Police after me- Nawakwi

By NATION  REPORTER

EDITH Nawakwi has claimed that a platoon of the Zambia Police has set camp at her residence in a bid to arrest her for unknown reasons but that she has been briefed that she is being wanted for the offence of hate speech.

Ms Nawakwi, president of the Forum for Democracy and Development (FDD) president has said in an interview that the police have been camping at her house in an effort to arrest her for unknown reasons while she was away at her farm.

Ms. Nawakwi said she started receiving phone calls last week from her worker that the police were frequenting her work residence to deliver a summons for her to appear before law enforcement agents at Police Headquarters.

Ms Nawakwi explained that since she was away at her farm, her worker declined to receive the summons on her behalf for fear that the police would claim the summons were delivered to her and effect an arrest.

Ms. Nawakwi said with the persistence of the police, the workers were forced to direct the police at her residence where they decided to set camp in a bid to lay an ambush and arrest her.

“They went to my house but my security officer told them that I had travelled to the farm. In disbelief they were busy piping around the windows at my house. The police have been camped at my residence in a bid to arrest me for unknown reasons. They sent a call out summoning me but they did not find me as I was at the farm and my worker refused to receive the call out on my behalf,” Ms Nawakwi said.

She said when she arrived at her residence, the security officer narrated how the police officers used to set camp in the morning at her residence every other day with the hope of seeing ambushing her with an arrest.

Ms Nawakwi said since her return from the farm, the police have not furnished her with the summons but that the grapevine had informed her that she was being wanted for hate speech.

She said it was shocking that the police wanted to arrest her for hate speech just for branding President Hakainde Hichilema as a man who was not brought up well because of the way he was issuing reckless statements against his predecessor former President Edgar Lungu.

Ms. Nawakwi has also dispelled rumors that she was on the run as she had only traveled to her farm for her usual business.

She said the police were welcome to serve her with the call out as she was back home and as a law-abiding citizen, she would appear before the police without fail.

 Ms. Nawakwi accused President Hichilema of trying to use the police to silence her but vowed she would never stop speaking whenever the head of State transgressed against Zambians by demonizing former President Lungu. But when contacted for a comment, police deputy spokesperson Danny Mwale said he was not aware of any summon that was sent to Ms. Nawakwi.

“Am not aware of this and may be this information has not just reached my table yet, I will try and inquire,” Mr Mwale said.