Muyanda takes govt to task over Zambian Airways probe

Muyanda takes govt to task over Zambian Airways probe
By Ernest Chanda
Sat 27 Mar. 2010, 04:01 CAT

SINAZONGWE UPND member of parliament Raphael Muyanda yesterday took the government to task over its silence on the outcome of investigations into the operations of Zambian Airways.

And his Siavonga counterpart Douglas Siakalima asked Vice-President George Kunda to tell parliament whether or not as government they had regretted having secured a conviction against Frederick Chiluba and others in the London High Court.

During the Vice-President's Question and Answer session in parliament, Muyanda asked Vice-President George Kunda whether or not the pronounced investigations were meant to embarrass the owners of the defunct airline, especially that it had been over a year since the investigations were instituted.

"I would like to find out from His Honour the Vice-President of the Republic of Zambia, what has happened to the case of Zambian Airways? Was it meant to merely embarrass the owners of that airline since the nation has not been told anything about the outcome of those investigations? Why not apologise as government to the owners of Zambian Airways and allow them to continue operating because Zambians still need the services of Zambian Airways?" Muyanda asked.

In his response, Vice-President Kunda maintained the usual statement that the matter was still under investigation.

"The matter is still under investigation in Zambia and abroad. As you know a lot of tax payers money is the subject of investigation, as how it got into Zambian Airways. Police and other law enforcement agencies are still looking into this matter and as soon as these investigations are concluded, the nation will be informed," Vice President Kunda explained.

"We may all know that offshore investigations take time to conclude; the matter has not been closed. As you know, billions of Kwacha went into Zambian Airways and the people of Zambia deserve to know how it was used. If anything is found after investigations, appropriate measures will be taken. The airline closed on its own and we are following up on the issue of recovering public funds."

And Vice-President Kunda could neither deny nor confirm that his government has regretted securing a conviction against Chiluba in the London High Court.

Responding to Siakalima's question, Vice-President Kunda simply said: "The simple answer is that, that issue is subjudice."

In May 2007, the London High Court found Chiluba liable of defrauding the Zambian people.