Kawandami, Milupi celebrate their victories
By Kabanda Chulu and Abigail Chaponda in Ndola and Mwala Kalalu
Sat 07 Aug. 2010, 04:00 CAT
NEWLY elected PF Chifubu member of parliament Susan Kawandami has Zambian women have every opportunity to become leaders in the country. And MMD campaign manager Mwansa Mbulakulima has accused the Patriotic Front (PF) of engaging in corruption and intimidation to secure victory.
Meanwhile, Alliance for Democracy and Development (ADD) leader Charles Milupi yesterday said his retention of the Luena parliamentary seat is a statement to the MMD that people had suffered enough.
Anticipation of excitement swept through the main auditorium at Lowenthal Theatre in Ndola on Thursday night when jubilant PF cadres chanted slogans in praise of their political leadership and denounced the policies of the MMD government.
The PF cadres, who started arriving around 19 hours, stormed the theatre hall carrying vuvuzelas, drums and whistles and started celebrating victory even before the official results were announced by returning officer Roy Kuseka.
Later, Kawandami was declared winner after amassing 6,976 votes against the MMD’s Frank Ngambi’s 4,539 votes, while Bryan Banda of ADD got 412 votes with Poko Mambwe of UNIP receiving 221 votes.
Speaking after Kuseka declared her as duly elected member of parliament for Chifubu, Kawandami advised women not to be scared of men when aspiring for leadership positions.
“When this campaign started, I knew that I was going to win the election and I told Ng’ambi that I was in a winning boat and that he should also come on board to become one of us and I am proud of the people for giving me this support.
As you know I stood among men and have emerged victorious and this is a stepping stone for women and they should come forward to stand because they have every opportunity to be leaders of this nation,” she said.
And PF campaign manager Willie Nsanda said former president Fredrick Chiluba had been taught a lesson and that he should avoid campaigning for the MMD.
“We came to teach the boys of Ndola how politics are conducted, starting with their boss Dr Chiluba who doesn’t know that he is finished in politics and he must now stop because he campaigned in Chimwemwe and Chifubu but we have hit him pants down,” he said.
PF chairman for elections Geoffrey Mwamba said President Rupiah Banda should be ashamed of using Chiluba in trying to bring disunity in the country.
“We are proud of the people of Chifubu for bringing shame on RB, Dr Chiluba and the entire MMD government and it is now clear that Michael Sata is a man of the people and come 2011 he shall rule this country,” said Mwamba.
But Mbulakulima said the difference recorded between PF and MMD was insignificant thus demonstrating that MMD had made in-roads into what is claimed to be the PF stronghold.
“MMD is up and running and in 2011 we shall give them a good run. If you ask me if elections were free and fair, my personal answer is that there was a lot of intimidation from PF. This could have contributed to the apathy we saw yesterday,” he said.
“This hooliganism has continued. Even today as they celebrate, they are burning tyres and deforming billboards in Chifubu. This kind of behaviour should be condemned at all costs.”
When asked if MMD was considering petitioning the outcome of the elections, Mbulakulima failed to give a categorical answer.
“That is up to the government spokesperson to answer but talking as campaign manager, I saw some elements of corruption and our officials reported this matter to Electoral Commission because one PF chairman was seen dishing out K5,000 notes and when confronted he fled,” said Mbulakulima said.
And Ngambi pledged to continue being a servant of the people.
“I will remain open and will be willing to work with you people and will be available for any assistance and if requested will help Kawandami to bring development to Chifubu,” said Ngambi.
And MMD campaign manager in the Luena parliamentary by-election, Prof Geoffrey Lungwangwa, yesterday attributed his party’s loss to the absence of party structures in the constituency for the past 14 years.
And addressing journalists shortly after he was declared winner of Thursday’s Luena by-election by returning officer Chrispine Kalihonga at Mongu Civic Centre yesterday morning, Milupi said his win was a victory for democracy.
Milupi, who was the constituency’s former Independent parliamentarian, polled 3,688 votes, the MMD polled 2,800, UPND polled 1,806, UNIP 115 and the ULP polled 116 out of a total of 8,630 votes cast.
The number of eligible voters in Luena is estimated at over 14,000 and it has a total of 42 polling stations in eight wards.
“I would like to thank the wonderful people of Luena who have withstood so many temptations to come up with a positive result,” Milupi said amidst unrestrained cheers from the crowd of supporters.
“I think this victory is a victory for democracy. The people have been allowed to make their decision based on the issues concerning Luena, concerning Western Province and issues affecting this country, Zambia.”
Milupi said he thanked the people of Luena wholeheartedly for re-electing him, amidst vote buying and grabbing of voters’ cards by some of his competitors.
“By this action we have reset the politics of Zambia,” Milupi said.
“Politics of insults, politics of violence is not what is wanted in this country.”
Milupi said for those politicians that liked engaging in such vices, the people of Luena were telling them that electoral malpractices were not sufficient to win an election.
“If we can do so much for so little, what if we were given the opportunity to control the treasury of the country?” he asked. “What is required is integrity, dedication, hard work and commitment.”
Milupi said it was sad that from a middle-income country at independence, Zambia was now being defined as a least developed country.
“This can no longer be tolerated,” Milupi said. “Enough is enough. We have suffered enough in this country. I advise those who are still on the fence, those who were waiting to see what was going to happen in Luena Constituency that the victory has been achieved.”
After his statement to journalists, Milupi’s motorcade drove around Mongu town before proceeding to Limulunga, which is in Luena Constituency.
And in an interview shortly after Milupi was declared winner, Prof Lungwangwa, who is also communications and transport minister as well Nalikwanda MMD parliamentarian, said that although Milupi had retained the Luena seat the winning margin had been extremely narrow compared to the over 2000 that Milupi beat the MMD with in 2006.
“The results are out, Honourable Milupi, yes he has retained his seat in Parliament but the margin has been extremely narrow,” Prof Lungwangwa said. “MMD as a party is still very popular. First when you compare the performance; our performance in this by-election and the performance of the UPND, UPND are not a factor.
We stand a better chance of doing very well next time around.”
Prof Lungwangwa said the MMD had no structures on the ground in Luena and that they had to put up structures during the campaign period.
“The absence of party structures might have affected our performance,” Prof Lungwangwa said. “We did our best, but of course these are elections…for the last 14 years we never had a presence in Luena Constituency.”
Prof Lungwangwa said come 2011 the MMD was going to win the Luena seat. He also said he was not aware that there was controversy over his appointment as the campaign manager in the Luena elections.
Prof Lungwangwa said the MMD’s victory in Kaoma Central’s Longe Ward by-election indicated that the ruling party was still strong in the province.
However, there was visible discontent and frustration among some MMD youths upon realising that they had lost the by-election, which they said they could have won on a silver plate.
Some of them were heard saying that they were going to stage a protest to press for the immediate resignation of the party's top leadership in the Province.
Labels: ADD, BY-ELECTIONS, CHARLES MILUPI, CHILUBA, GEOFFREY MWAMBA, MWANSA MBULAKULIMA, PF, SUSAN KAWANDAMI
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No sensible person can make Chiluba a companion - Milupi
By Mwala Kalaluka in Luena
Thu 29 July 2010, 12:20 CAT
CHARLES Milupi has observed that President Rupiah Banda has been a reckless and playful leader from the time he assumed office.
Addressing campaign meetings in the Barotse Flood plain domiciled Salondo, Makuku and Nalusheke areas of Luena Constituency on Monday and Tuesday, Milupi, who is re-contesting the Luena seat on the Alliance for Development and Democracy (ADD) ticket, said President Banda was running a corrupt government.
He said President Banda had been a playful president from the very first day in office because there is no sensible person who could make Frederick Chiluba their bosom companion.
Milupi said he could not stomach such poor leadership.
He said President Banda and Vice-President George Kunda were wasting time in Luena because he would trounce them come August 5.
“The corruption in the MMD government is like someone putting water in a basket; it is free for all,” Milupi said.
“That is the problem when you get somebody who is careless and had not been well brought up to run the country. Ever since Chiluba took up government even to vote for you someone has to ask for money.”
Milupi urged the people of Luena to reject President Banda because he was frolicking around with corrupt elements and in the process he had desecrated late Levy Mwanawasa’s grave.
“Rupiah Banda is now in Chiluba’s bosom,” he said.
“Since Mwanawasa died you have not heard Chiluba has gone to South Africa. He has recovered from his heart condition.”
Milupi said no vote rigging would be entertained in Luena.
“They should be told the truth, because it is like we Lozis do not know when we have been wronged. Western Province is undergoing transformation,” Milupi said.
“We do not realize when people have offended and that is why they have even entered our skirts.”
Milupi said the MMD were desperate to win Luena because they realized that a loss could spell their doom in Western Province.
And addressing people that he did not expect to receive him at Mongu Airstrip, President Rupiah Banda who was in Mongu to campaign for the MMD candidate in the Luena by-election, Mwangala Maopu, said even if Luena residents voted for Milupi he would still be the same non-ruling party parliamentarian.
“You all know that we did not ask for this by-election but it was asked for by their candidate, somebody whom they themselves had voted for as their member of parliament. That is why we are here today,” President Banda said.
“Of course Mr Milupi was elected by the people of Luena after he was not selected by the MMD.”
President Banda said the MMD worked very well with Milupi in Parliament initially.
“At the beginning he showed a lot of respect for the MMD as that party that the people had chosen here in Western Province,” President Banda said. “But suddenly he changed and he started to attack the MMD. I want to thank him for this opportunity, which he has given us the MMD to have a second chance to get the seat he gave to us voluntarily. We did not ask him. No one pushed him. I do not remember any of the people here saying they did not want Mr Milupi anymore but perhaps he has some ideas in his mind.”
Labels: CHARLES MILUPI, CHILUBA, RUPIAH BANDA
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‘Kaingu’s praise of Rupiah, Chiluba is a manifestation of political meningitis’
By Moses Kuwema
Mon 19 July 2010, 04:01 CAT
GEORGE Mpombo yesterday said that the statement by community development minister Michael Kaingu that Zambia cannot hold elections next year if people know how good President Rupiah Banda is, is a vivid manifestation of political meningitis.
In an interview, Mpombo said Kaingu’s statement was an insult to Zambians because no reasonable person could say what he said.
“These are empty political hallucinations. In a democracy, people choose leaders on the basis of their performance. Kaingu’s statement does not make sense at all. Even if he wants to catch the eye of his boss, that’s not the way to go about it,” Mpombo said.
