NOT DEC VS THE CHURCH: WHY ZAMBIA MUST REJECT FALSE NARRATIVES
Lawyer Simon Mwila Shares….
As a lawyer, I understand and respect the mandate of law enforcement institutions. As a Catholic, I also understand the role of the Church and its shepherds in speaking to the conscience of the nation. It is from these two positions that I reflect on the recent matter involving Archbishop Dr. Alick Banda and the Drug Enforcement Commission.
On the legal side, Mr. Nason Banda, the Director General of DEC, is carrying out a difficult national duty. The fight against financial crime, corruption, and illicit activities demands firmness and resolve. The law gives the Commission authority to summon any citizen where necessary, and exercising that authority does not, on its own, amount to wrongdoing. Institutions must be allowed to function without fear or undue pressure.
On the side of faith, Archbishop Dr. Alick Banda is not just another citizen. He is a spiritual leader whose voice carries moral guidance for many Zambians. The Catholic Church has, over time, played an important role in peace building, national reflection, and dialogue. When such a figure becomes part of a legal process, public reaction is naturally heightened, not because he is above the law, but because people listen to him and trust his moral voice.
This is where wisdom becomes critical.
When law and faith intersect in a politically sensitive environment, procedure alone is not enough. How authority is exercised, and how it is communicated, matters deeply. Calm, quiet professionalism reassures the nation. Noise and speculation unsettle it.
Sadly, this is also the space where some politicians rush in to manipulate events. Instead of allowing institutions to do their work with sobriety, they frame the issue for political gain, inflame emotions, and divide citizens along religious and political lines. Pushing a narrative that DEC is fighting the Catholic Church is irresponsible, dishonest, and dangerous. It cheapens both the law and faith, and it insults the intelligence of the Zambian people.
This matter is not a contest between institutions or individuals. It is not DEC versus the Catholic Church. It is two men, both serving Zambia in different ways, caught at a difficult moment. One is charged with enforcing the law. The other is charged with guiding conscience. Both roles are necessary. Neither diminishes the other.
What this moment calls for is restraint, humility, and mutual respect. The law must remain firm, but it must also be wise. The Church must speak, but it must also promote peace. And politicians must resist the temptation to exploit every situation for short term political gain.
Zambia does not need heightened tension at the moment. It needs sober citizens, mature institutions, and leaders who put the country above politics. 📌 .
Simon Mulenga Mwila – Aspiring Mayor of Lusaka.
(DBA-Candidate, MBA, LLM, LLB, Legal Practitioner, Commissioner for Oaths, Notary Public, Staunch Catholic)
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As a Catholic, I see the Catholic Church under Attack from the Government of Hakainde. If you can’t see that the church is under attack, then something is wrong with you. May the Holy Spirit open your eyes so that you can discern what is happening.
The pattern is very clear and it started in 2021.
.Attack on the Clergy.. Threaten those who Freely express themselves.
.Divide the Bishops in ZCCB so that it’s rendered dysfunctional. ( There are some moles in ZCCB, such that even writing a Pastoral Letter to the Congregants is becoming difficult)
, .Agitate and scheme for the removal of the Archbishop Dr Alick Banda as the Bishop of Lusaka…
The end goal is to reduce the Catholic Church ‘ s influence , the only Brick wall Hakainde has failed to penetrate through Monetary donations..the buying of loyalties he has been doing in churches all over the country.
Hakainde has destroyed the major Political Party, the Patriotic Front..He is the defacto leader of the PF through Robert Chabinga, and all PF candidates have virtually been removed from the ballot.
.The Labour Union movement is in his Pocket.
Most of the Chiefs are in his pocket..
The Law Association of Zambia is under siege.
The only institution which has stood firm in the defence of the Country’s values is the Catholic Church…and he is after it.. and after those who have made the Catholic Church Resilient.. This is where Bishop Banda comes in.
The ZRA vehicle is just a smokescreen.
He thinks through the Hyped Propaganda, scandalisation of the man , the Pope can recall Archbishop Alick Banda..and replace him with a Praise Singing Bishop who will guarantee his easy passage on 13th August, 2026.
