Maravi

TIZ demands full account of what has been paid to RP Capital

TIZ demands full account of what has been paid to RP Capital
By George Chellah
Tue 22 June 2010, 13:50 CAT

TRANSPARENCY International Zambia (TIZ) has demanded a full account of what has been paid to RP Capital after the partial privatisation of Zamtel. And TIZ has said that government's handling of the aftermath of the partial privatisation of Zamtel smacks of the arrogance and adamancy, which seems to be the hallmark of the MMD government.

TIZ president Reuben Lifuka yesterday said that it was evident to all to see that government was hiding something, which they would not like the Zambian people to know.

We want to remind President Banda and his ministers that they have privatised a parastatal and not a private company - and this is a company in which the Zambian people have vested interests“ and the Zambians deserve to be given the full facts surrounding the sale, Lifuka said. Government will not be doing the Zambian people a favour by releasing information related to the partial privatisation“ it will be the right thing to do.

Lifuka said that the government claimed to be democratic and recognised the importance of the electorate and yet it was not prepared to be held accountable.

Equally, we demand that a full account of what has been paid to RP Capital should be made public and it is time that President Banda got his act together and addressed the breaches of the law by Hon Dora Siliya, which were highlighted in the Denis Chirwa Tribunal, Lifuka said. His silence on the matter is simply compounding the situation and it seems to have given Hon Siliya wings to talk as she is doing on a matter where she should keep quiet as she is the architect of most of the controversies surrounding the partial privatization of Zamtel.

Lifuka said that the partial privatisation of Zamtel had been shrouded in controversies.

Starting with the irregular procurement of the services of RP Capital by Hon. Dora Siliya to undertake valuation of the state owned enterprise and later to provide financial advisory service to Government, Lifuka said. The Denis Chirwa Tribunal, which addressed matters surrounding the procurement process of RP Capital, pointed to a number of breaches of the law which, by and large, remain unattended to by President Rupiah Banda, who seemingly has been studying the Report for a very long time without any action on Hon Siliya.

It is important to note that what is in contention is not the principle of partial privatisation“ the Zambian people are desirous of an efficient telecommunication sector which provides affordable and high quality services, and there has always been a general appreciation of the need to improve the operations of Zamtel.
Lifuka said that what was at stake was the process of privatisation adopted by government.

The lack of transparency in which RP Capital was commissioned to provide valuation and financial advisory services, the associated value of Zamtel and the decision to offload 75 per cent shares to a private company including what most Zambians consider to sensitive installations and facilities, Lifuka said.

And now the lack of transparency and accountability in the final value associated with the partial privatisation deal entered into with the winning bidder.

He said that the government's handling of the aftermath of the partial privatisation of Zamtel smacked of the arrogance and adamancy, which seems to be the hallmark of the MMD government.

Government is failing to provide information on the final value that they attached to Zamtel and yet this is a matter of public concern, said Lifuka.

Zambia has a number of highly trained valuation surveyors. In fact better qualified in this line of business than even RP Capital.

Labels: DENNIS CHIRWA, PRIVATISATION, REUBEN LIFUKA, RP CAPITAL PARTNERS, TIZ

posted by MrK @ 3:19 PM