He said it was sad that Kaingu had employed himself as President Banda’s megaphone.
“I don’t understand how Kaingu can sink so low. It’s a political abomination because what achievement has Banda scored that Zambians should not hold elections next year? The man wants to change a lot of things. He is a tribalist who is spreading tribalism in the parastatal sector and also in the MMD,” Mpombo said.
“We have Rupiah Banda as acting president, Dora Siliya as MMD spokesperson and also this chap Chembe Nyangu as acting national secretary; you can’t have this thing in the party.”
Mpombo said Zambians would not brook what Kaingu was saying. He said if Kaingu was happy with what President Banda had done, he should not drag the nation into it.
“People think bootlicking is part of leadership quality. It’s a shame for Kaingu to sink so low and say what he said. He is actually encouraging mediocre leadership because Rupiah has not provided any leadership,” he bemoaned.
Mpombo said in this modern era of democracy, it was shocking and mind-boggling that a leader could stand up and say what Kaingu said.
Campaigning among women who are members of the Zambia National Marketeers Association (ZANAMA) at Kitwe Basic School on Thursday, Kaingu said President Banda was a loving head of state who wanted every woman in the country to get meaningful empowerment from the government.
Labels: CHILUBA, GEORGE MPOMBO, MICHAEL KAINGU, ZANAMA
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It’s just a matter of time
By Editor
Fri 16 July 2010, 04:00 CAT
Corruption is increasingly becoming deep-rooted in Zambia. And it doesn’t help anyone to deny its ever-growing presence in all our institutions of the state and government.
It seems this government has deliberately chosen to defend corruption and, as far as possible, deny its presence. It is not surprising that Ronnie Shikapwasha has chosen to dismiss the results of the Transparency International Zambia 2009 Zambia Bribe Payers’ Index without even reading them.
What can one expect from a government that does not want to accept and recognise the judgment it has obtained against corrupt elements in a matter initiated by itself in the London High Court? George Kunda, now Vice-President, when he was Attorney General and Minister of Justice, took a matter of corruption involving Frederick Chiluba and others to the High Court in London and obtained a favourable judgment showing that Chiluba and his friends were involved in corruption.
The London High Court ordered Chiluba and his tandem of thieves to pay back what they had stolen from the Zambian people. What we see today is reluctance by this same George, this same government to enforce that judgment against Chiluba. They have even gone to hire this same corrupt man, Chiluba, according to George, as their political advisor and consultant. Today Chiluba is going round the Copperbelt campaigning for them to continue in power.
And it is this same George who, as Minister of Justice and Attorney General, got Chiluba, together with his wife and others, to be prosecuted in our magistrates' courts for corruption. They secured the conviction of Chiluba’s wife, Regina, but have serious difficulties accepting that conviction, and today are doing everything possible to ensure that the state’s case against her is bungled in her appeal. This follows the acquittal they procured for her husband in the same courts. And this is the government that vehemently refused to have the highly questionable acquittal of Chiluba appealed by the state.
They are today claiming that the prosecution of Chiluba and others around him was political. If it was political, who was behind this politics if it is not this same George? The truth is that this is a government that has abandoned a legitimate fight against corruption. And the reasons for doing so seem to be many. First, this is because this government itself is corrupt, and fighting corruption will be fighting against itself. It is a government that can’t survive without corruption. Second, political survival for this government takes precedence over everything else, including the fight against corruption.
They believe Chiluba can win them support of the Copperbelt and of the Bemba-speaking people in the Northern and Luapula provinces of our country. And for this reason, a reprieve from corruption charges is considered to be necessary for him to work for them. Third, they are scared of being treated in the same way when their time to leave office comes.
And Rupiah Banda has made this very clear - that today, it’s Chiluba, tomorrow it may be you; or rather himself. To us, this is what really scares them. And this may explain why today they want to change the corruption laws of this country so that their abuses of public office go unprosecuted. They know they have been abusing their offices and they also know that they cannot continue to govern without abusing their offices; they can’t survive politically and otherwise without corruption. And because they are not able to stop their own corrupt practices, they seem to have no choice but to come up with a piece of legislation that renders their corruption, their abuse of public office not an offence.
It is easy to understand why they have the courage to deny corruption where it is visibly clear. People who can have the courage to come up with legislation that effectively sanction, condone, abate and encourage abuse of public office can never be in a position to see anything corrupt as truly being corrupt. They have lost sense of what corruption means. What many people would see as corruption, to them, that may simply be a legitimate act of initiative. They have no sense of what corruption means. This is why MMD cadres can go to the Ministry of Home Affairs and claim payment for goods or services that were never supplied, and the top leadership of the party writes to the permanent secretary to assist these criminals, these thieves to get payment for goods or services they have never supplied or rendered to government. And when this is exposed by the media, nothing happens, no corruption charges are brought against those involved in this conspiracy to defraud government.
This is a government that does not feel ashamed to award contracts to corrupt elements who have no capacity whatsoever to do the jobs they are being paid for as long as those in government and their party benefit. This is a government where family members of those in control of government are openly in charge of government business. They are the ones procuring work for RP Capital to value assets of Zamtel and are in charge of all sorts of things. To them, this is straight business and there is nothing wrong or corrupt about it. It is not abuse of office. And if it is abuse of office, it should not be seen as a corrupt practice that should be prosecuted by their government.
It is, therefore, not surprising that the target for the hostility of this government are institutions and individuals that are involved in fighting corruption. And looking at things in this way, it’s easier to understand and appreciate why Transparency International Zambia appears to be one of the top enemies of this government. It is this that should explain why their genuinely good work and intentions is smeared by elements like Shikapwasha, why there appears to be a permanent quest on their part to bring such institutions and individuals down. Genuine goodness is always threatening to those at the opposite end of the moral spectrum.
Again, there is no alternative for those who want a better society, a more fair, just and humane nation but to fight the vice of corruption. It is said that human life is a continuous battle on earth. Therefore, fight like good soldiers of Christ. None will be crowned except the one who fights in the lawful manner – “I have fought the good fight; for the rest there is laid up for me a crown of justice”. Truly, life is a battle, and in this battle, there are those who fight like ordinary soldiers, there are the captains and there is also the forward sentry. There are also the deserters who, tired and lacking in confidence, flee the arena; there are also the shirkers who, under a thousand pretexts, hide themselves; and finally there are those who idly stand watching, applauding or sneering. There are also the traitors who take the enemy’s side.
The corrupt schemes and practices of this government will not go unpunished. Even Chiluba, who they think they have rescued from punishment, as long as he lives will not go unpunished. Acquittals obtained and sustained corruptly will not permanently stand in the way of justice. One day, they will answer for all these abuses and thefts. It’s just a matter of time.
Labels: CHILUBA, CORRUPTION, RUPIAH BANDA
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Paradoxes in mining sector
By Business Post Editor
Tue 13 July 2010, 09:10 CAT
Zambia has over the years been a recipient of substantial foreign investments especially in the mining sector. This has been necessitated by the privatisation of the mines a couple of years ago by Frederick Chiluba’s government. It cannot be denied that since then, mining has been one of the most favoured sectors by the government in Zambia.
Placing the mines in private hands meant that any income to the state will not directly be from sales and profits from the mines, but rather from any taxes that can be levied on the companies – in the form of income tax for employees, VAT paid on services purchased by the mines, border taxes paid on imports and exports, corporate taxes on profits, and mineral royalties on sales of copper – although
these are paid just by a few mining companies.
However, as we saw not too long ago, in their Development Agreements, the mining companies managed to negotiate exemptions from paying most of these taxes. Therefore, mining contributions, in general, to total tax revenues are extremely small. This is a source of significant resentment among most well-meaning citizens of this country as the government has been known to be favouring international investors over local business owners.
It is clear that the mining industry only contributes to government revenue through the taxes paid by its employees in form of income tax. However, in their Development Agreements, companies negotiated to pay lower corporate tax rates than apply to other industries. Because they are also able to roll losses from previous years forward and to write off profits that would have been taxable, the mining sector barely contributes at all. We are aware that mining contributes less corporation tax than smaller sectors such as the financial services and telecommunications sector.
The mining sector also claims back from the Zambian government all of the VAT that it pays on goods that it buys locally. Since the company from which these good were initially bought will have paid the VAT aspect of the price charged to the government, and the government then pays that back to the purchaser, VAT contributions show up as a minus figure – a subsidy from government to the mines.
And as Situmbeko Musokotwane, the Minister of Finance and National Planning, has stated in his Letter of Intent to the International Monetary Fund, mining sector contributions to Zambia’s Gross Domestic Product (GDP) over the last decade have not been matched by commensurate contributions to domestic revenues. This is very correct. And it is sad that those charged with the affairs of managing our country’s resources have allowed this to happen for such a long time. Dr Musokotwane himself, as our Minister of Finance, therefore has the duty to ensure that the mines’ contribution to domestic revenue is in line with their GDP contribution. But we wonder if this is an easy task for the current regime owing to their strong opposition to the windfall taxes.
We are aware of the fact that most of these mining companies in Zambia today do not meet most of their tax obligations. Dr Musokotwane says the government has commenced discussions with the mining sector aimed at resolving legacy issues related to the Development Agreements as well as the mines’ adherence to the current tax regime.
But we wonder what the outcome of these discussions will be. We say this because our people have not been part of these agreements that government enters into with the mines although the mining activities take place in communities where people live. In extreme cases, people have been displaced and end up suffering. We have not forgotten that at the time when Development Agreements were still in force, these were highly guarded documents whose contents were considered top secret – only known to the mines themselves and the top government officials.
It is, therefore, sad that the mines continue to contribute minute amounts from their earnings out of our mineral resources despite making enormous profits. This is all as a result of this government’s decision to scrap windfall taxes which would have seen these mines paying reasonable amounts for our mineral resources. But this is what we expect from leaders whose main interest is to satisfy their own needs at the expense of the many suffering citizens of our country who survive on less than a dollar a day.
Labels: CHILUBA, DEVELOPMENT AGREEMENTS, MINING, PRIVATISATION
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Chiluba, stop telling lies about Levy
By The Post
Thu 01 July 2010, 10:10 CAT
It is said that “if you are good, you are guided by honesty. People who can’t be trusted are destroyed by their own dishonesty” (Proverbs 11:3). There is a great lesson in the words that we have just quoted from the Bible. Honesty does not always appear profitable. Indeed many times some people give in to dishonest ways in the hope of reaping great benefits.
