Friday, March 29, 2024

State condemns cop for assaulting nurses

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Government has joined scores of people that have condemned the behaviour of a police officer, who assaulted two nurses after his child died at the University Teaching Hospital (UTH) in Lusaka over the weekend.

Chief Government Spokesperson, Mike Mulongoti said the behaviour of sub-inspector Peter Mwale was uncalled for even under such circumstances.

Mr. Mwale is alleged to have assaulted two nurses at UTH, whom he accused of
negligence resulting into the death of his child.

Mr. Mulongoti, who is also Minister of Information and Broadcasting Services, said
in a statement to ZANIS today that as an officer charged with a duty to enforce the
law and keep order, Mr. Mwale should have exercised restraint even after losing his
child.

He said government would not condone the behaviour displayed by Mr. Mwale, noting
that nurses were overwhelmed with work hence the seemingly slackening behaviour
towards attending to patients.

“While it is appreciated and understandable that a person who loses a close relation
may lose composure, Government will not allow anyone to take the law into their own
hands or disrupt services at any public institution due to failure to exercise
self-control,” he said.

Mr. Mulongoti said Mr. Mwale should have exercised some level of restraint as a law
enforcement officer and should not have allowed himself to be overtaken by personal
emotions.

The minister said even nurses themselves did not enjoy seeing people dying and
therefore they try their best to preserve lives even when they were working under
very difficult conditions.

He also explained that following a serious brain drain in the health sector in
Zambia, medical personnel were overstretched and stressed as they attended to many
patients.

He added that members of the public should understand the way nurses operate.

“I would also like to appeal to all individuals and organisations that have made
comments on the same, including those aggrieved by the act to exercise forgiveness
so that the healing process can start,” he said.

Mr. Mulongoti explained that government delayed in making its stance on the matter
known for fear of prejudicing investigations that were going on

57 COMMENTS

  1. Why do our journalists write such uninformative stories. There’s absolutely no information to hlep us make out what transpired. No interview with either nurses or even witnesses at UTH, or Mwale or his side. But they dedicate 70% of the story to quoting Mike Mulongoti. Human resource crisis is not just in health.

  2. It is of course not right that Ba Mwale had to use emortions. But i have worked in these hospitals my self especially in Lusaka and the behaviour of medical personnel is pathetic. During my period of work from 1997 to 2001, i saw children die yet they were not supposed to die. My colleages could just be chatting and drinking tea, they would only start attending to the clients as the condition worsened. The next thing would be to see the patient die!! May God help us. So I know what Mwale saw and i saw it many times, on several occassions i ended up knocking off late because i had to see patients whom my colleagues refused to attend to because they got little pay.

    Mulongoti, and Govt should address the problem seriously. Why is it that the same bad medical personel are the best when abroad ?? Million dollar question

  3. This is the same cheap puppet journalism from Times/Daily you were praising just a few minutes ago at the expense of the POST.

  4. Balitumpa sana ba nurse nemibobele yabo naine fyalinjipaila baby boy fyalepikulafye! Ine ngafikabwekeshapo, nkafilasa.

  5. Death is one thing that we as humans will never understand. The nurses do tremendous work without all the necessary equipment needed? cops are no different, they never show up when you need them? it is either they have no petrol or transport.

    I always blame the zambian people for being so docile! ministers and mp’s are about to get an increament and nobody seems to give a damn? and yet poor nurses, teachers, cops, soldiers, (civil servants) have been fighting for reasonable increaments for too long without any success. keep voting…..? no wonder voting is for loosers/suckers? continue making the semi-illiterate MP’s rich?

  6. #7 VETERAN.Welcome back to the blog.I knew you weren`t going to last in hibernation but don`t impersonate TRUE-SAGE.Feel free to use your own ID or create another one if you`re ashamed of using your previous ID(VETERAN).

  7. #6 Well your opinion says a lot about most working Zambians. Lazy but I do not agree with you. Nurses work very hard with the most basic medication (if any) and primitive equipment. You think the politicians give a damn? They can always go abroad so its the average Zambian who suffers. #2 I totally agree with you. Here I would rather be looked after by a Zambian nurse than a white or Asian. Eastern Power says it all what is the point of voting for blood suckers? Here I am able to make a difference and when i need to see my MP I have access to him in person, via email or phone or I can write to him and expect an answer. Zambians need to wake up. Elections is not only about chibuku, chitenges or mosi during the campaign period!

