Mpika District Commissioner Cancels HH Radio Programme

The District Commissioner for Mpika District, Moses Katebe, has cancelled a radio programme due to feature UPND leader Hakainde Hichilema and threatened journalists at the station.

Mr Hichilema was scheduled to call in to the paid-for programme on Mpika Community Radio, but instead posted on Facebook saying how saddened he was by the forced cancellation. 

“In the meantime abena Muchinga mwisakamana we will soon get back to you. Mulibantu besu. Nga bena Zambia, you have the right to listen to your leaders and anyone stopping us interacting with you on radio does not love you”, he wrote.

Mr Hichilema says he is currently consulting his legal team to understand by what authority District Commissioner Katebe acted and how this behaviour can be avoided in the future.

In a leaked audio file that has since gone viral on social media, Mr Katebe can be heard telling station manager Allan Dumingu that he did not want hear the opposition leader broadcast in Mpika district. 

“I do not speak for Kasama, Nakonde, Serenje or any other place but Mpika and if you go ahead with the program you will be using your own powers and not what I have told you”, Mr Katebe said.

He then accused Mr Dumingu of being a UPND member, before complaining to the station’s board about its insubordinate staff.

Mr Dumingu has in turn accused the district commissioner of interfering with his work as station manager, as well as denying salaries to his workers by cutting off the revenue from the scheduled interview. 

The incident is the latest development in a long-running saga of restrictions on Zambia’s free press. 

Last week, spokespersons for the USA and EU called on the Zambian government to reinstate broadcasting privileges for Prime TV after its license was removed by the Independent Broadcasting Association.

US Assistant Secretary for Democracy, Human Rights and Labour Robert Destro criticised the situation on Twitter, saying: “A free and impartial press asks questions and seeks answers on behalf of society. The media inform the public and help share ideas, which improves social, political, and economic stability.”