Former Republican president Rupiah Banda has described calls for the removal of his presidential immunity as unjustified. Mr. Banda said that there was no law in the Republican Constitution which states that when the former president is out of power their immunity should automatically be removed.
“Is that part of the constitution that whenever a president steps down then it is mandatory that his immunity has to be removed ?”, Mr. Banda asked. He told Journalists in Lusaka in an interview soon after signing a book of condolences over the death of Prince Sultan Bin Abdulaziz Alsaud of the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia at Saudi Arabian Embassy that Government was at liberty to probe his administration if it saw it necessary to do so.
Mr. Banda, who is the immediate past Head of State arrived at the Embassy at 11:53 said that he was ready to face charges leveled against him. Mr. Banda dismissed as false allegations that the Movement for Multiparty Democracy was in a pact with United Party for National Development (UPND).
He said as far as he was concerned as party president he was not aware of the pact between the two political parties. Mr. Banda has further refuted allegations linking him to the Gold scam with a Swiss national, Mr. Nicolae Buzaianu.
“There is no such a case as a scam, am not involved in any scam. I even explained to the Drug Enforcement Commission (DEC). Am not aware of it,” he said. Meanwhile, the former president said since he left the office of presidency, government under the leadership of Mr. Sata was keeping him well.
[pullquote]“Is that part of the constitution that whenever a president steps down then it is mandatory that his immunity has to be removed ?”, Mr. Banda asked.[/pullquote]
He disclosed that he has been booked at a lodge within Lusaka adding that he should be moving into the house that government would be renting for him as he awaits the construction of his house.
And Mr. Banda has described the death of the Prince Sultan Bin Abdulaziz Alsaud of the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia as a great loss not only to his family and country but the African continent as a whole.
He said the country is saddened by the passing of the prince and Zambia joins the rest of the world in mourning the Saudi-son of the king. And former First Lady Maureen Mwanawasa has described the death of Prince Sultan Bin Abdulaziz Alsaud at Saudi as a great loss.
“It’s really a great loss especially for someone who was involved in the governance of the country,’’ Mrs Mwanawasa said.
ZANIS
hehehe, what are you scared of,if you are really innocent? We want the truth,nothing more but the truth. You ve been mentioned in a number of scams and you should be investigated. If you are found innocent, you will be given back ypur immunity.
@Baby strawbeery they z no need to give him back the immunity RB dont deserve it, so dont even feel pity for him……he has messed our country with his friends
RB, you are a traitor, now you want to disown your saviour HH who wants to salvage your defunct party?
Who says RB stepped down? He lost the election and thats not stepping down.
Let your immunity be removed then you can say you are ready.
even him he’s entitled to a house for doing jacko?
But the constitution says go and rape the country! This man is a genius!
Ba RB stop boasting like that. wat you and your children stole is not for PF/Sata but for the Zambians, so siyani kupusa imwe konte.
Do you need to construct a house for such a destructive former president. Why further waste our hardly earned money on this man. He should have used the money he wasted on his campaigns.
So ba RB, have you stopped crying ?
we will see the truth should be allowed to prevail, i have always known sata to be a chronic liar, can you remember the kashiwa bulaya forged letter?
Rupiah you have to be prosecuted! You are a criminal and must be sorted out chikala chawiso!
So Zambia has too much money to waste even on the most unperforming former presidents. Then we also need the same facility for we have been the back bone of the zambia;s economy.
I think people have become so blinkered by one aspect of governance that they have forgotten why the Presidential immunity exists. Take for example, Mr Sata’s statement on the gold scam and several others he has made in the last month. If his immunity was removed, he could be sued for libel. Mr Sata also broke the law as President by unfairly dismissing Col Kayukwa. Heads of State make statements and do things in the course of their duties that if done by an ordinary citizen, they could be liable to being sued. If RB stole, like Chiluba was said to have done, why is their NO evidence? Evidence against Chiluba was published even before he left office (ref: Ms Nawakwi, The Post). Chiluba wasn’t as hated as RB, surely The Post would have told us!
rb we love you
rb never stole and even if you remove his immunity you will see that sata will never find a case with him. we can bet. he will just waste our time of delivering the promised dev. to us within a certain time frame
Rb hope u r fine ..now since you are out of presidency can i have the number for thandiwe ,,,,shes all mine now dont behave like FTJ i need my wife back before the all world can hear th truth.
hahah thats a good one thadi sweet dude
the saint,
just wait and see how this thief will be undressed by a barrage of allegations that will surface very soon. am sure you will be choked with the long list. your rb is a senseless liar who does not know when to talk or keep quiet. we have started with zamtel in which he and his children and silly dora are very much involved. are you sure your useless rb will escape the parentage issue? i doubt very much.
