KAMBWILI EXPLAINS ORDEAL

Thu, 28 Sep 2017 10:23:15 +0000

By Oscar Malipenga

CHISHIMBA Kambwili says he was accosted by a lunatic in a South African restaurant and accused of breaking into a house and stealing laptops, but was never arrested.

The former minister said this in reaction to the Daily Nation story quoting a Mission source that he (Kambwili) was allegedly arrested and hauled to a police station before the High Commissioner then, Mr Chikonde intervened.

“A lunatic in South Africa just found me having coffee at a restaurant and accused me of breaking into his house and stealing his laptops,” former Information minister Chishimba Kambwili explained about the ordeal.

Mr Kambwili said he was never arrested by South African police officers not even for a second.

“My dear brother, I have never been arrested in South Africa. I am so shocked because what happened is a lunatic, some confused man in South Africa just found us having coffee and said this is the man who broke into my house.

“I arrived in South Africa on a Monday and on a Tuesday I had gone for a meeting for anti-doping.  While at a restaurant, I was seated with Kelvin Chishimba, a Zambian resident based in South Africa.  “Then a guy just came with security and said this is the man who had been in my house last week on Wednesday and got away with my laptops at gun point but the security told him that is beyond us you have to go to the police,” Mr Kambwili narrated.

He said the lunatic went outside and picked a few South African police officers who were patrolling.

“They came in the restaurant and asked, may we talk to you sir.  I said yes. They said this man is claiming you broke into his house in Pretoria, but I said not me I am not a South African I am a Zambian and here is my passport I just came in the country yesterday. I have come for the anti-doping meeting.

“They said are you sure, how do we prove? I said no, call the Zambian embassy. We called the High Commissioner Mr Chikonde and in no time he arrived at the restaurant and explained that no that no this man is a minister in Zambia and he just came in yesterday so the Wednesday this man is talking about the man was not in the country and here is his passport,” he said.

“But for people to write that I was arrested, bundled in a car with a gun on my heard I mean what have I done to Daily Nation to be defamed in that way? Why didn’t you call me before writing that story?

“I was never arrested by South African police officers not even for a second,” the former minister said.