Tell that [Charity] Katanga woman that if she is confused, nshili mwaume wakunyelako amasushi ine and I am not going to appear before the police because that is a lot of nonsense,” Roan PF rebel member of parliament Chishimba Kambwili charged yesterday.

Katanga who is Copperbelt Province Police Commissioner summoned Kambwili and five others to appear for questioning at Division Headquarters in Ndola today, after the NDC leader allegedly held a meeting at his Luanshya residence with officials from the National Union of Miners and Allied Workers.

But the former chief government spokesperson has vowed not to obey the police call out, saying Katanga was calling her over stupid issues.

“I have said I am not going to appear and I am not going to change my stance. You see, this country cannot be turned into a police state. I am entitled to privacy at my residence and nobody should station Intelligence Officer at my residence to see who comes to see me. These guys are just unsettled because the five people that they have called are people from the union. The union people came to see me to say that they wanted to get a permit for me to address the miners who were not happy with the way they were employing people. And then I told them to say ‘no,no,no, if you the union go in the forefront, some of you are among those who were sent on forced leave, they may victimise you so we are going to get a permit from my office and I instructed the PA to get a permit which was rejected. That is why they are calling us to find out what I was discussing with the union at my private residence,” Kambwili explained.

“To me that is a lot of nonsense. That is my private residence and two, I am entitled to host anybody at my residence. Does it mean anybody I want to meet at my residence I have to go and get a police permit? Or I must get a clearance from the police? Tell that Katanga woman that if she is confused, nshili umwaume uwakunyelako amasushi ine (I am not a person to fart around with). I am not a stupid person that she can just call on stupid issues.”

He charged that Katanga had become overzealous because of her ambition to become Inspector General of police.

“That woman has become so political and a common cadre and let me tell her that she cannot warn me. That woman cannot warn me. She is just a small girl who is controlled by Bowman [Lusambo] like an unprofessional person. She is only exposing her ignorance on some of these things and the understanding of the Constitution. The Constitution gives me the right to privacy. And whoever comes to my home I should go to the police to go and answer what I was discussing with them or what they came to do at my home? I am not going there until they give me details of why they want me because the people they have called, are the people who came from the union to come and see me, the five other people. So tell Katanga that I am not a scared rat and I can never be intimidated. I have told her, if she wants tomorrow, she can send a battalion of police to come and lift me but I am not going there,’ he said.

“I have since asked my lawyers to write to them because that is abuse of her authority, that is abuse of the police. We have so many crimes being committed by people that police are supposed to concentrate on. What they did on Saturday was actually illegal. While I was holding my press briefing, there were police all over my place, over 200 police officers in riot gear, with guns, what for? That is a waste of tax payer’s money. That woman wants to dramatise things so that she can be promoted as Inspector General of Police, you cannot get promoted for doing the wrong thing. To the contrary, you get fired for doing the wrong thing. Because I can call the Chief Justice to institute an inquiry in her office about her operation. She had been misbehaving for too long but I am not a person who can be intimidated.”

Asked if he was not scared that police would go and break into his house like they did at UPND leader Hakainde Hichilema’s house, Kambwili said he was different from HH and he was ready for them.

“Let them come. Tell her that I cannot be intimidated. I am not HH, I will sue them. Let them come and break my house the way they did at HH. I know, I have been reliably informed, they tried to do this in Lusaka, they want to poison me. So they want to find a reason to confine me in an office where they can do the operation of poisoning, that is why they are desperate. They tired in Lusaka and failed now this woman says she can do it in the Copperbelt, tell her that ndi mwana wa mfumu. Umwana wanfumu tafwa ichifwefwefwe. Umwebe ati infumu ifwa palya batila pakafwa infumnu, not chifwefwefwe (a chiefs son dies not just die anyhow),” bragged Kambwili.

“And that woman must behave, I am so disappointed that she comes from Mporokoso where I come from with a very bad mentality. People from Mporokoso don’t behave like that. So tell her I am not scared of her even today she sent police to my home in Luanshya, she found my son with another call out which I refused to collect. I told her ‘I am not collecting that call out’ and if she wants she can send a battalion the way they did to HH. I need details of why they are calling me and they should explain, if four people come to visit me at my house, I should be called to explain? What nonsense.”

Meanwhile, Kambwili wondered why the PF government had increased the civil servants funeral benefits for their children, leaving their salaries unadjusted.

“And I was just reading in your newspaper today, government has adjusted the funeral grant for civil servants from K1,800 to K5,000, what nonsense! Do they think civil servants want funeral grants or they want better salaries? They want civil servants to be dying? It doesn’t make sense. Instead of increase salaries for people, you go and increase funeral grant? You want people to be killing their own children in order to get the K5,000 and live better?” wondered Kambwili.

“Tell that Secretary to the Cabinet [Rowland] Msiska that he should resign on moral grounds. When people want better salaries, they are giving them nine per cent then they go and increase funeral grant by 300 per cent? What a way of thinking. I have already told you we don’t have a president, we don’t have a government. What we have is gong’a people, ba chakolwa running the affairs of the country. The people of Zambia must see what kind of government can have.”