The Lusaka Magistrate court has jailed for two years a 27-year-old teacher of Luapula Province for defaming the President using his Facebook account.
This was after ENOCKSON BANDA pleaded guilty to three counts of defamation and one count of being in possession of pornographic material.
In passing Judgement Lusaka Magistrate SYLVIA MUNYINYA sentenced the suspect to two years with hard labor for each of the three counts.
The sentences will however run concurrently.
The court further slapped a fine of K4,500 for the fourth count.
Failure to pay the fine will result in the convict serve a jail sentence of four months.
Earlier the suspect pleaded with the court to exercise leniency.
He also offered to be an ambassador who will educate the public on the dangers of insulting the president and others on social media.
And what did he say that was so bad that the lazy lungu reacted.
There is a difference between constructive criticism and straight up defamation. This is why I don’t read ZWD. They are malicious, salacious and unprofessional.
Lungu ni kuwe.
Absolutely absurd, Why do they act like little hitlers?
What about those who insult and defames HH and Kambwili? Like that Sunday Chanda, he has to wait to go jail until 2021?
ECL didn’t even reach to it bcoz it’s too cheap all the that happened is that the law has taken it’s sweet course
NEXT SHOULD BE @JAY JAY AND SIMILAR IMBECILES
Yep, you commit a crime, you go to jail. Period!
Criminalizing the defamation of a president is an outdated law meant to preserve KK’s UNIP reign.
If someone insults a president, it should be a civil matter NOT criminal case.
We need to progress into the 21st century, not holding on to ancient laws which discourage criticism & create demi-gods & Dictators out of presidents.
Another half-baked report. What did the accused say about Lungu? We should go to Watchdog to get the details? Why do we as a democracy have such archaic laws as defamation of the president. Is the President so insecure he needs protection from the law? Democracies dont have such laws that are meant for the protection of the mentally retarded.
“the dangers of insulting the president and others on social media.” There is no danger associated with insulting the president. Tell us a research that proves these dangers
Humble leader indeed…this LAZY LUNGU is a coward indeed imagine him if he was a President when State was in opposition firing insults!!
Serves him right. At least ECL lets the law follow its course, Magufuli is killing such chaps!
Zambian Citizen…you want Lungu to start killing his critics too, huh? Id1ota. With people like you, no wonder Zambia remains far behind many African countries in development. Shame on you.
As a sign of good faith, the president should pardon this chap, but have the courts give him community service. Where he teaches more lessons after hours to young children.
All other previous sitting in similar cases had common citizen non was arrested…..the debate is on secretly least you arrested
Lungu or Jono meno meno is a peace of sh!t, now come and arrest me you moron with 0 IQ, chakolwa pompwe iwe Na mano ta wakwata
Good lesson
People don’t learn, your friend is behind bars and you are also insulting the innocent president, may be the one insulting might just be a son to the president. I wish you were also caught like the imprisoned teacher. Let’s have respect not only to the president but to our old people please.
Am sure his true name Habaanda and NOT BANDA.
Ndiwe kolwe…..
What an archaic law. Defamation should be left in the private realm – civil procedure by the one hurt. As long as it remains a criminal matter to ‘defame’ the President, one cannot use the defense of justification as happens in some civil defamation cases.
Harold Muna…It’ll take a progressive president to support the eradication of this archaic colonial law of defamation. Unfortunately, Lungu enjoys seeing his critics sent to prison for calling him names. African presidents still want to be treated like kings, even though they’re public servants put in office by the people. No wonder Africa keeps lagging behind in development. Because even corrupt leaders don’t want to be criticized. Otherwise, you risk getting imprisoned or worse, for criticizing a president. What a shame.
Thats why you need lawyers
Dont just its me. Yes its me . Forgive me.
Politics of hatred is growing like wild fire in Zambia.
CURSE Of AFRICA,in particular ZAMBIANS some at the age of 47 still complaining about ECL or government by NOT FEEDING THEM.
Some didn’t spend their youth well, they invested their precious time in sexual immorality and abusing alcoholics.Now time has catch up with their actions.
Life of poor planning has caused havoc in lives of bitterness political novices.This are guys who are experts in insulting their leaders as well as their parents.
Lungu defamed Zambia with cholera deaths,debt bailout requests and foreign aid cuts due to corruption. Send lazy ECL to jail too.
I’m guilty of defaming President Lungu too now come find me on Mt Vernon Dr ,Anchorage Alaska.
Iwee Nostram, you can’t compare HH, CK or any other leader even retired presidents because its constitutional. The institution of presidency ought to be protected and respected at all times and who is in it. HH, CK and others are ordinary citizens and whatever they are called today by anyone will not be referred to when they become presidents after maybe 2065.
