ESCAPING JUSTICE: HAVE WE LEARNED NOTHING FROM THE PAST?
By Sydney Chelaz
10th August 2024- The recent escape of JJ Banda, the Independent Member of Parliament for Petauke Central, from Chipata General Hospital raises alarm bells that echo past incidents involving high-profile individuals such as Pamela Gondwe, Kaizer Zulu, and Chilufya Tayali.
Despite the efforts made by the police in the present and past, these escapes bring into question the effectiveness of our security measures and whether we have truly learned from previous failures.
JJ Banda’s alleged escape through a window over two meters high, under the watch of police officers who were supposed to ensure his custody, is both shocking and concerning. How did a man, supposedly under tight surveillance, manage to evade the authorities so easily? Are the police officers merely scapegoats for a larger issue within our security system? This incident is not just a simple lapse in duty; it is a national security concern that demands immediate scrutiny, this gives meaning to the words of Graphel Musamba the Police IG who said we hv junckies in the police service who where recruited by the past regime.
When Pamela Gondwe disappeared with vast sums of money, the nation was left stunned, wondering how such a thing could happen in a tightly regulated industry like banking, such that even up to today there has been no proper communication on how far they have gone with the efforts to find her.
Similarly, Kaizer Zulu, who has had cases before the courts of law, disappeared, and all we’ve heard is that he was seen being treated by medical personnel in a certain country. And Chilufya Tayali’s brushes with the law and subsequent disappearances highlighted weaknesses in our legal and security frameworks, with Facebook pundits guessing where he is, even without certainty.
Yet, here we are again, facing another instance of a high-profile individual escaping justice. What lessons have we truly learned from these past events? Have our security measures improved, or are we simply repeating the same mistakes?
This recurring issue raises serious questions about the integrity and preparedness of our police service and other law enforcers. If individuals like JJ Banda can escape from custody with such ease, what does this say about our ability to protect the public from those who commit serious crimes? Could this be an indication that our law enforcement agencies are not equipped to handle high-risk detainees, or worse, that there might be internal complicity in these escapes?
The implications of these escapes are far-reaching. They not only undermine public confidence in the police and other law enforcers but also pose a significant threat to national security. If individuals who commit serious crimes can disappear without a trace, what is stopping others from following suit? This could potentially lead to a situation where the rule of law is compromised, and criminals operate with impunity.
As a nation, we must ask ourselves: Are we doing enough to prevent these escapes, or are we merely reacting after the fact? The answers to these questions are critical in ensuring that justice is served and that the public is protected from those who would seek to evade it.
The time for complacency is over; we must learn from the past and take decisive action to prevent such incidents from occurring in the future.
This is a planned move and very well code netted the police and correction offices involved a lot of money spent.
The problem is employing compromised misleaders like the former president known for not having any trace of integrity to hold the highest offices in the land.
JJ should not even be an issue, he is probably a decoy of more underground schemes going on in this country, possibly plans to overthrow the government!
The security wings should be be more alert and profile all those in there, employed between 2011 and 2021 and their proxies.
The recent assassination of Gentile should ring the Alarm.
Caleb is well linked to Makebi and the chain starts from there. Kaizer is linked to Munir and the chain continues from there.
JJ has ties to the big fish and that is cardinal. Binwell must be quizzed on what he knows because he has played a very crucial role in this scheme.
Don’t forget the Kampyongo and Chitotela knights and Bishops.
The chain goes on.
The Question is, why is Zim offering sanctuary to criminals?
Is there a way to extradite Kaizer? Am sure all diplomatic channels can be employed to bring these characters to book.
They tested power and they do wish to climb the ladder in one giant leap. The desperation of ECL is one of one cornered cat that can attack it’s captors at any time.
We need the peace and it seems these fellows are prepared to do anyy!
Anything.
They must be it under a very powerful microscope.
These are fake leaders who run away from what they start. Don’t even dare follow them because they will leave you to face the consequences of the crimes they initiate. True leaders face the consequences of their actions leading by example. How can someone run away from what they start and make noise outside and you call such a leader. If they are true leaders, let them come back and prove themselves innocent except in this case they are just criminals because that is how criminals behave. Give them power it means there will be lawlessness in the country because they feed on it.
Exactly
Granted there are junkies in the Zambia Police Service. And according to Minister Mwimbu, SC, there are even some ZP officers who are worse than junkies. There are countless incidents by ZP personnel supporting these assertions. In view of these revelations there is great need to redeem the tattered image of ZP. The following must be looked at: corruption, indiscipline, code of conduct, and serious internal monitoring.
In countries such as the UK a police officer in uniform cannot accept food from a member of the public. But in Zambia it is no longer surprising to see a police officer asking for mineral water or a cob of maize and worse still eating it openly. It is small acts like these that lead to the shocking happenings we are seeing now. There is just too much laissez-faire culture in the ZP Service now. A serious transformation of the ZP Service cannot be overemphasised. It is a must.