CHITIMUKULU FUMES
AMOS CHANDA LIED ABOUT THE BEMBA ROYAL ESTABLISHMENT ISSUING A STATEMENT AGAINST HIS INCARCERATION
Dr. Henry Kanyanta Sosala
PART II
The Amos Chanda Saga
One of the world’s greatest evangelists, Billy Graham once said, ‘’Laugh and the world laughs with you; weep and you weep alone.’’ And this has been true in the life of Amos Chanda. In the first place when he was a star at State House, he operated a sort of night club which used to be packed to capacity by people who thought Chanda could pass some words to the President on their behalf. But, alas, as soon as he suddenly lost the post, nobody went there and it was closed.
Second, when PF lost power and in what he thought was a ‘’clever tactical move’’ to find favour within UPND, he ditched the PF. It is in our human nature and we all need sympathy when we face certain situations. And after Amos was arrested, cited for serious criminal charges and remanded in the cruel world of prison, he desperately needed sympathy. And the only remaining institution according to him that could offer blind unreserved sympathy on tribal lines was his tribal lineage i.e., the Bemba Royal Establishment.
Amos Chanda then wrote the following article which his sympathizing fellow press men published in the Watchdog: ‘’The Bemba Royal Establishment (BRE) is disturbed that Amos Chanda, the former State House press aide has been kept in unlawful dentation for almost a week without being taken to court when the offence he is charged is bailable.
On Sunday night Senior Chief Mwamba sent a message through his representative who visited Mr Chanda at Kabwata Police station where the former State House press aide had been detained since Thursday last week.
Senior Chief Mwamba said he was an emissary of Paramount Chief Chitimukulu, of the Bemba people. Senior Chief Mwamba said the Mwine Lubemba was particularly concerned that Mr Chanda was allegedly being persecuted over an offence that was bailable and over a court matter that the Royal Establishment understood closed in 2020.
The Bemba chiefs are concerned that the Drug Enforcement Commission (DEC) and the other law enforcement agencies had targeted Mr Chanda for harassment in a bid to get to the former President Edgar Lungu who he served as special advisor for press.’’
But unfortunately his desperation led him to make the Bemba chiefs over-sympathize far beyond their capacity. For sure we chiefs know nothing about bailable cases since we do not deal with those situations in our traditional courts and not even in the nearby local courts. On the other hand, the chiefs in their lines of duty only know the people that they daily see and interact with such as the C.C.P.A., the local court messengers, the police, the soldiers, prison warders and the district messengers who accompany Provincial Ministers, Permanent Secretaries or District Commissioners when they visit their palaces. But we definitely know nothing about the Drug Enforcement Commission (DEC) and we therefore cannot issue any statement regarding any situation since we do not know what they do.
But what had really motivated Amos to apply the ‘’cunning tactical maneuver’’ to manipulate and involve what he supposed to be the ‘’institution of ignoramuses’’ to his advantage? I believe Robert Sternberg, ‘’a stupid expert’’ can help us understand Amos Chanda’s motives in this scenario: ‘’…….this is not actually stupidity in the classical sense, which is usually thought as of a very low IQ. This kind of foolishness must be distinguished from the ‘’mental retardation.’’ And this kind of idiocy has been identified with inferiority complex arising mostly from highly questionable family background. This kind of stupidity comes with displaced ambition; such stupid persons believe that because they are so smart; the world does and should revolve around them. They are gripped by the omniscience fallacy. They are convinced that they know more than everyone else and can influence public opinion to their advantage and that others are just big idiots whom they can easily manipulate.’’
And incidentally who is Amos Chanda and what is so special about him that could cause the BRE such furore inspite of him being arrested and detained on alleged criminal charges! I have known Amos Chanda as a Bemba from Chinsali in Muchinga Province and I know one of his closest relative and is not in any way connected to the Bemba royal family by marriage, sweat or any other way.
The old institution of chieftaincy also like courts of law draws a lot from past precedents. For example, the Bemba Royal Establishment was silent on such a Bemba political hero like Mr. Simon Mwansa Kapwepwe who resigned as Zambian Republican Vice-President ‘’because the people from the northern part of Zambia, the Bemba-speaking people if you like, have suffered physically and sometimes been beaten. They have suffered demotions and suspensions because of my being Vice-President. I cannot sacrifice any longer these people……’’ He was later detained, not on criminal charges, but when his political party the phoenix-like United Progressive Party (UPP) was banned.
On the other hand, the Bemba Royal Establishment is currently silent on Mr. Geoffrey Bwalya Mwamba. He resigned as Defence Minister when I was being harassed by President Sata. And the President asked him to choose between his highly remunerative and prestigious job and myself. And here are his words: ‘’ ‘’ …it’s important for Zambians to know that I hail from the Bemba royal family and it is therefore unacceptable for President Sata to stop me from visiting my grandfather. There is no way I am going to forsake my own blood for the sake of politics. So for me as GBM, I am sorry. I am a very principled person and I resign from government.’’
Mr. Mwamba had risked his own life besides his businesses by standing on the principle of being loyal not only to me personally but to the Bemba people and tribe. And him being a member of the Bemba royal family he failed to betray his tribe for the sake of money and position.
If the Bemba Royal Establishment could be silent on such heroes who gave up great privileges for the sake of our tribe, how on earth could we be so concerned about such an unknown and insignificant individual as Amos Chanda.
And here is what Amos chanda himself later wrote after being released from custody: ‘’Good afternoon. I have been granted bail by the court. My only word for now is that I am thankful for the professionalism of the court which rejected DEC’s absurd opposition for bail on grounds that if released I would repeat the same offence. How can I repeat an offence that I have ever committed in the first place.
‘’The vitriol malice and personal hatred is extraordinary. But I will confront all this during my defence once trial begins on November 23. Magistrate Washimanga directed that there was no legal basis to deny me bail for an offence that is bailable and ordered bail for K10,000 in the recognizance of the two working sureties. I also wish to thank the Bemba Royal Establishment which sent His Royal Highness Senior Mwamba to come and give moral support during my unlawful detention for six days in a crowded cell at Kabwata Police Station.
‘’I have since met Senior Chief Mwamba here in Lusaka and spoken to the Mwinelubemba, Paramout Chief Chutimululi of the Bemba people to assure him that I was well and ready to defend myself against the absurd charges from the DEC’’
On the other hand, Senior Chief Mwamba confirmed that Amos Chanda went to see him at the hotel and apologized for all the misinformation that had taken place while he was in custody. The chief, however, told me that he does not know even where Kabwata police station was and he added that if ever he was taken there could any police man identify him as having ever visited Amos Chanda ? But deducing from his press statement, Amos merely twisted his visit Senior Chief Mwamba to reaffirm the statement that he had posted on the Watchdog
But on my part, I believe Amos Chanda has become a pathological liar since to the best of my knowledge I have never spoken to him for the whole of this year and for him to claim he spoke to me means that his incarceration is having a negative impact on his brains most probably leading to dementia.
Epilogue
And in closing, being the most senior member of the Bemba Royal Establishment, I must declare that I myself and all Bemba Chiefs are committed to work with the current UPND government and President Hakainde Hichilema, just as we cooperated and worked with the Patriotic front government and President Lungu. And I furthermore wish also to recognize and appreciate the fact that we are represented in government by our sisters and brothers from the three Bemba-speaking provinces i.e., Luapula, Northern and Muchinga and we have been honoured to have the Republican Vice-President who hails from this region.