A POLYGAMOUS man in Chinsali District has killed his own six-month-old baby and later committed suicide after a quarrel with his first wife.

Muchinga Province deputy police chief Chilije Nyirenda confirmed the incident yesterday.

Peter Mulenga, 34, of Chief Nkula area killed the baby on Christmas Eve and took his life the following day around 17:00 hours.

Mr Nyirenda said Mulenga who was suspecting his wife of flirting with other men vented his anger on the baby while fighting with its mother.

He hit the baby with a plank on the head.

The baby sustained a swollen head and was rushed to Chinsali District Hospital where it died a few hours later.

Seeing the wife coming back home crying, Mulenga sneaked into a nearby bush and committed suicide.

He took a poisonous pesticide.

A cup containing the poisonous substance was found beside the body by passersby 200 metres away from his house.

Meanwhile, a 30-year-old taxi driver in Nakonde District has gone missing along with the motor vehicle he was driving.

Mr Nyirenda said Kelvin Silungwe of Chieftainess Waitwika's area went missing on Christmas Eve around 19:00 hours.

And owner of the vehicle Alex Siwale, a local business executive said Silungwe was in the company of his colleagues at a taxi rank near the market before he went missing.

Mr Siwale said that his colleagues were booked but that when they came back to the rank they discovered that Silungwe had disappeared.

When they tried to contact him his mobile phone was unreachable.

The following day they tried to search for him but they failed and they later decided to report the matter to the police.

Silungwe was driving a grey Toyota Corolla registration number ALF 8648.-