I can imagine the number letters which are being sent to the Vatican over Archbishop Dr Alick Banda by Praise Maniacs masquerading as Catholics…and the Rogue Media.
There’s nothing in the ZRA vehicle case against Archbishop Dr Alick Banda. Absolutely nothing.
Only a foolish prosecutor can take such a case to court..It can’t stand in a court of law.
The only thing in this is Scandalisation of the Man.. with the hope that the Pope will notice and recall him . This is what this is about.
Ba Nkuku, your imagination is running wild. It is in overdrive. Nobody is writing letters to the Vatican and in any case, the Vatican has its own apparatus for gathering intelligence and is unlikely to rely on letters from the public or government actions.
Calm down ba Nkuku. The Archbishop is going for an interview not a court case. We can only intelligently talk about this after his interview with the DEC.
Don’t you honestly think it is unusual for a clergyman of such reputation to be in possession of Government property which has been highlighted to have been obtained through breach of a legally laid down disposal procedures?
I think this is the moral question to answer. And to be honest let us openly talk about political manipulation. when actually did this take place. Did it take place before hand over of the property in question or was it after the retrieval of the property?
I am interested to hear your sincere views on this issue. Since I agree with you that political manipulation may have actually been involved in this issue though invisible in the process.
The law supersedes any human. Priest needs to answer some questions, period. He appears to have conspired with law breakers
Today I would like to bring a different factor regarding our discussions. Usually we focus on the outcomes and effects of major under currents and we miss the opportunity of dealing with the actual root causes affecting our nation.
To start with let us all agree that a wrong was done in a public institution namely ZRA.
How was this wrong conducted. A legally defined procedure of disposal of assets was intentionally breached. Agreed. Who was involved:
1. The Public institution it self.
2. The Public Service appointed workers and their leaders.
3. A private Citizen .
4. The legitimate workers entitled by the internal regulations to benefit from such disposals.
Kindly take note that in the above there is no mention of any religious organization. The private individual is only addressed in his official capacity but not the organisation in any way. Therefore any attempt to bring into the picture a religious organisation is uncalled for and inappropriate unless it is an attempt to circumvent the natural course of Justice.
This scenario is not what is concerning to me. I feel this is where we are missing what needs to ve corrected. Most of the victims mentioned above are unfortunately casualties of an elaborate master plan by the political engineers who seem to fail us at each turn.
The major discussion we ought to not leave out while correcting the obvious breaches is to deal with the loop holes unscrupulous politicians continuously use to manipulate innocent citizens and those appointed to high office positions
In my honest view , the big problem we are witnessing is the invisible hand playing the cards in the background through manipulations. These guys are the real threat and enemy. They are too power at the moment to stand up to while protecting the government processes on behalf of the citizens of Zambia. These invisible players can influence swift actions from their weak leaders to dismiss those who question their demands.
Having laid down the known facts it is clear that we have identified the actual parties to the unlawful breach.
Unfortunately Dismissals is the punishment a poor worker will face if they refuse to obey rouge politicians who have the backing of crooked or weak bad leaders. This is too much of a price pay for standing up against bad authorities. Hence these public workers are easily intimidated, defeated and resolve to allow for such dubious actions to take place. If we look up carefully, you will find good workers have been subjected to suffering for refusing to be part of these bad decisions in most of our institutions.
In light of the hidden hand behind the scenes it is clear that our parliament need to discuss these issues realistically. There is need to involve all the civil societies and various groups and citizens in having honest discussions on how we as a country can protect our public workers from abuse and manipuation for political gain
It is now time to democratically advocate for independence in the appointment of some of our sensitive Public offices.
Any attempt to leave these deeply rooted unspoken issues unattended will cause us as a nation to be at the mercy of the people we choose to leaders us.
The scale and impact of the devastion on our economic will be unfortunately measured by how bad or good the reputation of those who lead us is.
In my opinion these are the critical issues we need to deal with Zambians.