A KAFUE police officer-in-charge ordered a junior officer to be arrested for not having recorded the whereabouts of his colleagues.

Assistant superintendent Bonny Kapeso had sub inspector Leonard Lukwanda Chiluba locked up because he apparently did not enter the names of police officers and where they had gone to work in the Occurrance Book.

This book is used to record the specifics of what every officer in the station is doing and where he is.

However, the Legal Resources Foundation (LRF) Chawama advice centre paralegal Enerst Mukelabai, said Chiluba was wrongfully detained

Chiluba said this happened on January 20, 2001 and his superior was assisted by woman chief inspector Mubita in harassing him.

He said the two forced his detention and instructed the two people he had arrested to beat him up in the cell. But the two refused saying he was a police officer and they would be the ones to suffer when he came out.

Kapeso then decided to punish the officer himself. He got him out of the cells, made him roll in the mud and do some frog jumps in front of on-lookers.

Chiluba said Kapeso booked him for "falsehood" and threw him up in the cells.

Three days later Chiluba was released. The officer in charge then forced Chiluba to apply for transfer from the station. He said he signed because his boss did not like him and he did this to punish him.

Chiluba was then transferred to Chawama Police Post where he is working at the moment.

He reported the matter to LRF Chawama advice centre claiming he wants to sue the two for unlawful detention and the punishment he underwent when he had arrested two suspects in the proper manner.

Mukelabai, a paralegal manning the centre, said the officer in-charge was not in order to detain Chiluba because he was on duty and was right to arrest the two criminals.

He wondered why the officer in-charge was interested in detaining Chiluba and why he instructed the two inmates to beat him up.

He said the foundation would have to consider assisting Chiluba because the two officers were not supposed to detain an officer on duty.

LEGAL Resources Foundation Intern Paul Mulenga has challenged the police to act in accordance with their jurisdiction.

Mulenga told The LRF News that police are in a habit of mediating in civil matters that they do not have jurisdictions over. He said instead of the police advising people to go to the courts of law, they mediate in the matters and end up breaking the law.

Mulenga was reacting to a case in which a woman of Chaisa compound Agnes Kabandula was detained in custody for a day over a debt.

The facts of the matter were that last year in March, the women fellowship at Chaisa Reformed Church of Zambia started a pre-school project in order to raise funds. One of the members Elizabeth Phiri pledged to have uniforms made for the school and after selling, she would give ten per cent of the money to the project.

Twenty-six pairs of the uniforms worth K390,000 were given to Kabandula to sell because she is the secretary for the committee.

However, it was discovered most parents could not pay cash for the uniforms.

The teachers at the school decided to give the uniforms on credit. She only managed to raise K100,000 which she gave to Phiri.

But Phiri refused and demanded for the full amount which was not forthcoming. She reported the matter to Chaisa Police Post on 5th February, 2001. Kabandula was detained at Chaisa Police Post on charges of theft.

She was released the following day after her husband Leonard Kabandula paid K150, 000 and his black and white television. He was given four days in which to pay the remaining money failure to which his wife would be rearrested.

When Leonard tried to reason with the police that his wife was acting as a committee secretary, the police refused to consider it. They also refused to listen to the church elders who went to the police post to explain the situation.

The couple reported the matter to Chaisa LRF Advise Centre. Mulenga went to the police post were he challenged the officers to tell him what crime Kabandula had committed since the charge of theft could not stand because the circumstances of the debt did not amount to theft.

He took time with the police looking through the Penal code trying to find a charge for Kabandula and no charge was found. The Criminal Investigating officer told Mulenga that he was not told that the Kabandula was acting on behalf of the church.

Mulenga said only the whole committee could be charged with an offence if there was any. He said what was supposed to happen was the aggrieved to buy writs of summons so that the court can compel the committee to pay the money.

He said if the committee failed to do so, they would be charged with contempt of court and could be arrested.

"The police can be sued for false imprisonment and prosecution because that was a civil wrong that did not require arrest," he said.

