Chiluba can’t escape Carlington scam – Sata
By George Chellah
Tue 06 Apr. 2010, 04:02 CAT
THERE is no way Frederick Chiluba is going to escape the Carlington maize scandal, Patriotic Front (PF) leader Michael Sata said yesterday.
And Transparency International - Zambia (TIZ) president Reuben Lifuka has stated that his organisation does not agree that the Carlington maize deal saga should be pursued primarily to settle political scores with opposition FDD president Edith Nawakwi.
In an interview, Sata said in the event that corruption in the Carlington maize scandal was proved, Nawakwi could not be convicted without former president Chiluba. He mockingly praised home affairs minister Lameck Mangani’s stance to press on with investigations over the Carlington maize transaction.
“Mr Mangani is a very good man, tell him he is a very, very good man because by bringing back the Carlington maize scandal, Mr Mangani is disagreeing with his boss Mr Rupiah Banda on the fight against corruption,” Sata said.
“And by Mr Mangani insisting on the Carlington maize scandal, he knows that there is no way Frederick Chiluba is going to escape and there is no way Edith Nawakwi is going to be convicted without Chiluba. So Mr Mangani is very good!”
He encouraged Mangani to proceed and deal with Chiluba over the Carlington maize deal.
“Mr Mangani is very good and we are grateful to him. Mr Mangani, like many other people in Rupiah Banda’s government did not agree with him on his decision on these dubious acquittals,” Sata said.
“And you tell him that we have even withdrawn PF secretary general Wynter Kabimba’s statement, he is acting like a village dog and Not a Rottweiler, we have agreed. We have withdrawn that one!
“But he should not act like a village dog, which only barks and retreats. Tell him that he should not be barking and retreating. He must go ahead and deal with Chiluba and his Carlington maize scandal.”
He urged Mangani to reveal more information.
“Mr Mangani should also openly tell us who sold Kasaba Bay and who was it sold to, who sold Mpulungu port and Mulungushi Traveller and who was sold these two entities. He is a very, very good man, so let him revive all these cases so that justice can prevail,” Sata said.
And Lifuka stated that the revelations by Mangani that the government was quietly investigating the Carlington maize deal saga made interesting reading.
“In the first place, it is important that Zambians realise that this saga has been with us since 1997 and it is one case which seemingly will not go away easily until a logical conclusion is reached. In commenting on this saga, we are mindful of the basic facts namely that close to US $7.8 million was paid to the then Canadian based Carlington Sales Company - associated with one Ari Ben-Menashe, for the supply of 50,000 metric tonnes of maize which was never delivered,” Lifuka stated.
“An additional US $2 million was allegedly paid to Ben-Menashe so that his public relations company could lobby for investment in Zambia's mines. Further, it is important to put into perspective the fact that this issue was addressed by the Auditor General and her report was considered by Parliament firstly through the Public Accounts Committee and later the full House in 2006.”
He also stated that absolutely no one should be let off the hook.
“The now defunct Task Force on Corruption had conduct of this matter, did in fact record a warn and caution statement from former president Frederick Chiluba and with subsequent interviews held with former Finance Bank executive chairperson – Rajan Mathani and former minister of finance and FDD president – Edith Nawakwi. As far as Transparency International Zambia is concerned, government is definitely within its rights to pursue this matter as we need closure – which has been lacking for some time. However, we do not agree that the Carlington maize deal saga should be pursued primarily to settle political scores with Ms Nawakwi,” Lifuka stated.
“We have previously urged government to ensure that they leave no stone unturned in this matter and that there should not be any sacred cows. We will fully support government if they go the whole way and bring all culprits to book and absolutely no one should be let off the hook. A lot has been said about this matter and it seems no one is concerned about the colossal amount of public money that went into this deal. Imagine what this country can do with USD 7.8 million? We will support Hon. Mangani if his interest is to genuinely ensure justice is done for the Zambian people and that some of this amount, if not all is recovered notwithstanding that Carlington Sales Company was liquidated some years ago.
“We would also be interested in Hon. Mangani briefing the nation whether the US $6 million plus interest which Ari Ben Menashe was ordered to repay to Nedcor Bank of South Africa, to whom the Zambian government had ceded the contract to, by the London Court of International Arbitration (LCIA) has been settled and whether Nedcor still has any claims against the Zambian government.”
