Ndola Magistrate Court has imposed a fine of K100 on a 40-year-old man, Cornelius Kolala, for engaging in conduct likely to cause a breach of peace. Failure to pay the fine will result in a three-month simple imprisonment sentence.
Mr. Kolala was arrested by the police during the International Trade Fair for standing in front of the Presidential motorcade while wearing a yellow T-shirt with the message, ‘I did not vote for President Hakainde Hichilema.’
The offense was admitted by Mr. Kolala while he was in police custody.
During the court hearing before Ndola Magistrate Benny Akende, it was revealed that on June 29, 2023, as the Republican President was entering the Zambia International Trade Fair grounds, Mr. Kolala positioned himself in front of the motorcade, displaying his message while wearing the yellow T-shirt.
In his plea for mitigation, Mr. Kolala expressed remorse and sought forgiveness from both the public and the court. He assured the court that if given a second chance, he would behave responsibly within the community.
Mr. Kolala emphasized that his intention was not to annoy anyone but rather to exercise his rights by expressing his lack of support for the Republican President through his statement.
In delivering the ruling, Ndola Magistrate Benny Akende emphasized the importance of expressing opinions and exercising rights responsibly, without causing disruptions or breaching public peace. He stated, “While citizens have the right to freedom of expression, it is crucial to exercise this right in a manner that respects the rights and freedoms of others and does not jeopardize public order.”
The case of Cornelius Kolala serves as a reminder of the need to balance individual rights with the maintenance of peace and order in society. It highlights the responsibility of citizens to express their opinions within the bounds of the law, considering the potential consequences of their actions on public order.
It’s his constitutional right to do so. Same way it is our human rights to fly the rainbow flag and to have equal rights and fair treatment for all LGBTs in zambia. There are many of us. Many are living in fear of revealing who they are. I stopped fearing years ago. I am proud of who I am and won’t let some backwards religions determine who I am. The religion you use to disparage LGBTs was brought to you by the same westerners who now accept us. Think about that for once
Gay and proud (GAP)
You do not have the right to fly homosexual flags in Zambia. Stop importing American nonsense to Zambia. If you are so fearless, why are you not posting your real name? Why are you calling yourself Wagner? Are you a white person, since white people are the ones who brought this homo nonsense to our country? As for the ***** who stood in front the presidential motorcade, in every single country in the world, the ***** would have been arrested.
Using aliases to claim that you are gay and proud. Just move to the Western world then, here in Zambia we will cage you in a mental institution. You are wrongly wired upstairs.
Are you suggesting that before the advent of Christianity, Africans were accepting LGBTQ stuff? I have no religion yet I do not accept that being LGBTQ is a matter of nature. I consider it an addiction like smoking cigarettes. Both are unnatural and dangerous habits.
If you are proud come out and tell the public. Why hide under mercenary Wagner?
I told you i stopped hiding. I am in Ndola and proudly gay. My family and friends know and have no problem. Who I sleep with and how I sleep with them has nothing to do with you or them. How does my sexuality affect your life? Most of you here are anti LGBT and yet some of your fathers are dating my gay friends secretly. I know alot of married gay men who come after me. Lgbt rights are coming whether you like it or not. Pathetical little people like you deserve to live on an island.
Gunner, wenzeko? Gayness has been here since the times of Jesus.
Leave him alone.
The case of Cornelius Kolala serves as a reminder of the need to balance individual rights with the maintenance of peace and order in society. It highlights the responsibility of citizens to express their opinions within the bounds of the law, considering the potential consequences of their actions on public order.
So what do you call what Ichilema did sometime ago?
Abena Deja Vu, if it was HH at the wheel of the car, he should have been charged with a bailable offence – just like in this case. The malice, the evil in the HH case is that he was not the driver of the vehicle. Fair play should have had the drivers of the motorcade charged, not HH himself. The two cases are not the same.
Deja Foool is always misdirecting himself.His shallowness is wonderful
HH was the person who instructed the driver and his supporters to do that.
As for #MuZambfeces, he should just run home because Wagner is becoming impatient.
Everyone feels good if their rights are not tramped on. But some rights have along way to be realised or observed until they are localised
This is where so called lawyers should stop hiding in their offices and come out to fight for human rights. How does expressing myself in sight of the presidential motorcade equate to conduct likely to cause breach of peace? Ba Dickson Jere, Ba John Sangwa, ba Lilian Siyuyi interpret the law for all citizens.
The implications of this cowardly biased ruling are that LT or ZNBC or any media cannot show a picture of this man wearing this caption on his T-shirt because it will equate to conduct likely to cause breach of peace.
This is not the second republic. We all fought for this freedom we are having. It is not HH’s freedom. Its not Lungu’s freedom. With this ruling HH must go back and face the law for what he did. Tyrants! They remove one law and search for equally tyrannical replacements. He said he had removed Presidential defamation law, RELUCTANTLY, and now citizens are being harrassed by conduct likely to breach *#@#$!
THIS IS NONSENSE !!!
SINCE WHEN IS IT A CRIME
SOMETHING HAS TO BE DONE ABOUT THIS POLICE FORCE
HE HAS EVERY RIGHT TO STATE HIS AFFILLIATION
WITH AN OVER JEALOUS POLICE FORCE WE ARE GOING TO END UP IN SERIOUS TROUBLE
HH HAS TO STEP IN NOW AND ACT ON REFORMING THIS DEPARTMENT
ONLY ABOUT 10% of crime is solved,
Lunch money is draining the coffers which is not reducing traffic accidents
WHO will refuse paying K100 instead of 350 0r 400
People do not understand the meaning of secrete ballot. It is voting without revealing to any body except yourself. This guarantees your safety. You can vote for or against or leave the ballot blank. It is your choose, but NEVER destroy a ballot.
We all must be only political animals and NEVER political salvages.
He has every right to wear what he wants and to express himself. Unless he was physically standing on front of the motorcade and obstructing it from proceeding.
Samson at it again
He should be left alone. Every citizen should be worried about this ruling. How does exercising his freedom of speech be construed as conduct likely to cause a breach of peace? Indeed Where are Zambia’s lawyers?
Zambian lawyers are cowards! They only focus on the money they can make. Too Selfish!
As kadansa above has said, this is the opportunity for lawyers to get themselves into the spotlight! It’s a clear infringement of freedom of expression. If I happen to say here on this platform that I did not vote for HH, why should that be considered as breaching the peace only because UPND supporters can see it?
It’s absurd that this man was arrested in the first place and a prosecutor with functional brain cells took the case to court. And very surprising that the magistrate came to that judgement and conclusion. Literally every single ward has at least one person who didn’t vote for HH. How does that become an offence? Are our lawyers not hungry for some free exposure? To appeal this pro bono?
Ba LT a free journalism lesson: You dont mix editorials with news items. You dont editorialise or opinionate in a news story. It is unethical and amateurish. You dont have to sermonise in conclusion of your story like you have done here:
“The case of Cornelius Kolala serves as a reminder of the need to balance individual rights with the maintenance of peace and order in society. It highlights the responsibility of citizens to express their opinions within the bounds of the law, considering the potential consequences of their actions on public order”