Cops summon Situmbeko

Cops summon Situmbeko
By Mwala Kalaluka
Sun 22 Jan. 2012, 13:57 CAT

FORMER finance minister Dr Situmbeko Musokotwane has been summoned to appear on Tuesday before the combined team of investigators probing the plunder of national resources in the Rupiah Banda administration.

Sources within the investigative team said yesterday that Dr Musokotwane, who is also Liuwa MMD member of parliament, would be questioned on several issues relating to the ongoing investigations.

"We are not disclosing the details of the investigation yet but it has to do with the cases under investigation," the source said.

Dr Musokotwane's appearance before the probe team follows that of former Republican vice-president George Kunda, former commerce minister Felix Mutati and former president Banda's former economic advisor, Dr Richard Chembe who availed themselves for interrogations last week.

The spokesperson for the combined team of investigators from the Drug Enforcement Commission, Anti-Corruption Commission and the Zambia Police, Charity Munganga Chanda, said they summoned Kunda, Mutati and Chembe to help with investigations.

Recently, the Commission of Inquiry probing the Zambia Revenue Authority's procurement of cargo scanners from China recommended that criminal investigations be instituted against Dr Musokotwane over the tax deferment he gave Varun Beverages without parliamentary approval.

Dr Musokotwane, a former presidential economic advisor, was at the helm of the Ministry of Finance at the time the Banda administration controversially sold government's 75 per cent stake in Zamtel to LAP Green Network of Libya.

Dr Musokotwane has been vociferous in urging the Michael Sata-led administration not to reverse the sale of Zamtel, arguing that it would have serious financial ramifications on the country's coffers.