@mwansambulakulima , people that worship HH never fail to amaze me. No wonder people like Bushiri are getting away stealing from such kind of brain washed people. HH and CK are nonentities until majority Zambians say so
A law against defaming the President doesnt protect him. It tries to make him a small God. If everybody else can be defamed and life goes on why should courts sit to determine whether someone insulted the president or not? What a waste of legal time! Even the Vatican doesnt have a defamation law protecting The Pope.
Next is Spaka. I am working night and day to flush him out.
I see a lot of hate speech from the people on the other side of the fence. Surely how can a normal person compare HH and Kambwili to Lungu. HH and Kambwili are reject from the majority of Zambians. Kambwili managed Roan because of the parties he has be using to contest. Let him re-contest under UPND so that he is taught a lesson. It is this politics of anger, hate, bitterness and insults that will keep UPND and their forever in opposition.
Why do people lie with so much ease that HH and UPND are bitter. This Christian nation of lies is a disgrace. There is no bitterness here, opposition is just offering very credible checks and balances, they have the right to probe ,ask, advise, condemn, question, attack, criticize, harangue etc
Meanwhile, you have a PF cadre Chile One in Kitwe who was convicted of aggravated robbery in the Kitwe High Court for copper theft given Presidential Pardon after serving 2 months, in which those two months, he was even spending nights at home. Zambia our country. Sad Indeed.
On the day the monkey is destined to die all trees become slippery. For those that fist on insulting people your day shall come and you will be pleading for mercy. You have the chance now to repent having learnt via the teacher’s case that you can’t hide on this earth. Imagine, even powerful drug lords have been cornered and how about you? Please repent now!
pink toe…Stop threatening innocent people ya id1ot. Who are you to be threatening us? Yes, insulting people is morally wrong. But it shouldn’t be criminalized. With empty headed people like you, no wonder Zambia lags behind many other African countries in development. Democratically elected presidents are public servants and not kings. Only kings and dictators harass people for criticizing them. There’s what’s called freedom of speech guaranteed by international laws. You need to repent yourself, cause obviously you still have that colonial mentality.
Meant to say FEASTING
Comment: Zambia’s let’s come to understand what the Bible says about respecting leaders more especially presidents .Romans 13.Only a fool can insult a person on the throne but wise one will fear and put a muzzle on his mouth. Democracy does not mean insults but liberty of speech on what you feel is against human rights not an individual interest . More is to be penitentiary but if you don’t want to be the next victim learn from what has happened and read the chapter given then you understand everything thing.
A lot of people insult me and I just ignore them. I am not going to force people to like me.Peter Carlos Hinds.
Royalty will be reporting computer users?that is nonsense.Will royalty be reporting banks insurance companies airlines non government business schools universities.all of the former have computers and are computer users.Peter Carlos Hinds.
defamation of character is an offense..whether it’s the president involved or any other person…let’s mind our language please…
Comment: True leadership is only in the hands of Jesus, even when he was insulted, he said father forgive them for they no not what they are doing. surly do we have such leaders today?
The poor teacher is going to jail simply because of not having proper legal representation otherwise With a good lawyer you can get away with insulting lungu, plus he can appeal and be free just like the way politicians do it.
What a country this is… backward as always with slave ‘master’ mentality still enshrined in people’s fibre and DNA.
Defaming the president my a$s…. good luck monitoring the Internet and bars. First of all how does that crime add on or deduct from Lungu’s performance and productivity as a president? We really need to be divorcing our energies and efforts on things that count and add value to our well being like removing corruption of Lungu himself. Lungu isn’t some 10th Century chief somewhere with some small ego to match, or is he?
And 2 years? Wow, people get much less than that for murder where I live. Unbelievable!
This just shows that we have lawyers in Zambia who are not interested in people’s rights, not interested in democracy. They just want to be seen wearing those silly wigs in court but they never fight for people’s rights. How can a democracy have a president protected from defamation by criminal law? And all lawyers in Zambia think this is just alright? Why hasnt any of them moved a private motion or even through political parties to give the citizen his right to criticise his President? Is the President going to work better with his defamer in prison? If I were Lungu I would refuse to be protected by such a cowardly law
I dont like President Lungu because of how he has destroyed this country but he doesnt deserve to be insulted, let us engage in contructive critism. I also dont beleive in Jailing him for two years.
How do we know he was insulted? The story doesn’t say what the accused said. What is an insult? Lungu is too tall can be seen as an insult by some. Just as Lungu ni Koswe mumpoto is just a joke, not an insult. Why should freedom of speech walk on eggshells because it is talking about someone called President?