  8. Mavi Zimba New Zealand,
    Zambians don’t expect you to see any wrong doing in these Nurses because your wife misbehaved the same way during her time at UTH reports at hand attest to that.About 9 patients i recall of died in her shift because of some provable callous behavior full of negligence.We doubt if she has any conscious or ethics to defend.I hope she doesn’t do the same in New Zealand. Good luck.

  9. True to the word #2 The article does not make us see both sides of the coin, instead it focuses on a politician who is also just mumbling.by the way what happened to the police officer? has he been charged? And what about the nurses, was there negligence involved?

  10. If i were a Mwale i wud do the same,most nurses r jst thr bcoz its a job nothin more nothin less.The guy z justified assaultin the 2 characters 4 negligence his child dies & this freakin ***** Mulongoti z sayin forgiveness for wat!Negligence

  11. Mwale and the nurses both leaped what they sow, becoz cops and nurses are no different in work wise, their altitude towards pipo are the same. Police men ignores or negligents the pipo when they go to police station to complain about anything, they even arrest the complainant and took long to persecute. Cops/nurses knows no emergency cases.

  12. People need to be told the truth concerning the behaviour of the Nurses in hours and minutes leading to the death of Mwale’s child. Mr Mulongoti has not told us the result of what he calls “an investigation”, but has been quick to condemn Mwale’s act while defending the behaviour of Nurses. Mr. Mulongoti’s reasoning is that it’s fine if the Nurses display negligence in their work resulting in unnecessary deaths because they are overstretched due to shortage of manpower. That reasoning defies logic and common sense.It is also an affront to the ethics of the medical profession. Mr. Mulongoti should keep quiet on such issues and allow the Ministry of Health and Police to do an impartial investigation.Mr Mwale should not suffer death twice: loss of his child and calls for his own blood because he has physically protested the “unnecessary death” of his child. Nurses must honour their Vows even under most strenous conditions otherwise quit. Lost Life is irreplaceable whatever the excuse.

  13. # 14,
    If you have to impersonate me, please proof read your pieces.I value my AM ID and though i flow better in Bemba, i would not bluff like you. Read this i quote ” becoz cops and nurses are no different in work wise, their altitude towards pipo are the same”.

    Atleast i would embarrass myself with “their altitude towards pipo”

    their altitude towards pipo?

    altitude towards pipo?

    altitude??????

    altitude??????

  14. #16 That is Kaponya zamglish if you dont understand it go and hang in yourself in hell. Ok now I will change my ID to small letters, if you imposter, then I will know you are suffering from phycolotharpy disease which can only be treated at the Hills hospital near PHI and I will stop blogging. My ID will from now on be ‘am’ as above full stop to differentiate from you chap.

  15. The man in USA is responsible for all this I wonder why he has taken a low profile on this.For me this is sinister because it seems he brought this web to collect data about Zambian thinking. However he should know that his days are numbered soon we shall do away with his blog he has been a very big disappointment. Mr. Administrator you are a sale out I hope authorities will make a case again you the you come out of hibernation in that Columbus states. A forum like this would have been a well meant meeting place for pipo with different views. See what has become of websites like Youtube or myspace even politicians has come us it for their campaign, but you you have failed to use your talent that God gave you to earn money and help others like Bill Gates. Shame!!!!!!

  16. #19AM, How is Kuku? Tell him not to be a coward or else he wont rule Zambia. He should find ways of disposing pipo who insult him.

  17. #21 Wanyanya, dont worry about Mulongoti he is a trampet blower remember the words of VJ over Chilubas medical treatment in SA. Zambia sometimes is what the author of Animal Farm describes.

  18. Gentlemen I like my country I name this Prof. Chirwa send shieves in MMD read on, UK-BASED automotive and aerospace expert Professor Clive Chirwa has joined the ruling MMD, citing good economic policies by the current government. And finance deputy minister Jonas Shakafuswa has confirmed that Prof Chirwa has joined the MMD in Katuba constituency where he is member of parliament and described Prof Chirwa as the MMD’s biggest catch.
    But Patriotic Front (PF) president Michael Sata said there was nothing to fear about Prof Chirwa joining the MMD. Prof Chirwa told The Post in an interview that he decided to join the ruling MMD so that he could help the government to rebuild the country’s economy.And Shakafuswa said he met with Prof Chirwa when he paid a courtesy call on him at his office. Shakafuswa said Prof Chirwa discussed with him the possibility of joining the MMD.

