By OLIVER SAMBOKO
LAWLESSNESS by cadres will not be tolerated as the UPND government is committed to non-selective application of the law, government spokesperson Chushi Kasanda has warned.
Commenting on the brutal attack on Mpika FM Radio station by known UPND cadres on Thursday night, Ms Kasanda who is also information Minister, said government is disturbed by the lawlessness exhibited by the attackers.
“Government is disturbed by reports of attack on Mpika FM Radio station in Muchinga Province by suspected United Party for National Development (UPND) cardres during a live phone-in programme on which an opposition Member of Parliament was being featured,” she stated in a statement to the Daily Nation.
Ms Kasanda said the new dawn leadership prides in having eradicated cadre hooliganism and takes strong exception to anyone engaging in the vice.
She said political leadership at the district level should take responsibility over the unfortunate event and work with the police to bring the perpetrators of the unfortunate event to book.
Ms Kasanda reiterated that the government under the leadership of President Hichilema stands for media freedom and will not tolerate attacks on media houses by anyone for featuring any person on their programmes.
Meanwhile, the Free Press Initiative (FPI) Zambia has condemned recent attacks on PF Mpika MP Francis Kapyanga after the UPND cadres stormed Mpika FM on December 1, and ordered a stop to a programme which he featured on.
FPI founder Joan Chirwa, said the behaviour exhibited by the cadres was unfortunate as it did not align with not only President Hichilema’s pronouncements that the media was free to operate but also the minster’s continuous pronouncements of government’s commitment to provide an enabling environment in which journalists would work freely without any fear of intimidation or harassment.
She said just when people thought such barbaric behaviour had ended, to everyone’s surprise the country was seeing the now ruling party cadres also taking up animalistic behaviour, which watered down everything that had been promised in this democratic dispensation.
“We do not want to see a continuation of harassment, attacks and threats that the PF cadres put the media through. The UPND must immediately act on this and stop such behavior which has potential to stifle press freedom and also instil fear in women and the youth who may shy away from participating in politics,” she said.
Ms Chirwa said her organisation appealed to the police command in Mpika to act swiftly and stop this barbaric behaviour of the cadres who wanted to restrict freedom of expression which every Zambian must enjoy as a matter of right enshrined in Article 20 (1) which states, that except with his own consent, no person shall be hindered in the enjoyment of his freedom of expression, that is to say, freedom to hold opinions without interference, freedom to receive ideas and information without interference, freedom to impart and communicate ideas and information without interference, whether the communication be to the public generally or to any person or class of persons, and freedom from interference with his correspondence.
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