Koffi Olomide 'not banned from Zambia'

[Ulquiorra]

Police and government authorities in Zambia have cleared Congolese rhumba star Koffi Olomide to perform in the country next weekend, contrary to media reports earlier in the week that the singer would be arrested on arrival.

It follows allegations published in the state-owned Times of Zambia newspaper that he assaulted a photojournalist in Zambia during a previous tour.

He has also been accused of sexually assaulting his dancers, kidnapping them and employing them without valid permits in France.

The article prompted the 62-year-old to hire lawyers to talk to the authorities to clear his name.

Now Zambia police spokesperson Esther Katongo says Mr Olomide is free to enter Zambia.

She says there is no international arrest warrant for him from Interpol, no criminal record in Zambia, and says "an assault case that was reported at Lusaka Division by a journalist was closed due to lack of evidence".

The rhumba star is not new to controversy. In 2016, he was caught on camera kicking his female dancer on arrival in Kenya. He was swiftly deported.

In 2012, he was convicted in the Democratic Republic of Congo of assaulting his producer, resulting in a three-month suspended prison sentence.

The altercation with his producer was over a debt of about $3,700 (£2,800), the court heard.

In 2008, he was accused of kicking a cameraman from DR Congo’s private RTGA television station and breaking his camera at a concert in the capital, Kinshasa, following a disagreement over recording rights.

In the end, the speaker of the national assembly stepped in to resolve the dispute, brokering a reconciliation between the star and owner of the TV station.