NATIONAL Democratic Congress (NDC) president Chishimba Kambwili says Inspector General of Police Kakoma Kanganja’s statement that the shooting of two citizens on Wednesday is being investigated does not make sense because his officers are responsible for their deaths.

On Wednesday, Police shot dead a state prosecutor Nsama Nsama and a UPND sympathiser Joseph Kaunda as they tried to disperse UPND supporters who came to offer solidarity to their leader Hakainde Hichilema who was being interrogated.

Commenting on this in a Facebook live video, Thursday, Kambwili said everyone was aware of how reckless the Zambia Police had become.

“My heart bleeds this morning. In fact, starting from yesterday, my heart has been bleeding because of the incident that happened where two innocent Zambians were gunned down by the Police. And I want to say by the Police because I do not believe in the statement by Kanganja saying that they are investigating and that there are unknown circumstances. You never, you cannot claim that these killings were unknown circumstances when we all know the behaviour of the Police in the past. People may have forgotten that sometime in March, 2017, I was arrested when I just came from South Africa for medical check-up. I was detained at Woodlands police station. I fell sick and I was rushed to CFB hospital. I was admitted in the ICU for about two weeks. And just that day when I was released from the hospital, I was led from the hospital to Woodlands Police station,” Kambwili said.

“At Woodlands Police station what happened was unacceptable. I was accompanied by my wife and a few relatives without cadres from the NDC. Police fired live bullets, when I just arrived at the Police station, they fired live bullets. Over 30 shots, who they were dispersing, only heaven knows, who they were trying to shoot at, only heaven knows. So for Kanganja to claim that these were unknown circumstances is an excellent lie. Look country men and women, I have gone quiet under the past one or more months, it’s because I complained that Zambians don’t seem bothered. They don’t seem to be bothered or care about what happens to people that speak for them or on their behalf. I remember President Michael Sata said all the educated people in this country are cowards and his pronouncements is truly manifesting today.”

Kambwili said Kanganja should resign on moral grounds.

“And I think comrade Kanganja as Inspector General of police, we have had enough of you and the best you can do is to resign on moral grounds. That truly, most of the educated people, not all of them are truly cowards. What we are going through in this country is unacceptable and that we should have lawyers, engineers and all the educated people can keep quiet and leave a few people to be speaking and when these few people speak, they are arrested, mistreated and everybody is quiet. This is the basis on which I decided to reflect and be quiet and go off public appearance in terms of political dispensation,” said Kambwili.

“But what happened yesterday has forced me to come out of political hibernation and condemn in all strongest terms the killing of these two innocent Zambians yesterday. Had it not been for the grace of God, in 2017, I would have been shot. A stray bullet would have hit somebody at Woodlands police station. But thank God it never happened that day. Look, giving solidarity to a leader, whether political, religious or otherwise is a human right. Comrade [Jacob] Zuma in South Africa appears in court and he has people offering solidarity.”