Africa-Press – Zambia. Petauke Central Independent Member of Parliament, Emmanuel JJ Banda has sued the Attorney General for protection of his human rights and against State House Aides; Levy Ngoma and Clayson for being part of those that abducted him.
In a legal suit taken in the Lusaka High Court, Hon. Banda has revealed details of how he was abducted by about 8 persons from Twin Palm Road in Ibex Hill area.
In a Petition to the High Court and supporting Affidavit Verifying Facts, he revealed the following;
I, EMMANUEL JAY BANDA a Zambian National of House No. 699 Fairview, Petauke in the
Eastern Province of the Republic of Zambia DO HEREBY make OATH and SAY as follows;
1.
That my full names, nationality and residential addresses are as stated above
2.
That I am the Petitioner herein and as such competent to depose to this my Affidavit,
from the facts within my personal knowledge and belief.
3.
That on or about the 25 day of May, 2024 at around 01:00 hours in the early hours of the said day I was driving along Twin Palm road from the western direction to the eastern direction towards my residence as I had a pending trip to Petauke Discrict to
officiate at a wedding ceremony scheduled for the afternoon of the same day.
That Upon approaching and passing the rumps located near the turnoff to Bauleni
compound, my motor vehicle was suddenly blocked from the front by a motor vehicle,
causing me to brake, swerve and turn toward the south eastern direction towards
Bauleni compound, whereupon I was again blocked from proceeding further by yet
another motor vehicle that was ahead of me and thus blocked from both the front and
rear of my motor vehicle.
5.
That from the said three motor vehicles, six to eight individuals emerged armed with
guns and approached my vehicle, That the said individuals then demanded that I unlock and open the doors to my motor vehicle as they were locked.
7. That I resisted the demand as I was uncertain as to whether the said individuals were police officers or armed robbers.
8.
Following my refusal to unlock and open the doors, the said people began hitting the
8.
Following my refusal to unlock and open the doors, the said people began hitting the
front screen of my motor vehicle with a stone and smashed the windscreen.
9.
That I then, in a state of panic and fear unlocked and opened the motor vehice and
came out in surrender to the demands so as to prevent any further harm and damage
to me and my motor vehicle as I had no way of escaping the ambush.
10. That the said unidentified individuals then proceeded to search me and also the inside
of my motor vehicle.
11. That my money in the sum of K50,000, car keys and my mobile phones were taken
from me by the said individuals.
12. That I was then made to lay on the ground, kicked on my sides whilst still on the
ground and stepped on by the said individuals so as to immobilize me.
13. That the said individuals taunted me while referring to me as Lungu’s boy and asked
me to say my last words and prayers as it would be my last day alive.
14. That I begged the said individuals for leniency and forgiveness swearing that I would
quit politics altogether if only they could spare my life and asked that they hold on to
the money they had grabbed from me altogether and set me free.
15. That the said individuals then asked me to reduce my apology in writing if I really
meant what I said and later handed me a piece of paper the individuals had taken
from my car to write on and dictated the note to me while promising to set me free.
16. That I advised the said ndividuals that I was unable to write and one of the members
of the group said to me, “you are the MPs that we talk about you bought your school
certificates, in fact you can’t even write.”
17. That the said individuals proceeded to dictate to me what to write and further
commanded that I must put my name and the words MP at the end.
18. That following my compliance with the instructions, I was lifted and placed in the trunk
of a sedan, which then drove off to an undisclosed location. The journey lasted
approximately two to three hours.
19. That subsequently, I was transported to an undiscicsed building and confined in what
appeared to be a cell.
20. That while at the aforementioned location, individuals whom I identified as the first,
second, and third Respondents herein arrived and commenced questioning me
alongside the individuals who had previously abducted me.
21. That I underwent extensive questioning regarding the sources of support for the
former Head of State, Mr. Edgar Lungu, the individuals providing him informaticn from
what they referred to as `the system,’ and Mr. Edgar Chagwa Lungu’s associates.
