Arrest ‘maize thieves,’ demand PF youths

Tue, 16 Jan 2018 10:42:09 +0000

By SIMON MUNTEMBA

 FURIOUS Patriotic Front (PF) youths in Shangombo district have threatened to enforce citizens’ arrest of prominent figures alleged to have stolen 670 x 50 kg bags of relief maize from a Food Reserve Agency (FRA) depot in 2016 in Shangombo district.

The move comes after police in the area had been accused of dragging their feet and sweeping the dirt under the carpet in shielding some prominent figures in the alleged theft case.

Shangombo district PF youth chairman Dominic Shomeno said the youths were uncompromising because since 2016 despite the matter being reported to Shangombo police station and police service headquarters, nothing had been done to open the case.

Mr Shomeno told the Daily Nation in an interview that the PF youths in the district were not happy that the police had failed to arrest the culprits who are known adding that they had now resorted to conducting a citizens’ arrest.

“As youths in the district, we are wondering why these people who looted 670 x 50kg bags of relief maize from Shangombo FRA depot in 2016 are not arrested despite culprits being known. We are wondering why the police have failed to bring the culprits to book.

“We demand the immediate arrest of the culprits who are known together with their sponsor. If the police fail to arrest them, we will conduct a citizens’ arrest ourselves,” Mr Shomeno warned.

Last week, Shangombo District Commissioner Lawrence Nyambe and former Sinjembela Member of Parliament, Poniso Njeulu complained of the sluggish approach by police to probe the matter.

However, Police spokesperson Esther Katongo said her office had not yet been provided with the details of the alleged theft case.

Ms Katongo referred all queries to Western Province Police Commissioner Charles Lungu who when contacted demanded a written query through a phone text message or WhatsApp.

However, a query sent through his WhatsApp was ignored despite showing that he read it and successive attempts to get in touch with him proved futile as phone calls went unanswered.

Captain Nyambe alleged that on August 9 and 10, 2016, hordes of suspected Shangombo UPND cadres led by one of their leaders broke into Shangombo FRA depot after threatening a security guard with a gun and allegedly got away with bags of relief maize meant for vulnerable people in the district.

Capt. Nyambe explained that as district disaster management unit chairperson for Shangombo, he together with a security guard who was on duty at that particular day reported the case at Shangombo police station for possible prosecution of culprits who he claimed were known, but nothing had been done.

“Despite the case of well-known UPND cadres led by a well-known leader being reported and investigated by the police at Shangombo and police service headquarters, no one has ever been arrested,” Capt. Nyambe said.

And former Sinjembela MP Poniso Njeulu said it was disappointing that when inquiries were done to find out how far the case had gone, the police were not giving satisfactory answers.

Mr Njeulu said that when he tried to inquire with police service headquarters, he was told that a report concerning the theft of 670 x 50 kg bags of relief maize from FRA depot in Shangombo was concluded and forwarded to the office of the DPP a  long time ago.

He, however, said contrary to what the police told him, the office of the DPP refused having ever received a report of stolen relief maize from the police.

He added, “Now questions which many people are asking themselves are, where is the report of the stolen maize is and why is it that the well-known thieves who stole 670 x 50kg bags of relief maize have not yet been arrested?”

Mr Njeulu said the people of Shangombo want justice to prevail by asking the authority to make sure that the well-known individuals were brought to book.