United Part for National Development (UPND) has condemned the harassment of Harry Kalaba by Zambia Police on the Copperbelt for simply exercising his rights of movement, association, assembly and free speech.
UPND Secretary General Patrick Mucheleka said UPND also deplore the police action of summoning and issuing of warn and caution statement on Harry Kalaba.
Mr Mucheleka said Hon Kalaba was being warned and cautioned for peacefully engaging his supporters, something within his rights.
He said this incident like many others before, demonstrates that the PF leadership does not believe in democratic coexistence.
“It is these issues that the PF are running away from fully engaging in the dialogue process, which would have gone a long way in addressing and ironing out all the thorny issues that are denting the democratic credentials of our country,” he said.
Mr Mucheleka said the silence by organizations like the Zambia Centre for Inter-Party Dialogue (ZCID) and the Human Rights Commission (HRC) is not unexpected and surprising but shows and confirms how toothless, ineffective and compromised they are.
“Why should it require permits, for political leaders to merely interact with their supporters and mobilize their structures on the ground? On the other hand, the PF leadership are busy traversing the breadth and length of our country, buying UPND Councillors and engaging their structures on the ground without any police notifications.
“As UPND, we shall not accept this injustice in our country and by virtue of this statement, we want to inform the nation that our party President Hakainde Hichilema and other senior party officials will be immediately hitting the ground to visit our structures and engage our citizens as a way to fully appreciate the suffering they are going through under the corrupt PF leadership,” he said.
He said Hon Kalaba didn’t committed an offence and neither shall the UPND by visiting it party structures.
