Singogo’s conviction has sent right signals – Malila
Written by Mwala Kalaluka
Wednesday, January 14, 2009 9:54:59 AM
ATTORNEY General Mumba Malila yesterday said the conviction of former Zambia Air Force (ZAF) commander Lieutenant General Singogo to six years for corruption has sent the right signals to potential offenders.
And Malila observed that it is not surprising that some lawyers resort to desperate means when they realise that their client is going in for a criminal offence.
Meanwhile, Transparency International Zambia (TIZ) chapter president Reuben Lifuka said the conviction of Lt Gen Sigongo by Chief Resident Magistrate Charles Kafunda on Monday should make President Rupiah Banda prioritise the cleaning up of the public service as his core business.
In an interview after officiating at a Global Transparency Fund (GTF) regional workshop for Africa at Lusaka's Courtyard Hotel, Malila said Singogo's conviction had sent the right message that corruption did not pay. “The law has taken its course and we are all satisfied and obviously Lt Gen Singogo is appealing,” Malila said. “And again the law will take its course.”
However, Malila said although the decision of the court was good, it was not yet final at this stage in view of the appeal process.
“We are yet to have the final verdict,” he said.
Malila further noted that the conviction was yet another milestone in the fight against corruption.
He also said the Task Force on Corruption would not shy away from being audited when the time to do so came.
He was responding to questions on whether the government would allow the auditing of the Task Force on Corruption, as demanded by some sections of the Zambian society.
Malila said the Task Force on Corruption had been very transparent and that they had not hidden the fact that a lot of money had been spent in the fight against corruption.
“They are ready for any such audit,” he said.
And on the move by Singogo's defence team of filing in a notice of appeal before Magistrate Kafunda passed sentence on Monday afternoon, Malila said he was not surprised by the action because sometimes, desperation crept in among lawyers when it dawned on them that their client was going to jail.
“These typically are legal questions that arise in court and I will not be surprised. Lawyers are paid to do the best for their clients,” he said. “It does not surprise us if there was that kind of attitude in court.”
During the sentencing, Magistrate Kafunda described the action by the defence as an exhibition of lack of patience for court procedures and that he found it improper.
And in his official speech at the workshop, Malila said the effects of corruption were far-reaching and disastrous and urged TI's Advocacy and Legal Advice Centre (ALAC) initiative to ensure that members of the public demanded high levels of integrity and accountability among public officials.
“We the major stakeholders therefore, have no choice but to respond positively to such well-meaning initiatives,” he said. “This being the case, it is imperative that we change the approach in combating corruption. We need to shift from the legalistic approach, though important, to citizens empowerment through friendly and cost free measures such as ALACS.”
Malila said successful results following the implementation of ALAC and other interventions in partner government institutions had already started showing to the country's benefits of a transparent, effective and accountable governance system.
Meanwhile, Lifuka agreed with Magistrate Kafunda's observation that Singogo's case was an illustration of the endemic nature of corruption in the country's bureaucracy, which needed to be uprooted.
“The observation by the court is totally correct, the endemic nature of corruption, not only in the public service but also in the private sector, is a serious matter of concern,” he said. “We have to look at the core that now the new administration has to clean up the civil service.”
Lifuka said the conviction of Singogo raised serious questions of accountability in terms of defence spending, especially that this expenditure was usually shrouded in secrecy.
“It also shows the predictability of our legal system that every person has his day in the courts of law whether they are senior people or not,” he said. “It will serve as a serious deterrence to those that are still serving.”
He urged President Banda to make a firm statement over the fight against corruption as he opens parliament this Friday.
And Lifuka said the global financial crisis could trigger an increase in the levels of corruption, as businesses strive to keep afloat amidst the economic recession.
He said the global community was looking at Africa's abundant natural resources as a rescue mechanism from the global financial and economic recession.
Lifuka said the inglorious issue of corruption in most African countries was nevertheless killing this perception.
Labels: CHRISTOPHER SINGOGO, MUMBA MALILA, RUEBEN LIFUKA, TIZ
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Lt Gen Singogo gets 6 yrs for corruption
Written by Laura Hamusute and Mwala Kalaluka
Tuesday, January 13, 2009 9:32:17 AM
LUSAKA chief resident magistrate Charles Kafunda yesterday jailed former Zambia Air Force (ZAF) commander Lieutenant General Christopher Singogo for six years after finding him guilty of abuse of authority of office and theft by public servant. But Lt Gen Singogo through his lawyers has filed a notice of appeal seeking bail pending appeal.
