Johannesburg - Zambia’s parliament has suspended a cabinet minister from its proceedings for one month for slapping a fellow lawmaker within parliament grounds.

Speaker of the National Assembly Patrick Matibini said Lusaka Province Minister Bowman Lusambo was suspended on Tuesday for slapping outspoken lawmaker Chishimba Kambwili last October.

Lusambo was banned from entering parliament grounds and using its facilities during the period of suspension and would not be entitled to any allowances. </s> Zambia’s parliament suspended a cabinet minister on Tuesday from its proceedings for one month for slapping a fellow lawmaker within parliament grounds.

Verbal abuse is common among members of parliament in Zambia but physical assault is rare.

Speaker of the National Assembly Patrick Matibini said Lusaka Province Minister Bowman Lusambo was suspended for slapping outspoken lawmaker Chishimba Kambwili in October 2017.

Kambwili has repeatedly accused government officials of corruption since his dismissal as information and broadcasting minister in November 2016 but the state denies the allegations.

Kambwili complained after the incident that Lusambo had slapped him twice after accusing Kambwili of making false accusations against the government.

Matibini said Lusambo was banned from entering parliament grounds and using its facilities during the period of suspension and would not be entitled to any allowances. </s> Zambia’s parliament suspended a cabinet minister on Tuesday from its proceedings for one month for slapping a fellow lawmaker within parliament grounds.

Verbal abuse is common among members of parliament in Zambia but physical assault is rare.

Speaker of the National Assembly Patrick Matibini said Lusaka Province Minister Bowman Lusambo was suspended for slapping outspoken lawmaker Chishimba Kambwili last October, describing his conduct as unbefitting of a Member of Parliament .

This is a House of honour, decorum and dignity and I am duty bound to ensure that the honour, decorum and dignity of the House is protected and preserved at all times.

“This is a House of honour, decorum and dignity and I am duty bound to ensure that the honour, decorum and dignity of the House is protected and preserved at all times”, said the Speaker.

The suspension bars Lusambo from accessing the physical premises of parliament and denies him allowances and salary as a member of parliament for the month in question.

Kambwili has repeatedly accused government officials of corruption since his dismissal as information and broadcasting minister in November 2016 but the state denies the allegations.

Kambwili complained after the incident that Lusambo had slapped him twice after accusing Kambwili of making false accusations against the government. </s> The Parliament of Zambia has suspended one of its own members from taking part in parliamentary proceedings after he slapped a colleague member on the floor of the house in October last year.

Speaker of the Zambian parliament, Patrick Matibini who pronounced the suspension on Tuesday, declared Bowman Lusambo who apparently doubles as the Lusaka Province Minister persona non grata for the one month period.

Bowman Lusambo reportedly visited the hostile act on an outspoken lawmaker Chishimba Kambwili last year which leadership of the legislative body thought was not only embarrassing, but also disrespectful to the house and brings its name into disrepute.

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It is not clear what exactly the errant lawmaker stands to lose for the suspension, but his case is not unprecedented when it comes to the Zambian Parliament.

Last year for instance, 48 opposition members of the house also suffered the same fate as they were banned from the parliament and did not take part in legislative processes for one month, after they had boycotted a speech delivered by the country’s president, Edgar Lungu. </s> source : 



Zambia’s parliament suspended a cabinet minister on Tuesday from its proceedings for one month for slapping a fellow lawmaker within parliament grounds.

Verbal abuse is common among members of parliament in Zambia but physical assault is rare.

Eyes Of Lagos gathered that, Speaker of the National Assembly, Patrick Matibini, said Lusaka Province Minister Bowman Lusambo was suspended for slapping outspoken lawmaker Chishimba Kambwili in October 2017.

Kambwili has repeatedly accused government officials of corruption since his dismissal as information and broadcasting minister in November 2016 but the state denies the allegations.

Kambwili complained after the incident that Lusambo had slapped him twice after accusing Kambwili of making false accusations against the government.

Matibini said Lusambo was banned from entering parliament grounds and using its facilities during the period of suspension and would not be entitled to any allowances. MINISTER SUSPENDED FOR SLAPPING LAWMAKER DURING PLENARYsource : http://www.eyesoflagos.com/2018/03/minister-suspended-for-slapping.html Zambia’s parliament suspended a cabinet minister on Tuesday from its proceedings for one month for slapping a fellow lawmaker within parliament grounds.Verbal abuse is common among members of parliament in Zambia but physical assault is rare.Eyes Of Lagos gathered that, Speaker of the National Assembly, Patrick Matibini, said Lusaka Province Minister Bowman Lusambo was suspended for slapping outspoken lawmaker Chishimba Kambwili in October 2017.Kambwili has repeatedly accused government officials of corruption since his dismissal as information and broadcasting minister in November 2016 but the state denies the allegations.Kambwili complained after the incident that Lusambo had slapped him twice after accusing Kambwili of making false accusations against the government.Matibini said Lusambo was banned from entering parliament grounds and using its facilities during the period of suspension and would not be entitled to any allowances. </s> Zambian prosecutors accused the main opposition leader, Hakainde Hichilema, of plotting to overthrow the government, according to charges read out in the magistrates court in Lusaka, the capital. Prosecutors allege that the leader of the United Party for National Development together with others planned to oust President Edgar Lungo's administration sometime between October 2016 and April 12, magistrate Greenwell Malumani told the court.

