Kunda shouldn’t abuse his position – Lifuka

Kunda shouldn’t abuse his position – Lifuka
By Moses Kuwema
Tue 16 Mar. 2010, 08:30 CAT

TRANSPARENCY International Zambia (TIZ) president Reuben Lifuka has said Vice-President George Kunda should not abuse his position to mislead the nation by issuing unnecessary statements.

Commenting on Vice-President Kunda’s recent statement in Parliament that former president Frederick Chiluba had been ridiculed and abused, Lifuka yesterday said the statement showed an element of lack of seriousness on the part of Vice-President Kunda.

Lifuka said the corruption cases against Chiluba started when Vice-President Kunda was in the government under late president Levy Mwanawasa.

“Now the question one would ask is who started the ridicule of Chiluba? It’s not the Zambian people who went to parliament to ask for the lifting of Chiluba’s immunity, so Kunda is missing the point because the ridicule was started by his government for good reasons,” he said.

“I want to ask Kunda not to abuse his position to issue such allegations and the question I would ask him is, does he regret having been the person to prosecute Chiluba?”

And Lifuka said civil society organisations were ready to declare their assets if asked to do so.

Reacting to information minister Lieutenant General Ronnie Shikapwasha’s statement that civil society organisations should declare their assets, Lifuka said there was need for the verification of the assets declared.

“This will help in knowing people who make false declarations and also this needs to be well handled so that we do not abuse people who acquired wealth genuinely,” said Lifuka.