Saint you are a fool. If Sata has made those mistakes, let the law visit him when he leaves offive. Why is he going to get away with it simply because he knows he has immunity.
This man served for less than a term, why should he qualify for presidential benefits? I remember George Kunda was trying to change that Clause so that in the event that RB lost would be entitled like any other president.
No. 13 Bashi Tasha. Are you sure you need Thandi back as your wife. What have you been aiting for all along. You should have told the world much earlier. Its too late let the BIG MAN find peace and joy in his wife as licks his wounds following electrol defeat at the hands Sata and PF. If you continue calling shots in the wronmg direction I may be forced to hire William Banda and Shimpundu Pa Nkololo (Mubanga ) to come and demonstrate to you detaintion/Prison life. Respect things for BIG MEN OR ELSE YOU GET BURNT.
He is being kept well, while MMD is saying they are being persecuted. LIARS, Sata is a gentleman he knows the police are there to dig dipper and knowing Malama,IG, he is a very serious Man. evidence against you RB and many others will soon come out,just wait.
RB, What are you afraid of if you think you are innocent. You are in panick, who said former presidents must automatically lose their immunity when they are out of office? Chiluba lost his immunity because like you he had criminal cases against him. We want justice to prevail and that means you must answer charges in courts of law and explain among other things what you meant by ”We never knowingly abused state funds”. Just relax otherwise you will start implicating yourself even more.
The former first lady(Tandiwe) should also be probed, she has bought over 10 houses in Chipata in just three years. A THIEF.
Don’t defend yourself in papers reserve your defence until the courts of law ask you to start.
I need some answers from some legal minds…it is not possible to ‘probe’ RB without removing immunity…I ask this because removing immunity may mean imply RB has a case to answer…
Please take it easy Rb. Zamtel will implicate you man. Chill down.
RB you are a great son of African… Not these Kolwestan raping the Constitution everyday
gr8 men of honour have spoken..viva..!!!
May be Zambia should only take care of ex-presidents that served 2 terms, here 10 yrs, not less. That’s how the USA does it, if Im not mistaken.
As for allegations against RB, the media and public should desist from public trials. We must let the law, the courts and the police handle any reported illegal activities.
In the UK, if the media say you committed a crime and later it was found to be false, you sue them and get a lot of money in compensation.
Can a fired public officer get retirement benefits?This man was fired by Zambians after presiding over the country for only 3 years.He did not even rule for the minimum term of 5 years.Can LAZ enlighten us please.
Well, we’ll see how many bullock endowment you have between your legs when we strip you naked of your so called immunity. We have the genetic maize scum, interfering with the judiciary i.e. Chiluba and Dora aquittals, shootings in Mongu etc.
Hate him or love him, the fact is RB remains a great guy. A real president. He is enjoying his retirement and free benefits for life. PF chaps have forgeotten that Sata never got 50% of the votes, so more than 50% voted for the opposition parties and more than half of those voted for MMD. So PF stop talking as if you had a landslide victory, that wasn’t there. Having said that I wish RB could just shut up and let Sata start well without the noise. RB is creating confusion by commenting every now and then, and it may not be good for the future of MMD itself. MMd must find a replacement soon and then we can have real politics. I don’t support anyone in particular: if PF are doing well they deserve praise because it is the country they are working for.
Ngatawaiba, you have absolutly nothing to worry about.
I am a supporter of the new Gov but calling for the removal of immunity on the former President is unwise! Let us not repeat Mwanawasa’s mistakes please.
Truth bw told, we want to know how reckless the man was when he thought we were blind and deaf. It was LPM who firts called called for the lifting of FTJ’s immunity, but this time we the downtrodden are cvalling for the removal of the immunity that you illegally axquired as you zambian nationality is questionable.
