ZNTB refused to cancel tender as instructed by Siliya, says Mambwe
By Agness Katongo
Thu 16 Jan. 2014, 14:01 CAT
A WITNESS yesterday told the Lusaka Magistrates' Court that Dora Siliya instructed him to cancel the duly awarded tender for the supply, delivery and installation of a radar.
The witness, however, told the court that Zambia National Tender Board director general David Kapitolo refused to cancel the tender as instructed by Siliya, saying there was no justification to warrant the action.
In this case, Siliya, the former transport and communications minister, is in court for two counts of abuse of authority of office.
Testifying in the matter, former transport and communications permanent secretary Dr Eustern Mambwe told chief resident magistrate Joshua Banda that after the evaluation team submitted the technical specification to ZNTB to carry out the procurement of the radar, he received an anonymous letter from Siliya's office alleging that there was malpractice in the procurement process.
Dr Mambwe said he immediately instructed acting chief purchasing and supply officer Isaac Mukupa to investigate where it came from as the allegations in it were very serious.
He said Mukupa produced a report explaining the procedure that was undertaken during the procurement process.
Dr Mambwe said he later sent the same report and a memorandum to the attention of Siliya after which he wrote to Kapitolo to ask him to suspend the radar procurement.
He said Siliya admonished him that he had ignored her instruction to cancel the tender.
He said the note stated how unhappy she was that he ignored her instruction in the procurement process.
He said after Siliya's note, he wrote to ZNTB informing them that the instructions from the minister were that there must be a cancellation and suspension of the tender process.
Dr Mambwe told court that the response from ZNTB was that it was not in a position to suspend the procurement of the radar as there were no flaws in the process in the manner it was done.
In cross-examination, Dr Mambwe insisted that Siliya did not need to direct him to cancel the tender.
He reiterated that she wrote to him asking why he ignored her instructions.
Dr Mambwe said Siliya did not ask for a report on the alleged flaws in the procurement process as put to him by her defence lawyer but an explanation.
In one of her letters addressed to Dr Mambwe, Siliya wrote, "you have decided to go against my instructions and also ignored to consider the offer from SELEX to repair the radar at their own cost as the first option before we could proceed with the tender."
He also admitted having written to ZNTB on Siliya's concerns and the suspension of the tender but that he did not give her the explanation.
Dr Mambwe also told court that to his knowledge, the tender was not cancelled.
He said the ministry received funds for the procurement of the radar between 2007 and 2008 but could not recall how much it was.
Dr Mambwe, however, said he did not receive or find any money for the procurement of the radar when he was the controlling officer.
He said the funds were not used for the procurement of the radar because they were insufficient.
Dr Mambwe also revealed that there was no funding in the 2009 budget for the procurement of the radar and was not aware of its status.
Hearing continues today.
Labels: DORA SILIYA, ZNTB
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Don't use Sata's call for unity to escape corruption - APNAC
By Tilyenji Mwanza
Sat 02 Nov. 2013, 14:01 CAT
PRESIDENT Michael Sata's call for unity should not be used as a window of opportunity to escape corruption charges, says APNAC chairperson Cornelius Mweetwa.
Recently, MMD spokesperson Dora Siliya said the MMD had heeded President Sata's call for unity and wanted to continue to engage the PF on various issues to better the lives of Zambians.
Siliya said the former ruling party could not afford to be irresponsible not to heed President Sata's call for unity.
But Mweetwa, who is also UPND deputy spokesperson, said the call for unity by the president was highly welcome but should not be used as an attempt to get private advantage by people to immunise themselves against corruption charges in court.
"The call for unity should not mean abandoning the corruption charges; corruption charges should not be part and parcel of the unity," Mweetwa said.
"Everybody has the right to accept the call for unity and reconciliation but they should not fraudulently use this as an attempt to gain private advantage or immunising themselves from the corrupt charges they are facing. It is not a window of opportunity for them to escape the wrath of the law," Mweetwa said.
He also said the corruption charge highlighted by PF party secretary general Wynter Kabimba should not be swept under the carpet in the name of unity.
Mweetwa said the call for unity should be extended to all sectors in the country, including proper application of the public order Act and equal opportunity to economic funds such as the disbursement of Constituency Development Funds.
"The call for unity is noted but I am treating it with a caveat. What we expect is proper application of the public order Act as this would bring about good governance. The call should address a long-lasting solution of the Barotseland Agreement and those charged not to be discriminated against," said Mweetwa.
Labels: APNAC, CORNELIUS MWEETWA, CORRUPTION, DORA SILIYA, MICHAEL SATA
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MMD has heeded Sata's call for unity, says Dora
By Agness Changala
Mon 28 Oct. 2013, 14:01 CAT
MMD spokesperson Dora Siliya says the MMD has heeded President Michael Sata's call for unity and wants to continue to engage the PF on various issues to better the lives of Zambians.
She said MMD, as the immediate past ruling party, could not afford to be irresponsible, which was why her party heeded President Sata's call for unity.
"Our challenge to the PF is that we want to see the call for unity translate into tangible results and the ball is in the court of the PF to translate the call of unity into tangible results so that Zambians can benefit without so much tension," Siliya said in her independence message.
She challenged President Sata to ensure that his call for unity during Independence Day celebrations translated into tangible results for the benefit of all Zambians.
Siliya said boycotting events such as Independence Day celebrations was doing a disservice to those who fought for it.
She said by calling for unity, President Sata had taken a bold step to admit that something was wrong in the country and was mindful that his party could not work alone but needed other players such as political parties, the Church and NGOs, among others.
And Siliya said while the PF was in government, Independence Day belonged to every Zambian and should therefore be celebrated by all.
"Obviously, it does not mean that we agree with the government on everything. We know it's the PF in government but Independence Day is for everybody. We as MMD also reserve the right to boycott if we believe that the PF is not listening," she said.