But the Bible, being what it is, must be correct when it says people who can’t be trusted, those who are dishonest, are destroyed by their own dishonesty. Frederick Chiluba is a good example of a person who has been destroyed by his own dishonesty.
The opportunity to lead others, to serve others is a great avenue for human fulfilment. Those who find themselves in positions of leadership need to understand the demands that it puts on them. To benefit from a position of leadership in a way that is meaningful, a leader must be prepared to serve honestly and sincerely; to put the interests of those that he or she serves above his or her own interests.
This is the only way that true fulfilment can be derived from a position of leadership. But leadership and the power that it brings has a tendency to delude those who hold it into believing that they will derive fulfilment by excessive reliance on the power that it gives. This leads to abuse and in the end, a loss of standing in front of the people that such a person leads.
This is a lesson that Chiluba ought to have learnt but failed to. When Chiluba became president, he was given the rare opportunity that few individuals ever get to be of service to their people. Chiluba had the opportunity to make a real difference in the lives of our people. By the nature of the office that he held, he also had access to a lot of power over all sorts of things, including our national resources. And Chiluba was also responsible for those that served under him.
It ought to be admitted that the temptations that he must have faced were many. To remain useful and honest in the exercise of his job, he needed to have a very high level of humility and to exercise a greater degree of self-limitation and integrity. Chiluba did not do these things. Today, Chiluba thirsts and hungers for greatness. But he had an opportunity to be great if that was important to him. What did he do?
He squandered the opportunity. How? Instead of devoting himself to honest service, he embraced all the vices imaginable that come with the exercise of power. Chiluba quickly realised that he was not getting anywhere in attaining greatness and so he became autocratic and brutal to anyone that he felt threatened his presidency or injured his feelings in any way. Chiluba devoted a lot of time to fixing enemies, real and imaginary. The result was he had no time to devote to serving the Zambian people heart and soul. He divorced himself from the masses of our people and was driven in all cases by self-interest, greed and vanity.
It should not surprise anybody that Chiluba resorted to plunder and corruption as acceptable conduct in running the affairs of his government. It is not coincidental that many people who served in his government are today facing all sorts of problems with the law because they joined Chiluba in stealing from our people and abusing their resources. Chiluba as president had no real respect for the people who put him where he was. This is what made it impossible for him to respect public property.
How could he respect the property of people he did not respect? In fact, the problem for Chiluba was even more fundamental. He did not accept that the property that he was superintending belonged to the people. We say this because to this day, Chiluba speaks about the property that he took from our people with a sense of entitlement. He has never accepted that he did anything wrong. If this was not so, Chiluba wouldn’t have stolen from the Zambian people. Stealing from someone is a demonstration of lack of respect, care and recognition for that person’s rights.
It was not Levy Mwanawasa who turned the courts into a playground. Levy went to court for serious business. It was Chiluba’s disregard for the law when he was president that turned him and his tandem of thieves into a permanent fixture in our courts until Rupiah Banda appeared to save them.
There is a lesson for Rupiah and his minions from what has happened to Chiluba. Not too long ago, Chiluba was like Rupiah is today. In his mind, he was the alpha and the omega, everything started and ended with him. Chiluba never thought that one day he would be called to account. But what has happened? Today Chiluba knows that his continued freedom is dependent on becoming Rupiah’s bootlicker. Chiluba has become an errand boy for Rupiah in order to try and avoid facing the music of the law for his misdeeds when he was president.
Rupiah can avoid this sort of end by being honest and doing his best to serve our people. But so far, this does not appear to be Rupiah’s strongest point. He seems determined to follow in Chiluba’s footsteps. We say this because the same arrogance that characterised Chiluba’s presidency is in Rupiah’s government. There does not seem to be a real respect for public opinion and, worse still, for public property. The way Rupiah, his children and some of his minions have behaved over RP Capital and Zamtel privatisation is illustrative of this. Rupiah has an opportunity to serve our people but at every turn, he is making the wrong choices.
Rupiah doesn’t need to look very far to see what is going to happen to him. His political consultant, Chiluba, has reduced himself to making all sorts of promises to all kinds of people in the hope of continuing to receive protection from prosecution for corruption and other favours from Rupiah. Chiluba had the opportunity to reduce the poverty and suffering of our people in general, and the Copperbelt in particular, when he was president. But he chose to concentrate on enriching himself and his cronies, buying expensive designer suits, shirts, shoes, pyjamas from expensive European boutiques, giving girlfriends stolen public funds, and so on and so forth. What sense does it make for somebody who could have done so much for the workers in the mining industry to start promising solutions 10 years after he left power?
Chiluba does not see the ridiculousness of his behaviour because he is consumed by his efforts to continue enjoying protection. All that Rupiah has to say is jump and Chiluba, as the saying goes, will only say, “How high?”
It therefore doesn’t make sense for Chiluba to blame Levy for his problems, for his being prosecuted and for spending time in court. His prosecution was not a play; it was a very serious matter. It is a matter that has been found to be serious not only by the courts of this country but also by those of England where Chiluba was found to have stolen public funds and ordered to pay back the money. Some people ruin themselves by their own foolish actions and then blame others for their misery.
This is what Chiluba is doing. He knows the wrong things that he has done, but instead of taking responsibility, he wants to find somebody to blame. Not even his friend Rupiah believes that Chiluba is innocent. This is why Rupiah made sure that the appeal against Chiluba’s questionable acquittal was stopped. He knew that taking Chiluba back to court, to use his own words, would be like taking him back into a lion’s mouth after he has been rescued from it.
But this business of telling lies about Levy needs to be stopped. Chiluba has the right to criticise anyone but he has no right to tell lies about anyone, especially if that person is no more and cannot be here to defend himself. We know that Chiluba stole. He was taken to court because he stole. What did he want from Levy? Did he want Levy to stand in the way of justice and protect him from prosecution the way Rupiah is doing?
Anyway, it is clear that Chiluba is not alone in maligning Levy. He is doing what Rupiah has been condoning or wants him to do. This is why even people like George Kunda, who is now Rupiah’s sidekick and Chiluba’s public relations officer, cannot defend the man who brought him into politics and government, who helped him to be where he is today. Rupiah and George’s unprincipled politics will gain them Chiluba’s end.
Labels: CHILUBA, MWANAWASA, RUPIAH BANDA, SATA
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Chiluba’s attacks on Levy not making sense - Sata
By George Chellah
Thu 01 July 2010, 10:50 CAT
RUPIAH has granted Chiluba full immunity to insult the judiciary, Patriotic Front (PF) leader Michael Sata has said.
Reacting to former president Frederick Chiluba’s remarks that the late president Levy Mwanawasa had turned the courts into a playing field like Nkana Stadium, Sata said Chiluba’s conduct clearly demonstrates a break down in the rule of law and constitutionalism in the country.
“It's unfortunate for my brother Frederick to be having a go on the Judiciary when he has several cases against him and his family. But we understand what is happening because it's now clear that Rupiah has given my brother full immunity to insult the Judiciary,” Sata said.
“Can you imagine what would happen if someone facing court cases like my brother made those remarks? They would expressly be cited and prosecuted for contempt. But since it’s Chiluba, Rupiah has promised him presidential cover, hence these insults on the Judiciary.”
He said Chiluba’s attacks on Mwanawasa were not making sense.
“My brother is speaking for self-interest when he says Levy was turning the courts into a playing field. But the question is, is it Levy who convicted the young man Katele Kalumba?” Sata asked.
“Let him spare Levy from such unfair and unjustifiable attacks. He should not be simplistic in his arguments. My brother should point out what wrongs or crimes Levy committed by championing the fight against corruption.”
He said President Banda’s administration thrives on illegalities.
“The Constitution is totally irrelevant as far as Rupiah is concerned. Rupiah is ignoring the country’s constitution,” Sata said.
“For example, on Chiluba, the Constitution is very clear. Chiluba has abandoned being a retired president and has turned himself into Rupiah’s campaign manager and he is not even hiding.
“But since it suits Rupiah and the MMD, the President is not even worried about the constitutional breaches and implications that Chiluba’s conduct will attract.”
He said Chiluba is panicking.
“They are desperate and they are doing anything they can to convince themselves that they are working but they are not going anywhere,” he said.
He said Chiluba overrates his influence.
“Chiluba displaced the same people he is getting to today through his corrupt privatisation exercise. Kenneth Kaunda left those people with jobs. So is it normal for the person who is the architect of those problems to go back today masquerading as the messiah?” Sata asked.
“People know who my brother is and what he stands for. He is just cheating them and they know that. He is using them as a springboard or trampoline to get to his comfort zone.
“He knows that he only has nine months and all this excitement will finish. The same people he is meeting should actually ask him about that looted property on the Copperbelt, which has been returned to his family. Let them demand that he explains how his family acquired it.”
And Sata thanked home affairs minister Mkondo Lungu for instructing Inspector General of Police Francis Kabonde to scrap off payments for people that want to register as voters.
“You are aware that they were demanding for a police report from those who had lost their cards. But I wrote Mr Lungu over the charges that were being demanded by police to issue a police report,” Sata said.
“I am glad that he has responded positively. This is how it should be because if it was Lameck Mangani or Kabonde, they would have acted like typical MMD cadres and ignored the people’s concerns.”
In a letter dated June 24, 2010, Sata appealed to Lungu to look into the matter, which if not rectified would disenfranchise many would-be voters.
“It has been brought to my attention by the general public that the police service in various parts of the country are charging fees for police reports to those persons who have lost their National Registration Cards (NRCs). The fees range from K20, 000 to K50, 000 in some cases,” Sata stated.
“I do not remember any law or statutory instrument which prescribes such fees. However, if indeed there is one it is bad law, especially during the time when our people are engaged in the exercise of obtaining NRCs and the voter registration programme. Such fees, for whatever reason, are certainly prohibitive to the ordinary person under the present economic circumstances.”
Labels: CHILUBA, RUPIAH BANDA, SATA
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Levy turned courts into playing fields like Nkana Stadium - Chiluba
By Speedwell Mupuchi, Isaac Phiri and Misheck Wangwe
Wed 30 June 2010, 04:01 CAT
FORMER president Frederick Chiluba on Monday charged that late president Levy Mwanawasa had turned the courts into a playing field like Nkana Stadium. Chiluba said this when he addressed ex-miners in Chambishi Township.
"He just mentioned the late president (Mwanawasa) that in the eight years he was in power, he turned the courts like Nkana Stadium. I think it's because he was going to court frequently," said a source.