There is no reason to be rude and have pride Dr RB.There is something you are not understanding.People want to know everything that you did in your regime.So Dr RB,there is nothing to fear,if you are clean,you will come out clean and everything that you deserve will be given to you.If you are found wanting,you have to be dealt with accordingly,it normal. So your presidential immunity is supposed to be removed,so that you can be investigated thoroughly for the sake of Zambian people.
RB, you did not STEP DOWN. You were DEFEATED!
l just want to hear how his wife got more than 8 billion in 3 years!!! swift,,,,
@9 … you made break my ribs…….
Very embarrassing. As much as we respect you as our Former President. We need you to explain a lot of things. You really abuse office with your sons and Dora. Be fair to Zambians. Ukushitisha Zamtel kwati ni salaula?
Bwezani must understand that its not in his place to decide whether or not to remove his immunity. That prerogative is with the people of Zambia from whom he and his sons stole. The man is best advised to shut his big mouth. He just stokes the fire and ire of the people every time he opens his mouth!!
RB, Umusha, afwa ne fyebo mukanwa! Take that HIPOPOTAMUS BACK TO LWANGWA RIVER or the farm where it was breed! A plunderer fighting from corner to corner! People called for CHILUBA’s immunity to be removed and now it is your turn! Who the HELL do you think you are? Untouchable? You made amistake to propose MMD’s hand in marriage with HH. Go and marry in Lwangwa River!
Strange that he is bothered about immunity being lifted – shameless theif! Just like MMD “never knowingly” misused public funds during the campaign, this man doth protest a little too much people! ha ha ha why does it bother him so? ha ha ha he is not that smart, he went from being a poor has been to a man with no financial worries to the tune of millions in a very very short period of time, not even Mr Gates could manage that feat, tell us Rupee what is your secret to success you thief?
Your immunity blocks you from prosecution but when it is removed, you will no longer be above the law as the case was when u were in plot 1. You had turned Mwanawasa’s term from the rule of law to the rule of men, despite pledging to uphold his legacy. Had you carefully followed the legacy, no one would be demanding for your prosecution. How have your wife and children amassed incredible wealth than your predecessor who served longer than you in that office?
This is a classic case of our government diverting attention from the real issues at hand and the gullible citizens are buying it. If the man stole build up a case, present your findings to Parliament and lift his immunity, simple. Personally my interest is knowing what PF’s long term agenda is for the country. Will they maintain the FSP program for small scale farmers? What taxes are they going to reduce? Time for politics is over, get down to work.
INNOCENT PEOPLE DON’T START SHOUTING FROM THE TOP OF THE HILL THAT THEY ARE NOT GUILTY!!!
JUST WAIT FOR THE SUMMONS BABA, BWANJI KUYOPA PAMENE MUKALIBE KU KWELA “KAMPELWA???”
RB What happens to the farm. Lead by example go back to the land. your friend Yousuf is waiting for you in Chipata. Lameck Mangani and Lucas will welcome you. Nkosi Ngwenyama Mpezeni is waiting for his apology.
Yaba just RB back to the farm instead of wasting money on him lol
Please Zambian do not take away my father’s immunity coz it will affect me as well. We ate government money, we sold zamtel thats why my father is fat at the expense of poor zambians. My mother is now a rich woman so what! Did you expect us to leave office poor. umba mwibala ulila mwibala. Obvious ba Sata is there to be rich as well, he is just playing his politics on stupid zambia. envetually RB will be free you noise zambia you know what i am talking about
Baseless accusations. If there is a case to prove bring it forward. The same propaganda that was used by CHILUBA & Sata against KK about stealing money but was never proved. It’s a cover and a way of trying to make us not notice their failings. PF is clearly failing against their 90 day KPI.They set it and they have got be judged by it. No excuses. This is a useless government not fit for the 21st Century. Just talking like market politics. Anyway what do you expect from these primitive *****s!
If it is decided that a house a built for him, then there is nothing we are doing in Zambia. Look at the massive trip expenses, Campaigns and riches amassed by his family. Doe he deserve more money wasted on him? Shame