YAS condemn arrest of harmless son of Bishop Chirwa at Mutharika rally: Malawi police ‘acted foolishly’
Youth and Society (YAS) executive director Charles Kajoloweka has condemned last week’s arrest a 15-year-old boy Henry Chirwa for allegedly carrying a maize stalk at President Peter Mutharika’s rally at Luwinga in Mzuzu, describing police move as acting “foolishly”.
The boy, a son of Bishop Thomson Chirwa of Abundant Life Ministry in Mzuzu, spent a night in a cell at Mzuzu Police Station but there was no proper charge pressed against him.
He was given bail but Police indicated unknown charge in the Penal Code called ‘Mankhambira’
But the boy comes from Traditional Authority (T/A) Mankhambira in Nkhata Bay, according to Northern Region Police deputy spokesperson Maurice Chapola.
Kajoloweka condemned as “awful” police action to arrest the boy for holding a maize stalk at the presidential rally which was interpreted as a protest that people are suffering with hunger.
He said police should “immediately” and “unconditionally” ensure that the arrested boy is discharged and hold accountable those who carried out the arrests.
Kajoloweka argued there was no offence that the 15-year-old committed, asking the police to come out clear on the arrest and stop harassing Malawians.
Bishop Chirwa complained that his son was thrown in a police cell without justification, saying as a Malawian youth he has a right to attend the President’s rally.
“Police claim that my son was 15 metres away from the President and he was holding a maize stalk hence they arrested him,” said Chirwa.
Stupid police service amakanika kugwira real criminals akaeonetse udolo pa mwana woti wanyamula chachimanga! Izi nde mbuzi mbuzi!
gvt of pitala satitha tonsefe?
This apatently consumate gentleman Kapito, has a point…this last few years has seen projects such as the donated solar farm at the airport, but our government has not had the presence of mind to take up and buy power banks for such…a failure on the part of the relevant ministry, and any other, and, therefore, the government as a whole….in a country that gets almost a whole year of sunlight, we should do as well as Rajistan in India, a country that is subject to monsoon weather…We have the sun almost the whole year and could generate enough energy to… Read more »
Then change the party’s symbol. I thought the boy should be commended for that gesture. It is those police officers who arrested the boy who should be arrested for interpreting that carrying a maize stalk has come to mean demeaning the MIGHTY PARTY
This fool Muntharika does not understand democracy. Ask Zuma when he went to an election results centre in pretoria. Three if not four girls protested silently (exactly as that boy did) by holding placards which depicted a message reminding Zuma of his past offence. But no one was arrested his body guards only snatched and torn away the placards. Now in Malawi you can even go to cells for protesting? What happened to our freedom of expressio ufulu uja mwatilandaso kodi unali wangongole? Billy was right
So samuel lawa your 10 or 16 ,idiot , and kodi njala mukuinenayo ili kuti,cheap propaganda
The big man a foreigner is coming to arrest a small boy. Shame on you He must go back to AMERICA
The police is able to spot a maize stalk at the rally, but can’t spot the guns the thieves pass with in their cars at the roadblocks eishhh. Ohh and that police at the stadium. Maybe if there was a president attending the guys could have at least their bags searched. What a service for the people
How many people are you going to arrest ?ndi ana omwe please kkkkkkkkkk
I thought that is the symbol of DPP mthetsa njala?! Kkkkkkkk