Maravi

"It will be a tragedy to have Banda re-elected"

"It will be a tragedy to have Banda re-elected"
By Chibaula Silwamba
Mon 06 June 2011, 04:00 CAT

It will be a tragedy to re-elect Rupiah Banda because he is putting Zambia’s sovereignty at stake through his dubious sourcing of money for campaign-driven development projects, says George Mpombo.

And Mpombo said Zesco management must resist President Banda’s moves to use it as a pawn in the game of politics.

Commenting on President Banda’s claims that it would be tragic for Zambia if he lost this year’s elections, Mpombo who is MMD Kafulafuta member of parliament said contrary to the head of state’s illusion, it is his re-election that would be a tragedy for Zambia.

“Banda has been a monumental failure of colossal proportion. We have seen projects not budgeted for in the national budget being undertaken from dubious sources. His action in this regard is mortgaging the sovereignty and integrity of Zambia to the people that are funding his uncoordinated developmental projects who have been promised handsome rewards if MMD wins,” Mpombo said.

“By his recent actions, Banda has turned Zambia into a cesspool of corruption. No tender procedures are being followed in undertaking these projects. For instance, when were the tenders for the rehabilitation of roads in Lusaka floated? Who have won these tenders? We hear that some of the contractors are undertaking these works without being paid based on the understanding that they will recover their monies from the contracts.”

Mpombo said the purpose of having a national budget was to guide the nation to share national resources for one year so that there were no gaps and confusion over the sources of monies.

“The law states that if the government wants to do business outside the budget, it has to go to Parliament to seek official authorisation. But Banda doesn’t do that,” Mpombo said.

“Zambia’s sovereignty is at stake because the money is coming from people who have been promised rewards. He has created an air of festiveness of impromptu theoretical project programmes in the false hope that this will win him votes from the people. Our country is sitting on a seething cauldron of corruption. Therefore, Mr Banda must not be given a chance to rule Zambia.”

President Banda, during his press briefing last Wednesday, said he was getting money from the capital market to implement road rehabilitation projects.

Mpombo said President Banda was destroying parastals such as National Pensions Scheme Authority (NAPSA) and Zesco for his own selfish political interests. He said Zesco was undertaking token campaign projects like empty geysers where there was no running water.

“It shows that Mr Banda can promise to build a bridge where there is no river like he has done in Mandevu where he has given geysers where there is no water,” Mpombo said.

He observed that Zesco was not in a sound financial position to be undertaking political programmes.

Mpombo said President Banda’s decision to remove electricity connection fees and distribution of free geysers was crippling Zesco’s ability to generate money.

“Mr Banda must realise that in Egypt, the Minister of Information under Hosni Mubarak is under arrest for having compromised the work of the Egyptian broadcasting services, siphoning money for political purposes; exactly what Mr Banda is doing,” Mpombo said.

“It’s like Zesco is in Mr Banda’s pocket and he is creating jobs for his relatives like that chap Makulu, newly employed public relations manager for Zesco.”

Mpombo, a former minister of energy, said the World Bank had some years back recommended that Zesco be put on a commercialisation programme to revitalise and detach it from political interference but President Banda was reversing those initiatives.

Meanwhile, Mpombo said he would not seek to re-contest Kafulafuta seat on MMD ticket.

Reacting to President Banda’s statement that he would not be allowed to stand on the MMD ticket, Mpombo said the President had an obsessive illusion of mentioning his name.

“I find it shocking that he can sink so low to talk about me. The whole country knows that I will not seek to re-contest Kafulafuta seat on MMD ticket,” said Mpombo.

“Without mentioning my name, Banda feels politically deflated and inadequate. I have no desire to work under Mr Banda because he is a huge political failure who has destroyed the fortunes of the MMD.”

Labels: CORRUPTION, GEORGE MPOMBO, MMD, RUPIAH BANDA

posted by MrK @ 2:22 PM