibre on which Zambia has been known as a peaceful nation.”

Kambwili said he was ready to be arrested over and over in his quest to be the voice for the voiceless.

“I will not stop doing my job, even tomorrow if people come to my house, I will do the same because that’s my duty. That’s my constitutional right. I will not be scared of a small boy, Chanda, small boy Kampyongo, unprofessional Katanga, unprofessional [Eugene] Sibote, unprofessional [Bonny] Kapeso,” said Kambwili. “I will not stop doing my job. If they have to arrest me 50 times let them go ahead. I have been doing this job for the past 12 years, how many groupings have been to my house with problems and have resolved their problems?”