By REBECCA MUSHOTA
PRESIDENT Edgar Lungu’s Spokesperson Amos Chanda has said that he will not be stopped from responding to the Roan Member of Parliament Chishimba Kambwili’s corruption claims because it is his job to defend himself, the President and Government against baseless claims.
Mr Chanda has said that Mr Kambwili’s law suit against him in which he is demanding that he should stop defaming the Roan lawmaker were undemocratic as they amounted to gagging people from responding to alleged senseless attacks.
According to a letter written to his lawyers, Eric Silwamba and Company on Tuesday, Mr Chanda has instructed them to enter the defence of justification and fair comment on matters of public interest.
He said he had received a writ of summons from the High Court moved by Mr Kambwili, who is seeking his appearance before the court within 14 days of service in a suit where he alleged that Mr Chanda defamed him.
Although the summons are dated December 8, 2017, and accompanied by a certificate of urgency, Mr Chanda was only served on January 15 this year and the matter will come up on February 7.
Mr Chanda claimed that in his affidavit in support of summons, Mr Kambwili was seeking, among other things, an interlocutory injunction to restrain him (Mr Chanda) from defending himself, the President and the Government against his incessant, malicious and baseless falsehoods.
He alleged that it was upon those malicious claims that Mr Kambwili had decided to build what already seemed like an ill-fated bid for the Presidency, given the depths to which he had allegedly sunk political discourse in a mistaken view that the public supported his ranting and foul language against others.
“It is my fervent belief that this raucous, vile, malicious mean-spirited, but cowardly bully, does not have any reputation to damage in the first place and, therefore, his claims are totally baseless,” Mr Chanda said in his letter.
“You, therefore, have my instructions to, among other considerations, enter the defence of justification and fair comment on matters of public interest.”
Mr Chanda claimed that Mr Kambwili’s decision to run to court to seek gagging orders against his victims who had decided to defend themselves was cowardly and abuse of the court process to buy him time to continue with his claims.
He said his lawyers should proceed to counter-demand against the claims against him and should note that the words complained of were made during his course of duty on an official television appearance.