Maravi

Tribunal hears how Dora claimed refund from Petauke council

Tribunal hears how Dora claimed refund from Petauke council
Written by Mwala Kalaluka
Friday, March 20, 2009 2:45:43 AM

continued from yesterday

Silwamba: You said you had obtained P23, the invoice from Saro?

Mwale: It is P27, the invoice from Saro.

Silwamba: I do not think it is P27. Have you looked at P23 and you told their lordships that you obtained that document personally...

Mwale: Yes my lord. I just phoned them and the document was faxed to me.

Silwamba: That is the point. You were communicating through fax? I want you to examine P23 and P27. Are they issued by the same officer?

Mwale: Yes my lord.

Silwamba: N. Lisulo?

Mwale: Yes my lord.

Silwamba: Did you at any one time speak with N. Lisulo?

Mwale: No, my lord.

Silwamba: Did you query Saro as to the difference in the price of the hand pumps?

Mwale: It is of course for the same type of goods that the totals are different.

Silwamba: Mr Mwale do not be too clever.

At this point Mwitwa stood and asked if he could help Mwale but the tribunal restrained him.

Judge Chitengi: Mr Mwitwa let your witness swim alone.

Mwale: I did notice the price difference and when we asked Saro...

Judge Chitengi: Did you query that difference in the pricing?

Mwale: I did, my lord.

Silwamba: What was the answer?

Mwale: It had become expensive to order these things as they are not made in the country and also that there has been a move by the government to zero-rate agricultural equipment after the presentation of this year's budget...

Silwamba: Do you confirm that the hand pumps became cheaper at the time?

Mwale: One hand pump is more expensive if you compare it to the period November when the Petauke District Council procured the two hand pumps from Saro.

Silwamba: But you confirm that there is no Valued Added Tax?

Mwale: That is a fact.

Silwamba: Now your own document shows that Mr Boyd Mboyi collected...the hand pumps. In your interactions with Saro did you find out if the Honourable Siliya had been to Saro to obtain these?

Mwale: Yes my lord. The answer is that Honourable Dora Siliya had never been to Saro in respect to this matter.

Silwamba: Honourable Siliya had never been to Saro...

Mwale: Yes my lord.

Silwamba: I think my lord we could adjourn for break.

After break

Silwamba: Mr Mwale to your knowledge in this particular matter did you establish whether the cost of the boreholes was the same as the cost of the hand pumps?

Mwale: No, my lord.

Silwamba: Is there a difference between a borehole and hand pumps in terms of cost?

Mwale: I believe there should be a difference because a hand pump is just a part of the borehole.

Silwamba: It is a fact, Mr Mwale, it is not an opinion. Now help me understand, you referred their lordships to the Cabinet Handbook and the Constituency Development Fund guidelines?

Mwale: Yes my lord.

Silwamba: What part of this handbook and guidelines did Honourable Siliya breach?

Mwale: When our lawyers make submissions they will be able to address that issue. Suffice to say, when I read the Cabinet Handbook...

Silwamba: Read it again because I want to know the relevance of those provisions.

Mwale: Ministers' constituency should be done at their own expense as they will if they were ordinary members of parliament. It is clear that the allegation says Honourable Siliya allegedly claimed for a refund as a minister. The letter that was written by the minister was written on Ministry of Communications and Transport letterhead.

Judge Chirwa: Therefore, it follows that she was claiming as a minister.

Mwale: I can't say...if she was to claim as an ordinary member of parliament the works must be taken at that person's expense.

Silwamba: The mistake that she made was to use the letterhead of the ministry?

Mwale: The mistake was, according to our allegation, to claim for K12.5 million refund from Petauke District Council for two hand pumps for two boreholes in one ward Nyika.

Silwamba: Are you aware that they had to pay the Ministry of Energy and Water Development. They had to buy fuel...do you know that the minister was under refunded.

Mwale: I do not know my lord.

Judge Chitengi: The refund was less than what was advanced to the council...

Silwamba: Your organisation, Transparency International Zambia is the first in the consortium of the complainant civil society and you are the head of Legal. Did you participate in the drafting of this offence?

Mwale: I am not head legal...I should confirm that I had participated in the drafting of the petition together with members from other civil society organisations, my lord.

Judge Chitengi: Of course, you know what drafting is in the sense that it is being used by State Counsel.

Mwale: My lord I do.

Silwamba: Thank you my lord. Just read the allegation number three.

Mwale reads.

Silwamba: I am interested in the detailed allegation at number three, where you begin to start with, just read that first paragraph.

Mwale reads.

Silwamba: So in your complaint you observe that there was an underpayment by K5, 000.

Mwale: That is what the facts state, when you look at the claim letter and the payment voucher from the Petauke District Council. Yes my lord.

Silwamba: Did you find out why the Petauke Council refused to pay the minister the K5,000?

Mwale: No, my lord.

Silwamba: So you did not find out that the receipts were being made against receipts authenticated?

Mwale: My lord I did not.

Silwamba: If you had done so, you were going to discover that Petauke Council did a thorough job and paid against authenticated receipts, hence the underpayment of K5, 000.

Mwale: What was the question again?

Silwamba: I will proceed Mr Mwale...you reported the matter to the Anti-Corruption Commission and also said that the police were investigating this matter?

Mwale: I said Mr Ousman Musa reported the matter to the police...I would not say it was reported because I did not take part in the reporting.

Silwamba: Most of your evidence is hearsay, would you want the tribunal to ignore it?

Mwale: The reporting to the ACC was done by my office.

Silwamba: So it will be safe to say a report was made to ACC, report made to Petauke Police and report made to this tribunal?

Mwale: Yes my lord.

Silwamba: Within the ACC what is the stage of the investigation, because you are the people who reported?

Mwale: We are not aware my lord.

Silwamba: Have you found out from them?

Mwale: We did enquire my lord and there is no response from the ACC. The enquiry was made by our executive director, who is the one who signed the letter.

Labels: CORRUPTION, COURTS, DORA SILIYA, PETAUKE

posted by MrK @ 2:45 AM