"But we think that this year, we want to give the PF the benefit of the doubt because the President has called for national unity, and we think this is the first step to admitting that there is something wrong. The onus is on the PF; they have called for national unity and we are ready to engage on issues of the Constitution, the Judiciary, hunger in the country, accusations that 80 per cent of Cabinet is Bemba. These are issues that we want to take the government on."
Siliya said currently, there were a number of contentious issues such as the Constitution, the public order Act and the right of citizens to freely assemble, the Judiciary, budget expenditure and many others.
She said many citizens were asking why the prices of various commodities were going up and why there were shortages of antiretroviral drugs.
Siliya said the MMD wanted to engage the PF leadership on issues affecting the country so that they could find solutions to them.
She said problems would not be resolved by political parties not talking to each other.
"As a party that was also in government, we do not have the privilege of being irresponsible but engage the government on national matters," said Siliya.
UPND president Hakainde Hichilema last week urged Zambians to shun Independence Day celebrations, saying there was nothing to celebrate when the majority of people were suffering.
Labels: DORA SILIYA, MMD
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MMD sticks to Dora
By Allan Mulenga
Mon 12 Aug. 2013, 14:01 CAT
MMD president Nevers Mumba has vowed to ensure that Dora Siliya files in her nomination papers to the Electoral Commission of Zambia tomorrow. And Mumba has accused The Post of being used by the PF to churn out illegalities.
Meanwhile, a team of lawyers are seeking judicial review of ECZ's decision. They also want an injuction against to stop tomorrow's parliamentary by-elections nominations.
Commenting on the ECZ's statement that the commission will not receive nomination papers from Siliya, Maxwell Mwale and Hastings Sililo following the guidance from the Judiciary that individuals whose seats were nullified for corruption or illegal practices are disqualified to re-contest, Mumba said the MMD would use all options, including legal, to ensure that the Constitution is protected "against a government that has absolutely no regard for the rule of law".
"This is a reckless way of governing the country. It is diabolical; it is going to disturb the very peace that we have been enjoying in this country," he said.
"We think the PF wants to bring destruction to this country and anarchy in terms of the law. So, we will use every avenue, including the legal option to ensure that our candidate files in nomination papers."
Mumba accused the PF of harassing MMD members through the Judiciary.
"We don't expect our Judiciary to overlook their own procedures in order to fix political opponents of the party in government. Our members are being harassed by PF through the Judiciary and they are going to lodge in their nominations on Tuesday; the law is on their side. If some of these institutions decided to back an illegality or a desire by President Sata and the PF, they will stand by the judgment of people and we will stand on the side of the law, and that is our position," he said.
Mumba also accused the PF of abusing the Supreme Court and making it a slaughter house for democracy.
"To advise them, I would say that in a democracy, you win some seats and you lose some seats. If they can behave like this now just by losing three seats, how are they going to respond when they lose the 2016 election? We have to stop them now so that in 2016, they can hand over power in peace like MMD handed over power in peace to them," he said.
"Looking at their behaviour after losing three seats, Zambians are very concerned that maybe we have in place a government that does not want to adhere itself to the people but rather bulldoze its way by doing illegalities; destroying the Supreme Court; abusing the Supreme Court and obviously trying to make it as a slaughter house for democracy. We hope that the Supreme Court will refuse to be used to fulfil desires of the Patriotic Front."
Mumba wondered why ECZ changed its position on candidates whose seats were nullified on grounds of corruption after receiving the guidance from the Judiciary.
"The statement of the ECZ, if you remember, was very clear that those three were eligible to re-contest their seats because the nullification of their seats does not equate to barring them from standing in their constituencies. Unless there has been a due process of the law according to section 104 subsection 7 and/or the report provided by the High Court that there was a reason for which they needed to be preliminary charged," he said.
"None of those things are present. Our position as the MMD and myself is that it is either that document from the Judiciary is a forgery because our Judiciary doesn't work like that."
And Mumba has accused The Post of being used by the PF to churn out illegalities.
"If you notice, they gave you as The Post the statement which was erroneous; it was illegal and you should have even asked them whether that was a forged letter. Because there is no judiciary that operates like that; you should have known that as The Post and then interpreted it and extended its interpretations and mention names of people that were barred and yet that statement in itself did not even say that," he said.
"You know how the Supreme Court works and how the Judiciary works; it doesn't work through the newspapers. By the time you received that document as The Post, the ECZ had not yet seen that document, which was the body which was supposed to look at it and be able to respond to it. Everybody knows that this is a political thing; it has nothing to do with legality; those people have not been convicted of any criminal offence regarding the fact whether they can be barred or not."
Mumba said Zambians would judge The Post harshly for endorsing illegalities by the PF.
"What has happened over the past four days is extremely sad and the media that have been used to be able to churn out these illegalities also have to do a very deep heart reflection because the Zambians are upset. Zambians are watching this and they feel that even those that are helping them to push these illegalities, Zambians will not take it kindly. I think it is beyond MMD; it is beyond Nevers Mumba; it is now in the domain of the intelligent Zambian people to make deductions as to why the PF is so afraid of losing these elections after they had lost those three," said Mumba.
Labels: CORRUPTION, DORA SILIYA, MMD, NEVERS MUMBA
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Dora comes to Nevers' defence
By Roy Habaalu and Kombe Chimpinde
Sat 20 July 2013, 14:00 CAT
DORA Siliya says MMD members that don't want Nevers Mumba as president should resign. And Mumba says President Michael Sata does not need to die for him to take over from him.
Commenting on MMD vice-presidents, Dr Brian Chituwo and Dr Michael Kaingu's summoning of Mumba to the party secretariat last Friday, where they asked him to resign on grounds of the party's dwindling fortunes, Siliya, the MMD spokesperson, said those who were not happy with Mumba should form their own political parties.
Siliya said Mumba could not continue to be held to ransom by a few individuals for being a legitimately elected president. She said Mumba had more legitimacy than those appointed by the National Executive Committee (NEC).