He stated that the government should inform the nation on the results of the US $2 million for international lobbying awarded to Ben Menashe.
“Did we benefit anything from this deal? It is good that Hon. Mangani is expressing interest in this matter but he should be prepared to address all the issues at hand and not narrow it to a political weapon forged against his opponents - Zambians for a long time have been crying for answers on this matter and it is a blessing in disguise that Hon. Mangani is willing to step to the plate and bring a sense of closure to this matter, and we only hope that this enthusiasm on the part of the minister is not a mirage but a principled stand to conclude this matter,” stated Lifuka.
Labels: CARLINGTON MAIZE DEAL, CHILUBA, CORRUPTION, EDITH NAWAKWI, REUBEN LIFUKA, RUPIAH BANDA
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Mangani is acting like a rottweiler dog – Kabimba
By George Chellah
Mon 05 Apr. 2010, 04:02 CAT
LUSAKA lawyer Wynter Kabimba yesterday dared President Rupiah Banda's government to take Frederick Chiluba, the prime suspect in the Carlington maize scandal, back to court.
Commenting on home affairs minister Lameck Mangani's announcement that the Attorney General would advise the government on how to proceed with the Carlington maize scandal in which opposition FDD president Edith Nawakwi was implicated, Kabimba said Mangani was acting like a Rottweiler dog that had been unleashed by its master to pursue his political enemies.
“Mangani belongs to a group of coup plotters in the MMD that have actually hijacked the MMD using the advantage of ethnic numbers in the party. So he is really acting like a Rottweiler dog that has just been unleashed to pursue the enemies of his master,” Kabimba said.
“He is not there to perform the functions of a Minister of Home Affairs. He is there for a specific purpose; to pursue the enemies of his master hence his unwarranted rantings.”
Kabimba challenged President Banda's administration to take Chiluba back to court if indeed their concern was about the money that was lost in the Carlington transaction.
“If Mr Mangani had been a genuine MMD member, he would have gone back to the record and realise that the prime suspect in the Carlington maize scandal is Frederick Chiluba, the man who is wining and dining with his master Mr Rupiah Banda,” Kabimba said.
“And Edith Nawakwi was an agent, so how do you pursue Edith Nawakwi and at the same time rehabilitating Chiluba in the MMD? Chiluba had actually left the MMD purely on account that he was a suspect in the Carlington maize scandal in which Zambia lost millions and that money has never been recovered.”
Kabimba reminded Mangani that the Carlington maize scandal was even under scrutiny by the defunct Task Force on Corruption.
“On one hand you can see that they want to rehabilitate him Chiluba as a full member of the MMD with full privileges… attending all the state banquets, attending all the prominent funerals, attending on behalf of RB. And you want to pursue Edith Nawakwi who was sent by Chiluba in that transaction? What sense does it make to Mr Mangani?” Kabimba asked.
“I challenge Mr Mangani that if indeed his concern is about the loss of the money, let them take Chiluba back to court because that matter was still under consideration by the Task Force, which they abolished.
“And if they find that Edith Nawakwi is the co-accused, then they can go to Edith Nawakwi as well. Otherwise, the only explanation left why Mr Mangani is doing what he is doing is that he is not there to perform the functions of a Minister of Home Affairs on behalf of the people of Zambia. He is there to silence the perceived enemies or political opponents of his master Rupiah Banda so that he continues in office unchallenged.”
Kabimba said Mangani was actually the worst Minister of Home Affairs that Zambia has ever had.
“But we also understand why he is doing that because he is not MMD. He just belongs to a group of people that has hijacked the MMD, that's what he is! So Mr Mangani should just own up. He should not waste our time. Every other day his statements are about Michael Sata, they are about Edith Nawakwi, they are about those that are definitely challenging the power of Rupiah Banda, that is all,” Kabimba said.
“And nothing to do with internal security. It's a shame that we actually have such a man as Minister of Home Affairs. The route he is taking now is not in the interest of the people of Zambia. It is in the interest of Mr Rupiah Banda to remain unchallenged but we shall continue to challenge RB, and Mangani, at the end will be out of that office.”
