Current crop of ministers are legally incompetent, charges Mwiimbu

Current crop of ministers are legally incompetent, charges Mwiimbu
By Mwala Kalaluka
Saturday February 16, 2008 [03:00]

OPPOSITION parliamentarians yesterday charged that some ministers’ fear of their permanent secretaries had helped exacerbate the misappropriation of funds in the public service. Debating the estimates of revenue and expenditure for the Auditor General’s office, which was subsequently passed by the House, Monze UPND member of parliament Jack Mwiimbu said the current crop of ministers was legally incompetent to deal with their controlling officers.

He charged that the government was not serious with curbing the misappropriation of public funds because the ministers do not have executive control on their junior officers in that regard.

But home affairs minister Lieutenant General Ronnie Shikapwasha asked if Mwiimbu was in order to assert that the government was not serious in the fight against corruption when a former president and some permanent secretaries were facing court charges over graft.

However, Mwiimbu asked Lt Gen Shikapwasha to reveal which former head of state and permanent secretary was before the court for cases that were raised in a report by the Auditor General.

“Most of the cases before the courts now were from individuals, The Post and other members of the public, not the office of the Auditor General,” he said.

Mwiimbu said some ministers were being intimidated by their permanent secretaries such that they could not even raise a finger against them.

“I have no doubt myself that there is collusion in some cases, because there is no way that glaring irregularities are laid bare and no action is taken,” said Mwiimbu. “There is a problem of people munching public resources and yet no action has been taken.”

Contributing to the debate, Siavonga UPND member for parliament Douglas Syakalima accused ministers in President Levy Mwanawasa’s government of being dangerously weak, hence the annual revelations of mismanagement of funds in certain key ministries.

“Why is it that our colleagues are fearing their surbodinates? They should be seen to take action,” he said.

Justice minister George Kunda said they had apportioned the responsibility of managing public funds to the controlling officers so that there was no political interference.

“We do not want to run this country using jungle laws,” said Kunda.

But Syakalima cautioned the ministers that one day they would be on trial for failing to address financial irregularities and using the law as an excuse.

And Luena Independent member of parliament Charles Milupi said the 30 per cent increase in the funding to the office of the Auditor General this year was an indication that the government had noted the significance of oversight institutions.