"Those appointed by NEC and not elected at the MMD convention and are not happy with Nevers Mumba as president only have two choices; either to accept the will of the party and people or indeed to resign from their positions. We believe that political influence is determined by how many people are behind and follow you. Those that keep asking Nevers Mumba to resign are free to leave but as MMD members, we are tired of Vuvuzela noise about Nevers Mumba all the time," she said.
Siliya said opposition politics were not about regions or tribe but ensuring that matters affecting citizens like hunger are brought to the attention of the government.
She said those that believe opposition politics are about promoting internal wrangles so that they are known to be existing in the media had it all wrong.
She said those that wanted Mumba out should realise that if theybecame presidents, others would also ask them to resign.
"So our advice to those asking Never Mumba to resign is to do a clear mirror search of themselves and ask who is behind them, who is following them and if they find that they have people they should form their own parties but if they don't have a following, let them wait for election time for MMD to choose a president; for now, it's Nevers Mumba as president," she said.
Siliya said those that believed that MMD had no money were free to join other political parties, including PF.
She said world-over, political parties were supported by members and well-wishers.
"Those that want Nevers Mumba out have no space in the political landscape of this country. I urge our members to ignore these prophets of doom and if they themselves mean well, let them tell us how much they have contributed to MMD. Why haven't they brought their money? Nevers can't continue apologising to a few individuals," said Siliya.
Kaingu, Chituwo, chairman Kabinga Pande and national secretary Kapembwa Simbao summoned Mumba to an emergency meeting to discuss the party's loss of parliamentary seats and his style of leadership.
Sources said the meeting was a heated one, with the quartet taking Mumba on regarding several issues and asking him to step down.
The sources said the four senior leaders threatened to relinquish their party positions if Mumba did not step down as party president.
The sources revealed that divisions manifested during the same emergency meeting called to iron out issues surrounding the party's state of affairs, among other things the proposed merger between MMD and UPND, as well as dwindling fortunes of the party and Mumba's continued stay at the helm of the party without tangible results.
The quartet complained that the party membership had been going down as evidenced by the loss of parliamentary seats to the PF.
And Mumba said he would not comment on the reported summoning by his senior party members, adding that he would leave it to interested unnamed sources to discuss the matter.
"For me, our concentration is on by-elections and I have deployed my national executive committee members and members of parliament into the election areas. We are committed to winning these elections and I would like all our members to pre-occupy themselves with matters that are going to enhance the party and not matters that are going to waste our time," Mumba said.
"So I am not going to comment on unknown sources and what they said."
Meanwhile, Mumba says President Sata will not have to die for him to take over as Republican President.
Mumba said in an interview that the accusation by President Sata that he was among those spreading false rumours that he was seriously ill were unfair.
Addressing residents at Mkushi grounds on Thursday where he went to drum up support for Ingrid Mphande, the PF candidate in the Mkushi North by-election, President Sata wondered why some people were spreading rumours that he was ill, when he was in perfect health.
"He (Mumba) is saying 'Sata is seriously sick and he is dying and when he dies, I will take over from him'. Can a person who is sick stand for long hours as I have been standing since we began the rallies?" he asked. "I didn't want to be called by anyone to the podium to address you. I wanted to go there and wait for everyone to speak so that those that are spreading these lies that I'm sick can see that I am okay; bonse kuti twalwalako panono, noti ukulwalwa uku balelanda (it is normal to fall ill from time to time, not the type of sickness they are talking about). Nevers is telling people I am dying now. Is (that) not as good as being a witch?"
But Mumba said Rupiah Banda did not have to die for President Sata to take over from him.
"I am going to take over from him not because he died and I will never wish Mr Sata dead," Mumba said from Mkushi, where he has gone to drum up support for the MMD candidate Jonathan Kapungwe.
"That statement I made on The Assignment programme (on MUVI TV) recently, if that is the one he (President Sata) is misquoting, I said the people of Zambia are demanding to have the President speak to us physically not through the press because there are many issues that we want him to deal with."
Mumba accused President Sata of being antagonistic.
"President Sata should use the language of understanding and love, not the language of antagonism. He is President. He needs to promote peace amongst ourselves and not acrimony," Mumba said. "The President must come out in the open and begin to engage the Zambian people. That is not wishing him dead."
Labels: DORA SILIYA, MICHAEL SATA, MMD, NEVERS MUMBA
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Dora is a shameless liar - Banda
By Joseph Mwenda in Lusaka and Christopher Miti in Chipata
Mon 15 July 2013, 14:01 CAT
DORA Siliya is a shameless liar and should not be allowed to swindle the people of Petauke Central Constituency again, says PF Eastern Province secretary Leonard Banda.
Banda who won the election petition against Siliya through a Supreme Court decision said the former education minister should be ashamed to even face the people of Petauke.
"Being a shameless politician, madam Siliya will find it easy to go back and face the people to seek re-election, but I want to remind her that she promised them war if Michael Sata was elected President. I haven't seen any war in the constituency but she has failed to deliver development even under the peaceful rule of the PF," he said.
"She said once President Sata becomes president, same sex marriages would be legalised. She went to the extent of asking villagers to admire her body during campaigns, but the constitution is being finalised now, where does it say that?" he wondered.
Banda advised Siliya to concentrate on her court cases now and spare the people of Petauke.
"What other lies are there for her to tell the electorate when the fertiliser distribution she said would stop under PF has been launched months earlier than usual? Let her accept that she has failed and allow the people of Petauke to move with the government of the day. She is a shameless liar and that is not me speaking but that is what the people are calling her," Banda said.
Meanwhile, Banda said PF was penetrating in Eastern Province like an awakening giant.
He however urged members to exhibit exemplary behavior.
"There has been a lot of slander among some PF leaders in the province and other members who have launched a scorching campaign against me," he said.
