MALAWI’s State Vice President, Joyce Banda is stuck in Zambia, fearing a possible arrest by the Government on tramped-up treason charges.
According to security officers at Lusaka’s Pamodzi hotel, Banda was expected to leave for Malawi but made an unceremonious return to the hotel midday, Tuesday. Banda arrived in the country on Sunday Opctober 23rd 2011 to attend the country’s 47th independence celebrationson Monday, October, 24 at the invitations of new Zambia’s leader, Michael Sata.
Sources familiar with the development disclosed the Malawian Vice President is now intending to seek aslyum in Zambia.
However, Zambian Government officials were not available for a comment.
Zambia has been entangled in a diplomatic row with Malawi after the Zambian president while the leader of the opposition was detained and declared a prohibited immigrant bundled into a vehicle and driven across the country to the Malawi-Zambia border in Chipata.
Sata did not attend the Heads of State and Government summit in Malawi from October 14 to 15, 2011, accusing the malawian leader, Bingu wa Mutharika of failing to apologize for unceremoniously deporting him in 2007 as leader of Zambia`s main opposition Patriotic Front.
According to the Nyasa Times of Malawi Plans to arrest Banda come fast on the heels of the Sata’s avoidance of Mutharika to be part of the Lusaka independence party.
Sata seems to have a soft spot towards the opposition political leaders in Malawi after he granted Malawi’s opposition United Democratic Front (UDF) a television broadcasting licence recently.