By A.Bwalya
Article 108 (1) of our Republican Constitution is very clear around grounds on which the PRESIDENT can and/ or should be impeached from office.
But of curious consideration is (1)(c) of the same Article which essentially provides for the impeachment of the PRESIDENT on grounds of Gross Misconduct.
*Gross Misconduct must be understood as either deliberate wrongdoing or gross negligence on the part of the President, that it fundamentally undermines the relationship of trust and confidence between him, the Presidency and we the people who elected him into that office.
In terms of being liable for gross negligence in the exercise of his duties, the President can be understood to have consciously and voluntarily disregarded the need to exercise reasonable care, which can occasion foreseeable grave injury or harm to the republic.
Now, authorities in the United States of America have a sworn testimony linking a known associate of the President to illegal drug trafficking violations.
Now, does the President know of his associate’s illegal activities? I don’t know.
Should the President have knowledge of his associate’s illegal activities? Yes he should.
Is it probable, given the intimate association the President shares with this individual, that he has full knowledge of the illegal activities linking the named individual to an indictment in the US? Absolutely.
Surely, with all the security and investigative apparatus at his disposal, the PRESIDENT must have, surely he does have, the full and complete profile of the person he has on several occasions allowed to share the Presidential Jet – a public aircraft paid for by Zambians.
If the PRESIDENT has zero knowledge of the illegal activities his close associate is involved in, then perhaps our secret service and all security apparatus in Zambia are not doing their job – and the public must not accept that. These are professionals. They know how to do their jobs and protect the integrity of the highest office in the land.
I think MPs must go to Parliament and ask Speaker Patrick Matibini to make way for an impeachment motion arising from this issue.
Let the PRESIDENT for once be put on inquiry so that he may show cause why he should not be impeached from office.
The Presidency does not belong to an individual or the party in power, and certainly not to drug barons.
The Presidency belongs to Zambians.
It’s integrity must be protected at all costs.
Right now, investors are asking one question: Is he in on this or is he not?
An impeachment motion can answer this question.
YOU DEFINITELY LIVE IN AN IDEAL DREAMLAND. WAKE UP AND SMELL THE COFFEE: AN ABSOLUTE AMATEUR ARTICLE.
Extremely hopeless narrative.
You chaps gotta have something useful to talk or write about.
The story in and around itself is hyper delusional and insulting.
Respect our institutions let alone Organs of Government.
Yak! Why is LT subjecting us to inferior posts?
Grrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrh!
Thirn in the flesh
You are not dealing with dull Zambians here,this evidence is coming out from ongoing prosecution in the US,the people being prosecuted were picked up by the FBI in Kenya,if you think this is child’play think again.ordinarily Findley could have been protected by the state, but that is not possible now,the chickens have come home to roast,mwaziletelela…
It is extremely strange why all PF are defending Valden, and not interested in rescuring the man they call their president.
It’s absurd.
this is distracting from the main issues we have currently……we want government to talk to us about the limbo kcm, the price of mealie meal, load shedding, the 48 houses, 42 firetrucks, the imminent firing of all those involved in the release of FIC REPORT, hunger crisis, the enforcement of our increased salaries, the dual courage way that ends in Lusaka instead of ndola ETC… not their current friends the checks and balances should be what benefits the masses not a mere smear campaign against the president our opposition shouldn’t focus on labeling OUR PRESIDENT BAD but should focus on making him answer to the immediate cries of the people
There is no distracting …….the man who is supposed to address the nation on those issues does not want to do so…..
We can talk about them until kingdom come , lungu does not want to talk about them……
So better to heap more allegations in him until he realises that dodging addressing the nation makes things worse…
All scandals must be dealt with and no scandal should be forgotten. Let us raise all the issues.
KK was really practical. Not these little scared men who fear their appointed men. See how he approached his close associates:
google: washingtonpost drugs to riches flops in zambia
Between 1987 and 1989,
Valden and his elder brother Edwin Findley were surrounded in Emmasdale by SITET(Special Investigation Team on Economic and Trade) working with Zambia police.
Mandrax dealing was a family Business among the brothers and their in-laws. Those who married their sisters, cousins etc
Valden and his brothers would sell mandrax and buy vehicles for sale. They started money laundering a long time ago.
Their family by then only had Independence Bar(now Chillers) in Emmasdale and a garage.
One brother shot himself who was a drug addict but never died after medics saved his life. He later died years later.
The SITET squad got so much money which they were hiding in their Emmasdale house along vubu road and grabbed the vehicles. The mandrax dealing never…
I have a different take i.e subject s/he to take medical examination specifically a psychology and psychiatry one so that we can know whether his/her brain is taking holiday.
It’s been shown that taking too many air trips seriously warps the mind and brain. So there may be no longer black and white but just grey colour.
How else can you explain why s/he can’t distinguish black from white or grey? This goes for all ills affecting our country since 2015.
Impeachment without Investigation? And on what evidence?
Parliament is not an investigative wing or a Court. Investigative agencies like DEC, ACC, ZP, NPA/DPP etc are constitutionally mandated to carry out their investigative duties.
Parliament is a legislative body (law making) and not an investigative body or a Court. It can only act on the basis of investigative findings, not allegations by politicians. That’s the separation of powers.
So let those ALLEGING make sure they PROVE by submitting evidence to DEC and other investigative wings
VJ served three governments after the fact and even campaigned for bitter hh and his inherited under 5 party without a Veep and no convention for many years during the last elections
If Kambwili’s accusations were true, he would help the DEC with evidence. But if it’s just his verbal diarrhoea, the malaria parasites will keep on multiplying to escape interrogations. The problem we have here is we prefer to fall for those accusations than the reality.
2021 is near, you will get tired of these accusations without evidence. These politicians are behaving as if they are running out of time. They will go to any length just to ruin someone.
I don’t want to continue disrespecting the sport of boxing, by going in the ring and continue losing, said Mike Tyson and he gave up boxing. This was Tyson when he realized that he wasn’t as strong and good as he used to be. Let’s learn to except when things stop going our way and leave room for others with better ideas and more serious
But upnd wouldn’t even impeach a Mulyokela presidency even in majority…. THEY WOULD WALK OUT… kwekwekwekwekwe….
The allegations about Lungu associating with Drug Addicts are serious and impeachable. Speaker Matibini, instead of pushing for the wholesome Amendment of the Constitution thru Bill 10 he should stop blocking the Impeachment Bill. The US indictment is sufficient evidence to impeach this Corrupt President. The Lungu Impeachment Bill should be re-tabled in Parliament and put to a 2/3 Majority Vote without further delay. Speaker Matibini is an impediment in processing this Impeachment Bill in Parliament. Parliament should vote against Bill 10 and immediately ask for the Impeachment Bill Processing resumed.
A man is known by the company he keeps. ECL knows the type of man Valden is and yet he values his friendship so much, at the risk of tarnishing his own image! Which lawyer consciously does that? Obviously there are high value “pickings” in the relationship. The question begs; how safe are state secrets when they are shared with likes of a drug baron?