Mabenga is lying, Rupiah bribed Sakala - witness

Mabenga is lying, Rupiah bribed Sakala - witness
By Speedwell Mupuchi in Kitwe
Wednesday October 08, 2008 [04:00]

AN eyewitness yesterday dismissed as lies MMD chairperson Michael Mabenga's claim that the K20,000 that Vice-President Rupiah Banda gave to Claudius Sakala for him to defect from MMD to UNIP in 1991 was meant for a funeral.

In a walk-in interview at The Post newspaper offices in Kitwe yesterday, Charles Manda said leaders should always come clean on issues instead of telling lies to suit their political agenda.

Manda, who was MMD Mtendere ward youth chairperson in 1991, said Sakala had no funeral at the time Rupiah Banda gave him the K20,000. He said the first funeral at Sakala's house was when Sakala himself died around 2003.
Manda, who said he was Sakala's personal friend, said the K20,000 was meant for Sakala and 15 others to defect from MMD to UNIP.

"I am out of politics now and I don't have any benefit in this," Manda said. "But I just want to correct the picture that Mabenga is trying to paint. It K20,000 was never meant for any funeral as alleged by Mabenga. Leaders should be factual. That Sakala was a personal friend and I would not want him embarrassed that he did not have money to bury his relative. I know all his children and no one died. They MMD are saying this because they know that Sakala is dead and his wife is also dead, so they think there is no one who knows."
Manda said Sakala was not in such a desperate situation that he could not even find money for a funeral.

"Now, somebody is in the grave and you start telling lies about him, it's not African; it's untraditional," Manda said. "I just came out to talk because Mr Sakala was my personal friend. The whole Mtendere knows about this and I felt bad that he allegedly failed to raise money for a funeral and he had to run to Mr Banda. What Mr Mabenga has said is wrong, he was not there."

Manda - who was part of the 15 individuals who were expected to defect to UNIP disclosed at the instigation of Rupiah Banda - said Rupiah Banda gave Sakala the K20,000 at his Kabulonga house. He said after the defection, the defectors were expected to travel to State House to meet Dr Kenneth Kaunda who was Republican president at the time.

Asked whether Rupiah Banda told them what the money was meant for, Manda responded: "No, it was for defecting. It was K20,000 and we were 15, and it was too small."

Manda recounted how Sakala changed his mind about defecting to UNIP and exposed Banda's bribery during a press conference that Banda was addressing. He said after he exposed Banda's bribery, Sakala was driven to Lusaka Central Police station by late Ronald Penza with his closest friend Stephen Chifunise to report the matter to the police. Manda said Sakala and his wife, together with himself, waited for a long time at the police station before statements could be recorded from them.

However, Manda said police could not proceed with the matter because they had not received instructions from the then Director of Public Prosecutions, Gregory Phiri who is now Lusaka High Court judge.

"We even went as far as the DPP's office and Gregory Phiri mentioned to Sakala that your brother (Rupiah Banda) is extending an olive branch and he agreed and we returned to the police station to withdraw the money. The money was withdrawn and handed back to Rupiah. I was there."

Here is a verbatim of Manda's interview with The Post's Copperbelt editor Speedwell Mupuchi.

Manda: I came here to refute what Mabenga has said. Mu ci Bemba balanda ati pafwa abantu pashala abantu (in Bemba they say some people die and some people remain). We used to drink beer together (with late Sakala and wife); that was a tradition nearly day in day out. So when we heard... first they started holding meetings on their own - Sakala and UNIP. So we got that as MMD youth wing. So we asked Mr Sakala that 'we hear that you are being picked by UNIP and you are going to Mr Banda's house'. He told me in confidence that 'I will tell you later'. After that fracas at Mtendere, he told me 'oh, this is the situation' and asked me to organise the other people. We went to Mr Rupiah Banda's house in Kabulonga. From there we went to Intercontinental (hotel), the press conference started and Mr Sakala rose up and he denied that he was not crossing over. By then we had already collected that money and that money was in the handbag for Mrs Sakala. Both people are dead that's why these people are taking advantage. This is the thing I am trying to dispute.

Question: There was no funeral?
Answer: There was no funeral; alright! The other political matters I am not concerned but on the funeral, it's a lie. Mr Mabenga is cheating. If you are in leadership you should be open-minded, okay. This thing took place clear and clean and we even went to Mr Gregory Phiri's office. That was the first time for me to be in the DPP's office; right.
Q: ...where he was told that 'your brother is extending an olive branch?'
A: Yah, because when we went there... we were given instructions by the police that if you want this money, you have to go to the DPP. That's the procedure and that from there, come back to us. So from there...
Q: Who reported the matter to police?
A: We reported the matter to the police and we handed over that money to the police, K20,000 by then; right! We were in the company of Mr Chifunise and Mr Ronald Penza, but them they were in the background; they were just driving us around, buying us lunch and whatever. And Sakala at that time shifted from his place and started sleeping at Penza's house.
Q: Because they were hunted or what?
A: Yes, all of us. It was bad news.
Q: That was before the (1991) elections?
A: Yes, it was in October just like this time.
Q: But how did Mr. Rupiah Banda pick the K20,000 to give to Mr Sakala?
A: It was at his house.
Q: He just got it and...
A: No no no; he just picked it and gave it to us.
Q: It was for what?
A: He didn't say anything, he just kept it for us. Then there was a programme according to Mr Sakala. That I heard it for myself, that after the press conference we were supposed to go to State House eh, to meet Kaunda and the rest but that thing didn't happen because the press conference ended up in disarray.
Q: So the K20,000, we cannot say what it was meant for...?
A: No, no, that was for defection with 15 others, the amount was too small. How do you defect you divide K20,000 into 15 people eh, that was about K1,200 each (laughs). It's just unfortunate that Ronald Penza is now the late...
Q: What of the other man?
A: Mr Chifunise, he should be around. If you ask some prominent Lusaka people they know him very well and he knows me on personal basis.

Now the point of funeral... no; right! Because I know Sakala's children, all of them, I don't know who died at that particular time. That money was meant for those 15 people eh, including myself. But my dispute is over the funeral and I am saying Mr Mabenga is a leader who should be open minded, he shouldn't tell lies, just come out clean on these issues.

I know that Mr Sakala won't defend himself and that's my emphasis. We are not getting anything from this, even MMD failed to pay me for what I did for them. They were telling me 'we are settling down, we are settling down, 10 years down the line.
The only thing I got from them was that I had a personal friend who was a cabinet minister and I could walk in and out of his office - the late Penza Penza"