KABWE flying squad police officers recently beat up, pliers-pinched and suspended wife of convicted coup soldier Deluxe Malufya at Kabwe Central Police station.

Adess Ngulube of G.22 Chimanyimanyi Compound in Kabwe was on January 29, 2001 tortured by eight officers from the flying squad department of Kabwe Central Police on suspicion that her husband had left her two AK47 rifles and a pistol which she was hiring out to criminals.

Ngulube told LRF News the eight officers first went to her house around 22:00hours on January 22, 2001 to search for the guns but found nothing, they left. She denied her husband left her anything.

On January 29, 2001, she said the same eight police officers went back to her house and searched again whilst beating her up asking that she reveals where the rifles are.

When she continued denying any knowledge of the firearms, they took her to the police station.

At the police station, the eight officers took her to a room, suspended her on the famous kampelwa and started beating her up. She said they also used a pliers to pinch her skin creating sores. This treatment continued for four days.

"At this point, I thought I would die because they were not taking me to the hospital but just beating me. I just decided to agree that I had the firearms hidden somewhere. They then stopped torturing me and told me they were now carrying on with their investigations," she said in an interview in Kabwe.

She was charged with unlawful possession of a firearm.

Her brother James Ngulube who used to visit her during this time said one of the police officers who was torturing her is called Nchimunya.

He said when he went to the station and asked for permission to take her to the hospital, the officer on duty refused and said they would take her.

"Adess had her head smashed and sustained a swollen eye and body injuries. When we asked for a medical report they chased us and took her back in the cell," said Ngulube.

According to him, one officer claimed to have had information she hid the firearms in the pond off the compound.

He said these officers claimed they had gone to the ponds to fetch for the arms but could not trace them.

Ngulube then went to Mukobeko Maximum Prison to ask his brother in-law Malufya if at all there were firearms left behind. Malufya is awaiting a death sentence for having participated in the 1997 coup attempt.

He said Malufya denied having left any weapons at the house. He said all the firearms they used at the office in the army used to remain there after knocking off.

Ngulube then decided to report the matter to Kabwe Legal Advice Centre and Legal Resources Foundation (LRF) lawyer Abraham Mwansa based in Kabwe took up the matter.

He said the officers were not in order to detain Adess.

"It is wrong for an officer to apprehend a suspect for purposes of investigations. A suspect is innocent until proven guilty," said Mwansa.

He advised police to investigate the matter first and after gathering enough evidence they were at liberty to take that person to a court of law.

Police spokesperson Lemmy Kajoba said it was not correct for the officers to have tortured Adess because it is not provided for under the law.

When the officers heard the matter was being handled by LRF, they decided to take Adess to the hospital. At the hospital, the medical officer demanded for the medical report but the escorting officer told Adess to say her husband assaulted her. She refused because it would not make sense since her husband is in prison.

A police officer from the same police station confirmed Adess was detained there.

He said Adess was not supposed to be detained but the dealing officer refused to release her because she was charged with a criminal offence.

"I don’ know why they are keeping her here but I hear she is being punished because her husband was involved in the coup attempt, so they suspect she has certain information that she has to reveal," he said.

Meanwhile, Mwansa said he wants to ask the officers concerned for what offence she has been charged. He said if she was not be released, the foundation would apply for a habeas corpus and ask for her release.

A SIX year old boy of Kanyama compound was last October accused of defiling a two year old girl of the same compound.

Mother to the child, Margie Chilufya, told Kanyama Legal Advice Centre paralegal officer Mary Chisanga on October 16, 2000, her two-year old girl had injuries on her vagina.

She said after inquiries, she discovered a six year old boy allegedly had sexual intercourse with her.

Chilufya said on October 13, she took the girl to the University Teaching Hospital (UTH) to be examined and a medical report signed by Dr. Lisulo Walubita showed there was vaginal penetration. It also states the hymen was torn and there were bruises.

The matter was reported to Los Angeles police station but the police could not intervene in the matter because the suspect was very young to be charged with any offence.

