Information and Media Permanent Secretary Thabo Kawana together with Home Affairs and Internal Security counterpart Dickson Matembo have strongly condemned the recording and distribution of the audio recording of their conversation with Petauke Member of Parliament Emmaneul Banda.
The two have since disclosed that they are constituting legal action against the member of Parliament for recording their conversation without their consent.
Information and Media Minister Thabo Kawana stated that the two went to visit Mr Banda at the hospital upon invitation from Mr Banda and his uncle Chief Mumbi of Eastern Province.
Mr Kawana said the visit was made in good faith and regretted that the other party seemed to have otherwise intentions.
He disclosed that Mr Banda proposed to disclose the truth regarding his alleged abduction in exchange for an MoU to be signed with his lawyers and for all his charges to be dropped and that the proposal was rejected by the two Permanent Secretaries.
And Home Affairs and Internal Security Permanent secretary Dickson Matembo has tasked the media and the general public to question details of Mr Banda’s alleged abduction, which he said do not correlate.
Mr Matembo added that it was very unfortunate that some citizens including Mr Banda’s lawyers made false statements on the matter, which have a legal implication on the Member of Parliament and are causing alarm in the country.
ZANIS reports that the two Permanent Secretaries said this during a press briefing at the Ministry of Information and Media in Lusaka today.
Zanis
Had I been sitting as permanent secretary of Ministry of Information & Media or Home Affairs & Internal Security and had been approached for a plea bargain by JJ Banda, I would have simply thanked him for the call and advised him to talk to investigators with his lawyer. I would not have declined to take the call because as a public officer, I would be expected to be available to members of the public who reach my office either by phone or physical visitation. I would have then left it at that because other stuff would have beyond my mandate.
Exactly.
I agree % with you. The two PSs were just too ambitious over a non issue and even though they are claiming innocence, they went beyond their call of duty
Surely they deserve to be punished
If we didn’t hear the audio, we would believe this lame attempt to save face. But alas, the audio speaks for itself.
Did the journalists get to fire questions at these 2 empty tins? Kawana was clearly heard in the audio saying, “they did it”, what did he mean?