Minister, PS differ over use of funds

COMMENT - Well right on, Sherry Tole.

Minister, PS differ over use of funds
By George Chellah and Chibaula Silwamba
Thu 11 Nov. 2010, 04:01 CAT

COMMUNITY development minister Michael Kaingu has angrily differed with his permanent secretary Sherry Thole over use of funds at the ministry. Well-placed government sources yesterday revealed that the duo had a bitter argument last week because Thole refused to back down on Kaingu’s demands for cash shortly before he left for his constituency.

“Kaingu thinks he can run that ministry like his personal business. That’s why currently there are serious differences with Ms Thole because she has put her foot down. Ms Thole wants to follow the laid down government procedures and guidelines when it comes to the usage and release of funds from the ministry. I think her background from the banking world is helping a lot in ensuring that money is properly accounted for,” the sources said.

“But Kaingu seems to have a problem with that and with you writing this story, I doubt if Ms Thole will last long in the ministry. Kaingu has changed so many permanent secretaries in the two years he has been in that ministry. No wonder they have differed. For instance, last week Kaingu requested for about K45 million to go to his constituency in Mwandi. But Ms Thole told him that according to the procedures and guidelines on the disbursement of such funds, she could only release something like K12 million to cater for him and whoever was in his entourage. Instead of being happy with the financial management being shown by his permanent secretary, Kaingu got so upset with Thole.”

The sources disclosed that currently there were a number of unanswered audit queries at the ministry.

“There are serious problems at the ministry because it appears in the past monies were just raised and released without following the laid down procedures. You have seen of late Kaingu has been on these cash disbursement expeditions to women’s clubs and a lot of money has been dished out across the country through that so-called programme to empower women, which is in actual fact campaigning,” the sources said.

“After these monies have been distributed to the so-called women’s clubs by the minister, when the auditors raise queries on some of these things, the only response they get from the ministry is that “go to State House and ask the President”. So how can you manage national resources when people are doing things with such impunity? It’s very difficult for officers to work as the public would like them to because there are a lot of wrong decisions being made just for the sake of people gaining political mileage. This explains why they have removed the offence of abuse of office.”

The sources revealed that Thole had always insisted that officials in the ministry, including Kaingu, comply with the laid down systems when expending public funds, but the minister wanted to defy her.

The sources said Kaingu always wanted to expend public funds for campaigns in the name of “developmental projects”without following the procedures.

“The minister is very mad with Ms Thole after she challenged him. But he has called for a meeting for them to iron out the issues,” the sources said.

“We hope this is a lesson for the minister that he can’t use public funds for MMD’s campaigns under the pretext that they were giving women’s clubs.

Sometimes, we think the President doesn’t even know some of these expenditures.”
But when contacted for comment yesterday, Kaingu denied.

“No it’s not true, but I’m in my constituency we can talk when I come back,” he said.
Efforts to contact Thole proved futile as her mobile phone went unanswered by press time.