TWO ZAMBIA ARMY SOLDIERS WHO WERE DISMISSED FROM WORK AFTER ALLEGEDLY BEING FOUND WITH MARIJUANA GO TO COURT TO SEEK JUSTICE
The complainants, Chuma Nkuwa and Hellem Mwalimu, want the Lusaka High Court to quash the Zambia Army commander’s decision to discharge them from employment as regular soldiers.
The officers argue that the commander’s decision was not only an illegality but was unreasonable and falls in the realms of impropriety.
They have since filed a notice of motion for leave to seek Judicial Review proceedings, citing the Attorney General and the Amy Commander as first and second respondents.
In the court documents, the duo submit that they reside in Garden House and Chilenje South.
They state that during the last quarter of 2023, the Zambia Army advertised in the Daily mail wherein invited suitable applicants to submit applications for recruitment into the Zambia Army as regular solders.
“We proceeded to submit our credentials for consideration for enlistment as regular soldiers”.
They submit that in the process, an Army instructor started searching several tents and upon for searching theirs, he found nothing sinister after ordering applicants to remove all our belongings.
The applicants say the instructor proceeded to one of their beds where he purported to have found something wrapped in a plastic bag.
“That instructor came to the second applicant and stated that the contents of the plastic bag was in fact marijuana and handcuffed him and started beating him.
“The instructor later demanded to know who my close friend was and I mentioned the first applicant who at the time was out on an assignment”.
Mr Nkuwa was then summoned by and upon arrival, was also allegedly beaten and handcuffed.
“We were later moved to Arakan Barracks and consequently surrendered to Drug Enforcement Commission [DEC] who conducted an investigation and did not find us liable and released us”.
The duo adds that DEC later informed them that they had since written to Zambia Army exonerating them but ” could not give us a copy as that was confidential and surrendered us to Army Headquarters”.
“We were kept at Army headquarters awaiting to be taken to the training camp”.
The two state that they were advised that they will not go back to the training camp but instead, would wait for their colleagues at headquarters and pass out together on June 26 and 27, 2024.
“We were told we would later proceeded to our respective homes and report back for deployment. We were later called to report for work which we did and we are advised to be reporting from home”.
The applicants submit that about July 30, 2024, they were summoned by a Zambia Army agent who took them to the chief clerk.
“We were given discharge letters and respectively wherein it was stated that we were discharged from employment on grounds that we were found in possession of marijuana”.
The two complain that they have never been charged with any offence, heard or given a chance to exculpate ourselves, making the decision to dismiss them irrationally illegal, improper and unreasonable.
They want to be paid damages and also allowed to proceed with their usual peaceful enjoyment of their privileges and entitlements as regular soldiers.
Mwebantu