"They are saying Leonard Banda is ill and bedridden, but here I am. I am fit and I have been traveling around the province. You know that I am the regional manager for MRI Seed and I move from Lundazi to Nyimba every week. How can I do this if I am bedridden?"
He urged PF members to wait for the party to make a decision on the adopted candidate.
"People are trying to play dirty politics and I am afraid it will not help the party. Let us wait for the party to do its own assessment and choose one candidate. That is the procedure I am going to follow as an aspiring candidate who won a petition against Siliya and everybody else who is interested should do the same not attacking one another's personality," Banda said.
Siliya when contacted for comment said she was not on the same level as Banda to be responding to his attacks.
"I have never talked about Leonard, how can he come all the way to Lusaka to attack me? I am not on the same level with him to be responding to his attacks. And moreover, has the PF adopted him to start speaking like that?" she said.
"Speak to other PF candidates who are aspiring for adoption also like the provincial chairperson Mike Tembo."
Meanwhile, former MMD Eastern Province youth chairperson Luka Banda complained that Siliya was being victimised.
Banda said Siliya should be forgiven for whatever wrongs she committed.
He claimed Siliya had done a lot for the people of Petauke Central and the country at large.
"I am appealing to Zambians and those that are holding government positions to leave Dora Siliya alone. Siliya has brought development particularly in Petauke in Eastern Province and the whole country. Siliya is a woman and as such she is supposed to be forgiven. Let her re-contest the seat with her free mind," Banda said.
He said Siliya was instrumental in the improvement of the water
reticulation system in Petauke and the programme of improving the Great East Road. Most new schools in the province were initiated by Siliya," Banda said.
He said people of Petauke Central want Siliya to re-contest the vacant seat on MMD ticket and not UPND as reported.
"Speaking as a resident of Petauke, I can confirm with you that Dora Siliya is going to re-contest this seat on MMD ticket and she is going back to Parliament," Banda said.
Siliya lost the Petauke Central seat after losing PF candidate in the 2011 elections Leonard Banda petitioned her election.
The High Court ruled that Siliya was duly elected but this was
overturned by the Supreme Court.
Labels: DORA SILIYA, LEONARD BANDA, MMD
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It's political incest for UPND to poach MMD MPs - Kaingu
By Agness Changala and Mwala Kalaluka
Sun 07 July 2013, 14:01 CAT
DORA Siliya says she is still a member of the MMD, a party she is proud of. And MMD vice-president for politics Michael Kaingu says it is political incest for the UPND to continue poaching MMD members of parliament whose seats have been nullified.
But the UPND says there is nothing strange about the party's overtures to former MMD members of parliament to stand on its ticket during by-elections arising from the nullification of their parliamentary seats.
Responding to revelations by sources that UPND wanted Siliya and Maxwell Mwale to stand on the party ticket in Petauke Central and Malambo respectively,
Siliya, whose seat was nullified by the Supreme Court, denied having any links with the UPND.
"I don't know at what point somebody said me I was linked to UPND and who told you that information, because as far as I am aware, I am still MMD and that is where I have links," Siliya said in an interview.
Siliya, who said she had returned from the constituency, explained that she held talks with MMD there.
Siliya said her concern now was to try and attend to problems people were facing in Petauke Central Constituency.
She said Petauke has had no fuel for two weeks and there was no maize in the sheds.
Siliya said people in Petauke were also complaining because they did not get any fertiliser and could not afford three meals a day.
"They eat one meal a day. They have even given it a name. They call it one teleka (one pot) and they are saying now, we don't have three teleka but one teleka because there is real hunger. That is what I found in Petauke and that is what concerns me now," she said.
Siliya said when she was in Petauke, she also spoke with the general public and what she found were queues for ARVs because they were in short supply.
Siliya said patients were on monthly and weekly rations of drugs instead of three months in advance.
And commenting on revelations that the UPND wanted Siliya and Mwale, Kaingu yesterday wondered why the UPND had opted to start scoring in the MMD's goal when they were supposed to be a team.
"I am actually aware through The Post that our colleagues have approached our members for possible standing on their ticket in the forthcoming by-elections," Kaingu said. "The UPND have not discussed with us, to my knowledge. Unless they discussed with the other vice-president."
He said even if they discussed the issue with MMD leader Nevers Mumba, he would have been kept in the know because the matter fell directly under his political jurisdiction.
He said the UPND's argument that it worked well for the opposition when a member of the opposition resigns from his party and joins the UPND was questionable.
"I can't change their view but my views are that we are pockets of the same trousers. Does it really make sense? Does it make you change your position by taking money from one pocket into another pocket?" Kaingu asked. "Time will tell whether these modalities can work for the opposition because what is happening now is acrimony that is creeping into the opposition."
Kaingu said there was a ploy by the UPND and the PF to finish the MMD and he wondered why some of his members had made themselves vulnerable to being poached.
"We would not want to lose our members. If you were my relative, I don't think it would be good for you to be the one impregnating my children; let me use that metaphor. What I want from you is to be able to help me take the children to school," he said. "Our colleagues, they think that if we lose a member then it will be better for them. I have no evidence, they are enticing our members to join them."
Kaingu, who is also Mwandi MMD member of parliament, said the PF was going to consume the opposition parties if they continued operating in that manner.
"We constitute a team and then because someone believes that we must score then they start scoring in our own goal. I don't think that is a good team. Us and UPND are a team and I don't know why they are scoring in our goal," he said. "You saw that statement on TV by Bowman Lusambo and others. I don't know whether now the view of some of our members are such that we must interact with PF. Will it help our colleagues in the opposition if some of our members start speaking in the manner they are speaking?"
And UPND deputy spokesperson Cornelius Mweetwa said the issue of approaching members of parliament from the MMD whose seats had been nullified to stand on the UPND ticket was not unprecedented following what transpired in the recently held Kapiri Mposhi and Lukulu West by-elections.
