Mealie Meal shortage: Nchelenge police arrest two for smuggling

February 8, 2013 | Filed under: News | Posted by:

mealiPolice in Nchelenge district of Luapula Province have confiscated 285 bags of mealie meal and arrested two people in connection with smuggling activities.

Luapula Province Police Commissioner, Philimon Mutale, confirmed the development to the Zambia News and Information Services (ZANIS) in Nchelenge.

Mr Mutale said the police yesterday carried out two anti-smuggling operations after a tip-off from members of the public and seized the mealie meal contraband from the suspected smuglers.

He said in the first operation carried out between 08:30 hours and 09:30 hours police picked up Justine Mwansa, aged 35 years, a resident of Nkomba Village in Chief Kambwali’s area and a Congolese National identified as Treazour Kabulo Kamangu, aged 26.

Mr Mutale said the two men were found in possession of 191 by 25 kg bags of mealie meal which they concealed in one of the houses in Kashikishi.

The Police Commissioner said the bags of mealie meal were going to be smuggled to the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) via Lake Mweru.

Mr Mutale said the two men have since been jointly charged with Assembling for purposes of smuggling and were scheduled to appear in the Nchelenge Magistrates’ court this morning.

He said in another operation conducted between 18:00 hours and 19:00 hours, police recovered 94 by 25 kg bags of breakfast mealie meal which were found hidden in a store room situated at the Harbour of Lake Mweru.

Mr Mutale said the owner of the store room identified as Matanda Katongo was reported to be in Lusaka for business but his wife bolted after hearing of the police presence.

And Mr Mutale has paid tribute to Nchelenge residents for tipping off the police, which led to the recovery of the 285 bags of mealie meal meant for smuggling out of the country.

He said there is need for members of the public to work closely with the police in ensuring that perpetrators of illegal activities are brought to justice.

The Provincial Police Chief has since taken a swipe at individuals who are engaged in activities such as smuggling.

He said people smuggling goods like mealie meal are contributing to price increases as they create unnecessary shortages.

Mr Mutale has since vowed that Police in Luapula Province will not rest until the practice of smuggling is brought to an end.

Comments Closed

25 Responses to Mealie Meal shortage: Nchelenge police arrest two for smuggling

  1. People should realise that mealie meal comodity is being shared with congo due tosome wars&violence. people in congo are starving.they depend to their neighbouring zambia.

    Costar sululu - February 10, 2013
    14:41

  2. Yes he did

    peter - February 10, 2013
    09:27

  3. When milling plants where sold by MMD some people were happy,now no mater how many tonnes FRA ofloads millers are ill bent on profit maximaize by selling hundreds to indivinduas.its not pf problems but every……..

    Tembo nelson - February 9, 2013
    15:02

  4. Indeed Politics is a very dirty game especially in Zambia. We were not supposed to experience shortages of Mealie Meal when our leaders have been bragging about bupper harvest all the time.
    What is happening in this Country? Is the history trying to repeat itself through what happened in 1989/90? Have our leaders forgotten the food riots which claimed some lives in that year. Where is this so called Minister of Agriculture by the name of Mr. Chenda?
    This man was so vocal when he was just appointed as Minister, maybe he was so excited about the job but now he has gone into extinction. He is the waist Minister of Agriculture this country has ever produced. The President is supposed to fire some of these Ministers who are just eccess baggage in his Cabinet, because they are an embarassment not only to his government but to the Nation as a whole. Surely the Government should come up with a policy statement or direction on this issue. They should not just sit and pretend all is well. The country is sitting on a time bomb. Are these so called leaders going to wait for the Volcano to erupt before they act? Please God help us, we are in a real crisis as a Nation.

    January Johns - February 9, 2013
    07:23

  5. Sad that the experiences of smuggling are coming back. I remember the sad Kaunda days when smuggling made some business people rich while we wainted on queues to buy ‘essential commodities’

    Ulemu ni Wabwino - February 8, 2013
    18:40

  6. Spoon feeding is gone.Have ka lima.Guys.HH has taken all the maize to feed his under malnourished cattle. Give Ba sata time.Ka 10 yrs chabe.
    Alaa .Nsansa ku chinjana.

    ViVa P.F forward with Ba Sata .Twalimitemwa ifye.