    “I never followed Professor Chirwa. He is the one who came to my office and yes we discussed him joining the MMD.

  19. I’m actually overwhelmed that he has decided to join the MMD. Professor Chirwa is the future of MMD,” he said. “We need politicians who are of the calibre of Professor Chirwa so that they can help put Zambia where it is supposed to be. There are some people in the MMD who just want to reap without adding any value.”

    Shakafuswa said the MMD would soon ‘flush out’ low calibre leaders.

    “Those whose morality does not match Professor Chirwa, we will start kicking them out. The new MMD is the party of the future. The bad habits of Chiluba will be flushed out. In fact, I can say Professor Chirwa is the biggest catch we have had,” Shakafuswa said. “He is actually buying a card from Katuba Constituency.”

  20. Read on guys this interesting Sata has not yet spoken

    When asked who the leaders of low calibre and low morality in the party were, Shakafuswa said the nation would soon see who they were.

    “Some of them are even provincial chairmen, others are holding other high positions in the party. Just wait,” he said.

    And commenting on Prof Chirwa’s joining of the MMD, the party’s spokesperson Ben Tetamashimba said he was welcome.

    “If people are joining the MMD, it means they are satisfied with the performance of the party. I have been reading about him and if he has joined us he is offering skills to contribute to the vision of our party,” Tetamashimba said. “I believe if the MMD can attract people of high calibre then everything is okay. We are asking for more to come; they are free to come. We are not going to chase anyone, even leaders in the opposition are most welcome.”

  21. ctd… But Sata said there was nothing to fear about Prof Chirwa joining the MMD.

    “He has joined MMD? That’s alright but as controversial as he is…he’s controversial of the MMD. There is no problem, let him continue. He’s trying to make a name,” Sata said. “I don’t know him, I’ve never seen him and now he has joined MMD. If you are scared about Professor Chirwa, that’s your problem, that’s not my problem. There is nothing to fear.”

    However, Sata said if the intention of Prof Chirwa’s joining politics was to become president, there was nothing wrong.

    “If he wants to become president there is nothing wrong. Even you, even Brighton Phiri would want to be president. No one owns Zambia so good luck to Professor Chirwa,” said Sata.

  22. Not more interesting Mabenga speaks out: But MMD national chairman Michael Mabenga said he did not even know who Prof Chirwa was.

    “Who is Professor? Who is this Professor Chirwa? I don’t even know him. I don’t even know where he lives,” Mabenga said sharply. “I will have to check in the party register if he has been entered. I can’t talk about somebody I don’t even know.”

    And Zambia Republican Party president Ben Mwila has urged Zambians to judge politicians based on their quality and not academic qualifications.
    Commenting on Prof Chirwa’s decision to join the MMD, Mwila said Zambians should be cautious with the kind of leaders they want to put in power.

    “The business of trying to import leadership you don’t know is dangerous, because Zambians have to vote for the people they know. They don’t have to vote for qualifications. In Malawi, they thought they were importing a doctor, Dr Kamuzu Banda but they ended up importing a monster,” he said.

  23. I find it very sad to see politicians raising their eyeblows over someone joining MMD yet no one has spoken at the issue at hand UTH. A child just died, a nurse has been assaulted and a police officer may lose his employement due unexplained circumstances. So read on:: Mwila said he was not scared of Prof Chirwa’s joining politics.
    “We have equal opportunities. Zambians need to understand leaders they are voting for because voting blindly, they will vote for a monster; not necessarily the imported ones, but those from within could be worse monsters who would end up enslaving them,” he said.

    However, Mwila welcomed Prof Chirwa’s joining of politics through the MMD.
    “Let him join the MMD and if he wants to bid for president he will bid for the presidency in MMD,” said Mwila.
    During a Press Freedom Committee of The Post newsmakers’ forum held on Monday evening at Broadway Cinema in Ndola, Prof Chirwa was under pressure from the audience to state his ambitions for political office.

  24. During his presentation, the cheering crowd shouted: “Chirwa uli wa mano (Chirwa you are intelligent)…ni iwe wine fye (you are the one)… presidential material.”