22. That I was questioned as to whether I was aware and confirm that the Former President usually meets a Mr. Nyambe, whom they purported was the Director Generalcc from the Office of the President.
23. That they further alleged and demanded that I disclose the names of police officers to
whom I allegedly gave money to during a trip to Ndola with the former Head of State.
24. That when I answered negatively to the inquiries, the 1st Respondent ordered that 1
be beaten with a cable and a plank while lying down on a countertop and I was thus
beaten.
25. That I faced repeated inquiries to name the individuals logistically supportirg the operations and trips of the Former President, Mr. Edgar Chagwa Lungu to Chipata for a church service, Ndola for another church service, a visit to Kabwe, and walking in Lusaka town without detection by `the system.’ I was informed that such actions
required collaboration with someone from `the system.
26. That I stated that there were no sponsors for the programs and that we did not
collaborate with anyone from the alleged `system.
27.That the 2nd Respondent then ordered that my genitals be bound so that they would
be castrated and that he told an unknown person to look for a knife so they would cut
off my genitals.
28. That after a brief absence, the individual who had been dispatched returned and
reported that no knife was found. The 3rd Respondent then issued an order for me to
be subjected to further beatings, as I was unwilling to reveal my collaborators.
29. That the 3rd Respondent issued another order for my tongue to be forcibly pulled with
a pair of pliers, which would compel me to reveal the desired information.
30. That I endured the excruciating pain of having my tongue pulled with a pair of pliers
and being mercilessly whipped on my back and underneath my feet. I was then
unceremoniously thrown back into a room that resembled a cell,
31. That in the subsequent events, the 3rd Respondent instructed the nearby men to
apprehend me and dispose of me. Consequently, I was forcibly placed in the trunk of a motor vehicle and transported to an undisclosed location.
32. That when the vehicle firlnally came to a halt after what felt like an interminable journey,
the occupants flung open the trunk. Initially, they threatened to cast me into a nearby
river. However, their conversation shifted, and they ultimately abandoned me, leaving
me in the cold, shivering and isolated.
33. That I, disoriented and weakened, staggered and crawled for a brief period before eventually spotting a nearby house
34. That I struggled, making my way to the nearby house. There, I received assistance
from unidentified individuals who, upon my introduction and provision of my mother’s
contact information, promptly contacted her.
35. That I received assistance with warm clothing while outside the aforementioned house, lying on the ground. The owner and neighbor maintained communication with my
relatives during this time.
36. That on inquiry from the persons who assisted me, I came to know and ascertained
that the location I was, was Kafue.
37. That in the early hours of the 27th May, 2024 and while at the said property, the police and my relatives arrived and placed me on a mattress provided by the owners of the
property and rushed me to Kafue District Hospital.
38. That at Kafue District Hospital, I was diagnosed with multiple bodily injuries, trauma, and hypothermia. The police demanded my referral to Lusaka’s Maina Soko Hospital.
Now shown and produced before me is a copy of the hospital reports collectively marked “EJB1.
39. That on recognizing the police’s directive, my relatives and I decided that I should
receive medical attention at Medlands Hospital, a facility accessible to Members of
Parliament.
40. That Subsequently, I was swiftly transported to Medlands Hospital in Lusaka District, where I was attended to as an emergency case
40. That Subsequently, I was swiftly transported to Medlands Hospital in Lusaka District, where I was attended to as an emergency case.
41. That during my treatment in the emergency section of Medlands Hospital, the police,
whose legal representative is the Respondent herein, forced their way into Medlands Hospital and demanded to evacuate the Petitioner to Maina Soko Military Hospital. Now shown and produced before me is a copy of the foctage Marked *EJB2′′.
42. That I resisted the said demand as I preferred being treated fror Medlands Hospital.
43. That in a concerning turn of events, the substantial contingent of police officers
besieged the hospital premises. Despite the doctor’s protests, they confronted the
hospital management, threatening arrests. The doctor had emphasized that I was
under their custody and receiving medical attention during the examination.