"It is not something new. There is nothing special about it," he said. "There is nothing strange about these overtures and these approaches. It is something that is normal to the two parties."
Mweetwa said these were stubborn facts that would remain like the reality that sunlight always appeared every day.
"It is also factual that in some constituencies when you go for by-elections, it is easier for PF to decampaign MMD as a party than it is for them to decampaign UPND as a party because UPND has never been in government but MMD was in government for 20 years," he said.
Mweetwa said by getting former MMD members of parliament to stand on the UPND ticket, it would reduce the effects of the anti-MMD campaign messages that the PF would be unleashing.
"It is too early and pre-emptive for us to say we can give it Petauke Central and Malambo to the MMD for now because we believe our party is strong. It is growing. Our party stands a better chance in terms of campaign messages on the ground," said Mweetwa.
"We can't cannibalise MMD. They are our partners in opposing the PF. I do believe that UPND is not going to act unilaterally. If the UPND is desirous of fielding any of the former MMD members of parliament, it is something which they will not do in the dark because you can't hide such things. They will have to negotiate."
Labels: DORA SILIYA, MICHAEL KAINGU, MMD, MPs, UPND
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Nevers quizzes Dora
By Kombe Chimpinde
Sat 06 July 2013, 14:01 CAT
MMD PRESIDENT Nevers Mumba says he has been talking to Dora Siliya over her being linked to UPND.
In an interview yesterday, Mumba, who was responding to revelations by sources that UPND wanted Siliya and Maxwell Mwale to stand on the party ticket in Petauke Central and Malambo respectively, said he was aware that some of his influential members were being approached by UPND with a view to defect.
"It is true that our members are preparing now for the elections. We know that honourable Mwale has been approached to see whether he could stand on UPND ticket. I have been talking to Dora Siliya, she says she is not aware of that. So I cannot speak on their behalf, they have to speak for themselves," he said.
Mumba said the poaching by UPND was an 'issue' that he was already dealing with as party president and would soon issue a statement on the matter.
"That is another issue that we are dealing with. I will come out on that subject at some stage soon," he said.
Mumba said he expected Siliya to re-contest the seat on the MMD ticket as indicated by all the executives in the province.
Mumba said MMD wanted the two former members of parliament to re-contest their seats on the former ruling party ticket.
"In Petauke Central for instance, I was there last week. The executive committees in Petauke Central all want Dora to re-contest. They are the ones who make the decision and they all want Dora. The constituency, the district and the province, they all want Dora to re-contest. So she will have to listen to the grassroots because they are the ones who have got the floor," said Mumba.
But Mwale said in an interview that he was not available for political office because his family had asked him to rest.
Mwale said that he was however available for public office, even in an advisory role.
Mwale could however not deny or confirm whether he had been approached by UPND to re-contest Malambo on its seat.
"In any case I am not for sale, even to the highest bidder. My family and I have agreed that I need a rest from politics so I am taking a back stage.," Mwale said.
He said he would not be available for the MMD to re-contest the seat, or for any political bidder.
Mwale lost the Malambo seat after the Supreme Court nullified it on grounds of electoral malpractices.
Highly-placed sources within the UPND confirmed that there were consultations going on with Siliya and her supporters and that overwhelming response had been received from Mwale.
Asked to confirm or deny reports of the UPND move on Siliya and Mwale, Hichilema said he had no comment on the matter.
In April when Canisius Banda resigned from MMD to join UPND, Mumba said the MMD felt betrayed by UPND for cannabalising its members.
Mumba stated that the UPND, its alliance partner, was creating a lack of trust and confidence by its continued poaching of MMD senior members.
But Hichilema in April justified the poaching of MMD senior members, saying it was one way of consolidating the opposition in the country.
Hichilema said by poaching from MMD, UPND was ensuring that members were not lost to the PF.
Labels: DORA SILIYA, MAXWELL MWALE, MMD, NEVERS MUMBA, UPND
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Nevers quizzes Dora
By Kombe Chimpinde
Sat 06 July 2013, 14:01 CAT
MMD PRESIDENT Nevers Mumba says he has been talking to Dora Siliya over her being linked to UPND.
In an interview yesterday, Mumba, who was responding to revelations by sources that UPND wanted Siliya and Maxwell Mwale to stand on the party ticket in Petauke Central and Malambo respectively, said he was aware that some of his influential members were being approached by UPND with a view to defect.
"It is true that our members are preparing now for the elections. We know that honourable Mwale has been approached to see whether he could stand on UPND ticket. I have been talking to Dora Siliya, she says she is not aware of that. So I cannot speak on their behalf, they have to speak for themselves," he said.
Mumba said the poaching by UPND was an 'issue' that he was already dealing with as party president and would soon issue a statement on the matter.
"That is another issue that we are dealing with. I will come out on that subject at some stage soon," he said.
Mumba said he expected Siliya to re-contest the seat on the MMD ticket as indicated by all the executives in the province.
Mumba said MMD wanted the two former members of parliament to re-contest their seats on the former ruling party ticket.
"In Petauke Central for instance, I was there last week. The executive committees in Petauke Central all want Dora to re-contest. They are the ones who make the decision and they all want Dora. The constituency, the district and the province, they all want Dora to
re-contest. So she will have to listen to the grassroots because they are the ones who have got the floor," said Mumba.
But Mwale said in an interview that he was not available for political office because his family had asked him to rest.
Mwale said that he was however available for public office, even in an advisory role.
Mwale could however not deny or confirm whether he had been approached by UPND to re-contest Malambo on its seat.
"In any case I am not for sale, even to the highest bidder. My family and I have agreed that I need a rest from politics so I am taking a back stage.," Mwale said.
He said he would not be available for the MMD to re-contest the seat, or for any political bidder.
Mwale lost the Malambo seat after the Supreme Court nullified it on grounds of electoral malpractices.