"Pali ba Sata, he said a lot of bad things, that he worked with him and that he cannot do anything, that he has no leadership qualities and that if given authority there is nathing he (Sata) will do for them. But clearly many of those who attended that meeting were not agreeing with him," said the source.
The sources also said Chiluba refuted rumour among the ex-miners that K87 billion had been released for them saying if that was the case, President Rupiah Banda would have stood on a table to announce it.
"He just mentioned one mine dump that it will be given to the ex-miners so that they can operate it.
He promised to take all the requests to President Banda," said the source.
The sources said people were let down by Chiluba because when he was President he never did anything about the problems he was now attempting to solve.
He said people wanted Kalulushi to be a district and Chiluba told them that he had already discussed the issue with President Banda and that he was merely waiting for a response.
And Chiluba promised Chambishi ex-miners and widows that they will smile next time he returns to the area.
Chiluba was responding to the ex-miners’ demands for money to improve their condition.
Chiluba met the ex-miners and widows at Kalulushi member of parliament Anson Simama’s guesthouse in Chambishi.
Sources said the ex-miners told Chiluba that their current situation (unemployment) was terrible as the Chinese investors in the area were not employing locals.
The sources said Chiluba was told that the Chinese investors only employed people from Kitwe, Kalulushi and Chingola fearing that if locals were employed, they would steal from them.
“They (ex-miners) told him that ‘our situation is deepening; give us money, loans so that we can share among ourselves to improve our situation’ and the former president laughed and told them that ‘that’s not an issue. I can’t do anything now but let me go and sit with the President (Rupiah Banda), next time I come you people will be smiling’,” said the source.
According to the sources Chiluba campaigned for President Banda as the only leader with presidential capabilities.
“He told them that ‘look I was in PF (Patriotic Front) but when I looked at Michael Sata, Michael Sata is not presidential material; he can’t match Rupiah Banda, so I decided to go back to MMD, RB is the right person to vote for’,” disclosed the sources.
The sources said the group of ex-miners just laughed at that opinion.
The sources indicated that Chiluba also talked about the Beggrim Explosives disaster saying government was aware of concerns of the bereaved families.
The bereaved families are demanding to be paid money that well-wishers donated toward funeral arrangements. According to sources, Chiluba told the bereaved families’ committee representatives present at the meeting that they too would be paid their money.
The sources said Chiluba told the bereaved families’ representatives that the money was being kept in “good hands”.
But the government had indicated that all the bereaved families were paid what was due to them.
The sources said it was clear Chiluba was campaigning for President Banda.
“The former president came with a lot of assurances, it (the meeting) was a funny one,” said the source.
According to the sources, the ex-miners also presented their concerns over mine dumps that previously belonged to the Zambia Consolidated Copper Mines but which have been taken over by the Chinese.
The sources said the ex-miners told Chiluba that previously ex-miners made use of the dumps but when the Chinese came, they told the locals that they also bought the dumps deployed security personnel.
The ex-miners also demanded that Chambishi be recognised as a district and demanded that another clinic be built in the township to service the peri-urban area.
The sources said Chiluba told them that government was aware of all their concerns and what was remaining was implementation.
“He told them that everything will be in place,” said the source.
Other sources said Chiluba went to Chambishi following a request by ex-miners in Kalulushi district. The sources said Chiluba met the ex-miners among whom were widows and that these complained about the repossession of their houses after they failed to raise balances to completely buy the houses.
According to the sources, many people made part-payments but now the houses were being given to people with money. The sources said a widow complained that after her husband died she could not raise the balance and the house had been repossessed by ZCCM.
The source said Chiluba promised to take the matter to relevant authorities.
On his way back to Kitwe, Chiluba passed through Chimwemwe Market but did not take long after being advised that the situation was not very conducive for him. According to sources, Chiluba only greeted a few people and he left.
Meanwhile, UPND national youth chairperson Joe Kalusa has said it is morally wrong for a church to praise Chiluba that he loves the Zambian people when he brought a lot of misery during his reign as president.
Reacting to Living Water Global Ministries Bishop Bernard Nwaka who said that Chiluba had a heart for the people, hence he ensured that most people were empowered with houses when he was president, Kalusa said it was not in order for the clergyman to shower praises on a man who misappropriated the country’s resources and caused misery to the lives of many Zambians.
He said it was clear that Chiluba looted the country’s coffers and most of the people he acted with have been convicted.
“One would question why a man of God would parade Chiluba and shower him with praises when it was clear that he misappropriated the country’s resources and his key minions have since been convicted for stealing national resources. It is a shame and it is morally wrong for the church to praise Chiluba,” Kalusa said.
He further said if Chiluba thought that he was becoming popular on the Copperbelt, he should tell the MMD to appoint him as campaign manager for the Chifubu by-election so that he could test his popularity.
Kalusa said many Zambians were suffering especially in Kitwe and the entire Copperbelt because of Chiluba’s weird policies during his tenure as Republican president.
He said in Chiluba’s time as President of Zambia, many people lost jobs and failed to support their children in school because the fees in the universities and colleges skyrocketed.
“He is talking about the sale of houses as a means of empowerment. What have we benefited as young people from the sale of houses? He was a selfish man who subjected many to misery. People who worked for ZCBC, UBZ and Zambia Airways many of them have died without getting their benefits because of Chiluba. Why should we treat him as if he was very outstanding during his reign? This is unacceptable in every moral society,” Kalusa said.
Labels: CHILUBA, COURTS, MWANAWASA
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Chiluba boasts about ‘spying’ in Kitwe
By Mwila Chansa in Kitwe
Mon 28 June 2010, 14:50 CAT
FORMER president Frederick Chiluba yesterday revealed that he went to Wusakile mine township a few weeks ago as a spy.
And Living Waters Global Ministries bishop Bernard Nwaka has said Chiluba has a heart for Zambia and that is why he ensured that most people were empowered with houses when he was president.
During a church service at Living Water Global Ministries in Kitwe yesterday, Chiluba said he did not go to Kitwe in his own power.
“On June 5, I came to Wusakile to check on the devastation in the sanitary facility. I also went to Natwange. I did not come in my own power but as a spy and I spied very well because when I came, people told me that there was no electricity at the time but I have learnt that somehow, somehow, electricity has been restored,” Chiluba said.
Several Wusakile residents gave Chiluba a hostile reception while others insulted him recently when he inspected Wusakile communal toilets and Kitwe’s Mindolo-Miseshe area.
And Chiluba said he was not afraid of the devil or his cohorts hence he was able to go to places where others feared he might be harmed.
Chiluba said he could not let foxes get into the work of the Lord.
“How can I be afraid of the devil or his cohorts? We are crowned as kings and queens and that is why even when people say ‘awe ba Chiluba mwiyako uko kuti bamicita ifyo’ Mr Chiluba do not go to such a place because you may be harmed I go because I can’t allow the devil to interrupt the work of the Lord,” he said.
Chiluba told the congregants that the devil was under their feet and they needed to know that they possessed all the authority and power to defeat him.
He said people should know that those aspiring to be leaders but talked from sunrise to sunset were not fit for the position.
“If someone wants to be a leader and he talks from morning to evening ninshi ciwelewele he is visionless.
Imfumu tailanda landa ngamwamona yalalandalanda, ninshi kuli mabvuto Kings/leaders do not talk anyhow. If they do, then you know that there is a problem,” he said.
Chiluba said God installed and removed kings.
He urged the congregants not to look at God as a distant figure but to personalise and be intimate with Him.
Chiluba said those that truly knew the Lord were not ashamed of mentioning His name at any place.
And Bishop Nwaka said many people owned houses because of Chiluba’s love for the nation.
He said people easily forgot good things and focused on the bad.
Bishop Nwaka said he felt honoured and privileged to have Chiluba at his church.
Chiluba is believed to be in Kitwe for a birthday party for a bishop.
Labels: BERNARD NWAKA, CHILUBA, KITWE
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Chiluba’s acquittal and 2011 elections
By The Post
Sun 13 June 2010, 04:00 CAT
No honest new government of this country will not take Frederick Chiluba back to court for his corruption.
We understand and appreciate the position taken by the opposition Patriotic Front and as announced by the party spokesperson Given Lubinda that Chiluba will surely go to prison for corruption once his friend Rupiah Banda is out of office. And we have no doubt Chiluba also knows very well that if next year Rupiah is out of power, he will not escape prison.
This is understandable because Chiluba knows that his acquittal was not straight, was questionable and can only be said to have been procured in a corrupt manner. Even the sustenance of that acquittal is also by corrupt means.
We say this because after his acquittal by magistrate Jones Chinyama - an acquittal that has been found wanting by so many people - the Director of Public Prosecutions went and withdrew the appeal against Chiluba’s acquittal that was legitimately filed by the prosecutor.
The DPP falsely claimed that the appeal was filed without his permission when he knew very well - from a judgment that was issued by judge Mwanamwambwa in a matter in which the DPP was involved – that there was no such permission needed by a prosecutor from him. He simply lied to justify a corrupt act.
The grounds of appeal against the acquittal of Chiluba were found to be sound by every honest person, including the Law Association of Zambia which consequently demanded for the DPP’s resignation.
This is not an acquittal that can be sustained. Moreover, everyone who was accused with Chiluba had been convicted. Even Chiluba’s own wife has been convicted for receiving stolen money from him. Even in the civil case that was taken by the Zambian government to recover stolen money from Chiluba and his friends, he was found wanting and has been ordered to pay back to the Zambian people that which he had stolen.
How can anyone sustain Chiluba’s acquittal in these circumstances? It is said that nothing that comes from corruption and dishonesty will last; “whatever you get by dishonesty you may enjoy like the finest food, but sooner or later it will be like a mouthful of sand” (Proverbs 20: 17).
The issue of Chiluba’s corruption and his acquittal and protection by Rupiah will certainly become an issue in next year’s elections. And the honesty of any politician and political party will be judged by what position they take on this score.
As for Rupiah and MMD, they are already in the political dock over the corrupt way they have kept the Zambian people from receiving justice over the money Chiluba stole from them. What awaits Rupiah is a legal investigation over how he and his friends conspired to defeat the course of justice by corruptly procuring Chiluba’s acquittal and sustaining this by their refusal to have Chinyama’s judgment appealed.
This is a matter over which Rupiah will lose his immunity and will be investigated and prosecuted for corruption. And today Rupiah is protecting the DPP but tomorrow there will be no such protection and he too will have to account for his role in this criminal scheme to defeat the course of justice. Magistrate Chinyama has all the immunity to do his job. Yes, he has the immunity, but for honest things only.
