RSZ directors, shareholders should be arrested - Nawakwi

RSZ directors, shareholders should be arrested - Nawakwi
By Moses Kuwema and Allan Mulenga
Sun 09 Sep. 2012, 10:30 CAT

FDD president Edith Nawakwi (left) says the directors and shareholders of the Railway Systems of Zambia should be arrested for theft of public property. But the RSZ says only Zambia Railway Limited can explain Nawakwi's alleged stripping of assets and sale of land belonging to the rail line.

And Ngandu Magande says the documents surrounding RSZ concession agreement were taken to his office when he served as finance minister and he only signed the papers.

In an interview, Nawakwi alleged that since getting the concession on both the passenger and freight transport network, the RSZ had engaged in unauthorised disposal of Zambia Railways property.

"This is direct in relation to, the rail siding, old bridges which have been sold as scrap metal. When the concession was undertaken, we expected them to improve on the facility to be part and parcel of a complimentary investment for the process of industrialising this country. Unfortunately, they have reduced the tracks to a one-way traffic by their deliberate efforts in selling the rail sidings and old bridges. In the past, you could have four, five trains going in different directions, because we used to have places where trains could exchange, if you are going north you exchange, if you are going south you exchange," she said.

"They actually ask you to park. Now today if you go to Mazabuka, you will find that there is no siding at Nega Nega, there is no siding at Nalwama. There is no siding anywhere where you can say if a train has a problem, you park it and fix it. They have literally taken the steel slippers and sold as scrap metal."

Nawakwi further alleged that the RSZ had sold the land near the rail line on the fly over bridges in Lusaka and wondered where new land would be found for improving the track.

"They paid a concession of US $1.5 million, they took over a rolling stock with newly refurbished wagons, which wagons were refurbished at half a million dollars each. I want to know because I have not seen them, where are these new wagons? This was over US $15 million of investment. They should point out where the sidings are, the old bridges, they should tell us and who authorised them to sell these. They got this asset not to improve it but for their own personal benefit. They came in caravans and they are going out flying and this is not acceptable. I want them arrested for theft of public property," she said.

On the RSZ's complaints about vandalism, Nawakwi wondered where the rail police were.

"Why did the Zambians not vandalise the lines in 1964 and 1980? That statement is meant to cover their theft, what I am telling you…Have the public vandalised the bridges? It is themselves who have been selling. Who has sold the land by the rail line at flyover bridge? It is themselves. They want to engage in the polemics of the politics of theft. They should just keep quiet, own up and report themselves to the police for theft of public goods," she said.

Nawakwi said instead of instituting investigations, the directors and shareholders of RSZ should be arrested so that they could explain from Chimbokaila what happened to the Zambia Railways property.

And Magande said he was not involved in the negotiation of the sale of Zambia Railways.

"According to the law, the person who signs all the decisions on assets of government is the minister of finance under Cap 349 and that is the law. But he does not negotiate, even when ZCCM was being sold, the people who were negotiating were different. We don't go into detail to say there were two million tonnes of copper, why did they write one million? That the minister of finance does not get involved in," he explained.

Magande said issues surrounding RSZ required technical decisions and not political ones.

Commenting on President Michael Sata's directive to justice minister Wynter Kabimba to examine the Freight and Passenger Concession Agreement between the government and Zambia Railways Limited (ZRL), RSZ and New Limpopo Bridge Projects Investment Private Limited, Magande, who is president of the opposition National Movement for Progress, said the cost of running a railway line was huge.

"We have a railway line from town to Chilenje and during the campaigns, we were told that it would be worked on but up to now we have not heard anything. Now what more a railway line that stretches from Chililabombwe to Livingstone? So this issue requires technical decisions and not political ones," he said.

Magande said the infrastructure on the railway line from Chililabombwe to Livingstone kept deteriorating on a daily basis.

"I have heard of plans to connect the TAZARA railway line to the Chipata-Mchinji railway line, and I was saying to myself there is a railway line which is in a terrible state which needs to be worked," he wondered.

Magande said in the event that the government took over the running of the railway line, a lot of works needed to be done.

"Help can be found but we must know what you are looking for," he said.

On Wednesday, after swearing in Kabimba, President Sata emphasised the need for the government to look into the Concession Agreement with RSZ in order to preserve the national railway infrastructure from further deterioration given that RSZ had failed to invest in the railway assets and improve operations, and to allow government to reposition itself in improving the railway sector which was critical to the country's economic development.

And the RSZ plans to meet President Sata over his directive to Kabimba. RSZ chief executive officer Benjamin Even said during the time of concessioning, the rail company had performed well under very difficult conditions.

Even also said the concession process was done in the most transparent manner as proved by the World Bank.

"We are also respecting and fully appreciating the fact that the railways we are operating is a Zambian asset, which belongs to the Zambian nation," Even told journalists.

"Our obligation as concessioners is to operate and improve the infrastructure and to hand it back to the government at the end of the concessioning period in better condition. The company has its responsibilities, the company needs to do the utmost and we are in the field. We need to do the utmost. If anyone thinks we didn't do enough, or we could do something which we didn't do, we are very much open to discuss and clarify."

Even said RSZ shareholders who included NPLI, whose shareholders were Nedbank, Sanlam, Old Mutual and NLP, were currently studying the matter and had not decided to seek legal redress over the possible revocation of the rail line.

On the President's statement that some officials from RSZ had indicated that they might sue the government if the rail was repossessed, Even said: "It's definitely not as the title is in the papers this morning. The shareholders still be studying the situation and we have not received any formal communication. We have never said it. I am not aware of any statement from anyone in this company."

And Even said RSZ, which had invested over US$50 million in the main economic activity of Kabwe, had not stripped any of the rail's assets.

"RSZ is not allowed to dispose any of ZRL assets or Zambia's assets regarding this concession," said Even to Nawakwi's allegations.

"We are not allowed to perform any of such transactions whether it scrap or real estate and we have never done it obviously and even the title deeds are not with us. We have not done so. I can't tell you who did it or why and how. I can only confirm that RSZ has nothing to do with whatsoever and disposal of assets."