Magistrate Court fines PF Vubwi Chairperson for violence

CHIPATA Magistrate Court Moses Phiri has said President Edgar Lungu had always been advocating for non-violent.

Magistrate Phiri said when he fined a 47-year-old Vubwi district Patriotic Front (PF) chairperson Michael Tembo for two accounts of assaulting by occasioning actual bodily harm to Peter Sukwa, a correspondent with the Post Newspaper and Kelvin Phiri, a Feel Free FM station radio journalist.

This is in a matter in which Tembo is on December 10th last year allegedly assaulted the two journalists who were investigating a story where it was alleged that foreigners were being aided to obtain National Registration Cards (NRCs) and being registered as voters in the registration centre in the district.

Facts were that on 10th December last year, the convict jointly and whilst acting together with unknown persons beat the two journalists and assaulted them, thereby causing actual bodily harm on them contrary to the laws of Zambia.

Magistrate Phiri said it was unfortunate that as a leader, the accused ended up committing such offences by denting the name of the ruling party.

He said President Lungu had not hidden his sentiments by advocating for non violent cadres.

He said cadres should stick to their role and respect the duty that journalists have even as they also fulfil their role.

‘’ It is clear that the witnesses did not testify against their own boss and the third state witness who earlier identified himself as a business person, was identified by the convict as a potential candidate of the ruling party in Vubwi constituency and I therefore find you guilty of assault and convict you accordingly,’’ Magistrate Phiri said.

He said the convict had the power to choose who can be a candidate on the ruling party’s ticket and the third witness, Charles Nyoka, was saving his interests of defending the convict.

The court noted that it was also a fact that the two journalists were beaten whilst doing their verification duty, adding that, they did not do their duty of informing people as they were blocked by the convict.

Magistrate Phiri said the court noted that the convict was casual during cross examinations and only realized when he was found with a case to answer.

In mitigation, Tembo said he was the only one helping the family where he was looking after four children of his sister apart from his three biological children.

He also said his mother was a chronically ill person who frequented Chipata Central hospital to seek medication and depended on him.

But the court said his mitigation was heard and that he was the first offender but he should have thought about his family which depended on him before engaging in such acts of violence.

The Magistrate however fined Tembo K 12, 000 or in default serve nine months sentence. The magistrate gave Tembo only Monday to pay the fine or to serve the nine months sentence, stating that of the total fine, K 2000 would go to the state while Sukwa and Kelvin would share K 5000 each.

Magistrate Phiri said the court was satisfied that the prosecution presented its case beyond reasonable doubt to warrant the conviction of Tembo.

He said the convict’s witnesses failed to testify to convince the court when they were cross examined by the state that Tembo was innocent and that it was clear that they wanted to save a person they called their boss as they all belonged to the ruling political party.

“The President is busy telling you people to be non- violent and in order to deter any cadre from any political party, I order you to pay K 1000 on each of the complainant and this money will go to the state.

You are also ordered to compensate each one with K 5000, failure to which you go to jail for nine months with immediate effect,” he said.