Maravi

Mangani tells Rupiah to own up over gold scam

Mangani tells Rupiah to own up over gold scam
By Chibaula Silwamba
Tue 08 Nov. 2011, 11:40 CAT

FORMER president Rupiah Banda must come out in the open to explain State House's role in the gold scam, says Lameck Mangani. Commenting on revelations that Banda's former press aide Dickson Jere introduced gold buyers to the Drug Enforcement Commission (DEC) and immediate-past commissioner Aaron Zulu, former home affairs minister Mangani said all the people who were involved in the gold sale should come out and tell the truth to the nation. He said there was no way DEC could be a transaction centre of gold.

"Now that State House was fully involved, the former president must come out in the open. What does this mean because now Dickson is being linked, heavily, to this? Was Dickson acting alone or he was being sent?" said Mangani, a one-time Banda confidant but now a member of the ruling Patriotic Front (PF).

"If he Jere was acting alone, where was he deriving his powers from? The revelations are a very sad development. I am confident that a lot of issues will come out of the gold story."

Mangani said there was need to establish who was behind Jere's role in the gold deal. Intelligence sources revealed that the gold sale deal between the buyers and DEC was sealed with the help of State House.

"According to the briefs we have received from our team on the ground, Mr Dickson Jere confirmed that he called Mr Aaron Zulu then commissioner of DEC and told him that ‘there are people coming to look at the gold, attend to them'," the sources said.

"In fact, senior DEC officials told our team that ‘those people who bought gold came from State House'. Mr Zulu instructed security personnel at the gate of the DEC premises that ‘there are people coming, when they arrive usher them in'."

The sources revealed that there was no bidding in the sale of the gold and the transaction was "orchestrated at State House" during the Banda regime.

Recently, President Michael Sata revealed that Switzerland-based businessman Nichola Bogdan Buzaianu, whom he said was linked to the gold sale, had come to Zambia that week and met Banda, his son James and Jere.

President Sata castigated the police and instantly fired Lusaka division commanding officer Mulakeni Zulu for failing to apprehend Buzaianu and his crew, who were wanted by the DEC.

Banda confirmed meeting Buzaianu but said he was not a fugitive and there was no gold that went missing as portrayed.

Banda said he welcomed the DEC's investigations of the sale of gold linked to Buzaianu.

Later, Buzaianu, through his lawyers demanded an apology from the Zambian government over the gold scam allegations.

However, sources later told The Post that Jere introduced gold buyers to DEC and Zulu.

PF secretary general Wynter Kabimba said Banda would be embarrassed over the gold scam.

Investigators last month interviewed Jere, Zulu and former secretary to the treasury Likolo Ndalamei, among others, over the gold scam

Labels: DEC, GOLD, LAMECK MANGANI, MONEY LAUNDERING, WYNTER KABIMBA

posted by MrK @ 4:16 PM