Measures afoot to punish naughty foreign-based Zambians

By CHUSA SICHONE and
KASONDE KASONDE –
VICE President Inonge Wina has told parliament that Government has engaged international security agencies to ensure that Zambians living in the diaspora and inciting citizens to engage in illegal activities are extradited for them to be prosecuted.
Ms Wina also told Parliament yesterday that the House would on Tuesday consider a motion on the Declaration of Threatened State of Public Emergency.
Speaking during the Vice-President’s question time, Ms Wina said it was unfortunate that some Zambians in the diaspora were using social media to incite others to engage in acts of sabotage and violence and denting the country’s image to the outside world.

WINA

Responding to a question from Chinsali Member of Parliament (MP) Kalalwe Mukosa on whether the Government was considering extraditing such people to Zambia to answer charges leveled against them, Ms Wina answered in the affirmative.
“Madam Speaker, this Government has signed some agreements with some foreign countries regarding extradition of undesirable characters or Zambians in their countries or in our country and we are in discussions to ensure that they do not keep people who are damaging our country.
“We have also engaged international security agencies like Interpol to look into some of these issues. So the country will be informed when some developments have been achieved in this area,” she said.
She cited a named Zambian in the diaspora belonging to a named political party who posted on Facebook celebrating the torching of the City Market and inciting the locals to intensify such acts.
She said projecting a positive image of the country was every Zambian’s responsibility.
“It’s very unfortunate that the culprits who wanted spoil Zambia’s name are Zambians themselves and the reasons for doing so are not well established because since the end of the elections in August 2016, we have seen an accelerated propaganda on damaging Zambia’s reputation,” she said.
Ms Wina said leaders in other countries would declare a State of Emergency without consulting that President Lungu consulted Parliament because he respected the law.
Meanwhile Ms Wina has said that the inferno that engulfed City Market in Lusaka is a wake-up call to the Government and stakeholders to invest in the construction of fire resistance markets across the country.
Ms Wina said it was unfortunate that the market that was constructed at great cost went up in flames due to unscrupulous people sabotaging the growth of the economy and measures had to be put in place to protect public buildings.
She said Government was already leading the rehabilitation works at the market to ensure that the vendors and the public had access to quality services.
Ms Wina said this yesterday when she met the Inter-ministerial Committee that was formed by President Edgar Lungu earlier this week to look at the plight victims of the fire.
“As Government we are saddened with the act of sabotage at City Market and we have drawn lessons from that unfortunate act on the need to build fire resistant markets to ensure that the such tragedies do not reoccur,” Ms Wina said.
She said it was sad that destructive people set the market ablaze and people lost property that they worked had to earn.
And Local Government Minister Vincent Mwale said three alternative spaces had been identified to relocate some of the affected vendors from City Market.
Mr Mwale said the three temporary trading areas required some works to make them conducive for business.
Disaster Management and Mitigation Unit’s Patrick Kangwa said less than half the market was gutted while the other half had to be brought down to allow the fire-fighters get around in their efforts to extinguish the fire.
He said the unit had started receiving contributions from the public and private sector to help the affected vendors.