    M.M

    Mwalusaka malambwa - February 8, 2013
    17:35

  7. Spoon feeding is gone mwembwa mwe ba UPND.So what

    Mwalusaka malambwa - February 8, 2013
    17:30

  8. You fools there must be a reason for charging them! Leave the govt out of it

    ndine mkari - February 8, 2013
    16:12

  9. Hiding in State House and only showing up to announce personal appointments into Government won’t solve the mealie meal shortage.
    leave announcements to chellah ,sakeni, post, times and daily mail.

    concernedcitizen - February 8, 2013
    15:20

  10. Having a criminal record, insulting, defecting from the opposition, causing a BY ELECTION is the only qualification to join the PF Government.

    concernedcitizen - February 8, 2013
    15:13

  11. smuggling..hahahahahaha..kale imwe..its a liberal market so what is wrong with it..?

    blacky - February 8, 2013
    15:12

  12. ukwa govt has failled to run the state affairs in this country

    blackbull - February 8, 2013
    15:12

  13. Please Ba Sata Exporting Mealie Meal is not smuggling, because of your lack of leadership qualities and vision less policies you over exported our Maize Supplies now you are arresting people for selling their Mealie Meal.

    Just tell your ZNS,POLICE,ZAF to plant Maize as simple as that but am sure it never crossed your mind as you are busy creating BY ELECTIONS and shielding CORRUPT chaps like Mmembe,Kabimba and Nchito Brothers.

    concernedcitizen - February 8, 2013
    15:09

  14. smuggling maize.. Sata is this the experience you were boasting about during your time in the wilderness? this experience is worse than inexperience. Sata you exported maize now these no supply and the demand is high, thinking you would learn something by now and supply the farmers with inputs to avoid this situation but this is when you are giving farmers inputs half way into the rain season, next year will be worse than what we are currently facing. Sata will order families to eat nshima once a day and just one lamp.you will see how the kaponyas who voted for Sata will get there strength to even shout for buses they will be fainting from hunger and hospitals will be packed with people suffering from hunger.

    concernedcitizen - February 8, 2013
    15:04

  15. Wellcome to UNIP….

    Tomahule - February 8, 2013
    14:39

    • Welcome indeed

      PHD - February 8, 2013
      15:58

  16. Jones Muma you are a fool, there is no crime that has been committed here.. where do you come from.. you think like you a tonga…

    Tomahule - February 8, 2013
    14:38

  17. You see Paul Octopus Bwalya, this is the change that youths voted for.. Now we have police men arresting people and confiscating goods on mere suspicion and assumption.. No crime has been committed, at-least not yet and there is no evidence to suggest that a crime was going to be committed and yet people have been arrested..

    Tomahule - February 8, 2013
    14:35

  18. if these guys had just stored the mealie meal in their storage area and the melie meal was not loaded in truck with intertion to drive it across the boarder then police were wrong unless police say we cant keep more than 1 bag of maize, suppose they bought in bulk to resale within zambia when market and demand is safe stupidd police

    Octopus Paul Bwalya - February 8, 2013
    13:38

  19. Kaunda days are coming back!! Where is my dictionary, cant remember what the word smuggling mean :)

    Nselumka - February 8, 2013
    13:20

    • You are right. Smuggling is something else. These boys will win the case if they say we bought and here are the receipts. They should tell the source -Millers not to sale to individuals more than five bags.

      SIKIPA - February 8, 2013
      14:15

  20. post my comment

    Questioner - February 8, 2013
    13:03

  21. The last time I heard of smuggling essential commodities out of Zambia being an issue was during the Kaunda days when we had shortages of everything. Could these reports today indicate the same? Is there a serious shortage of mealie meal such that even the police are now being involved? God help us. What has happened to our country! It seems we have a bunch of clueless individuals running the affairs of government with very little knowledge of how government machinery operates. No wonder they blame others all the time forgeting that the buck ends with them as the party in power.

    Questioner - February 8, 2013
    13:03

  22. bapompwe

    Milar BJ - February 8, 2013
    12:29

    • Smuggling is unlawful but these people are taking advantage of the shortages. Shortages have come as a result of poor planning by some people. Planners are our leaders and thsese have failed us hence people resoting to smugling. Simple Economics. Need we say much.

      Jones Muma - February 8, 2013
      13:14