PETAUKE Central Member of Parliament Emmanuel Jay Banda has gone missing, a close family member has confirmed.
Banda’s vehicle was discovered this morning by the garden boy, a short distance away from his house with the windshield smashed on the driver’s side.
The family member spoken to explained that Banda’s cell phones were found in the vehicle with a strange note stating “Dear Zambians, I am sorry”.
“We know his handwritten and that is not his handwriting,” said the source.
According to the said source, Banda left his house earlier in the day yesterday after a relative invited him, but after a meeting with his relatives around Salama Park, he did not return home.
The source explained that his wife got worried soon after midnight and started making calls to other relatives to ascertain his whereabouts, but nobody seemed to know.
It was only early in the morning that the garden boy was going for work that he saw the vehicle, and went to report at home.
The family has since reported the case at Ibex Hill police station.
And in a statement, Saturday, police spokesperson Rae Hamoonga asked any members of the public with information on Banda’s whereabouts to come forward.
“Today May 25, 2024, at 0330 hours, Twin Palm Police Station received a report from a concerned member of the public, of Meanwood Ibex, regarding an abandoned motor vehicle who contacted the station via phone. The reported vehicle is a white Toyota Land Cruiser with registration number BAX 3974ZM without the front plate. The vehicle was discovered parked by the roadside 2.6 Km away from the police station on the West with its engine running, doors not locked, lights on and the right side of the windscreen shattered. Inside the vehicle, officers only found two phones and a written note stating, ‘DEAR ZAMBIANS AM VERY SORRY PLEASE FORGIVE ME AND STAY BLESSED HON JAY BANDA MP’. At the scene, the surrounding area was searched and no one was found. The motor vehicle has been transported to Twin Palm Police Station for further investigation,” stated Hamoonga.
“Twin Palm Police Station is actively investigating this matter. Preliminary investigations have revealed that Honourable Jay Banda left the Ibex home yesterday May 24, 2024 at 21:30 hours stating that he was going for a meeting. Later on at 22:27 hours, he arrived at the home of his wife in Kamwala South near the yellow shop and later left at 01:00 hours this morning back to the other wife’s home in Ibex Hill in order to prepare for departure to Petauke for a wedding. However, the Ibex Hill wife confirmed that Honourable Jay Banda did not reach the residence. We urge anyone with information related to this incident to come forward and assist with our inquiries.An inquiry file has been opened.”
Banda, who is an independent MP has recently been seen travelling with former president Edgar Lungu who is currently facing an imminent summon for questions by police after he said that a change of government could happen sooner than 2026.
Banda was also in the company of Lungu when police officers stormed the Catholic Bishop’s office in Kabwe to stop the courtesy call on grounds that they did not seek police clearance.
Banda on the other hand doesn’t have any known serious court case apart from a case in which he was accused of discharging a firearm at a police station before elections and assaulting a Chipata journalist named Peter Sukwa.
According to sources, UPND members have reported Banda back to the police trying to resurrect the police shooting case while the journalist has also appealed to the Chief Justice to have the ruling of the assault case reviewed.