The police advised the two parents to settle the matter outside court

UTH Dr Christine Kaseba confirmed having received many of such cases were parents take their daughters to the hospital with a belief they have been defiled by a boy under the age of 10.

Kaseba said medically a boy who has not attained puberty could not have an erection caused by sexual desire.

She said such a boy cannot produce sperms unless he reaches the puberty stage therefore; he cannot cause any bruises or tear the hymen.

" It is embarrassing to see these parents claiming their girls have been raped or defiled by a boy under the age of 10," she stated.

Dr Kaseba said parents should learn to settle these cases outside the court and teach their children good morals instead of displaying their ignorance.

She said people should be counseled so they can know how to handle these problems.

"We have set up a crisis centre where parents with such cases can lodge their complaints," Dr Kaseba said.

Commenting on Chilufya’s case, Lina Kafula, a parent from Woodlands said the two parents should sit down and find out if there was an elderly person nearby who could have done it.

She doubted a six-year-old boy could cause bruises.

"If it is true the act was done by a six year old boy, then the boy must have used something which can cause bruises," she said

Chisanga said according to the law, a minor below the age of 10 is not criminally liable. She said having seen the state in which the girl was she felt the girl was defiled.

However, Legal Resources Foundation lawyer Geoffrey Mulenga, in an interview, said in common law, a child under the age of 10 cannot commit an offence. He cited a case decided in England in which a boy of 10 years was discharged with a criminal case of theft of a wristwatch. He said the court stated he was incapable of having an intention to commit the crime.

Mulenga said the matter lacks facts that constitute rape because both children are very young.

The case is being handled outside court.

ELECTRICITY bills are high because customers are also paying for the rural electrification project, Zambia Electricity Supply Corporation Limited (ZESCO) Corporate Development and Administration Director Kenneth Konga has said.

He was reacting to complaints by Linah Jangulu of Rhodes Park who said ZESCO fake bills and customers are made to pay for the power they do not use.

"Fixed charges that customers have on their bills are faked and it shows ZESCO steals from the public," Jangulu said,

Konga told the Legal Resources Foundation (LRF) News, all electricity customers are taxed through the excise duty (currently at 7%) to fund this programme. He said this was government’s initiative.

"In Zambia, one cannot make any social or economical developments without electricity because it is a human need. The project was government’s decision and ZESCO is just the implementing agency," Konga said.

He said this rural electrification project is an effective one because it has benefited a lot of people in communities since it is not only supplied to houses but also to schools, health centres, public institutions and commercial enterprises.

However, Konga denied ZESCO is discriminatory saying in both urban and rural areas customer rates are the same if they are in the same category.

"ZESCO tariffs are uniform throughout the country," he said.

Reacting to sentiments by people that ZESCO exports cheap power to other countries,

he said the export of power to different countries is priced at different rates to local customers due to different levels of supply.

He said the export to South Africa and Zimbabwe is done at wholesale level, which enjoys economies of large scale, and therefore lower unit prices.

"The fixed charge that appears on the bills relates to certain fixed costs that are incurred in the provision of an electricity service such as billing, metering, marketing operations and maintenance. These are incurred whether a customer is connected or not," Konga said.

He said the consumption estimated on some bills is based on the size of the dwelling and number of appliances that one uses.

However, a senior official from the energy regulation board has appealed to ZESCO to stop taxing its customers the 7%, which is meant for the rural electrification project. He said this is a programme the government has embarked on so it should be funded by the same government.

THERE has been a delay by the Ministry of Legal Affairs to act on the proposal made by Zambia Law Development Commission (ZLDC) on consolidating child protection laws, said ZLDC Public Relation Officer Dennis Ndhlovu.

Recently the ZLDC together with their stakeholders met during a workshop to discuss what can be done to the laws which have been outdated. They also held a few other workshops on the subject.

Out of these workshops, a final report and a draft bill was prepared and sent to the minister of legal affairs. He said the commission was positive the bill would be enacted but todate, nothing has been done.

