Abolition defamation of President, urges Canisius
By Fanny Kalonda
PF central committee member Canisius Banda has urged government to focus on arresting the high cost of living than citizens in the country.
Dr Banda said President Hakainde Hichilema and his government have broken the record on arresting citizens on defamation of the President charge.
He said that law should be abolished.
Dr Banda referred the detention of Patriots for Economic Progress president Sean Tembo without charge as a sacrilege and barbaric.
“We are here today is Sunday, the day of the Lord, 4th September 2022, and we must live in liberty as citizens. We must focus on fighting hunger, disease, poverty. The focus should be arresting presently the high cost of living not arresting citizens. I repeat, we must live in liberty. Let us focus on arresting the high cost of living, improving the livelihoods of citizens. What has happened to Sean Tembo is a sacrilege. This is barbarism,” he said. “If I call you a cabbage, do you become a cabbage? If I call you Ukwa, do you become Ukwa? If I call you nyama soya, do you become nyama soya? If I say you are the most stupid white man in Zambia, how do you become a stupid white man? No, what makes you a dog is your character and not what somebody says. This law must be abolished.”
Dr Banda said what the government is doing is harassment of its citizens.
He Zambians should live in peace, unity and liberty.
“Sean Tembo must be set free today and now. So we are urging this government to focus on things that matter. This is harassment of citizens. We are here offering solidarity. The Socialist Party is here. I am here, a member of the central committee of the PF. We must live in liberty. Aluta continua. The struggle continues. Zambia is the second richest country in the world. Let us improve the per capita income of citizens, fight poverty, not fighting one another,” said Dr Banda. “We must live in unity and peace, liberty. This is barbarism. This is backwardness. Let Sean Tembo, let the citizens go. Nearly every month a citizen is arrested for merely calling the President something. He has broken a record this man for arresting people for a law which is useless. Which we must abolish. Which we must remove from the statute books.”