ELIAS Munshya has charged that President Edgar Lungu is directly responsible for “shedding blood” of two Zambians in Lusaka on Wednesday.
Meanwhile, Munshya, a Zambian lawyer who is practicing his vocation in Alberta, Canada, says Wednesday’s killing is a rehearsal for more bloodshed that President Lungu plans to unleash on innocent of Zambians.
Joseph Kaunda, a UPND supporter, and Nsama Nsama Chipyoka, a State prosecutor were shot dead by police last week.
This was during the questioning of UPND leader Hakainde Hichilema at police force headquarters.
Police officers were armed to teeth.
Munshya spoke in a live Facebook video on his page on Thursday.
“I need to be very clear; even if these killings were carried out by the police, I do not think that the police are the ones that are responsible for these killings,” Munshya said.
“There’s only one person responsible for the killings in Lusaka yesterday [Wednesday]; and it is President Lungu. It is not the police [and] it is not even Kampyongo as Minister of Home Affairs.”
He insisted that the one who is responsible for the shedding of Kaunda’s and Nsama’s “innocent blood falls squarely in the laps of President Lungu, and nobody else.”
“There’s therefore no report that the Inspector General of Police (Kakoma Kanganja) is going to deliver to President Lungu on Monday (tomorrow) that is ever going to make sense.”
Munshya indicated that Zambians already know whose actions led to the death of the duo.
“Therefore, we are not going to continue to be mocked by a leader who has no concern for the people that he swore to protect. This is not a police discipline issue! This is not [about] somehow a police officer who decides to take the law in their own hands and begins shooting at people,” he said.
“[But] this is a well-orchestrated and planned move by the President, to cause chaos in the country during this particular season, so that he can use it as a pretext to declare either marshal law, a state of emergency or arrest the leader of Zambia’s biggest opposition party.”
He argued that the killing of Kaunda and Nsama do not point to police indiscipline.
“I do know that several of my friends are saying it is the police case. In fact, the Law Association of Zambia has issued a statement in which they are saying this is a police indiscipline matter and they are calling upon the police to do what is right,” Munshya noted.
“I do not agree with that statement. I can only agree with a statement to the extent that it apportions blame squarely in the laps of this President.”
Munshya is troubled that while police created a combat scenario at police headquarters, President Lungu had ‘sneaked out’ for leisure in Luangwa valley in Nyimba, Eastern Province.
“You cannot, as President, go to bed while your country is burning and people are getting shot on the streets of Lusaka. And you sleep soundly! You issue a statement 24 hours later! That is not the behaviour of someone who is ruling properly,” he lamented.
“Ubwafya niba Lungu (the problem is with Mr Lungu) tabaleteka bwino icalo iyo (he is not governing the country well). Bafilwa ukuteka (he has failed to rule).”
He pointed out that a police officer could not shoot at anybody without express permission from their supervisor.
“And ba Lungu knows about that! So, the problem is not with the police – not even Kanganja. It’s ba Lungu who has killed the two people who were shot! Even Kampyongo is innocent!” Munshya said.
“This crime falls squarely on Lungu!”
Munshya further said: “what we saw on Wednesday is a rehearsal for more bloodshed that Lungu plans to unleash on the innocent people of Zambia.”
“Zambia has never had military-grade hardware for the police. Those vehicles you saw are military tankers; they are not for policing. They are armoured military vehicles – they are for killing,” Munshya noted
“They have bought military-grade armoured vehicles and ambulances in order to kill the people of Zambia. That is what President has done!”
He also indicated that the culture that President Lungu had built for the police was the culture of killing.
“It is not a culture of killing people that deserve death. [But] it is a culture of killing innocent people, like [Frank] Mugala, like Nsama, like Joseph Kaunda. That is what he is aiming at!” he said.
Meanwhile, Munshya said there was a lot of incentive for him to remain quiet about misrule in Zambia.
“[But] I’m not going to remain quiet. If there’s a price to pay [for voicing out], let us pay it,” Munshya noted.
“We cannot allow a President who unleashes military-grade force on innocent citizens. We can’t! We would have betrayed the Lord who made us to be born in this beautiful country.”
He also said President Lungu’s statement on the death of Kaunda and Nsama was an epic illustration of somebody who sheds “crocodile tears.”
“It mocks the dead and apportions blame on others. He says what killed Joseph was political activism. [But] political activism does not kill! It (political activism) is protected by our country’s Constitution,” said Munshya./