Highly-placed sources within the UPND confirmed that there were consultations going on with Siliya and her supporters and that
overwhelming response had been received from Mwale.
Asked to confirm or deny reports of the UPND move on Siliya and Mwale, Hichilema said he had no comment on the matter.
In April when Canisius Banda resigned from MMD to join UPND, Mumba said the MMD felt betrayed by UPND for cannabalising its members.
Mumba stated that the UPND, its alliance partner, was creating a lack of trust and confidence by its continued poaching of MMD senior members.
But Hichilema in April justified the poaching of MMD senior members, saying it was one way of consolidating the opposition in the country.
Hichilema said by poaching from MMD, UPND was ensuring that members were not lost to the PF.
Labels: DORA SILIYA, NEVERS MUMBA
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UPND wants Dora
By Kombe Chimpinde
Fri 05 July 2013, 14:00 CAT
THE UPND wants MMD's Dora Siliya and Maxwell Mwale to stand on the party ticket in Petauke Central and Malambo respectively, sources within UPND have revealed.
But UPND leader Hakainde Hichilema yesterday said he had no comment to make on the issue.
And UPND vice president Dr Canisius Banda, who refused to mention names, said UPND was in talks with a number of members of parliament and non-members of parliament from other political parties including the PF because UPND was now the 'most attractive party'.
Highly-placed sources within the UPND confirmed that there were consultations going on with Siliya and her supporters and that overwhelming response had been received from Mwale.
The source said that the duo had a better chance of re-scooping their seats on the UPND.
Siliya has however not given a substantive position on the matter.
"Yes consultations are there and we have received a good response from Mwale. In fact Mwale is more like one of us because he was our provincial chairman before he went to MMD. So for Mwale, it will not be a difficult decision to make," the source said.
"On Dora, I cannot confirm if she has accepted but yes it is true that we courting the two individuals to re-contest the seats on the party ticket."
When asked to confirm or deny reports of the UPND move on Siliya and Mwale in an interview, Hichilema said that he had no comment on the matter.
"Ask your sources to elaborate more. I have no comment," said Hichilema.
In April when Dr Banda resigned from MMD to join UPND, Nevers Mumba said the MMD felt betrayed by UPND for cannibalising its members.
Mumba, stated that the UPND, its alliance partner, was creating a lack of trust and confidence by it's continued poaching of MMD senior members.
But Hichilema in April justified the poaching of MMD senior members, saying it was one way of consolidating the opposition in the country.
Hichilema said by poaching from MMD, UPND was ensuring that members were not lost to PF.
And Dr Banda yesterday said there would be a lot of pronouncements very soon.
"The decision to join us is entirely their own. We are flatted as a party that we are receiving so much attention," he said.
"So in the next coming months, you will see a lot of announcements on who has joined."
Mwale was UPND Eastern Province chairman before he resigned from the party to join the Forum for Democracy and Development and later joined MMD.
When he defected in October 2001, Mwale said UPND was not a mass movement.
He said a party should be founded on a common national cause.
Mwale said UPND had failed to address the tribal tag which had continued to haunt the party.
Labels: DORA SILIYA, MAXWELL MWALE, MMD, UPND
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Nevers' anger with Supreme Court
By Editor
Wed 03 July 2013, 14:00 CAT
Nevers Mumba has every right to disagree with the decision of the Supreme Court to nullify Dora Siliya's election as member of parliament for Petauke Central. But Nevers doesn't have the right to insult the Supreme Court.
The decision by now suspended High Court judge Charles Kajimanga to uphold Dora's election as member of parliament for Petauke Central was clearly faulty, but no one denounced him in the manner Nevers is insulting the Supreme Court.
No one raised against Kajimanga the questions Nevers is raising against the Supreme Court. This is not because people had nothing to say about Kajimanga's judgment; it is simply because that is not the right way to deal with decisions of the courts one does not agree with.
If the courts have abused their powers, there are many legal avenues to address that. A complaint can be made against any judge one feels is corrupt and is handing out judgments in a manner that is corrupt.
But we understand where Nevers is coming from. Nevers is a leader of a political party that had a habit of abusing the Judiciary to procure judgments they desired. They had compromised some judicial officers to give them what they wanted. And today they think the Patriotic Front in government is doing what they used to do. If the Patriotic Front is indeed doing what the MMD used to do in government, let's have that addressed more openly and in accordance with the law.
The judges who presided over Dora's case are all identifiable. Let Nevers point out which of those judges has been compromised by the Patriotic Front leadership to deliver judgments in their favour.
It seems Nevers has no problem with the High Court of Zambia but has serious problems with the Supreme Court. Why? Is it because they have been getting their way with High Court judges whom they themselves had appointed or promoted? And how many judges both at the High Court and Supreme Court level have been appointed or promoted by the Patriotic Front government?
We think there is much more to learn from Nevers' claims and he should be asked a few questions so that more can come out from him. Let there be contempt proceedings against Nevers so that he can come and ulula - reveal everything that he knows about the alleged corruption and abuses of our Supreme Court judges.
But again, what will happen if Nevers is called to account for his claims against the Supreme Court is that he will cry victimisation, persecution. That's what they do. They do wrong things, injure other people's reputations but they don't want to account for what they have done. The best defence to any such claim is truth. If what Nevers is saying is true, there is nothing one can do against him. But let him come and show that his claim against the Supreme Court is true.
In our view, it is not really what the Patriotic Front wants from these election petitions that matters. What matters is what the MMD members of parliament whose elections have been petitioned did. If they did not engage in any electoral malpractices whatsoever, there is nothing the Patriotic Front and the courts can do against them.
But the reality before us is that electoral malpractices had become the order of the day for the MMD. Electoral malpractices were increasingly becoming the accepted way of conducting election campaigns. It had become normal in Zambia to bribe or corrupt the electorate. It had also become normal or acceptable to slander opponents in an election campaign, and this is why Nevers has difficulties accepting that an election could be nullified on account of slandering an opponent.