In a statement to Legal Resources Foundation (LRF) News, Ndhlovu said there was need to revise the Juveniles Act and other legislation related to child protection. He said the call to reform the child protection legislation started in 1996.

Ndhlovu said the Juveniles Act was enacted in 1956 and was amended after independence.

"Most of the Statute books in Zambia on children are outdated. In 1991 there was a convention on the rights of the child which Zambia also ratified but our local laws did not change to take into account the new laws. Currently the existing laws on child protection do not seem to be effective enough. Most of the children’s rights such as the right to education and the right to protection are not fully addressed," he said.

He said like many other Commonwealth countries, Zambia still maintains some laws which she inherited from the British people.

Selling of expired goods is prohibited under the Food and Drugs Act, on the premises that such products may be of low quality, Zambia Bureau of Standards director Samuel Mwambazi has said.

Mwambazi told LRF News the Bureau does not inspect markets because the Lusaka City Council (LCC) is better placed to do that.

"The City Council issues trading licences at markets, they can punish those who cheat on customers by withholding their licences," he said.

He was reacting to queries on whether the Bureau inspects trading houses to check for expiry dates on goods and products.

According to Mwambazi, council Health inspectors are mandated under the Food and Drugs Act to inspect foodstuffs anywhere within the city boundaries.

However, the Bureau has powers under the Standard Act to recommend to the Ministry of Commerce, Trade and Industry to establish compulsory standards to cover any product where necessary and expedient.

When a compulsory standard is established, the Bureau can, implement and deal directly with the issue raised.

LCC Public Relations Officer Daniel Mulenga told The LRF News members of the public have to help the council by reporting such practices to it. He said the sell of expired goods is an offence under the Public Heath Act.

"If information about some traders selling expired goods is brought to the Council’s attention, they would confiscate the goods and dispose them off. The council can not be at all the places all the time, members of the public should check the expiry dates on the goods before buying them," he said.

He added there were a few council police officers deployed in the streets that are checking on street vendors and if they were told about such practices, they would take the matter up.

Soweto marketeers have been accused of cheating customers by using measuring tins that are fitted with candle wax or a smaller tin inside thereby selling less quantity than expected.

Some Lusaka residents complained to the Legal Resources Foundation (LRF) recently traders were using unscrupulous methods of selling their wares making customers think the Beans or Kapenta they are buying is measured using a big container when infact not. Other residents said some traders were placing good-looking Beans and Kapenta on top of rotten ones in order to trick the customers.

A trader at the market, Godfridah Daka, 37, of Kanyama compound told LRF News traders usually do that because customers do not know.

"We know that our friends do that but it is not right. Most of those who do that work for other people, they just want to make extra money. It is usually these naughty boys, you never find a woman doing that," she said.

But another trader, Geshom Ndhlovu, 17, who sells Kapenta said a lot of people know about this trick because police officers used to arrest such marketeers whenever a person reported to them some time back.

He explained some traders discovered after having ordered goods for sell they were of poor quality and as such sell them in a dubious manner in order to make profits.

Police officers at Soweto market said if such things happen, traders should report to the Lusaka City Council police.

Ministry of Commerce and Trade Assize (weights and measures) Department acting superintendent Assizer Frederick Sinyangwe said the weights and measures Act Cap 403 of the Laws of Zambia provides for the use of dry measures (containers) for selling of grain, cereals and dry foods.

He said the dry capacity measures have to be made of approved material and measurements approved by the department. He said in the past the department had designed a measuring container for cooking oil for marketeers.

He said his department can prepare measuring containers with accurate measures, which can not be tempered with, but it has no money.

" Marketeers can not afford to buy scales. Our department followed this up last year. We had discussions with the Cross-Boarder Traders Association and we hope to have more meetings. We hope to have a seminar where we can teach the traders about the requirements of the law as regards measurements, " he said.

Sinyangwe said his department has had problems with market managers because they are not cooperating.