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It’s foolishness to give gratuity to a thief, says Chongwe

It’s foolishness to give gratuity to a thief, says Chongwe
Written by Lambwe Kachali
Sunday, January 25, 2009 7:18:37 AM

Dr Roger Chongwe has said it is foolishness of the highest order to give gratuity to a former president who has stolen from the country.

In an interview, Dr Chongwe wondered how some people sitting on the executive committee of the National Constitutional Conference (NCC) could oppose a proposal to strip a former president convicted of a crime of his gratuity.

Dr Chongwe, a former minister in Chiluba’s first cabinet, said the people opposing such a good proposal could have been recalled from the NCC if there was a provision to do so.

He cited former Republican president Frederick Chiluba who was found liable by the London High Court for stealing millions of United States dollars from the Zambian people, saying he should lose all his benefits.

Dr Chongwe, a prominent Lusaka lawyer, said it was only in Zambia where some politicians, because of their unbridled inclinations, wanted to reward a former president who had stolen taxpayers money.

"Thieves should not be rewarded in any way. That is nonsensical and illogical. Why should any country on this earth reward a thief, reward a president who stole from them?" Dr Chongwe asked. "For example, Mr Chiluba who has been convicted by the London High Court for stealing US$57 million from this country should actually be given his benefits and be praised for having done that? Is that normal? No! He needs to lose all his benefits."

He said both a president and an ordinary citizen, once convicted of a criminal offence, should not only lose their gratuity but all their benefits.

Dr Chongwe said there was no country in the world that had rewarded a thief and Zambia was not an exception.

"It is just nonsense for some delegates at the NCC to say that a former president who stole should be honoured by the people of this country by continuing giving him a pension and even build a mansion where he and his family are going to live because he worked for it. That is nonsensical, that’s idiocy of the highest order," Dr Chongwe charged. "...Any normal person, even you and me, we have brains and we think logically, so why should we promote theft? You and I, when we steal from our work, we will definitely lose our benefits. And why should a president who is a thief, who has stolen from the country get his benefits after retirement? ... He has stolen, he does not deserve anything.

"What is the benefit of stealing? He has stolen from his employers. If some members suggest that he should be given his benefits because he worked for that money, what about the money he stole? Did he work for it? A thief is a thief whether he is a president of a country or public figure, a civil servant or a guard. Once he has stolen, he should not be honoured by his employers, neither should he be given his gratuity nor his terminal benefits. He is a thief."

Dr Chongwe said most Zambians were dying in hospitals due to lack of health facilities because of a few individuals who plundered the country's money.

He said in other countries, a president who was convicted of corruption and plunder of national resources would not even talk of his benefits.

"He stole from the country which means the country can't fund its hospitals, can't build more hospitals, can't build schools, can't even look after the sick, it has no money to fund activities for those that have HIV and AIDS, and so a lot of deaths are arising from the thefts committed by president of a country. So, why should he be given anything?" Dr Chongwe asked. "His pension money comes from the government from whom he has stolen. It's unbelievable that some people want to honour a president who has stolen. Where have you heard of that? What type of raw politics is that? And anybody who says that should not be a leader, should not be a politician. They should be recalled and cease if they are members of parliament.

"They are making irresponsible statements. It's only here where a thief president is supported for stealing."

On Thursday, a member of the executive committee of the NCC proposed that a former president convicted of a crime or any other offence should lose his gratuity but the proposal was opposed, saying he (former president) deserved to receive his money because he worked for it. However, Council of Churches in Zambia (CCZ) general secretary Reverend Suzanne Matale on Friday said paying gratuity or benefits to a former president convicted of corruption and plunder of national resources is a crime of the worst kind.

Labels: CONSTITUTION, NCC, ROGER CHONGWE

posted by MrK @ 7:18 AM