Dirty cops rock Lusaka

… Traffic officers extorting money from motorists with impunity.

CORRUPT traffic officers in Lusaka are again mounting illegal roadblocks and extorting money from motorists with impunity.

Motorists have complained that the officers were harassing them to obtain money from them corruptly.

A check by the Daily Nation found more than 12 traffic officers manning one roadblock on Lumumba Road near the Mungwi Road junction traffic light.

One officer went ahead to ask for a bribe from this reporter without knowing that the conversation was being recorded.

The police command in

Lusaka was immediately alerted of the incident and have since requested for details to follow up the matter.

Some motorists interviewed complained that traffic police officers hiding at “strategic points” on some roads in the capital city were only impounding vehicles from those who did not have any money after demanding a bribe. One motorist from Matero narrated how police last Thursday waylaid motorists at the Mungwi/Lumunba Road traffic lights and impounded his vehicle and several others while ignoring the chaos caused by minibus drivers, over defective traffic lights.

The motorist said: “I tried to explain to this elderly female cop that the minibus drivers were causing obstruction by blocking the road but the woman was uncompromising and instead went ahead to impound my vehicle and grabbed my licence.”

He said he was shocked that the officer later asked for K350 saying it was either he parked the vehicle at the police station or he paid the money for him to go.

The motorist said when he told the police officer he had no money she replied: “mulinazingati (how much do you have?”) “When I told her I only had a K50, she quickly snatched it from my hand and gave me back my licence.”

He said even the other motorists whose vehicles had been impounded at the same time as his hinted that they were asked to pay amounts ranging from K50 to K350 before being given back their licences.

A female motorist complained that she was forced to pay K100 before her licence could be given back to her.