Maravi

Caritas criticises Banda’s brown envelopes

Caritas criticises Banda’s brown envelopes
By Mwala Kalaluka
Mon 07 Dec. 2009, 04:01 CAT

CARITAS Mongu has noted that President Rupiah Banda’s decision to ‘award’ a brown envelope to call boys that sang for him in Mongu is unacceptable in view of demands for a governance system that was devoid of corruption.

And an MMD member from Lusaka’s Munali Constituency yesterday said the ruling party youths are unable to walk the streets with their heads high because of President Banda’s failure to live up to his electoral promises.

Commenting on President Banda’s just-ended visit to Kalabo and Limulunga areas of the Western Province, Caritas Mongu director Nathaniel Mubukwanu also said in an interview that the unfriendly graffiti that dotted Mongu town ahead of President Banda’s selected visit to the province was one way of expressing the disappointment that people felt over the current administration.

Mubukwanu said there was absolutely no need for President Banda to dish out the brown envelope containing an undisclosed amount of money to the cadres.
“Tokens can be given and there must be a reason,” he said. “That was totally unacceptable when people have been complaining of corruption and when people have complained about lack of transparency and accountability.”

Mubukwanu said the manner in which President Banda dished out the brown envelope raised eyebrows. Mubukwanu further said President Banda’s recent visit to Western Province was a sheer waste of public resources.

“It is a pity that the visit was not properly publicised to the general public. We know that the President is entitled to travel on private issues and we know that a lot of resources were poured into this visit from the treasury when the President was coming on a private mission,” Mubukwanu said.

“We know that the President has a right to travel on private missions but when it extends to public finance, again it raises a lot of concern. We are a little bit disappointed ourselves, like speaking on my own behalf, because I am not aware of the time the President came on a visit to Western Province, apart from Kuomboka period.”

Mubukwanu said considering that there was a large fleet of vehicles and three planes during President Banda’s just-ended trip to Kalabo, one could only guess how much public resources had been spent on the trip.

Mubukwanu said there was graffiti informing President Banda that he was not welcome to Mongu around Mongu town prior to his visit to Kalabo.

“Even today as you move around the streets you can still see it graffiti,” Mubukwanu said. “It is one way that people are expressing their disappointment over the manner his government has been running the affairs. The whole thing is climaxed by the way they (MMD) handled their differences in the party between the provincial leadership that was dissolved and NEC.”

And Kakwaya, who claimed to be an MMD founding member, said in a walk-in interview that the MMD made a mistake when they voted for President Banda.
“We made a mistake to vote for Rupiah Banda as MMD and it is a pity we are still continuing making the same mistake trying to put him as our Presidential candidate in 2011,” Kakwaya said. “We as MMD members, especially the youths, can’t walk the streets with our heads up because we have nothing to talk about what we promised people over what Rupiah Banda is going to do.”
Kakwaya said the problem within MMD was that whoever spoke the truth was perceived as being against the party hierarchy.

“What is happening is that Rupiah Banda, instead of serving the people, he wants to be served,” Kakwaya said.

He also questioned the criteria that President Banda was using in appointing lowly qualified people into higher positions in the civil service.
“Somebody who has never even reached grade seven to be a PS? Under such a PS there are directors who are employed on merit,” Kakwaya said. “How can degree holders listen to a grade four, as a PS? No wonder Zambia shall never develop under Rupiah Banda.”

Asked if he had a position within the MMD, Kakwaya said he did not have any because the former UNIP members hijacked most positions.
“I do not even know how I can listen to William Banda as provincial chairman for Lusaka Province where I belong because those are the people who cheated Kaunda and Kaunda lost and they are the ones surrounding Rupiah Banda, as his advisors.”

Kakwaya said those accusing science and technology minister Gabriel Namulambe of practicing tribalism were off-key because Namulambe was an elected leader who could speak on behalf of the people that gave him the mandate.
“When Namulambe is speaking he is not speaking from without,” said Kakwaya.

Labels: CARITAS, CORRUPTION, RUPIAH BANDA

posted by MrK @ 5:56 AM