And in doing his job, he has the immunity to make wrong judgements but he has no immunity whatsoever to make corrupt decisions. His role in what appears to be a clearly corrupt acquittal of Chiluba will have to be investigated and if he is found wanting, he will be prosecuted for corruption like anybody else. There is no one above the law.
And there is no immunity without limit. The immunity our judicial officers enjoy is not for corruption, it is for honest decisions. And there is need to make sure that this immunity and its limitations are clearly understood by all our people involved in the administration of justice in this country. There will be no justice to talk about if we allow corruption to take root in the administration of justice. There has to be accountability and openness in the way justice is administered in this country.
Nothing should be done in the darkness of secrecy and protected by immunities. In the darkness of secrecy and under the cloak of judicial immunities, sinister interests and evil in every shape have full swing. Only in proportion as publicity and accountability has place can any of the checks applicable to judicial injustice operate. Where there is no publicity and judicial accountability, there is no justice. Publicity and judicial accountability are the very soul of justice.
It is the keenest spur to exertion and the surest of all guards against improbity. It keeps our judicial officers, our magistrates and our judges themselves while trying under trial. A magistrate or judge’s knowledge that his or her conduct on the bench is under observation and may be questioned for elements of corruption offers a strong incentive to avoid any perception of corruption, of bias and to ensure that trial fairness is respected. Justice is a process fundamental to civil society.
The citizen who is wronged seeks reparation through the justice system. It is essential that the system is corruption-free if the process is to function. It is therefore impossible to have a respected judicial process or justice system if people believe it is corrupt. Corruption in our judicial process should be eliminated if public confidence in the justice system is to be maintained. If clearly corrupt decisions like the one we have seen over Chiluba’s case are permitted, public confidence in the administration of justice would be seriously undermined and probably the administration of justice in this country would be seen to be an act of collective credulity rather than reason.
And the courts have a duty through the way they conduct their business to preserve public confidence in the justice system, not egoistically to protect the power of the judiciary, but as a necessary and key element of maintaining the rule of law. It is essential to a democracy and crucial to the rule of law that the courts are seen to be free from making corrupt decisions.
The rule of law cannot exist without an independent judiciary, a judiciary that is not corrupted by those in power and those with deeper pockets to uphold its authority. It is also directly dependent on the ability of the courts to maintain their dignity and respect by not being seen to be tools of those in power, of those at State House and their friends. The general acceptance of judicial decisions, by citizens, which is essential for the peace, welfare and good governance of the community, rests, not upon coercion, but upon public confidence.
The way Chiluba’s case has been handled undermines public confidence in our judicial process. Here there is a case which every honest and objective person believes was not handled properly by the magistrate and the matter is accordingly appealed by the prosecutor but the President, in clear connivance with the DPP, withdraws the appeal. And all is quiet from our magistrates, judges and their associations. Of course, they are talking about the matter in the corridors but no open position is taken to assure society that all is not lost.
The Law Association of Zambia questions the way this matter has been handled and asks the DPP to resign, nothing happens – all is quiet! What type of public confidence are we seeking in our judicial process?
It is therefore right for the politicians in the opposition to take it upon themselves and declare that when they come to power this matter will go back to the courts to be decided upon in a manner that will not only satisfy the Zambian people, but will also help to improve the standing of our whole judicial process. It is therefore acceptable that the PF has put Chiluba’s acquittal and the refusal by Rupiah to appeal the matter as a campaign issue in next year’s elections.
Labels: 2011 ELECTIONS, CHILUBA
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Chiluba belongs to prison, says Lubinda
By Patson Chilemba
Sun 13 June 2010, 04:00 CAT
Lubinda asked Chiluba to humble himself and repent for his thieving activities against Zambians.
FREDERICK Chiluba belongs to prison and he will surely go there once President Rupiah Banda is out of office, Patriotic Front (PF) spokesperson Given Lubinda has said.
Commenting on the continued booing of former president Chiluba by Copperbelt residents, Lubinda said people would have expected Chiluba to be humble and meek to the people he had stolen from following his fall from grace.
“The position of President is a position of honour. Now his misconduct was tantamount to staging a coup. He had lost all the grace that he had. All the honour of the Office of the President was taken away from him because of his misconduct. And anybody who suffers that kind of experience feels sorry for themselves and lie low,” Lubinda said on Thursday.
“They don't go round bouncing around, harassing people at the expense of being booed. They don't, that is not normal behaviour. That kind of behaviour is only expected from people whose genetic formulation is abrasive against normal behaviour.”
Lubinda asked Chiluba to humble himself and repent for his thieving activities against Zambians.
“For a person to be able to repent of their sin they first of all have to accept their sin, and it is only people of honour who can admit that 'here I have made a mistake'.
It takes people with honour and dignity to be able to admit that ‘I have made a mistake’, Lubinda said. “People who cannot see their wrong cannot be expected to repent. Such are the ones who are referred to as stubbornly unrepentant people. And that is a category where Chiluba belongs.”
Lubinda said Chiluba was so shameless that despite the humiliation he had suffered on the Copperbelt he had continued to pretend as if everything was well.
He said Chiluba might outwardly try to portray that everything was well and yet he was very troubled as a result of the hostility encountered on the Copperbelt.
Lubinda said Chiluba was campaigning through the pain barrier because he had no choice but to show gratitude to President Banda who secured his freedom.
“You see Mr Chiluba is at pains to try and pay back to Rupiah Banda for the temporary freedom that he was given by Rupiah Banda after Rupiah meddled with his court case. So now he is at pains, he wants to pay back to Rupiah Banda.
That is the reason why he is doing all what he is doing on the Copperbelt,” Lubinda said. “That is why after being embarrassed and booed he still goes because he has to pay to Rupiah and unfortunately for Rupiah even his Office of the President are telling him lies.
And what more with the lies that he is being told by the government controlled-media? The government-controlled media are not telling Rupiah the truth, they are telling him 'yes, Chiluba is receiving a lot of support on the Copperbelt'."
Lubinda said this was clearly pay back time for Chiluba.
"Remember that at some stage he was saying that he has a thick skin? He has a thick skin even for people revealing the truth about him. So he will do whatever it takes him to win the favour of Rupiah Banda, for him to pay back," Lubinda said. "Chiluba knows very well that he misappropriated public funds and he belongs to prison. So for him everyday when he works up and sees he is not in prison he has to pay back to Rupiah Banda."
Lubinda said Chiluba knew without doubt that President Banda would be out of office next year.
“In the same vein he Chiluba will go into prison. So he wants to put in everything that he has because his saviour in this matter is not Jesus Christ, it is Rupiah Banda,” he said.
Lubinda said Chiluba's genetic formulation was extremely inimical to the law, which forces him to go against the law.
He said there was nothing Chiluba could do which would go with the norms of society.
“His genetic make up is so attractive to wrongdoing, doing things that are against the norms and expectations of society,” said Lubinda.
Chiluba has on several occasions been booed on the Copperbelt Province during the tours he undertakes in the compounds and markets, campaigning for President Banda and promising people that he will help them to buy houses because he is close to the head of state.
Labels: CHILUBA, CORRUPTION, GIVEN LUBINDA
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Kaluba urges Rupiah to stop using Chiluba as his campaign tool
By Mwila Chansa in Kitwe
Sat 12 June 2010, 04:00 CAT
NATIONAL Union of Miners and Allied Workers (NUMAW) secretary general Goodwell Kaluba has urged President Rupiah Banda to stop using presi Frederick Chiluba as his campaign tool because he is just adding more salt to people’s injuries.
And Mine Workers Union of Zambia (MUZ) secretary general Oswell Munyenyembe has described as unacceptable the ‘championing’ of the miners’ plight by Chiluba.
Commenting on Chiluba’s trips to mining townships and promises that he would assist miners buy houses at a cheaper price, Kaluba said President Banda must first check himself before sending Chiluba to campaign for him.
“RB is using a wrong person who will always be booed and jeered because this is the same man Chiluba who caused a lot of mess for miners,” Kaluba said. “Chiluba’s reputation is dented and his popularity has faded so using him to campaign is just adding salt to people’s injuries.”
Kaluba said Chiluba was president when the houses in Mukuba-Natwange Township in Kitwe were sold and even when Mukuba Pension Trustees fixed the prices, he never did anything about it.
He said the issue of houses in Mukuba-Natwange had been dragging for a long time and most people had been compelled to get loans in order to buy the houses in question.
Kaluba said he could not understand how Chiluba could today claim to assist the people of Mukuba-Natwange to buy houses at cheaper prices when he failed to do so when he was president.
Kaluba said Chiluba’s decision to entice the people of Mukuba-Natwange to vote for President Banda if he helps them buy houses cheaply amounted to politicking because President Banda as the country’s leader had a duty and obligation to ensure that citizens regardless of their political affiliation led decent lives. Kaluba likened Chiluba’s behaviour to that of Samson in the Bible.
“Today, he is behaving like Samson who lost the glory that God gave him but could not realize it. When did Chiluba learn about the state of toilets in Wusakile? He left them like that. A few toilets have been worked on but most of them are the same,” he said.
Kaluba urged miners to be careful and only entertain people that truly had their interests at heart.
And Munyenyembe said Chiluba today could not claim to champion miners’ rights because he ignored them when he was president.
Munyenyembe urged Chiluba to stop playing with miners’ minds because he would never sway them.
He explained that contrary to popular belief that Chiluba began the housing empowerment in the mining townships, MUZ suggested that houses be part of the miners’ benefits upon realisation that some investors did not have enough money to pay off all benefits that had accrued to miners that were either retrenched or retired after privatization.
“There was a collective agreement before privatisation between MUZ and ZCCM because investors did not have money to pay all accrued benefits. So to reduce the bill, MUZ suggested that houses be part of the benefits so it is not even right for Chiluba to claim that he started the sale of miners’ houses. The 1997 collective agreement between MUZ and ZCCM can give more details regarding the sale of miners’ houses,” Munyenyembe said.
He warned that if Chiluba did not stay away from miners’ issues, he would continue facing “lots of resistance.”
Munyenyembe urged miners to stay focused and not be swayed by Chiluba’s tactics.
Labels: CHILUBA, GOODWELL KALUBA, MMD, RUPIAH BANDA
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Booing a thief, a lazo wherever he goes
By The Post
Fri 11 June 2010, 08:20 CAT
The mark of great leaders is the ability to understand the context in which they are operating and act accordingly.
It is very clear that neither Rupiah Banda nor his friend Frederick Chiluba understand the context in which they are operating. If they did, they would have realised that Chiluba is today not a positive factor in the politics of our country.
