Thursday, March 28, 2024

24 UNZA students arrested for conduct likely to cause breach of the peace

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FILE: UNZA students protesting at ZNBC this morning
FILE: UNZA students protesting at ZNBC this morning

POLICE on Saturday arrested 24 University of Zambia (UNZA) students who took to the streets for conduct likely to cause breach of the peace.

The 24 are the second batch of students that had been arrested in a space of two days as 13 others were arrested on Thursday for idle and disorderly conduct.

The students rioted and blocked the Great east road while chanting slogans and inconveniencing motorists. Police were however on hand to calm the situation.

UNZA student union (UNZASU) president Steven Kyengula said the students were demanding for the release of the draft Constitution, release of Foundation for Democratic Process (FODEP) executive director Macdonald Chipenzi, the reinstatement of fired nurses and increment of meal allowance.

Mr Kyengula said the 24 who were arrested on Saturday were offering solidarity to the 13 students who had been earlier arrested.

Police spokesperson Charity Munganga-Chanda who confirmed the development in an interview yesterday out of the 24 students that were arrested on Saturday 18 has been released after they paid admission of guilt.

Ms Chanda said six were still in detention at Lusaka central police but would be released once they paid the admission of guilt fees.

She further explained that the 13 who were earlier arrested and charged with idle and disorderly have since been bonded but would appear in court today.

“Yes we arrested 24 more students yesterday for conduct likely to cause the breach of peace but 18 have paid admission of guilt and have been released. The remaining six are still in detention but they will be released once they paid the admission of guilt. They will not appear in court,” Ms Chanda said.

But Mr Kyengula said the union was not initially aware about the riot by the students but after it made investigations, it was discovered that they were demanding many things.

Mr Kyengula said the union had been dialoguing with the police and were happy that most of them have been released adding that there were indications that even the remaining six would be released by close of business yesterday.

He said that UNZASU engaged justice minister Wynter Kabimba who has given a promise on the Constitution regarding the way forward.

Mr Kyengula said the union had also written to the ministry of Education giving reasons why they wanted the meal allowance increment and were still waiting for the response.

12 COMMENTS

  1. But you little brats. do you turn to motorists for your grievances. You Must be crazy. Your parents send you to school and all you do is become destabilizers.

  2. that’s cobra for you, you were warned but went ahead and voted for him even danced and celebrated, now you experiencing the real venom, kiss that freedom
    goodbye

    • @ OLD GRADUATE.NONSENSE
      Dont make a big deal outof that, you mean to tell me you cant just make sense of what he meant. Ba Old Graduate(what school were you in ? was it the school of corrections ?)
      dont shift attention. Students are demanding for Draft Constitution on behalf of Zambians. The only thing you can conderm is inconveniencing of motorists. VIVA UNZASU.

  3. Viva Monk, Moma, we must get a people driven Consititution! Winter is up to something. How I miss Sebastian Zulu as Justice Minister!!

  4. Foolish students. They think they have everything. Finish your school and see how difficult life is out there. You will realize you worsted much time on stupid things.

  5. And I thought there are on their way to expressing diplomacy in every area they encounter being the future learned fellows of the country! So this is the crop we are expecting to lead in near future, yeah….. they say once a Chicken, always a Chicken!

  6. The government and the unza management should consider relocating the school of Engineering to another place like the way it is with school of medicine at ridgeway. school of Engineering is a serious school which trains people who will be designing aeroplanes and should not be part of the circus which goes on every now and then.

  7. I AM TIRED WITH UNZA STUDENTS WHO ARE BEING USED BY POLITICIANS,ONCE YOU FAIL WE WILL WELCOME YOU IN THE STREET,SOME STUDENTS ARE EARNING SOMETHING FROM THIS SO BE CAREFUL.

  8. Dont these students have studies to attaend to. Does the draft constitution really what they should be demonstrating for when the Vice President has assured it will be published before the new year. They cant even write – what is ‘Listen Us’?

  9. There is nothing wrong with University students demonstrating on pertinent national issues. It is only when they destroy public property as a means to getting attention that the law should come in. Education is not just sitting in a classroom. Real education is being conscious of what is going on and being able to arrive at the conclusion that protest is necessary – democracy and freedom are not achieved by being selfish and burying your heads in the sand.

    I also fail to understand the charge of ‘idle and disorderly’. I don’t know how one can be idle and yet disorderly.

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