According to a post shared on B Flow’s Facebook Page, Lusaka Central Police this afternoon recorded our statement regarding the harassment we faced at Levy Junction at the hands of a group of men who identified themselves as UPND members.
Yesterday 19th March, 2024 at 12:50, my friend and I came out of a shop at Levy Mall where we had gone to get a quotation for studio equipment. Upon entering our vehicle at 12:53, two men came to knock at the car window while I was talking on the phone. I signaled that I was on the phone when they started saying “We need to be beating these people.” One of them went on to say “Olo kuvipaya chabe, vilibe na nchito vibantu ivi” (or just killing them as these peope serve no purpose). The two were then joined by another guy.
The one who had knocked at the window came back and said in a strong voice “Iwe B’Flow, choka mumotoka, tifuna kukamba naiwe” (B’Flow, come out of the car, we want to speak to you). My friend, knowing I was on a business call, opened his door and stepped outside to find out if anything was the matter. After describing the Levy Mall parking lot which is adjacent to Stay Easy Hotel as their ‘barrack’ and a “no go area” for activists like B’Flow, the group told my friend “You are very stupid, and you are not the one we want to talk to. We want your stupid friend B Flow.”
I decided to hang up the phone in order to check why there was what appeared to be a confrontation outside the car. Upon stepping out, I just saw one of them punching my friend in the face when the other two joined and took turns. Then another group of about 8 or 10 guys came running from the Government Printers side of the car park to confront me and my friend. One of them pushed me and grabbed me by the hand, then I requested him to let go of me while the others were dragging and beating my friend.
I started walking towards the side where they were beating my friend while a few members of the said group were trying to block me. I took out my phone to film the whole ordeal for evidence, then one guy came from behind and grabbed my phone. He said he was getting my phone and would not allow me to film what was happening there. At this point, a huge crowd of people came to watch as I kept following the person who had snatched my phone. Some onlookers and shoppers started filming everything on their phones.
After catching my friend who had tried to escape their beatings to seek refuge in one of the shops, the UPND cadres detained us for 2 hours and ‘lectured’ us while holding on to my phone up to around 15hrs. During the detention, I asked them what wrong my friend and I had done and one of them said that though he couldn’t remember what I post on Facebook, their concern is that their party is giving us too much freedom to express ourselves on social media. He also said from now onwards, my Facebook posts should always be about the positives of the current government because their wounds are still fresh. One of them said “Whether you like it or not, we are in charge. Gone are the days when we used to get beaten by PF, we are now the ones to do the beating”.
During the time they kept us in confinement they pointed out the following;
(1) According to them, B Flow’s Facebook posts about governance do not sit well with UPND members because B Flow is an influential person whose followers tend to believe whatever he says.
(2) B Flow should stop talking about national issues because if UPND loses power, UPND supporters will suffer again like the way they suffered at the hands of PF.
(3) From now onwards, B Flow should be consulting members of the UPND ‘barrack’ at Levy Mall or any other UPND ‘barracks’ on what to post on Facebook, and it should be about appreciating President HH for the good things he is doing for the nation such as free education. To this request, I responded by saying “I am an independent thinker and you will not think on my behalf”.
(4) One of them said our country needs to become like Dubai where according to him, phones automatically delete negative social media posts.
The last part of their 2-hour ‘lecture’ was a detailed list of examples of UPND members who died or got brutalized before the 2021 elections. They said this is the best government ever and that activists who oppose it will face their wrath. My friend who got assaulted by them responded saying “We understand that you would want B Flow and everyone else to be praising the government all the time, but you should leave room for some checks and balances because criticism can make the government do even more”. They responded to him saying it is too early to criticize this government because the PF had been given a lot of time before activists began to talk. They handed me back my phone a few minutes after 15hrs.
I reported the matter to Lusaka Central Police last evening. Today, I went back to the police with my friend who sustained a swollen eye and a headache, and the matter was recorded.
Sad developments, since we have Short Circuit Television at Levy Junction it is imperative for MISA Zambia to go to court to get footage and scan Facebook to establish features of the upnd villains. Secondly, UPND cadres must be removed from Levy Park especially those opposite Government Printers, hiding as vehicle dealers. There is need to seek the President’s intervention as UPND cadres are increasingly becoming violent.
Makes a sad reading
Very sad to hear such things still happening even after the Presidents pronouncement of no caderism.