The great majority of the Zambian people see Chiluba as a thief, a crook, a liar, a man who embodies the worst forms of corruption. But Rupiah still thinks Chiluba has some positive political standing.
And Chiluba is deceiving himself that he can deliver some positive electoral results for Rupiah on the Copperbelt and Luapula, among the Bemba-speaking people.
Chiluba’s political campaign trips to Luapula the other month and in 2008 have yielded nothing in favour of Rupiah. They have simply exposed Chiluba to ridicule and embarrassment. But of course we know that Chiluba can never be embarrassed because he has no shame inside his heart, he is a hard-core crook. Nothing can shame or embarrass Chiluba. If Chiluba has a conscience that would make him feel embarrassed, he would not have done the things he did.
There is no person with a conscience that can take more than US $1 million from the state coffers of a poor country like ours and spend that type of money on designer suits, shirts, pyjamas, shoes and so on and so forth in a European boutique when the great majority of his people live in abject poverty, on less than one dollar a day. This is the man Rupiah has hired as a political consultant or advisor. This is the man they are trying to use to win the support of the humble people of Luapula and those toiling on the mines on the Copperbelt.
Simple wisdom would have by now made Rupiah and his friends realise that the deployment of Chiluba in their political campaigns was a mistake. And taught by mistakes, they would have become wiser in their use of this unpopular friend of theirs. It is hard for any person to avoid making mistakes. But once a mistake is made, one should correct it, and the more quickly and thoroughly, the better.
There is nothing special about Chiluba. Like his friend Rupiah, Chiluba did not become president of this country because he had the greatest wisdom and virtues. Chiluba was not a messiah, but an ordinary man who had become a leader because of extraordinary circumstances.
It seems Rupiah and Chiluba don’t understand where the country is today and the thinking of the Zambian people. Their behaviour, what they are doing reminds us once again that to truly lead one’s people, one must also truly know them. Rupiah and Chiluba, as things stand today, don’t truly know the Zambian people.
If they knew them, they wouldn’t be doing the things they are doing; they wouldn’t be making the mistakes they are making. Enough advice has been given to Rupiah from both within and outside the ruling MMD. But it seems sometimes there is nothing one can do to save something that must die.
Wherever Chiluba has gone, he has been denounced as thief, a lazo. And truly and justifiably so because the man is a thief, a lazo. No matter how much Rupiah may try to launder Chiluba as “a damn good president”, nobody will buy that lie because they know who Chiluba is and who he was as president of their country. The man is nothing but a crook who lives by crooking his way through life.
It is not in dispute, and it will never be in dispute, that Chiluba stole from the government of the Republic of Zambia. Even the acquittal that Rupiah secured for him from the Zambian courts will not do.
And indeed Rupiah, by now, should realise that his scheme to launder Chiluba has failed because the Zambian people truly know who Chiluba is – a thief, a lazo. And they are calling him by this name – thief, lazo – wherever he goes. And this is not out of malice or hatred. It is simply out of a reality that things must be called by their true names. And names usually come from one’s conduct.
The Zambian people have been very tolerant of Chiluba. They have allowed him to move around and speak or say whatever he wants. But it will now seem that Chiluba is pushing his luck too far; he is overstretching to breaking point the tolerance of the Zambian people. What Chiluba is now trying to do amounts to insulting the collective intelligence of the Zambian people. Tolerance does not amount to stupidity, to foolishness on the part of the Zambian people.
Chiluba is a disgraced politician who should live to pay his penance for the many crimes he has committed against the Zambian people. Chiluba needs to show contrition before he can think of being accepted by the Zambian people in the smallest of ways.
Chiluba owes the Zambian people an apology for the abuse of their resources and the public office they had entrusted to him. He also owes some of his fellow citizens – like princess Nakatindi Wina, Rajan Mahtani, Dr Kenneth Kaunda, the late Dean Mung’omba, among others – apologies. But Chiluba is too proud and arrogant to apologise to anyone, let alone admit that he did wrong things.
Chiluba is failing to admit that he maliciously detained these people on trumped-up treason charges. He is also failing, despite abundant evidence, to admit that he abused public office to enrich himself and his friends. This is the man Rupiah says was “a damn good president” and has hired to be his political consultant and advisor.
It is said that “you will earn the trust and respect of others if you work for good; if you work for evil, you are making a mistake” (Proverbs 14:22) and that “stupid people are happy with their foolishness, but the wise will do what is right” (Proverbs 15:21).
There is no political influence that Chiluba commands in this country today. And Rupiah and Chiluba are just cheating each other about what their friendship or political association can deliver. They don’t understand what is in their people’s mind today. Anyway, “a fool does not care whether he understands a thing or not; all he wants to do is show how smart he is” (Proverbs 18:2).
The booing Chiluba is receiving wherever he goes should be enough warning about what is likely to follow if he persists on this path. But again, “sensible people will see trouble coming and avoid it, but an unthinking person will walk right into it and regret later” (Proverbs 22:3).
We understand Rupiah’s political desperation. But trying to depend on discredited characters like Chiluba will not help him achieve anything positive. It is said that “depending on an unreliable person in a crisis is like trying to chew with a loose tooth or walk with a crippled foot” (Proverbs 25:19).
Chiluba always tries to portray himself as a very smart person, a very intelligent politician, a political engineer. But what is smart or intelligent about Chiluba’s decisions and actions?
Is stealing public funds and spending it on designer clothes and women a wise or smart thing? Is abusing political power that has been given to you by your poor and humble fellow citizens a wise or smart thing? Again, we are told in Proverbs 26:12: “The most stupid fool is better off than someone who thinks he is wise when he is not.”
The Zambian people are generally generous and peace-loving. But they are not fools to be taken for granted and abused without sensitivity in the way Chiluba is trying to do it. They can allow him to go around and do whatever he wants, visit his relatives and friends wherever they may be.
But to try to go around markets and their compounds to cheat them, to corrupt their souls with the sale of council houses and promises of all sorts of things for them to support and vote for his savior Rupiah is going too far. There is a Chinese proverb which says: “You cannot prevent the birds of sadness from flying over your head, but you can prevent them from building nests in your hair.”
Truly, the Zambian people have no reason to stop Chiluba from flying around the country over their heads and going wherever he wants, but they will not allow him to perch on their heads and build nests for his lies, corruption, manipulation and deceit.
Rupiah has hired a wrong and useless, or rather costly, political consultant and advisor. Chiluba is nothing but a liability to Rupiah and the MMD in general.
Labels: CHILUBA, RUPIAH BANDA, SATA
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Chiluba is a weed which is undesirable in any garden – Sata
By George Chellah and Patson Chilemba
Fri 11 June 2010, 08:04 CAT
CHILUBA is a political weed which is undesirable in any political garden, PF leader Michael Sata charged yesterday. And Sata challenged President Rupiah Banda to explain why the President of Chad Idriss Deby sneaked into the country quietly.
Commenting on continued booing of former president Frederick Chiluba by Copperbelt residents, Sata said it was sad that Chiluba had continued to embarrass himself all in the name of impressing President Rupiah Banda.
“Chiluba has asked for the booing. I don’t even know why Chiluba can’t get the message from the people he is visiting everywhere he goes. The MMD has described him as their political consultant. But the reality is Frederick Chiluba is a dented political consultant hence this reaction from people wherever he goes,” Sata said.
“Chiluba went to Kasama and they rejected him. He went to Luapula as a son of the soil and he was rejected as well and now he has been rejected on the Copperbelt, too. But it’s like he can’t see that he is embarrassing himself.
“Anyway, as PF we think Rupiah should continue with Chiluba as a political consultant because wherever he goes Chiluba is making our job very easy as PF. So we need MMD to have a dented political consultant like Chiluba because that will assist us crush them smoothly.”
Sata said contrary to Chiluba’s statement, PF was not worried or concerned about his visits.
“Chiluba is a political weed which is undesirable in any garden. No one looks forward to having political weeds like Chiluba in their fields,” he said.
Sata said there was need for President Banda to advise his friend Chiluba to slow down.
“It’s like Rupiah has allowed Chiluba to provoke the situation wherever he goes. He is inciting people! I said it before that Chiluba has more enemies than friends on the Copperbelt. That’s why I am not surprised with the booing he is receiving. It’s just that he has a short memory and he has forgotten that it’s the same Ndola where a lot of people lost jobs because he closed so many companies,” Sata said.
“People of Ndola cannot be excited with Chiluba because he single-handedly sent a great number of them into destitution. After losing jobs, some people even died from depression and left kids on the streets all because of Chiluba. So who can be happy with a man who inflicted that kind of misery on people and subsequently left innocent souls to suffer for what they didn’t know?
“Chiluba must not impose himself on the people. Chiluba is enjoying his pension whilst thousands of Zambians have not even received a single ngwee. Thousands of people in Ndola where he was never received their benefits after he shut down those companies. They were all condemned to poverty like I have indicated.”
Sata said it was sad that Chiluba even had the courage to mock the people of Ndola after causing so much destruction in their lives.
“Let him not impose himself on people. The people are not children. Chiluba is mocking the people,” he said.
And Sata said the nation was experiencing President Banda’s style of leadership where Presidents of other countries could sneak into the country quietly.
“A President of any nation is not a private person. Even if he goes for a private visit, people must know that he has arrived. People must receive that president. Whether he has come officially or otherwise, but the President has sneaked in quietly. We have to be cautious,” Sata said. “We have to be very cautious. We know where we are coming from but we don’t know where Rupiah Banda and Chiluba are taking us.”
Sata said Zambians deserved to know the reason a foreign President had come into the country unannounced.
“We want Rupiah Banda to explain. We want the foreign affairs minister Kabinga Pande to explain. We want Vice-President George Kunda and information minister Ronnie Shikapwasha to explain. People of Zambia are supposed to know,” Sata said. “A President of a different country is not like Michael Sata sneaking into Malawi or Zimbabwe.”
Sata said he suspected that President Banda was meeting leaders of foreign countries to cut deals and finish off the sale of Zamtel.
“We don’t know whether the Chadian President is one of the investors. We shall hear,” said Sata. “Well if he is Idriss, he is very close to Colonel Muammar Gaddafi. Probably he has brought some message from Gaddafi.”
And asked to comment on assertions that he instructed the government media not to report on President Deby’s visit into the country, President Banda’s press aide Dickson Jere stated that he never instructed the public media against publishing any story.
