Saturday, April 20, 2024

Three Lunda chiefs to protest against a magistrate’s ‘insults’

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File:Senior chief Kanongesha being carried on his traditional chair during the Chisemwa cha Lunda traditional ceremony in Mwinilunga 2010
File:Senior chief Kanongesha being carried on his traditional chair during the Chisemwa cha Lunda traditional ceremony in Mwinilunga 2010

Three Lunda Chiefs in Luapula Province are planning to make a formal protest to the Provincial Permanent Secretary’s office over what they have termed as “insulting remarks” by a Magistrate who presided over a case that involved some Lunda subjects who were cultivating in a forest reserve area.

Chief Lukwesa of the Lunda people in Mwense District disclosed this when Luapula Province Permanent Secretary, Mbololwa Muyaba, paid a courtesy call on him at his palace.

He said Lunda Chiefs, who included Mulundu, Lubunda and himself were incensed with the remarks made by a Judicial Officer who was handling the case.

He said the magistrate alleged that Lunda Chiefs were corrupt and were thieves, resulting into a rift between Government and the traditional rulers.

Chief Lunda said the development had upset the traditional rulers including Senior Chief Mwata Kazembe and the three were planning to make a formal protest to the Permanent Secretary’s Office because the remarks were serious and the Magistrate needed to apologise to the chiefs for the remarks he made.

Chief Lukwesa added that Chiefs and Government should work together in order to bring development to the people instead of trading insults.

He said the forest reserve area was a huge track of land from which Chiefs were asking for de-gazetting only 10 or 20 per cent of it in order to let their subjects make a living from farming.

He affirmed that the Chiefs are still annoyed with the remarks made by the magistrate though the case has been referred to the High Court and would soon be launching a formal protest at her office over the matter.

And Mwense District Forest Officer, James Chanda, confirmed that there was a rift between the Forest Department and the traditional leaders in the district because of the illegal use of part of the forest reserve area by some Lunda subjects for farming purposes.

Mr Chanda said law is the law and must be followed by everybody and in enforcing the provisions of law sometimes there were inherent challenges of such a nature which were inevitable.

He said the Lunda subjects were cultivating in the forest area and were arrested and were currently on bail as the case was referred to the High Court.
The forestry officer, however, agreed that there was need to de-gazette part of the land for the subjects to live on.

ZANIS

28 COMMENTS

  1. Please don’t mislead us we have no Lunda Chiefs In Luapula province all those are drafted Bembas as they don’t even know any word in Lunda.
    So kindly those people are no longer Lundas but Bembas.
    Next time write that former Lunda Chiefs and now drafted Bembas.
    Thank you

    • Interesting, why did you allow this? Or it was done to appease Bembas that Lundas are not tribalidts, I have always held Lundas in high esteem and to read that they are under Bemba Domnation makes a sad reading..

    • Please dont say things you dont understand.The Chiefs in Luapula are Lunda chiefs and the language spoken at their palaces is Lunda.You must read history and you will understand how the Paramount Chief Mwata Kazembe and Paramount Chief Chitimukulu moved from Luba-Lunda kingdom into Zambia.They travelled as brothers from Mwata Yamvo kingdom but Kazembe remained in Luapula and Chitimukulu proceeded to the northern province.Chitimukulu’s people called themselves bembas but Mwata kazembe’s people reamined Lundas.The Lundas in Northewestern province also came from the same Luba-Lunda kingdom.The word mwane is still used in Luapula as well as Northwestern.

    • Life is a journey.. I like your contribution although I am 100% mutonga. (in diaspora) I believe in our motto One Zambia One Nation

    • @Life is a Journey. It makes very sad reading that Lunda is only spoken at their palaces. They should just give up. They are Bemba through and through. The Bemba colonization is complete.

  2. Let pipo have that land for farming that magistrate is incompetent poorly trained y insulting in court of law pipo must get fair treament not insults.

  3. Why showing kanon’esha on the picture?Is he a Lunda from Luapula hence Lunda Kazembe and the Lunda from N/western province is different.Lunda is just a general name used to classify the people who were of mwantiyavwo’s Kingdom in Congo ,Lunda ndembu frm N.W.P,Chokwe ,Luchazi,Luvale, Lunda Kazembe ,Bunda etc are all Lundas from Mwantiyavwa’s Kingdom but they are of different idioms.

  4. These are the Chiefs contributing to global warming, they think they are above the Law.With their Chitemene way of doing things ,they will finish the Forest Reserve.Cage them.

  5. Mr Chanda said law is the law and must be followed by everybody and in enforcing the provisions of law sometimes there were inherent challenges of such a nature which were inevitable.

    He said the Lunda subjects were cultivating in the forest area and were arrested and were currently on bail as the case was referred to the High Court.
    The forestry officer, however, agreed that there was need to de-gazette part of the land for the subjects to live on.
    As far as i understand this issue, GRZ should not allow these guys not to use the land………..LT can’t allow me to write more, all the best!

  6. Pipo read your history and get smart. The ignorance shown above is really nauseating. Dont be lazy, know your histoy, do some research no spoon feeding.

  7. Why always do you talk tribe ? And for LT why putting a picture of a chief who is not found in Luapula? Dull LT indeed. As for the Lunda in Luapula, their language as been far away from what the Lunda of Mwinilunga speak. The Lunda of Luapula have a language which is 95% Bemba except for some few words and pronunciations. So there is no need of insulting people just coz they speak Bemba, how dull Zambians are becoming. Is it coz of hatred and frustration?

    Peace and Prosperity to Mother Zambia.

  8. A language is a vehicle of communication,Therefore must be dynamic! The lunda of Luapula remain Lunda at same level as all the Lunda of Mwat Yav Kingdom ,though the majority of them converse in icibemba! A Zambian is not a British because he speak and write English!Even in Musumba-the capital of Lunda empire in Congo- Lunda was,still enriched with words borrowed from Chokwe and Tshiluba from the neighbouring Province of Kasai ! Forget not that Icibemba is Luba language having matrix from Congo! believe me or not,Look at the Drc map: from the province of the 2 Kasai provinces down to the luapula province of Zambia,except few areas of the southern Katanga,all are Luba or Baluba! it amuse me when LUBA of Zambia discriminate those of DRC as Fikasai!

  9. Respect is very important… So if I speak Bemba then I have become a drafted bemba. So bemba does draft on other tribes? Interesting anyway. It is important as leaders that we should know where we come from, where we are and where we are going. In addition to history we are now Zambians. I know that bemba is part of luba and lunda kingdom. Let me know if Lunda and Bemba have ever fought in history for someone to say with intimidation words that lundas have become bembas.

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