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President Edgar Lungu has appointed Nkana PF Member of Parliament Alexander Chiteme as Minister of National Planning Development.

President Lungu has also appointed Kwacha PF Member of Parliament Joseph Malanji as Minister of Foreign Affairs.

President Lungu also revoked the nomination of Mr. Mulusa as a nominated Member of Parliament.

Five days ago, Harry Kalaba resigned as Foreign Affairs Minister saying he cannot continue in government and watch those who are expected to end corruption, in the forefront of looting public resources.

The Head of State has sworn the duo at State House this morning urging them to get down to work quickly. </s> LUSAKA, April 19 (Reuters) - Lawyers for a Zambian opposition party leader accused of trying to overthrow the government asked a court on Wednesday to throw out the case, saying the state charges are vague and ambiguous.

Hakainde Hichilema, the United Party for National Development (UPND) leader, was arrested last week in a police raid on his home.

He was initially accused of treason on the grounds that he had refused to give way to President Edgar Lungu's motorcade as it passed through Mongu, a town west of the capital Lusaka.

On Tuesday, Hichilema was charged in court with plotting with other people between October 10 last year and April 8 this year to overthrow the government by unlawful means.

The arrest has raised political tension in Zambia. The Southern African country has tradionally been relatively stable but relations between the government and opposition have been fraught since last August, when Lungu's Patriotic Front (PF) party beat the UPND in a presidential election marred by violence.

The opposition says the vote was rigged but Hichilema has so far failed in his legal challenge against the result.

Defence lawyer Keith Mweemba said on Wednesday that the treason charge was defective and bad at law.

"This court has power to quash the indictment and discharge the accused," Mweemba said.

The government has offered no further details on the alleged plot. Prosecutor Gemani Zimba said the state could still amend the charge to make it specific.

Magistrate Greenwell Malumani said a ruling would be made at a later date. Hichilema remains in detention.

Lungu has narrowly beaten Hichilema, an economist and businessman who goes by the nickname "HH", in two presidential elections by a close margin.

Human rights group Amnesty International said in its last annual report that the August presidential election was marked by increased political violence.

Authorities had repressed the right to freedom of expression and assembly, while police used excessive force to disperse meetings of opposition parties meetings, it said.

Hichilema and his UPND deputy Geoffrey Mwamba were arrested and charged with unlawful assembly and seditious practices in October after a party meeting, an action Amnesty called at the time a ploy to intimidate and silence the opposition. Hichilema and his deputy were granted bail after being charged with sedition.

The rising political temperature in Zambia, Africa's second-biggest copper producer, comes against the backdrop of an economy hobbled by low commodity prices, mine closures, rising unemployment, power shortages, a widening budget deficit and diminishing foreign-currency reserves. (Editing by Angus MacSwan) </s> Zambian President Edgar Lungu on Sunday requested that Cuba recall its ambassador for allegedly expressing support for a new opposition party.

Cuban ambassador Nelson Pages Vilas reportedly attended the launch of the "Socialist Party" on Saturday in Lusaka and was accused of publicly saying that he supported the party.

"The president has directed that the Cuban ambassador be recalled for behaviour that is unbecoming of a diplomat," presidential spokesperson Amos Chanda told reporters.

"The Cuban ambassador attended a party function and announced that he will support the opposition party and said he wished them well."

Lungu has been accused by critics of increasingly authoritarian rule and of cracking down on dissent in Zambia since he narrowly won elections in 2016.

The main opposition UPND party disputes the election result and has filed a motion to impeach the president, but the scheduled vote in parliament last week was delayed.

The motion would likely be easily defeated by lawmakers from the ruling Patriotic Front (PF).

Lungu's spokesman said the request for the Cuban ambassador to be recalled would not affect relations between the two countries.

The Cuban embassy and the Socialist Party were not immediately available to comment.

The Socialist Party's leader was named as Fred M'membe, the former editor of the private Post newspaper that was critical of Lungu's government and which was closed down before the last election.

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Zambian Minister Bowman Lusambo is suspended by Parliament over an assault on a fellow lawmaker in October 2017.