“I never stopped any media organisation from covering any story,” Jere said. “President Deby was never in Zambia or Mfuwe and therefore never held any meeting with President Banda here in Zambia. You can verify this fact with the office of President Deby in Chad,” stated Jere.
However, well-placed sources revealed that Jere instructed some state media not to publish President Deby’s presence in the country where he was meeting President Banda who was on a working Holiday in Mfuwe.
“I am sure you have friends within state media organisations. Phone John Phiri to find out if the Times of Zambia did not receive such instructions,” the source said.
Labels: CHILUBA, SATA
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Chiluba is a stubborn unrepentant thief - Lubinda
By Patson Chilemba
Fri 11 June 2010, 14:10 CAT
FREDERICK Chiluba is a stubbornly unrepentant thief, Patriotic Front (PF) spokesperson Given Lubinda charged yesterday. And Lubinda said Chiluba belongs to prison and would surely go there once President Rupiah Banda was out of office.
Commenting on the continued booing of former president Chiluba by Copperbelt residents, Lubinda said people would have expected Chiluba, after falling from grace to be humble and meek to the people he had stolen from.
"The position of President is a position of honour. Now his misconduct was tantamount to staging a coup de grace. He had lost all the grace that he had. All the honour of the Office of the President was taken away from him because of his misconduct. And anybody who suffers that kind of experience feels sorry for themselves and lie low," Lubinda said.
"They don't go round bouncing around, harassing people at the expense of being booed. They don't, that is not normal behaviour. That kind of behaviour is only expected from people whose genetic formulation is abrasive against normal behaviour."
Lubinda asked Chiluba to humble himself and repent for his thieving activities against Zambians.
"People who cannot see their wrong cannot be expected to repent. Such are the ones who are referred to as stubbornly unrepentant people. And that is a category where Chiluba belongs," Lubinda charged.
Lubinda said Chiluba was so shameless that despite the humiliation he had suffered on the Copperbelt he had continued to pretend as if everything was okay.
He said Chiluba might outwardly try to portray that everything was alright when he was very troubled as a result of the hostility he had encountered on the Copperbelt.
Lubinda said Chiluba was campaigning through the pain barrier because he had no choice but to show gratitude to President Banda who secured his freedom.
"You see Mr Chiluba is at pains to try and pay back to Rupiah Banda for the temporary freedom that he was given by Rupiah Banda after Rupiah meddled with his court case. So now he is at pains, he wants to pay back to Rupiah Banda. That is the reason why he is doing all what he is doing on the Copperbelt," Lubinda said.
"Chiluba knows very well that he misappropriated public funds and he belongs to prison. So for him everyday when he works up and sees he is not in prison he has to pay back to Rupiah Banda."
Lubinda said Chiluba knew without doubt that President Banda would be out of office come the 2011 general elections.
"In the same vein he Chiluba will go into prison. So he wants to put in everything that he has because his saviour in this matter is not Jesus Christ, it is Rupiah Banda," said Lubinda.
Labels: CHILUBA, GIVEN LUBINDA
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Sata urges Chiluba to apologise to KK for mistreating him
By George Chellah
Thu 10 June 2010, 14:59 CAT
First Republican president Dr Kenneth Kaunda with children shortly after he received a donation on behalf of Kenneth Kaunda Children of Africa Foundation from Cavendesh University at his Kabulonga offices in Lusaka yesterday - Picture by Thomas Nsama
PATRIOTIC Front (PF) leader Michael Sata yesterday said it’s clear that Dr Kenneth Kaunda is harbouring a lot of things in his chest against President Rupiah Banda’s rule and his relationship with Frederick Chiluba.
Commenting on Dr Kaunda’s conversation with Post editor-in-chief Fred M’membe soon after the latter’s release from prison on Monday, Sata described the discussion between Dr Kaunda and M’membe as interesting.
“Kenneth Kaunda is very honest. Even when he was talking, he was not talking because he wanted to backbite Chiluba, no! After all Rupiah is his brother-in-law. When Kaunda met Fred he was remembering his detention at Kamwala Remand Prison and Mukobeko Maximum Prison at the hands of Chiluba,” Sata said.
“So whatever Kaunda said he said them honestly and without despising anyone. In fact, Rupiah is a lucky person because when we genuinely advise him, it’s not that we hate him or have a grudge against him, no. So let him carefully listen to his own brother-in-law’s message.
“From that conversation, you can clearly see that Kaunda is keeping a lot of things in his chest against Rupiah’s rule and his friendship with Chiluba. Kaunda seems to have buried a lot of things in his chest. It’s clear that he has not approved Rupiah’s relationship with Chiluba. But Chiluba has pride, he just can’t say ‘old man I am sorry’.”
Sata said the best Chiluba could do was to apologise to Dr Kaunda over what he put him through during his 10-year rule.
“Actually, Kaunda’s conversation with Fred makes Chiluba a very big liar because of late Chiluba has been jumping around Kaunda whenever the two of them meet, projecting himself as being close to Kaunda. But we can all see that there are still some unresolved issues,” Sata said. “If Chiluba was wise, after Rupiah brought them together, Chiluba should have taken advantage of Rupiah’s initiative for him to apologise to the old man in public or privately. But I know Chiluba has never acknowledged Kaunda both inside and outside Cabinet. Chiluba has no remorse on anything. He destroyed the economy of this country and remains unapologetic.”
Sata said Dr Kaunda identified himself with M’membe’s situation.
“What was coming out of Kaunda’s mouth where direct words from his heart. Kaunda saw himself in Fred because he went through the same under Chiluba so he was genuine in his sympathies with Fred,” Sata said. “I am sure Kaunda remembered when he was locked up in Mukobeko Maximum Prison and it had to take that gallant son of Africa, the late Julius Nyerere to come to his rescue.”
Sata also reminded Chiluba over the engagement of Scotland Yard to investigate Dr Kaunda of corruption.
“You recently heard Chiluba complaining about the Task Force and dismissing it and its operations. But you remind him that without reference to Cabinet he Chiluba invited Scotland Yard to investigate Kaunda. Without consulting Cabinet, he declared a state of emergency and without consulting Cabinet he arrested Kaunda on Christmas day. So why has Chiluba been making noise about the Task Force a body, which was established by the Zambian government?” Sata asked. “And yet him, he brought in Scotland Yard a foreign entity to come and investigate Kaunda. Is Chiluba telling us that it’s only good and legal for him to bring in Scotland Yard on others and when the Task Force investigates him he starts crying? Tell him that his arguments on the Task Force do not make sense because he unleashed Scotland Yard on Kaunda.”
He said Chiluba and President Banda came to dismantle Zambia.
“Chiluba is a not an original MMD. The original MMD was Arthur Wina and not Chiluba. And Wina had a programme for Zambia, not Chiluba whose preoccupation was just to buy suits, buy high-heeled shoes to make him look tall and also buying television sets for his girl friends,” Sata said. “The Zambian people must wake up. If the Zambian people don’t wake up now, by the time Rupiah goes, there will be no Zambia left.”
Labels: CHILUBA, KENNETH KAUNDA, SATA
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Ndola residents boo, call Chiluba a thief
By Abigail Chaponda in Ndola
Wed 09 June 2010, 15:10 CAT
Wusakile residents raising PF-UPND symbols on Chiluba's vehicle when he visited their them on Saturday.Residents were shouting Twakana,Twakana nimwe mwashitishe amayanda (We don't want you, you are the one who sold the houses).
NDOLA’s Chifubu residents on Tuesday afternoon booed former President Frederick Chiluba and calling him a thief when he visited Chifubu market.
And sources close to Chiluba have revealed that Chiluba is President Rupiah Banda’s personal ambassador.
Many people did not know that Chiluba was in Chifubu market because his visit was not announced and people only came to know of his visit when he had finished talking to an old lady who was later identified as Lise Bwalya.
When a few people saw him (Chiluba) they shouted “the hour, tupeniko impiya (the hour, give us money),” but he did not respond but he instead proceeded to Bwalya’s house at house number 38 CHD 787 near Chifubu market.
Bwalya showed Chiluba her house but reporters and residents did not know why Bwalya was showing Chiluba her house.
Both Chiluba and Bwalya were whispering to each other and no one heard what they were talking about.
After inspecting the house, Chiluba then headed towards his GRZ vehicle where he was met by many people who had mixed feeling over his visit.
Some people shouted “the hour” and others raised the PF symbol of a clenched fist while shouting “Pamaka!”
News about Chiluba’s presence quickly filtered through the market and PF members mobbed him and called him a thief.
“Lazo! Lazo! Lazo! Kabolala! Kabolola! Kabiye! Lazo! Chikabolala (thief, go! We don’t want you, go!)” shouted the mob.
The angry mob nearly touched Chiluba but his bodyguards quickly surrounded him.
As Chiluba got into his car, one PF cadre led the others in chanting; “we want change, we want change, we want change” while thumping on Chiluba’s vehicle.
Chiluba drove off without saying anything.
As Chiluba’s vehicle drove off, the people started singing “Sata ngatalipo, bonse aba nibangwele! (If Sata is not there, all these don’t count”.
And the cadres threatened to burn a Zambia Daily Mail vehicle saying the institution was always on Chiluba’s side.
Some of the concerned people asked Zambia Daily Mail reporters to leave because some people were mobilizing to burn their vehicle.
Meanwhile, on Friday Chiluba visited ZAFICO residents and promised them that he would ensure President Rupiah Banda sold them the houses.
Sources said that Chiluba told the residents that he (Chiluba) was President’s ambassador and he was assigned to go round the country to identify problems and people’s needs for the government to act on them.
Kitwe residents last Saturday gave Chiluba a rough reception while others insulted him when he toured Wusakile toilets and other areas.
Labels: CHILUBA, NDOLA
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PF Copperbelt chairman justifies booing of Chiluba
By Mwila Chansa in Kitwe
Tue 08 June 2010, 11:30 CAT
COPPERBELT Province Patriotic Front (PF) acting provincial chairman Davies Mwila has observed that Frederick Chiluba deserves the hostile reception he received in Kitwe on Saturday because he has chosen to engage in partisan politics.
And Mwila said President Rupiah Banda and his government will have to answer charges of abuse of authority of office for allegedly using taxpayers’ money to send Chiluba to campaign for them.
Commenting on the reception given to former president Chiluba in Kitwe’s Wusakile township on Saturday, Mwila said it was good that the people of Kitwe had clearly sent a strong message to Chiluba and President Banda that they were tired of MMD.
Mwila, who is also Chipili PF parliamentarian, described Chiluba’s trip as mere politicking.
