WHO FACILITATED ‘AILING’ CHISHIMBA KAMBWILI ESCAPE?

REPEATED reports of mysterious disappearance into the neighboring Zimbabwe of politically-exposed persons who are either facing criminal charges or jail sentences in Zambia makes sad reading.

First, it was former republican president Edgar Lungu’s political advisor Kaizer Zulu who fled the country and remains at large. ‘

Zulu fled Zambia in the midst of a legal matter in which he is facing two charges; one for failing to surrender his diplomatic passport when he was no longer entitled to it, and another for failing to appear before the nearest immigration officer at the point of exit/entry.

Now, we have reports of former Member of Parliament for Roan Constituency and Minister of Information Chishimba Kambwili who escaped by crossing into Zimbabwe without completing exit formalities.

Zambia’s Immigration and Deportation Act Number 18 of 2010 demands that any person exiting the country should appear before an immigration officer for exit clearance formalities.

Act, 2010 on section 16 (1): “Every person departing from Zambia shall do so from a port of entry and, except if that person is in direct transit through Zambia by air having not left the precincts of a prescribed airport, shall appear before an immigration officer, unless that person is in possession of a written authorisation from the Director-General of Immigration granting permission to that person to depart Zambia at a place other than a port of entry within a specified period, not exceeding three months of the issue of the authorization.”

These are clear laws that each person must follow at all times.

We, however, wish to hastily express our disappointment that people like Kambwili who were once trusted with the affairs of the country have contravened these immigration laws with impunity.

We now are forced to believe that Kambwili is just an ungrateful person who faked his sickness to dupe the government to release his passport so that he could escape jail sentence.

We would like to remind our readers in case they have forgotten that immediately after he was sentenced to five months imprisonment with hard labor for hate speech, Kambwili became sick.

And in a humanitarian gesture, President Hakainde Hichilema recently granted approval for the evacuation of Mr. Kambwili for specialized medical treatment abroad.

The decision came after Minister of Health Sylvia Masebo conveyed that Mr. Kambwili was unwell, prompting the President to instruct the Ministry of Health to facilitate his evacuation.

However, in a dramatic turn of events, as the government was making necessary arrangements to evacuate him to South Africa for medical treatment, Mr. Kambwili left Zambia for Zimbabwe in defiance of immigration laws.

According to Minister of Home Affairs and Internal Security Jack Mwiimbu, on January 30, 2024, an unidentified Zimbabwean individual presented Mr Kambwili’s passport to the immigration officer.

However, when asked to have the passport holder appear before the officer for clearance, the person also disappeared into thin air leaving the document behind at the counter.

This action by Kambwili is a breach of the law as he crossed into Zimbabwe without obtaining clearance from the immigration officer and left his passport behind.

It was also established that Kambwili was driven into Zimbabwe by a vehicle bearing a Zimbabwean registration plate.

As a paper and citizens of Zambia, we have noted with grave concern on how these seemingly organized-disappearances into Zimbabwe of politically-exposed persons that are facing criminal charges have continued happening.

But who is facilitating these escapes? How porous are our borders that a public figure like Kambwili wouldn’t be recognized and intercepted by security wings? Are the borders too porous to monitor who comes in and out of the country, or is it that the immigration department has gone to sleep?

Moreover, how was Kambwili allowed into Zimbabwe without presenting a passport since he left it at the border? Whose vehicle was he driven in to enter Zimbabwe? Are there any government officials from both Zambia and Zimbabwe that are aiding them to seek refuge in Zimbabwe to ensure they are not made accountable for their alleged criminal activities before the court of law?

Does it mean that Zimbabwe has been turned into a hideout for suspects or individuals facing alleged criminal cases before the court of law in Zambia?

These are some of the questions that have been making rounds in the heads of many Zambians, and unless appropriate answers are provided, the accusing finger will point at the Immigration Department and other security wings.

We therefore agree with the opposition Socialist Party member Paul Moonga who has urged the government to take keen interest in Kambwili’s disappearance.

Moonga charged that Kambwili’s escape into Zimbabwe is suspicious and that some people in the circles of the law enforcement agencies might be involved.

He said that the government needed to question the people that were handling the sick Kambwili because the issue was not adding up.

“This whole issue is a bit tricky and if I were the Minister of Home Affairs, I would question the officers that were handling Mr. Kambwili because despite him being sick he was still in their custody,” Moonga said.

Indeed, the mysterious disappearance of Kambwili and Zulu should be investigated.

With the porousness exhibited in our borders, we wonder how many illegal immigrants are entering Zambia.

It is hardly indisputable that the increased escape of individuals facing alleged criminal cases and of course illegal immigrants in Zambia raise concerns on the security of the country, more so that some immigrants are running away from countries that have waged war for years.

In this regard, unless there is heightened alertness in restricting who enters Zambia, the country could be in danger of being at the centre of sophisticated crime.