    Yotam Mutayachalo, a trade unionist, said Zambia had a lot of mediocre leadership both in the opposition and the ruling party.
    “We need leaders with a vision, we need a political and economic revolution in this country. Professor, I’m afraid that the political arena in this country has been infiltrated by mediocre leadership; both in the ruling government and in the opposition. And we have people like you Professor and we cannot allow this to continue. We are not going to allow mediocre leadership to continue to be misleading Zambians. The question is that don’t you have ambitions?”

  25. Mutayachalo asked amidst cheers and applause from the audience.
    “The 2011 elections are around the corner; don’t you have ambitions professor to provide a service to this country because the majority of politicians are there to enrich themselves. They are just there to drive Pajeros and get sitting allowances in Parliament.”
    In response, Prof Chirwa said he was still an academician but would be returning to Zambia in 2009.

    “At the moment as you understand, I am academic and of course what I will just say is that I am retiring from academia in 2009 then I will come back home,” said Prof Chirwa.

  26. It is unacceptable for anyone to use violence against nursing staff and other hospital personnel. Loss of a loved one is regrettable but should not be used as an excuse for thuggery. The goverment should implement a zero tolerance policy to violence to protect hospital staff.Culprits should be adequately punished.

  27. Tubene Mutayachalo pliz stop misleadin the professor.Is that the reason he is Mutayachalo? The professor shud not get excited & run to the MMD b4 assessin the sichu.

  28. Professor Chirwa is using a wrong strategy. He is joining politics now as MMD member so that by the time he comes back; he will have clocked two years in politics already. That is cheapening the profession. We need him here to continue teaching at the University. Who doesn’t know what Western Europe and USA do? They will retain you when your brain cells are exemplary and hyper sensitive. Once they realize that they have milked all the cream from you that is when they will set you free to go back to your home land as a finished resource. The thinking which Prof. Chirwa used then to acclaim all that authority in engineering and be an advisor at a higher level according to his CV, that is the input we wanted in the political arena in our country. The thinking he could employ to consider forces that could reduce the risks of accidents in aerodynamics that is the thinking we wanted him to exemplify in solving socio-economic and political problems in Zambia. Otherwise the best he can do to the Zambian government now is for him to be an advisor and not aspire for presidency.

  29. #23-#30EASY.Is this guy(Prof Chirwa) for real or is he just another HH?He seems to have something that he can offer the nation if he decides to run for the presidency in 2011 but what do fellow independent bloggers think?

  30. I was in Swaziland with Chuchu during the official opening of the international trade fair at Mavuso trade centre where he (Chuchu) spent more time watching naked virgins dancing. Every moment I looked at him the lips were slightly apart and the Adam Apple was frequently moving up and down signifying that he was salivating too much and he was not even blinking. In a nut shell he looked obtuse and fuzi. To make matter worse he shunned away from the Taiwanese pavilion. Honestly pipo, it would be foolish of anyone to stop talking to a friend just coz he talks to his foe or the person he doesn’t talk to. So abena Chuchu was supposed to put aside his personal disparities aside and put the name of Zed first. The scenario looked like chuchu was a kinder garden kid refusing to go to school when King Mswati III proceeded to visit the Taiwanese pavilion leaving Chuchu behind. Then there was a rumour that spread that; the actor of the movie “The last King of Scotland” was with King Mswati III hence, there was pandemonium in the centre as pipo started shouting “Amin, Amin, Field Marshal Dada Idi Amin”.

    Keep tune ba Joze na Kuku are still alive. OFF AIR NOW

  31. LUCIANO PAVAROTTI IS DEAD? he was a friend of the Zambian people! To those who have no idea?….Pavarotti is the one who donated the pantoon that ferries our brothers and sisters at Kalongola in sesheke western province?and not our shameless government. so let’s give the man some respect… MHSRIP and may God bless his soul.

  32. $20,000.00 x24 months = $480,000.00(+) syphoned by one incompetent prosecutor.LPM,isn`t this refered to as PLUNDER OF NATIONAL RESOURCES?Help to understand this,does it stop being refered to as plunder when LPM is involved?All we demand is sanity in the way our country is run.

  33. Chapi,
    Donors have their competent and well informed officials in Lusaka.They have so far been very content with the way their funds are spent to the extent of more support trickling in. Just this week I have had some important talk with the attaches in the Swedish and Netherlands Embassies instrumental in support.They are saying so far they are very satisfied and with access to the budget. Maybe you engage them them to learn their views.The Task Force’s budget is donor supported.

