Rural Electrification Authority under probe
Rural Electrification Authority under probeBy Mwala Kalaluka
Tue 06 Nov. 2012, 14:30 CAT
INVESTIGATIVE agencies have moved into the Rural Electrification Authority (REA) to probe alleged financial irregularities involving billions of kwacha.
And Auditor General, Anna Chifungula, says her officers have completed a 30-day audit of alleged irregularities at REA.
But REA chief executive officer Wilfred Serenje says the allegations against him are completely false and that he had not been given an opportunity to put up a coherent answer to them.
Some concerned REA employees in a confidential dossier sent to President Michael Sata catalogued several allegations, among which was theft by public servant, nepotism, victimisation and appeasement against Serenje.
According to the documentation obtained by The Post, Serenje is as per contract paid K1 million for his domestic worker but that he instructed the director of human resource Maxwell Phiri to include his domestic worker, Edward Mulenga, on the REA payroll.
Serenje, according to the whistle-blowers, irregularly claims office imprest of K1.7 million per month and that this has been extended to directors who receive K600, 000 and that apart from that he claims K4.8 million per year for his workout at the gym.
"Postpaid Blackberry with Airtel his entitlement is K1.5m per month but this is abused and always overspent to nearly K2.4m per month. REA holds and constantly replenishes two accounts for fuel at TIISEZA Service Station T/A Puma at Arcades with colossal sums of K30m per month," the documentation read.
"This is where Wilfred Serenje and his family members whose cars bear reg.no. [ABX 1914 & ABA 4525 draw fuel despite Wilfred Serenje having a Tom Card for Total where 520 litres is bought for him every month."
The documentation further indicated that REA also pays Serenje's electricity consumption to a tune of K2.5 million despite that not being stated in his contract.
"Wilfred Serenje with impunity connived with the then board chairman- one Patrick Wanjelani- on the pretext that he was seconded from government, amended and signed a new 100 per cent gratuity from his initial contracted rate of 35 per cent gratuity, with this rise he is bound to receive a staggering K1.1 billion after serving for just 3 years whose contract expired on 31st July, 2012," the concerned employees stated.
"It must be noted that REA's operational budget is only K1.0bn per month."
The concerned workers told President Sata that when put together, Serenje walks away with K120m per month.
"Wilfred Serenje has made REA pay K25m per month as accommodation rentals and the institution pays K75m…Even though he may be entitled, we feel this is just too excessive for an institution like REA," they stated.
"In November 2011, Wilfred Serenje instructed REA to buy him household furniture that included bed and mattress, coffee table, dining table and lounge suite at an alarming cost of K51m."
They requested that in view of the above allegations, Serenje and other REA management officials should be sent on forced leave to pave way for thorough investigations.
And when asked how far the probe into alleged financial irregularities at REA had gone, Chifungula said yesterday that the audit had been completed.
"We have completed the audit. The officers have completed the work. We are just finalising the report," Chifungula said. "This audit was done because we had received an anonymous letter of some irregularities that were going on."
Chifungula said the report would be handed over to the President once it had been finalised.
But Serenje said in an interview yesterday that he was aware of people from his office who were circulating documents containing allegations against him to various institutions in the country.
"Yes, the auditors have come in and they have come in with a lot of questions which we have provided some answers," Serenje said.
"You are going to write a story? Oh, my goodness. There is some anonymous document which has been circulated to a lot of institutions including the Auditor General. So based on that document, the Auditor General moved in."
However, Serenje, who confirmed that the even the Anti-Corruption Commission ACC was now involved in the probe, said the Auditor General's office had not yet completed its audit because there had been no exit interview.
Asked on the allegations against him, Serenje responded: "They are completely false, that is why the Office of the Auditor General is going into the details of the matter."
Serenje said he had not had sight of the documentation containing the allegations apart from just hearing about it.
"I am just being told in piecemeal. ACC would come in and say 'can you give us this?'" Serenje said. "I have never had a full appreciation of what the allegations are. I am just deducing from the things that I am being asked."
Labels: CORRUPTION, ELECTRIFICATION
posted by MrK @ 2:45 PM
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