By 
Francis Kapwepwe, popularly known as “Why Me”, has been left to conduct his own defence after his lawyers abandoned him in a case where he faces hate speech charges.
Kapwepwe, who was previously represented by lead counsel Jonas Zimba of Makebi Zulu Advocates, has seen his legal team largely absent from recent court sessions, with Zimba notably not attending proceedings in the matter.
The case continued before the Lusaka Magistrates’ Court on Tuesday, where Kapwepwe personally cross-examined State witness Nawa Samatebele, the Director of Digital Infrastructure and Resilience at the Zambia Information and Communications Technology Authority (ZICTA).
Kapwepwe challenged the authenticity of video evidence before court and questioned whether the witness could confirm that he was the person who published the alleged content.
In another testimony, State witness Bill Kaping’a, a peasant farmer and freelance writer from Luanshya, told the court that in April 2025 he was conducting research at the National Archives in Lusaka for a book titled _The Dilemma of One Zambia, One Nation_ when he came across the alleged videos while browsing TikTok in his vehicle.
Kaping’a testified that the videos contained degrading language directed at people of Southern Province, which he said left him deeply disturbed.
He told the court that had he met Kapwepwe, he “would have done the unthinkable,” adding that he was shaken by what he perceived as offensive remarks targeting his own background and the broader community he associates with.
He further stated that he reported the matter to Police Headquarters, where he was directed to the cyber crimes unit. According to him, officers received the complaint, reviewed the material, and informed him that investigations would follow.
He added that investigators later played the video back to him for confirmation of the content he had reported.
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