He wondered what kind of solutions he would offer to the people now when he was not even Republican president.
Mwila, who noted that Chiluba was the initiator of the same problems he was purporting to solve, wondered how Chiluba could find solutions in that he failed to do so during his 10-year rule.
“He is the one who started the sale of houses more than ten years ago. Right now he Chiluba is not in authority. How can he lie to people that he will solve their problems which he failed to solve when he was president?” Mwila asked.
“It is Rupiah Banda in government and it is up to government to talk to Mukuba Pension Trustees to negotiate on the issue of houses. Moreover, Mukuba Pension is an independent entity and it is this same government, which owes Mukuba Pension K22 billion. If you remember the issue of RAMCOZ, RAMCOZ never used to remit money to Mukuba Pension.”
Mwila said President Banda and his government would definitely answer to abuse of authority charges over the manner they were abusing public resources.
“This system of using government funds is equal to abusing public resources. You can’t allow someone to go round politicking using public resources. Remember, they assembled chiefs in Luapula Province and they have to account for it,” Mwila said.
He advised Chiluba to emulate Dr Kenneth Kaunda by not engaging in partisan politics if he were to retain respect from the public.
Mwila noted that if Chiluba continued engaging in partisan politics, even small boys would be insulting him.
He added that Chiluba should not cry foul if people reacted negatively to his campaigns.
“This time, people know what they are supposed to do and they will never be cheated. Chiluba left those toilets in Wusakile. Those toilets have been there since the 1960s. He was in power for ten years and another ten years has passed since he left office, so what can he do that he did not do when he was in office?” asked Mwila.
During his incognito visit to Kitwe last Saturday, several Wusakile residents raised clenched fists at Chiluba and told him their area was a no-go zone for the MMD.
Chiluba was in town to discuss the issue of reducing prices for those that bought houses from Mukuba Pension Trustees in Mukuba-Natwange township and also to check on the state of communal toilets in Wusakile township.
However, the presence of post journalists at his meeting in Mukuba-Natwange prevented Chiluba from delivering his intended message as he did not want the journalists to allegedly “write what he had not said.”
Labels: CHILUBA, DAVIES MWILA, PF
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‘Chiluba’s statement on Task Force cases unfortunate’
By Patson Chilemba
Fri 04 June 2010, 04:01 CAT
LAW Association of Zambia (LAZ) president Stephen Lungu yesterday described as unfortunate Frederick Chiluba’s statement that he does not respect outcomes of court cases handled by the Task Force.
Commenting on Chiluba’s statement that he had no respect for the outcome of court cases handled by the Task Force on Corruption because they were heavily politicised, Lungu said the statement from Chiluba was very unfortunate especially that it came from a former president.
“It is very unfortunate because of the position that he holds in society, and the influence of his statement. The influence that his statements would have on society, that is why it is unfortunate,” he said.
Lungu said Chiluba was entitled to his own opinion but LAZ would stand by its stated position not to cause disrespect to the judiciary.
He said the conviction of Kalumba was legal and not political.
“People should not use their opinions to cast aspersions on the Judiciary. We have always as an association advocated for the fact that we should respect the court process, and the court process starts from the time a matter goes to court,” Lungu said. “Every right meaning citizen of this country should respect court decisions, whether or not they agree with them.”
On Chiluba’s statement that the judicial process should not be tainted with illegalities and political interference, Lungu said it was always unfortunate when a person of Chiluba’s stature made such kind of comments.
“Our view is that whether or not we agree with the judgments that came out of the court, we should always show respect to the decisions of the courts. And as I said earlier, this is why we have got an appeal process,” he said.
Asked how possible it was for Chiluba to respect the judiciary and not the judgments that were passed by the courts, Lungu said he did not understand the contradiction.
Chiluba was quoted in last Wednesday’s edition of the state-owned Times of Zambia saying he had no respect for the outcomes of court cases that were handled by the Task Force because they were heavily politicised.
Speaking through his spokesperson Emmanuel Mwamba, Chiluba said apart from the cases being politically instigated, they were also targeted at certain individuals.
Labels: CHILUBA, TASK FORCE
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What respect can Chiluba claim to have for our judiciary?
By The Post
Wed 02 June 2010, 19:30 CAT
When criminals praise law enforcement agencies, there is a big problem somewhere.
In a normal world, criminals run away from the police and other law enforcement agencies – they hate them. The reason for this is not difficult to discern. The law enforcement agencies exist to stop what criminals consider as their legitimate and profitable undertakings.
On the other hand, when a criminal criticises a law enforcement agency and shows hatred for it, then we should know that more likely than not that law enforcement agency is doing the right thing. Criminals are always trying to undermine and sometimes bribe and corrupt law enforcement agencies. When they fail, they turn to defamation and other forms of propaganda to undermine the credibility of the institution they have failed to break or corrupt.
This is something that is well-known world over. Criminals, particularly those involved in organised crime, work very hard to undermine the law enforcement agencies that work against them.
The last eight years or so have brought out something similar in our country. Frederick Chiluba and his tandem of thieves have worked very hard to cheat our people. They have engaged in all sorts of propaganda against the work of the Task Force on Corruption. We wonder whether their attacks would have been as vehement as they have been if the Task Force was ineffective in pursuing them and in bringing out their criminal deeds.
The other day Chiluba was saying that he has no respect for the outcomes of cases handled by the Task Force on Corruption because they were heavily politicised. Chiluba wants to pretend that his unhappiness with the Task Force was because of what he calls “politics”. But we all know that Chiluba’s problems were not as a result of politics.
They were a product of his criminal deeds. Yes, because he is a politician he played a lot of politics. But the charges that he was facing are things that have nothing to do with politics. Chiluba abused his political office to amass wealth. This was a problem. When he was caught, he tried to use politics to get away.
When this did not work, he now has the audacity to accuse law enforcement officers of being politicised. Our people have not forgotten that when Chiluba was in State House, he did not hesitate to use the police and the judicial process to punish his enemies, real and imaginary. For him, the judicial process was but an extension of his political arsenal. Chiluba had no qualms about having his enemies arrested on trumped-up charges.
And because this is what he did, he thinks that everybody else behaves that way. Anyway, the criticism of the Task Force by Chiluba should not surprise anyone. If we were the Task Force, we would take it as a complement. When a criminal criticises a police officer for doing his job effectively, the police officer should be happy. We would have been very worried if Chiluba was praising the Task Force. That would have been a serious indictment on their professionalism.
Chiluba and his tandem of thieves have spent eight years trying to malign the Task Force and those who worked in it, making this and that claim. What is interesting is that they always run to attacking the Task Force instead of addressing the substance of the charges that they faced.
We have not forgotten that their surrogates such as Aaron Chungu were holding press conferences at On the Run in Lusaka’s Northmead area to insult the officers who were investigating them.
The problems that Chiluba and his friends have have nothing to do with the officers but everything to do with the things they did when they were in power. An innocent person has no reason to fear or even malign a law enforcement officer. In fact, law-abiding citizens should appreciate the work of law enforcement officers. The propaganda against those who investigated Chiluba’s corruption will not take away the corruption that they were engaged in.
The problem is not who is exposing or who has exposed the wrongs that they did. The problem lies with the wrongs that they did. Who exposes what they did doesn’t matter much. If they did nothing wrong, it would still not matter much who claims that they did nothing wrong. They must start to address the specific crimes that they had committed because this is where the problem lies.
We are still waiting for Chiluba to tell our people where he got the US $8 million that he claims to have been keeping in a government account. Chiluba has even threatened to claim it back from the government, suggesting that it was not spent. But this is Chiluba for you, full of contradictions. And that is what lies do to those that rely on them.
Chiluba is not embarrassed by holding contradictory positions. In his attack on the Task Force the other day, he said although he did not respect outcomes for court cases handled by the Task Force, he respected the judiciary. How this is possible, only Chiluba seems to understand. How can you respect an institution but disrespect its actions of decisions? It is Chiluba’s usual way of trying to slither between contradictory positions and hope to get away somehow.
How can Chiluba claim to respect the judiciary but at the same time does not respect its judgments because they originate from matters investigated by the Task Force? If Chiluba’s logic was extended to all of us, none of us would respect any court decision because they usually arise from matters taken to court by people we don’t respect or like. People who take us to court are not usually our friends.
But this is what the courts are there for – to hear cases fairly and objectively regardless of where they come from or of who originated them. The same courts Chiluba says he respects have agreed – almost 100 per cent – with the work of the officers who worked at the Task Force. And in this regard, the courts have convicted almost everyone, except Chiluba himself, who was taken before them. And among the people convicted is Chiluba’s own wife who he admitted giving money.
The only decision of our courts Chiluba has accepted is his questionable acquittal – and nothing else. If truly Chiluba respected our courts, as he claims, he would have serious difficulties not accepting their decisions on the corruption cases in which his wife and many of his friends have been convicted. In truth, what Chiluba doesn’t like are the convictions of these courts.
Chiluba has also claimed that although he respected the judiciary, he emphasised that the judiciary should not be tainted with illegalities and political interference. Is Chiluba telling us something we don’t know about our judiciary?
Is Chiluba telling us that our judiciary is tainted with illegalities and political interference? If so, in which way? Can he show us some examples where our judiciary has shown to be tainted with illegalities and political interference and who is behind those illegalities and political interference? This is not a matter that should be taken lightly. It is a very serious allegation that Chiluba as former head of state is making.
But Chiluba should really be the last person to speak about political interference in the judiciary. What did he do with the former chief justice Mathew Ngulube? Paying money to a sitting chief justice for no discernable services seems okay if it is done by Chiluba. That is what Chiluba seems to be telling us.
Just in case some of our people have forgotten, it is important for us to state that even the problems that Chiluba is facing today were born out of his abuse of the judicial process. When Chiluba felt aggrieved by articles published in this newspaper, he decided to unleash the full force of our police on this newspaper’s editor, a journalist and two parliamentarians.
They were hunted like dangerous criminals and taken to court for calling Chiluba a thief. Chiluba abused his presidential powers and made the police behave so unprofessionally. It is in defending this newspaper’s editor and the other people accused with him that Chiluba’s crimes became clear for our people to see.
It is that case that led to the lifting of his immunity and his eventual prosecution. But Chiluba is incapable of learning. He forgets very easily. His arrogance denies him the ability to learn from his mistakes. Anyway, there is no way Chiluba can talk about our judiciary with any credibility. What respect can Chiluba claim to have for our judiciary?
Labels: CHILUBA, CORRUPTION, TASK FORCE
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