Labels: CARLINGTON MAIZE DEAL, CHILUBA, EDITH NAWAKWI, LAMECK MANGANI, WYNTER KABIMBA
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Govt’s intention to reinstate Carlington maize scandal is a warning to Chiluba – Nalubamba
By Patson Chilemba
Sun 04 Apr. 2010, 04:01 CAT
SENIOR chief Bright Nalubamba yesterday observed that the government's intention to pursue the Carlington maize scandal is a clear warning to Frederick Chiluba that his cases will be restored if he stops parroting for President Rupiah Banda.
Commenting on home affairs minister Lameck Mangani's announcement that the Attorney General would advise the government on how to proceed with the Carlington maize scandal in which opposition FDD president Edith Nawakwi was implicated, chief Nalubamba said there was no moral value in the statement from Mangani.
“I don't know whether that has got moral value. You see you do one thing when someone is in your favour, and want to do something when he is not in our favour. What is that morally? What does it show to the country itself? That people are made free when they are in your favour?” chief Nalubamba asked.
“It also explains the fact that this is why criminals, corrupt people are now left free to run the state of affairs. People who have stolen people's money, public money are now free to run the affairs of the country, it must tell them that even those who are now free because of the support they are showing to the government, may not be free tomorrow.”
Chief Nalubamba said the same fate, which Nawakwi might meet would pounce on those who thought they were currently free.
“If that is what happened to Nawakwi, why can't it happen to Chiluba? Yes, I think that is clear expression of that kind of process, if he understands it the way I do, it must be a clear warning to him. Either he will die all his life supporting them, even when he knows he can differ with them,” chief Nalubamba said.
“I mean on what ground, if it was morally weak did they withdraw the Carlington case? Is this how we are going to have good governance promoted? I want good governance to support what is right.”
Chief Nalubamba said this explained why Chiluba recently said he was an ambassador of heaven and could not be judged by the laws of this land.
Chief Nalubamba said should the case be reinstated, Nawakwi should explain Chiluba's involvement in the matter.
Recently, during a press briefing, Mangani announced that the Attorney General would advise the government on how to proceed with the Carlington maize scandal in which Nawakwi was implicated.
Labels: CARLINGTON MAIZE DEAL, CHIEF NALUBAMBA, EDITH NAWAKWI, LAMECK MANGANI
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Zamtel sale is a dirty inside deal linked to State House - Kabimba
Written by George Chellah
Sunday, September 20, 2009 8:28:55 AM
LUSAKA lawyer Wynter Kabimba yesterday described the sale of Zamtel as
a dirty inside deal that is clearly linked to State House. And Kabimba said
RP Capital has been given another tender again outside tender procedures to privatise Zamtel.
Commenting on Zambia Development Agency (ZDA)'s announcement that the agency will be the main privatisation agent for Zamtel with RP Capital Advisors Limited as the financial advisor, Kabimba said State House was connected to the Zamtel transaction.
“Firstly, there was clear evidence before the tribunal in the Dora Siliya case that Henry Banda, RB’s son was a link between RP Capital and Dora Siliya, that evidence is very clear, he didn’t refute it. Two, it is and this again is part of the record that there was no tender procedure followed in the appointment of RP Capital to value Zamtel assets, that again is on record,” Kabimba said.
“The tribunal made a finding that Dora Siliya was in breach of the tender procedure as far as the appointment of RP Capital is concerned or was concerned. What we have heard now is that RP Capital has been given another tender again outside tender procedures to privatise Zamtel. What this clearly shows is that this is an inside deal and State House is linked to the deal. That is what creates a parallel comparison with the Carlington maize scandal.”
He wondered what decision Cabinet made over Zamtel after the tribunal.
“You remember after the Dora Siliya tribunal we were told that now they were taking this matter to Cabinet to go and have a formal decision to privatise Zamtel,” Kabimba said.
“We have never been told whether or not that decision has been made. It is very clear to me against this background that there is something fishy and dirty about this deal.”
Kabimba warned the bidders in the privatisation of Zamtel.
“You should remind the government that we have taken a stance between PF and UPND that whoever is going to buy Zamtel is doing so at their own risk because the UPND and PF government will certainly reverse that transaction,” Kabimba said.
