DANIEL Kalembe brutalised me on youth day, he is violent, said Patriotic Front member Innocent Kalimanshi.
Kalimanshi and his fellow PF member Nathan Phiri told the Lusaka Magistrates’ Court that Lusaka Province PF youth chairman Daniel Kalembe, who was in the company of some youths, hit them with pavers at the freedom statue for refusing to heed to his directives when he asked them to leave the venue for youth day celebrations.
This is in a matter where Kalembe is facing two counts of assault occasioning actual bodily harm.
Kalembe is on March 12, 2020 alleged to have assaulted Kalimanshi and Phiri.
Kalimanshi told chief resident magistrate Lameck Mwale that during the youth day celebrations at the freedom statue, Kalembe and Phiri had an argument on phone and when they met in person, the argument continued.
The witness said when Kalembe saw him with Phiri, he (Kalembe) accused him of involving himself in issues he did not know.
He said Kalembe told him that he would withdraw his protection over him (Kalimanshi) as he was the owner of Lusaka.
“I told him that the differences between he and Nathan was none of my business because I worked with Phiri because of politics. Kalembe left and he later came back with youths who asked me to leave but I refused because I wanted to listen to the President’s speech,” he narrated.
“One of the youths had a bottle and Kalembe got it and hit me above my right eye and I started bleeding. I looked at him to make him feel guilty as I grew up under his care. The same youth who was the owner of bottle picked a paver and asked me why I gave Kalembe a disapproving look. He hit me with a paver on my mouth and my fake teeth fell off my mouth and one of my tooth (incisor) started shaking.”
He said people threw stones at his back but he did not turn to see who were stoning him and Phiri.
Kalimanshi said the police rushed to the scene and asked Kalembe what was happening and the latter claimed he was chasing the youths who were causing commotion.
“The police told me to go to the police station as I was assaulted and it was at that time that the national youth chairman Kelvin Sampa engaged Kalembe in a conversation,” Kalimanshi explained.
He added that at the police station, he was given a medical report and he went to UTH where his wound was sutured and was given pain killers for his tooth as the doctor advised him to go and see a dentist after three months.
In cross-examination by Kalembe’s lawyer Tutwa Ngulube, Kalimanshi affirmed that him and Phiri were assaulted at the same time.
He said he felt dizzy after he was assaulted and could therefore not tell the number of other youths who were assaulted together with him.
He said Kalembe brutalised him at he freedom Statue.
When asked if Kalembe was violent, Kalimanshi answered in the affirmative.
When asked if Phiri was assaulted, Kalimanshi said “I heard Nathan cry (mayo nafwa) whilst calling upon his mother.”
Earlier, Phiri, a businessman of Kamwala south, told magistrate Mwale that on March 12, 2020, he went to the freedom statue for youth day celebrations and whilst he was seated in a vehicle labeled ECL empowerment 2021 belonging to the party, Kalembe approached him indicating that he was no longer going to protect him as he was going to withdraw security.
“He said I am going to remove my protection from you (Phiri). I asked him, are you God for you to say you will remove protection from me? He left for a while, for about 10 minutes, and he came back with youths from Intercity bus terminus and he told them to chase me and others,” Phiri narrated.
“Some of the youths said tampeni ukwenda (start walking away) and I refused saying I am not going anywhere, I have come here to celebrate and this day belongs to the youths.”
Phiri said Kalembe, who was in the company of the said youths, picked up pavers at the freedom statue and stoned him on his head and the back.
Phiri said police officers came to his rescue and he was rushed to central police station to go and obtain a medical report form and he later proceeded to the University Teaching Hospital (UTH) for attention.
At this point, Ngulube objected to production of the pavers as part of evidence as there was no proof that the pavers came from the scene.
Ngulube said Phiri did not hand the pavers to the police for investigations, so there was a risk that he might have picked them somewhere.
He added that the chain of custody had not been established and Phiri being a complainant in the matter, the possibility of telling lies was very high.
In his response, state prosecutor Aaron Tuntuluka said that being the custodian of the pavers, Phiri was the right person to produce them as evidence despite him not surrendering them to the police.
However, Ngulube argued that no explanation was rendered why the witness did not surrender the pavers to the police for investigations.
In his ruling, magistrate Mwale said one would wonder why the exhibits were not tendered to the police for investigations and decline their admission as evidence.
During cross-examination by Kelembe’s other lawyer, Phiri said that he could still consider himself as a youth at 48 years because in their party, the PF, there were people who had clocked 50 years but still consider themselves as youths.
He denied being an intruder at the youth celebrations owing to his age.
When further asked if he was a youth apart from his party position, Phiri said he was not a youth.
He affirmed that he did not have proof of invitation as it was done verbally by the constituency chairman of PF.
Phiri said he knew his other attackers but it was not his duty to effect an arrest because it is a preserve of the police officers.
When asked if he provoked the youths when he threatened to take over Intercity bus terminus with others, Phiri denied.
Phiri said he identified Kalembe and Pethias Kamimbi as his attackers.
When asked if Kalembe was separating a fight between youths from Chawama and Intercity, Phiri denied.
Meanwhile, Kalembe and his assault victims have failed to reconcile as the parties could not reach consensus.
Magistrate Mwale, who earlier ordered that the matter proceeds to trial, told the parties that they could still engage the court in an event that they decide to reconcile in future.
Trial continues on July 2, 2020.