There is no doubt that Dora and her agents did slander their political opponents for the sole purpose of making them unelectable.
Dora is a liar who went around telling lies about her political opponents. And Dora's lies were brought to court. She could not deny them. And Kajimanga could not deny that Dora lied about her political opponents with the aim of discrediting them so that they are not elected and she is elected. This is an electoral malpractice that is not permitted under our electoral laws. Dora violated this and no fair court can ignore this fact and allow it to go unpunished. Dora is paying for her dirty, filthy and deceitful mouth.
There is need for our politicians to respect truth and their political opponents. Our courts of law have a duty to teach our politicians decent politics in this present atmosphere of fierce competition and character assassination. Election campaigns must be carried out in peaceful and honest ways, devoid of violence and slander of opponents. All must be guided by truth, integrity and justice.
Whatever the deficiencies some of the election petition judgments may have, what cannot be taken away from all these election petitions is the fact that our electoral system is being cleansed by the Judiciary. For this, our Judiciary deserves a lot of credit. There is no electoral malpractice that should be tolerated. We need zero tolerance to electoral malpractices.
And whatever motivation the Patriotic Front might have had in initiating these election petitions, they also deserve credit because our electoral system wouldn't have been subjected to this cleansing without their actions.
Nevers says the nullification of some opposition seats will create a one-party state. This is nonsense. What is he talking about? Does Nevers know what a one-party state is? And what did Nevers do to dismantle the one-party state that was in this country? Challenging electoral fraud through legitimate actions in the courts of law is not creating a one-party state. What is dangerous to our democracy is the perpetration of electoral fraud. And Nevers' party led the worst and most corrupt election campaigns ever known in the history of this country. They went too far and probably that's why even the election petitions against them have followed them that far.
We know Nevers and his friends are becoming desperate. Their numbers in Parliament, which they tried to use to protect their criminal behaviour, are no longer there. The only thing that will now save them is doing the right thing and sticking to the truth, and not insulting Supreme Court judges whose judgments they don't like.
Labels: DORA SILIYA, NEVERS MUMBA, SUPREME COURT
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Nevers questions ruling on Dora
By Allan Mulenga
Mon 01 July 2013, 14:00 CAT
MMD president Nevers Mumba yesterday questioned the Supreme Court ruling on Dora Siliya. But Minister of Justice Wynter Kabimba said it was unfortunate that Mumba, as a leader, could issue such contemptuous statements against the Supreme Court.
In a statement yesterday, over the Supreme Court's decision to overturn suspended High Court judge Charles Kajimanga's declaration that Siliya was duly elected member of parliament for Petauke Central, Mumba said the MMD had doubted the legitimacy and fairness of all Supreme Court rulings on parliamentary election petitions.
"The Zambian people are aware that the scheme to deplete the opposition numbers in Parliament was hatched by the PF in October 2011 after they won the election. The scheme was to increase the tally of their numbers to 106 required to have an absolute majority in Parliament," he said.
"This status is meant to give the ruling party unrestrained power to manipulate the Constitution and arrive at their ultimate goal of creating a one party state."
But Kabimba said the PF had lost more petitions than the party had won.
"And it is good for our democracy. Our Judiciary is saying they will not tolerate an electoral system tainted with corruption and bribery," said Kabimba.
And Mumba said PF's parliamentary election petitions border on excessive abuse of public funds.
"The PF petitioned almost all 55 seats won by the MMD in the 2011 general election in a hope to have them all nullified. This again was meant to work towards the creation of a one party state. Several of these petitions were won at the High Court level, but the State appealed to the Supreme Court against the High Court rulings. MMD may have a reason to believe that the PF agenda of depleting the opposition numbers of Parliament is now being aided by the Supreme Court bench," he said.
But Kabimba said PF petitioned because the party knew that MMD had used corruption and bribery to win those seats.
Mumba said the credibility of the Supreme Court bench had come under scrutiny, adding that Zambians would lose faith and confidence in the Supreme Court.
"As for honourable Dora Siliya's seat, we notice there was no mention of either corruption or rigging, and that is why it was thrown out by the High Court. But today, the Supreme Court is determined to continue with the agenda of nullifications. There is no institution or wing of government which should be exempted from scrutiny. In this case, the credibility of the Supreme Court bench has come under scrutiny. Zambians may soon lose faith and confidence in the Supreme Court," he said.
"The MMD demands that the President should begin to respect the Constitution and the decision of Parliament by immediately removing and replacing the Chief Justice. Failure to this, the opposition will be forced to deal with this illegality at the Supreme Court by disregarding the Supreme Court rulings. An illegality is an illegality whether it is perpetrated by the President or an ordinary citizen," said Mumba.
But Kabimba said it was unfortunate that Mumba could ridicule and belittle the Supreme Court.
Kabimba said the nullifications simply meant that MMD did not run a clean campaign but one based on corruption and bribery.
He said the PF had also lost petitions but had not complained, and wondered why the MMD was complaining.
Kabimba encouraged all losing PF candidates to petition because the PF suspected that the MMD used corrupt activities to win the elections.
"The statement itself is contemptuous of the Supreme court. If you remember, the decision by Dora Siliya in the High Court was in her favour. But we didn't complain ourselves as Patriotic Front. Neither did the petitioner go public to denounce the decision or the judgment of the High Court. But it is unfortunate that when you have a situation where the Supreme Court overturned the decision of the High Court, Nevers Mumba… and he is not the first one, the first one was Muhabi Lungu, can stand on a public platform and start condemning the Supreme Court in public. And condemning it by way of belittling it, and demeaning its status in our society."
Kabimba said the Judiciary was sending a message to all parties that they must allow the electorate to make a choice and not unduly influence them through bribery.