“It is not a clean deal so we are putting all those bidders on notice that we shall not recognise this transaction, it doesn’t matter how long it takes. That is a warning that must go to the bidders.”
Asked the difference between the Carlington maize deal and the Zamtel deal, Kabimba responded: “The Carlington one is that, was it US $2 million or US $20 million that went out and maize never arrived and that is documented and president Chiluba was directly involved in that matter. In the RP Capital one, we don’t know how they arrived at those consultancies…it is arbitrary because there was no tender process involved. Just like the Carlington one, there was no tender process involved, it was arbitrary.”
He said the parallel between the two deals was that they both involved plunder of public funds that belonged to the people of Zambia.
“The only conclusion that one can arrive at is that the consultancy fees have been inflated because in the absence of a tender process where you have people bidding and justifying the quantification of the tender sums, how else do you arrive at those figures?” asked Kabimba.
“Other than for arriving at the conclusion that people are sharing public funds, they are plundering public money. So there was plunder in Carlington, there is definitely plunder in the RP Capital issue or deal.”
Labels: CARLINGTON MAIZE DEAL, PRIVATISATION, WYNTER KABIMBA, ZAMTEL
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Experts urge caution over maize imports
Written by Joan Chirwa
Tuesday, December 09, 2008 12:15:21 AM
ACTION taken now on the maize issue can either make Zambia a net exporter or a perpetual importer of the commodity, key industry analysts have observed.
And University of Zambia (UNZA) School of Agriculture dean Dr Judith Lungu has
questioned the credibility of this year’s crop forecast of 1.2 million metric tonnes of maize from the 2007/2008 farming season.
The experts have warned that the current maize situation may lead to another “Carlington maize scandal” since those contracted to import maize have not yet been disclosed.
The government has allowed the Food Reserve Agency (FRA) to import 100,000 metric tonnes of white non-GMO maize from within the region to replenish national reserves since the FRA is currently offloading 20,000 metric tonnes onto the market for the millers.
Imports of the 100,000 metric tonnes of maize will result in an extra expenditure of around US $40 million (about K189 billion, calculated at the current average exchange rate of K4,750 per US dollar) on the part of the government since the landed cost of a tonne of the commodity would be in the region of US $400.
But experts who declined to be named said Zambia cannot be said to be food secure when it was tapping into national strategic reserves at great replacement cost to the Treasury.
“We are planning on expending at least US $400 per metric tonne on importing maize which might not even be non-GMO. The mandate of the importation contract of at least US $40 million is clearly beyond FRA and they have to go to the Zambia National Tender Board (ZNTB). This amount is a lot of money which the Treasury had not planned on spending,” said the experts. “In such scenarios, Dr [Situmbeko] Musokotwane (Minister of Finance) might be forced to cut other budgets.
This is not good for any economy since for the savings from cutting expenditure to be meaningful, they have to target capital projects. This might mean that a school or hospital somewhere might not be completed on time or a road in some district might not be worked on as promised. In other words, the country walks two or more steps backwards for every step taken forward this year. If indeed we have to spend this money perhaps a good portion of it should be spent here.”
They further asked the government to clearly indicate the actual stocks of maize available in the country.
“We are told FRA has around 116,000 tonnes, millers and traders about 200,000 tonnes bringing the total to 316,000 tonnes. This should be enough stocks to last us until the next harvest season,” said the experts. “It is understood that FRA needs to import maize to replenish their stocks but why should they do this at a higher price and sell at a lower price?
An honest miller will confess that his extraction ratio from a tonne of maize is around 50-35-13 to produce breakfast, roller and maize bran. The rest is wastage. Therefore, the subsidy on the raw material – maize – only goes to subsidise consumption by the rich. We do not expect the vulnerable to buy breakfast mealie-meal.”
Agriculture minister Dr Brian Chituwo has disclosed that the FRA was holding 150, 000 metric tonnes which was the minimum requirement for the country’s food reserve.
Food commodities contribute more than half the inflation figure which in turn affects the cost of borrowing. Already, the country’s inflation (15.3 per cent in November) has taken an upward trend, and mostly contributing to this has been the cost of mealie-meal – a by-product of maize.
And agricultural expert Gerrit Struyf has advised millers to become more innovative and use other crops such as cassava to replace maize in production of stock feed.