  34. #39 Chapi, dont rush to conclusion first we have to consider what are the qualities of leadership. Ludwig Wilhelm Erhard was minister of commerce in Germany and he is said to be the father of the economy boom 1949 to 1963 unfortunately the nation voted him for for office of Germany councillor. During his reign Germany had a reccession and unemployment increased. A leader must have more qaulities not just his success in his profession should count, look at FTJ he had good PR as a unionist, The current incumbent he has undisputed success as a lawyer but to where he is today it took many hands. See how tourism sector is doing because it has the right pipo, But we have a flop in Labour because the officers there are domant if Kafumukache didnt die early he had brilliant ideas how to create employment. Look at Education and its failures yet we have a former vice chancellor as minister. I would suggest he concentrates him profession and bring road safety as he proposes.

  35. Chapi, if govt knew the lawyer would be Incompetent then their decision would be questionable. In this case the lawyer was paid in a transparent way, maybe he could be asked to pay back some of the money for failing to do the job. Unless corruption is redefined, the hiring of the lawyer in itself is NOT corruption

  36. Can someone explain what does this mean to me.

    FINANCE and National Planning Minister, Ng’andu Magande, has said Zambia’s external debt stock as at the end of last year stood US$957.4 million while domestic debt stock was K8.9 trillion.Mr Magande said in a statement released in Lusaka yesterday that of external debt, US$562.4 million was owed to multilateral creditors while US$395.0 million was owed to bilateral creditors.Among the multilateral creditors were the African Development Bank (ADB) US$72.3 million, World Bank US$257.3 million and the International Monetary Fund (IMF) US$32.5 million.
    Of the bilateral creditors were the Paris Club US$212.0 million and non-Paris US$183.0 million. Mr Magande said that of the domestic debt stock, Government’s security debt amounted to K6.7 trillion, accounting for 89 per cent of the total debt.
    This year, Mr Magande said Zambia contracted three loans from the International Development Association (IDA) of the World Bank and the African

  37. #47 HEY.Does it have to take more than two years(24 months) for the gov to figure out that the prosecutor is incompetent or maybe they`re partners in crime.HEY!!! Open your eyes to see how these DEMAGOGUES are SYPHONING public funds.Do we have to set up another task force to investigate this incompetent “TASK FORCE.”Let`s not just blindly defend such incompetence just for the sake of it but we need to display some logic and objectivity in our analysis of events.

  38. #45 VETERAN.For you to come out in support of such incompetence and abuse of public funds,one wonders whether you`re one of the beneficiaries.Doesn`t it trouble your concious to applaud and support such thuggery or broad daylight robbery?

  39. If we keep accruing loans at the rate Magande is getting loans we will owe another $7BN before LPM leaves office. It took 37 years to owe $7BN but it has taken LPM less than a year to Owe $1BN. Watch these guys.

  40. Easy! Who are the thugs who have infested the blog. Their aim is distabilize the blog. Impersonating is their game. How many anonymous do we have on this blog. The one we have is very sarcastic like an American.
    About the topic, death is inevitable, it’s God’s destiny for humans. There are situations were medical try their level best, but all in vain because is one’s destiny. Though there is some negligence somewhere.

  41. #53 GLUCO Its easy to catch these thieves of Identity but the problem is my fellow friends turned against me when I complained about this. I watch the traffic on this blog if their is genuine complaint with real data we can do the job. Its easy pipo can start crying. Remember the Son of God website. Many tools likes Google, Trojans, online monitering, listening data transfer etc can term this imposter. This anonymous is very well know. Those who dont google is best GP tool you can even see faces of people very soon we shall be hearing their voices. GLUCO read the topic “What they dont want us to know about google” You will know how easy it will be in future to catch thieves. The goodness is on the internet you leave traces everytime you something including DNA on on the keyboard.

  42. #18, 34,35,36 and others similar, the purpose of this site is education, information and debate on Zed issues, not acquisition of ID’s or war of insults. The quality of a comment or argument is in its content, and not in the ID. Your normal and civil discussions are highly appreciated, but not your show of skills in vulgar language. Cut the insults against each other and the rest of the bloggers. Mr Administrator, cut the ability of vulgar and pointless comments to be posted on this site. I am sure your human bloggers would not mind having them off, they are an embarrassment to sane Zambians.

  43. #11 So you physicians never do wrong in Zambia. You were the ones providing mediocore service if I recall. Just attending to relatives and friends. Don’t blame the nurses. Remove the log in your eye first. Have a good day!

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