Stroke Strikes Police Officer Three Months After Paramilitary Training, Retired Without Pay Six Years Later

Lusaka, Zambia - TV Yatu shares the painful story of retired Constable Thomas Muchindu, 38, who suffered a stroke just three months after graduating from Paramilitary training and was later retired from the Zambia Police Service without pay, six years later.

Muchindu told TV Yatu that he suffered a stroke on the left side of his body — from head to toe — barely three months after graduating from Geofrey Mukuma Paramilitary Training Base in 2011.

Full of hope for a better future, he had been posted to Muchinga Police Post under Matero Police Station after passing out as a constable.

However, just months into service, tragedy struck when he suffered a stroke that permanently altered the course of his life.

After battling the condition for several years, Muchindu said the Police Service retired him on medical grounds in 2017, but later denied him pension benefits on the basis that he had not served the minimum 10 years required to qualify.

According to him, the decision severely disrupted his life and that of his family, especially his young daughter.

Muchindu said instead of focusing on recovery, he was forced to struggle for survival in order to provide for his wife and child.

After years of unsuccessfully searching for stable employment, he eventually secured a job as a security guard with G4S and is currently stationed at Kafue Steel, where he has now worked for three years.

He expressed concern that other officers with medical conditions were not retired prematurely, and questioned why he was rushed out of the Service despite his condition -  and without pension.

Muchindu served in the Zambia Police Service from 2011 to 2017, spending most of that period battling the effects of the stroke.

He has since appealed to Inspector General of Police Graphael Musamba to reconsider the 2017 decision that removed him from the Service without any terminal benefits, despite being retired on medical grounds.

Constable Number 41331 said the decision threw his life into turmoil, and he is now hoping for reconsideration.

Muchindu holds a Diploma in Clearing and Forwarding obtained from the University of Zambia in 2008.

He can be contacted on mobile number 0777061735.

© TV Yatu | November 30, 2025