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Shakafuswa advises UNZA students not to hero-worship corrupt wealthy

Shakafuswa advises UNZA students not to hero-worship corrupt wealthy individuals
By Mwala Kalaluka
Wednesday February 21, 2007 [02:00]

FINANCE deputy minister Jonas Shakafuswa has advised University of Zambia (UNZA) students not to hero-worship individuals that have amassed wealth through fraudulent means. And UNZA economics lecturer, Professor Venkatesh Seshamani said the government must not use the Donegal case as an excuse to reduce financial allocation to key areas in the social sector. Addressing students during a post-budget discussion held at UNZA Library auditorium on Monday evening, Shakafuswa said certain rich individuals did not deserve respect or praise due to the dubious manner in which they obtained their wealth. "There are some of you here who praise or hero-worship some of these corrupt people," Shakafuswa said. "Do not praise these people because most of them if you establish where they got their money from, you will find that they are not supposed to be respected."

He said the attitude by Zambians to get rich quickly had allowed a situation where corruption had become a way of life.
Shakafuswa told the cheering students that the Anti-Corruption Commission would now be a permanent feature at the Ministry of Finance to ensure that all those that are fraudulently getting money from the government are weeded out.

On the allocation to the education secdtor in this year's budget, which is 16 per cent of the total K12 trillion estimated budget, Shakafuswa said the government had made additional allocations that had brought the 16 per cent to about 20 per cent.

He said the additional financial allocation would go towards the construction of a third university, enhancing annual enrolment at the two public universities, while a K100 billion would help off-set outstanding bills at UNZA. Shakafuswa said he was aware that the money might not be adequate but with combined efforts from the public, the government would find a way of meeting all its obligations.

And Prof Seshamani, who questioned the government's insistence on having a third university when it was failing to properly run the already existing ones, said the government should not use the 'vulture fund' issue as a scapegoat against increasing funding to the education sector. Prof Seshamani also asked Shakafuswa to explain how the government had allocated additional money to the education sector, when the total budget had remained unaltered.

Labels: CORRUPTION, VULTURE FUND

posted by MrK @ 5:24 AM