HRDC demands justice for slain Poly student Blessings Nyondo: Warns of vigil at Police

The Human Rights Defenders Coalition (HRDC) has demanded immediate arrest and prosecution of the police officers who shot a Polytechnic student, Blessings Nyondo, on December 31 2020.

Nyondo has sadly succumbed to bullets wounds.

He was shot multiple times around Kwacha roundabout in Blantyre on the night of the 31st of December 2020 allegedly by a police officer assigned to the public broadcaster – Malawi Broadcasting Corporation (MBC).

HRDC chairperson Gift Trapence, in a statementsays it is unbelievable, outright insensitive, and incoherent of the Malawi Police Service to feed the nation a narrative that the late Blessings was a robbery suspect.

Trapence claims they have it on good authority that Blessings  Nyondo was a victim of the alleged robbery and was just seeking refuge in the MBC vehicle.

“The official Malawi Police Service statement on circumstances surrounding the unwarranted and reckless shooting of Blessings does not only contradicts numerous testimonies from people who know Blessings but also how the Malawi Police Service eventually handled Blessings after the shooting.

“Contrary to Malawi Police Standard Operating Procedures for robbery suspects, the police never arrested Blessings to the best of our knowledge, and he was not under any guard during his admission at Queen Elizabeth Central Hospital,” he emphasizes.

Trapence adds that the Malawi Police Service owe Malawians an explanation as to why it was possible that a suspect who had attempted to snatch a gun from a police officer was not placed under arrest and was just dumped at the hospital.

He warns that, as human rights defenders, they will not sit back and watch the Malawi Police Service militate against its very own mandate, which is to protect lives and property.

“The constitution of the Republic of Malawi provides for the right to life in section 16(1) and that such life shall not be arbitrarily deprived. All forms of arbitrary deprivation of life by any person, including law enforcement agents, are unacceptable in Malawi.”

HRDC demand that the Malawi Police Service do its job – immediately arrest, dully charge, and fiercely prosecute the suspect and his accomplices.

Trapence said at the expiry of five working days, if arrests are not made, HRDC  will have no choice but to mobilize Malawians for vigil at the Southern Region Police Headquarters.