“Tiger Animal Feeds is now buying cassava chips for use in poultry feeds for K45,000 per 50 kilogramme bag,” said Struyf. “Cassava is a crop which can be produced cheaply by many Zambian farmers; this is another manner to reduce maize imports in the country.”
And Dr Lungu said it was unclear whether the figures released about this year’s maize production were correct considering that the country now requires imports to replenish stocks.
“We were told officially that we had adequate grain for Zambia. What has happened? Last season was not a very good season because of floods in some parts and drought in other parts of the country. I found it strange at that time that we had adequate grain from our harvest. Was this a true assessment?” Dr Lungu asked. “If we produced a lot of maize, where did it go? Where did maize from far-off provinces, provinces far from the line of rail such as Eastern Province, go? We have open boarders and any business person will go where the price is right. Marketing is an issue in these areas and we will continue to spend money on importing if we do not deal effectively with this. What is the quality of maize at FRA? If we had adequate maize stored and it is of good quality, then we should not have had any problems.”
Dr Lungu noted the need for increasing the country’s production levels.
“The country has the capacity to produce enough grain. We need to increase agriculture productivity and production. Harvest of grain especially maize per unit of land has been going down over the years,” said Dr Lungu. “Even if there are subsidies, many of the really poor do not access this fertiliser. Even for the seemingly well-o-do, fertiliser prices are abominably high.
They have to think twice before deciding on whether it is worth growing a crop like maize which requires high inputs considering the high prices of both fertilisers and seed. Some used hybrid seed at some time and continue to recycle it by replanting the grain produced.
It is not hybrid seed any more. It cannot yield much. I think maize production will be low again next year because many have difficulty getting inputs that they can afford for their crop. By December 15, it will be too late to be planting maize.”
Labels: CARLINGTON MAIZE DEAL, FOOD, FRA, JUDITH LUNGU, MAIZE
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Nawakwi's cooperation cheers Task Force
By Maluba Jere and Abigail Chaponda
Thursday June 05, 2008 [04:00]
THE Task Force on Corruption has said Forum for Democracy and Development (FDD) president Edith Nawakwi cooperated when she was summoned for questioning over the Carlington Sales maize deal last week. Task Force public relations officer Victor Makayi said the unit was happy with the way Nawakwi responded to the interview and that a formal statement was recorded from her.
"Ms Nawakwi came here last week Thursday, that was May 29 and she was very cooperative and we have since recorded a formal statement from her," he said.
Makayi explained that it was the discretion of the investigating officer to decide which statement needed to be recorded from the person being interviewed depending on the circumstances.
"The issue is that every investigation is carried out by a specific officer and depending on how he looks at the issue, decides what statement to record from the suspect," he said.
Makayi also said since the information gathered from the interviews would be submitted to the Director of Public Prosecution (DPP), he would decide whether there was any need to record a warn and caution statement.
"The only difference in the interviews between Nawakwi and former president Frederick Chiluba is that a warn and caution statement was recorded from Chiluba while a formal statement was recorded from the others," he said.
Makayi also said the Task Force was optimistic with the information gathered so far from interviews conducted in the Carlington maize saga investigations.
He said important things had come up and that it was now up to the DPP to recommend the next step of action.
"We are making progress in the investigations and we are happy that we've talked to almost all the people we wanted," said Makayi. "What we are doing now is putting all the information together for the DPP to peruse through, after he does that, he will give guidance on the way forward.
Depending on the information we've gathered, the DPP will determine whether it's a prosecutable case or will tell us which areas we should have covered.
"What we are trying to establish is where the money is, who benefited from it and how we can get it back. US$7 million is a lot of money for someone to get away with. "
The Task Force is investigating the case of Canadian commodity supplier, Carlington Sales Company, following an agreement with the Republic of Zambia in 1997/98 for the supply of maize to Zambia in the extent of US$24 million.
The government transferred the money in the extent of US$7.8 million towards this contract but not a single bag of maize was ever delivered and a loss of public funds remains incurred.
The Task Force has so far interviewed Chiluba, Finance Bank chairman Rahjan Mahtani and recently Nawakwi over the matter.
Labels: CARLINGTON MAIZE DEAL, CORRUPTION, EDITH NAWAKWI, TASK FORCE
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