Maravi

Explain $15m NAPSA deal - Kapijimpanga

COMMENT - The MMD is raiding the pension fund to raise campaign financing.

Explain $15m NAPSA deal - Kapijimpanga
By Patson Chilemba
Fri 04 Mar. 2011, 04:02 CAT

NAPSA should explain to Zambians why they single-sourced K75 billion worth of land from Meanwood, says Judith Kapijimpanga. And a senior MMD official yesterday said NAPSA director general Stanley Phiri should not pretend that he could do such a big transaction without State House knowing about it.

Commenting on National Pension Scheme Authority (NAPSA)'s claim that President Rupiah Banda did not influence the sale of 1,500 acres of land at an exorbitant price of US $15 million to Meanwood Properties Development Limited without following tender procedures, Kapijimpanga - who is former lands minister - said she smelt a rat in the transaction.

“The board NAPSA board should tell us whose money is kept there, why they single-sourced and why we didn't see tenders in the press. I do smell a rat, especially that there was single-sourcing and I didn't see any tenders in the press,” she said.

Kapijimpanga said NAPSA should explain how they arrived at buying land from Meanwood when they could have gotten it at a cheaper price from the Ministry of Local Government and Housing or Ministry of Lands.

“And being a statutory institution, it wouldn't have bought the land as such. It would have paid statutory fees like lodgment fees, survey fees, especially that it is a quasi government institution,” she said.

Kapijimpanga said Zambian workers should demand accountability from NAPSA on how they were using the people's hard-earned contributions to the institution.

“The people want to know what is happening to their money, especially that they NAPSA have said that they don't have immediate use for the land,” said Kapijimpanga.

She said the NAPSA board must resign should they fail to give a proper explanation on the transaction.

Some senior MMD officials recently expressed concern over what they termed as “scandalous” transactions at NAPSA, which President Banda is allegedly using to raise campaign funds.

And commenting on Phiri's claim that the transaction was merely commercial and above board, the MMD official said Phiri was pretending.

“If State House didn't know about this deal, Mr Phiri wouldn't have been in that job,” the official said. “And if State House didn't want Mr Robinson Zulu to be paid US $15 million for that land, he wouldn't have received such money. In short, what I am saying is that this is President Banda's deal, an MMD fund-raising deal.

“Our complaint is very simple. These people are doing all these things in the name of the party but we are not seeing benefits to the party. Instead, we are just making ourselves unpopular with the public who are angry about such transactions. People were beginning to forget about RP Capital and Mobile Hospital scandals but now we are bringing NAPSA.”

The official complained that there was too much money being received on behalf of the MMD that was not getting to the party.

“Our cadres on the ground are struggling to carry out party programmes because we are told there is no money and yet money is flowing in the party everyday,” the official said. “Mr Phiri knows what he has done. He knows that this deal stinks. That is why he is fighting so hard.”

Labels: CORRUPTION, JUDITH KAPIJIMPANGA, NAPSA

posted by MrK @ 4:16 AM