TELL ME WHY . . .
For the second time in less than two weeks, immigration officers at KKIA have had to seek permission from higher authorities to clear me to fly out.
The first time this happened was when I was travelling to Harare for the inauguration of President Emmerson Mnangagwa.
And today, travelling to Luanda for the SADC Lawyers’ Annual Conference, I have been subjected to the same treatment.
The immigration officers on duty told me they could not clear me to proceed to board the aircraft until higher authorities had given them permission to do so. They accordingly made phone calls to the higher authorities. Eventually, orders were given to let me proceed.
I asked them to give me the law or authority under which I am being subjected to this procedure. Their response was that they don’t know why they have been ordered to treat me in this way. They advised that I seek an explanation from higher immigration authorities on my way back.
The rule of law requires that every decision and action of the government should be backed by, or based on, a written law.
As things stand today, I really don’t know what I need to do to ensure that after buying a ticket and obtaining the necessary visa I am guaranteed to be able to travel.
For sure, this is not the right way to run the affairs of government and to treat citizens.
Fred M’membe
President of the Socialist Party