44. That in defiance of objections raised by myself, hospital management, my relatives,
and concerned sympathizers, the agents acting on behalf of the 4th Respondent,
accompanied by Mr. Jack Jacob Mwimbu, the Minister of Home Affairs and Internal
Security, and Mr. Creta Kaanza, a police officer who led the contingent of officers,
forcibly removed me from Medland Hospital. Subsequently, against my express wishes
and without obtaining my consent, they transported me via ambulance to Maina Soko
Hospital.
45. That while at Maina Soko Military Hospital, I underwent a thorough examination, during which the hospital management at Maina Soko confirmed the existence of physical injuries. However, in stark contrast, the Minister of Home Affairs and Internal Security, Mr. Jack Jacob Mwimbu, addressed the media and vehemently denied the Presence of any physical injuries.
46. That furthermore, during my stay at Maina Soko, I was denied access to legal representation and Legal Counsel Mr, Sakwiba Sikota state counsel was denied entry until May 29th, 2024.
47. That on May 31st, 2024, I was discharged from Maina Soko Military Hospital. Immediately thereafter, the police transported me to the Smart Zambia Ccmmand Centre, where I underwent an interview related to my abduction. Approximarely 12 officers were present during this interview.
48. That when I was asked about the identity of the abductors, I requested the officers
present to disclose their names to Mr. Timba Mudenda, the Deputy Criminal
Investigations Director employed by the Zambia Police, and Mr. Ronnie Chipepo, an
officer under the Office of the President. I recognized these individuals, as the others
had initially refused to introduce themselves at the beginning of the interview, causing
me considerable discomfort.
49. That Subsequently, I revealed the names of the 1st, 2nd, and 3’d Respondents as among his abductors. In response, Mr. Timba Mudenda expressed the urgency of informing
the Inspector General of Police. He promptly left the scene, emphasizing that the
information was too sensitive to convey merely over the phone.
50. That before Mr. Timba’s departure to update the Inspector General of Police, he
instructed that my statement be formally closed and that the other police officers
should proceed to interview my wives in his absence.
51. That before the conclusion of the interviews of my wives, I was asked to accompany officers who took me to Kabwata Police for detention, much to my shock, as they made an entry in the occurrerce book that I was being detained for Assault and attempted murder
the Inspector General of Police. He promptly left the scene, emphasizing hat the
information was too sensitive to convey merely over the phone.
51. That Before the conclusion of the interview, I was asked to accompany officers who took me to Kabwata Police for detenticn, much to my shock, as they made an entry in the occurrerce book that I was being detained for Assault and atyempt murder edurd, a matter which I had not been interviewed over or brought to my attention during the interview. Now shown and produced before me is a copy of the occurrence book Marked “EJB3”.
52. That my lawyer was not informed that the police and state officials wanted to take me
away and it is only one of my wives that rushed to the interview room where my lawyer was attending to the interview of my other wife and informed him that I was being taken away.
53. That my lawyer rushed to intercept the group which was taking my client away and
asked if I was under arrest and where they were taking me, the officials said I was: not under arrest but they wanted to just clear up one or two things at police Service Headquarters.
54.That my lawyer stated that he could bring me -later as the other set of police had not yet finished interviewing the second wife.
59. That It has further come to my attention that the President of The Republic of Zambia, at a media briefing held on the 5th of June 2024, referred to an event that occurred sometime in July 2020 and concluded in November 2020, in the High Court, before Judge W. Muma, wherein I was convicted for disorderlv conduct at a police station and fined K 150 or to serve 3 months imprisonment in default and Maxwell Pito was sentenced to 1-year imprisonment with hard labotr for assaulting a police officer at Lusaka’s Central Police Station.
60. That in the said press briefing, the President ordered the reopening of the said case against me, a matter that has been concluded by a Court of competent jurisdiction with finality.
61. That I have been advised by my appointed Advocates on record and I verily believe the same to be true that in view of the above, my rights as tabulated in the petition were violated and am entitled to the reliefs sought therein.
62. That I depose to the contents of this my affidavit pelieving the same to be true and correct.
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