And magistrate Kafunda observed that Lt Gen Singogo's case brought to the fore a scenario of weak fiscal controls in ZAF at the material time.
In this case, Lt Gen Singogo, 57, was charged with abuse of authority of office involving two generators and accessories for ZAF valued at K117, 715,940.00 that he allegedly directed to be installed at his guesthouses namely Wane Guest Lodge in Livingstone and Wasingo Guest Inn at PHI in Lusaka.
On the second count, Lt Gen Singogo was jointly charged with his former aide-de-camp (ADC) Captain Joseph Phiri, 31, of ZAF Lusaka Base, a ZAF pilot, for theft by public servant involving a standby power generator valued at K32,153,800.00.
However, magistrate Kafunda acquitted Capt Phiri after establishing that the prosecution had failed to prove beyond all reasonable doubt that he acted as he did while sharing the same criminal intent with Lt Gen Singogo who directed him to perform the said acts in the course of his duty.
In passing judgment, magistrate established that Lt Gen Singogo was a public officer at the time he committed the offence and that he orchestrated the procurement of the generator sets.
Magistrate Kafunda dismissed the evidence of one of the defence witnesses relating to quotations.
He noted that there was a dispute concerning the amount at which the generator sets were procured. Magistrate Kafunda said there was evidence that the generator sets were installed at the lodges in question and the defence even conceded on that point.
Magistrate Kafunda expressed sadness at the move by the defence to portray one of the prosecution witnesses as a liar, describing the approach as unethical in the noble profession of legal practice as it bordered on trickery and undesirable gimmicks.
Magistrate Kafunda further said Lt Gen Singogo used the Chamba Valley officers' mess for the generators in order to deceive the officers that the generator sets were for official ZAF use when in fact they were for his private use. He said he was satisfied that Lt Gen Singogo acted unilaterally as no ZAF unit made a request for the generator sets and tender procedures were not followed.
Magistrate Kafunda established that the generator set installed at Wasingo Inn was moved from the lodge after the Anti-Corruption Commission (ACC) started carrying out investigations.
On the point by the defence that ZAF, being a security institution its commander had in certain cases discretion to make procurement decisions without regard to Zambia National Tender Board (ZNTB) regulations especially where operations were involved, magistrate Kafunda said although ZAF was a security institution, it still remained an institution of government like any other.
Magistrate Kafunda ruled that as far as procurements of goods and services were concerned, all government and parastatal bodies were subject to the regulation and control of ZNTB regulations. He said whatever discretion was open to the ZAF commander, whether with respect to a secret fund or not, had to be exercised within the confines of the law and must never be exercised to foster personal gain at the expense of critical military operations and public resources.
It is against this background that magistrate Kafunda found Lt Gen Singogo guilty on the first count. He also found Lt Gen Singogo guilty on count two after establishing that he had intentions to permanently deprive the government of the generator in question.
In mitigation, Lt Gen Singogo's lawyer Ghanje Mhango said moving from the status of ZAF commander to a convict was enough punishment for Lt Gen Singogo and urged the court to have mercy on his ageing parents.
He also highlighted Lt Gen Singogo's accomplishments in ZAF. Mhango said Lt Gen Singogo was a family man and a first offender.
Another lawyer, Kelvin Bwalya urged the court to find a middle ground in sentencing his client.
Magistrate Kafunda initially jailed Lt Gen Singogo for eight years but slashed two years after listening to the mitigation.
After judgment was handed down, Lt Gen Singogo through his lawyer applied for leave to file a notice of appeal on grounds that the sentence was too excessive. However, magistrate Kafunda castigated the lawyer for being impatient saying the application was premature.
He said he would deal with the application after the lawyers furnished him with all the grounds of appeal.
While passing the judgment, magistrate Kafunda hoped that the relevant authorities had addressed the weak fiscal controls in ZAF in order to safeguard meager taxpayers resources.
He said the approach in ZAF of the commander having discretion to procure certain goods without following tender procedure was a culture that undermined fiscal discipline among those charged with control of public resources as it was a recipe for impunity among the controlling officers.
Magistrate Kafunda said it was a pity that an officer at such a high level in government and in command of a disciplined force could claim to function outside ZNTB regulations provided for by the law.
Labels: CHARLES KAFUNDA, CHRISTOPHER SINGOGO
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