Fri, 21 Jul 2017 14:59:46 +0000
By SIMON MUNTEMBA
THE Conference of Catholic Bishops (ZCCB) led by Archbishop Telesphore Mpundu yesterday visited incarcerated UPND leade, Hakainde Hichilema at Kabwe’s Mukobeko Maximum prison.
In an interview with the Daily Nation yesterday, Zambia Correctional Services, Commissioner General, Percy Chato confirmed that the Catholic Bishops visited Mr. Hichilema.
“ Yes I can confirm that the Conference of Catholic Bishops led by His Grace, Archbishop Telesphore Mpundu have visited incarcerated opposition UPND leader, Hakainde Hichilema at Mukobeko Correctional facility,” he said.
Mr. Chato could however not give details of the Bishops’ meeting with Mr. Hichilema who recently clocked 100 days under incarceration, but the purpose of the visit was to propose dialogue with President Edgar Lungu with the aim of ending the prevailing political tension in the country.
He said that the prelates arrived at Mukobeko Correctional facility famously known as Mukobeko Prison located in Kabwe around 09:45 hours and were ushered in shortly afterwards.
This follows facilitation the Catholic Bishops sought from President Lungu in which they volunteered to broker peace and dialogue between the two leaders.
The Bishops urged President Lungu to facilitate and hold a face-face meeting with Mr Hichilema.
On July 14, Archbishop Mpundu led a 14-member team of Catholic Bishops to a meeting with President Lungu at State House where they urged the Head of State to consider meeting Mr Hichilema.
The Catholic Bishops appealed to the President to humble himself, put the country first and seriously consider engaging in a genuine face-to-face dialogue with the opposition leader.
“Your Excellency is quite alive to the historic reconciliation that took place between the two late presidents Levy Mwanawasa and Michael Chilufya Sata.
“We would like the State to facilitate our visit to Mr Hakainde Hichilema so that we can deliver the same message to him, namely to humble himself, open the door and pursue the path towards genuine reconciliation,” said Archbishop Mpundu
Efforts to get a comment from the ZCCB proved futile as the ZCCB Secretary General, Father Cleophas Lungu’s mobile phone went unanswered.