"This practice has to be brought to an end. Our candidates are being vindicated. MMD thought that they would get way with it. There is no need for the likes of Nevers Mumba to start pouring contemptuous comments on the Judiciary," he said.
Kabimba said Mumba was projecting an image of a bad loser.
"The Zambian people should condemn leaders like Nevers," said Kabimba.
Labels: CORRUPTION, DORA SILIYA, MMD, NEVERS MUMBA, WYNTER KABIMBA
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Zambia risks falling back into debt trap, says Siliya
By Kabanda Chulu
Sat 22 June 2013, 14:01 CAT
ZAMBIA risks falling back into a debt trap if the government doesn't create a transparent legal framework governing debt management, says MMD Petauke Central member of parliament Dora Siliya.
But acting finance Minister Emmanuel Chenda said the government had finalised preparations for the budget and planning Bill that will be tabled before the current session of Parliament.
And a report by the parliamentary committee on estimates has recommended that the government put in place mechanisms that will allow the Minister of Finance to circulate the draft budget to key stakeholders before presentation.
Chenda also assured that the government would soon develop a legal framework to guide debt contraction.
Seconding a motion of the report of the Estimates committee on Thursday, Siliya advised the government to safeguard debt contraction.
"There is lack of a comprehensive legal framework guiding debt contraction and people who appeared before the committee expressed concern that Zambia will go back into debt trap so government should open up this process," said Siliya.
"When Zambia reached HIPC, people were mobilised to support debt cancellation, so people should be informed whenever debts are contracted."
Contributing to debates, UPND Senanga member of parliament Likando Mufalali said Zambia would not develop without transparency.
"We want the budget Act so that portfolio committees can have insight of what the budget contains. The Ministry of Finance should also explain why they get funds allocated for the budget Act but the Bill is never brought to Parliament," said Mufalali.
But Chenda said government would consider recommendations made by the Committee.
"We are in total agreement with having transparency when making the budget. In the coming weeks, the budget and planning Bill will be circulated for consultation and then it shall be tabled here because we need to strengthen the oversight role of Parliament and to enhance its credibility," he said.
Chenda said the government was addressing debt management through various reforms.
"We shall have a legal framework governing debt management without waiting for the outcome of the constitution process," said Chenda.
Labels: CORRUPTION, DEBT, DORA SILIYA, EMMANUEL CHENDA
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Lubinda can't be trusted - Dora
By Roy Habaalu
Fri 05 Apr. 2013, 14:01 CAT
DORA Siliya says Given Lubinda teamed up with some opposition members of parliament to fight tourism minister Sylvia Masebo. And Lubinda, who is Kabwata Central PF member of parliament, said he needed time to digest Siliya's claims.
Siliya, who is MMD spokesperson and Petauke Central member of parliament, said Lubinda was a treacherous person that could not be trusted and always wanted to bring others down.
Siliya said she was not surprised that the PF wanted Lubinda out because he carried himself as the cleanest person yet his politics were of dark-corner meetings.
She claimed Lubinda, who has been suspended from the party for six months after the disciplinary committee found him guilty of treachery and working with the opposition to frustrate the government, discredited his party whenever he met opposition members of parliament when he was foreign affairs minister.
"I maintain that Given Lubinda is treacherous and can't be trusted. He always wants to bring others down and the same Sylvia he calls princess, he worked against her and told me that 'you (Dora) they harassed you that you cancelled the tender when you didn't but Sylvia cancelled the ZAWA tender'. Lubinda is a snake in the grass. When things go well for him, he turns against the very friends he worked with. UPND and I can testify including Sylvia. He's a proper snake in the grass" said Siliya.
Siliya said this was the beginning and would soon expose more of how Lubinda and his clique worked against Masebo and other party officials.
"That's why the good people of Kabwata Constituency saw through him that he's all talk and nothing else and he can't do a 'don't kubeba' on me because he says one thing and does the other. I maintain that Lubinda is treacherous with a tendency of working against his friends. He shouldn't cry like a baby that people are out to get him out of the party. He attempted to leak information to me and I refused because he can't be trusted but other people in PF, we can work with, not Lubinda. He thinks being APNAC (African Parliamentarian Network Against Corruption) president then he's presidential material, let him keep his presidential ambitions to himself. He's no presidential material," she said.
Siliya, a former minister of transport and communication, said it was Lubinda that took her to a tribunal accusing her of corruptly awarding a tender to a foreign company and pretended she was her friend.
"For three years he (Lubinda) was not talking to me but when the Sylvia issue came out, he walked straight to my seat in Parliament to make sure Sylvia was in trouble. I'm not interested in Sylvia's issues but I'll not be used in his schemes because he was against me, at least that's my opinion. He's a snake in the grass. I will not be his useful idiot to settle his scores and that I did tell him in Parliament that people thought he was using me against Masebo but I refused to be worse than a useful idiot and that is to be a stupid idiot," she said.
Siliya said Lubinda was an ambitious and dangerous politician who always wanted to satisfy his ego.
Lubinda had asked Siliya to apologise over her statement recently that he was a treacherous person.
Meanwhile, a source at Parliament has revealed that Lubinda had been inviting Catholic nuns at National Assembly where he complained of persecution by some party officials.
Labels: DORA SILIYA, GIVEN LUBINDA, MMD, PF, SYLVIA MASEBO
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Dora should not waste time defending herself - Ng'oma
By Allan Mulenga
Tue 26 Mar. 2013, 14:01 CAT
DORA Siliya should stop wasting money and time defending herself for raising a middle finger in Parliament, says Dr Alex Ng'oma.
Commenting Siliya's defence that she gestured in an insulting manner in Parliament because she was provoked by Bwacha PF member of Parliament Sydney Mushanga, Dr Ng'oma, who is University of Zambia political science lecturer, urged Siliya to be accountable for her action.
"Dora Siliya should be accountable for what she did. She is in Parliament not to pursue personal agendas or behave in a way she likes, but to represent the masses back there in Petauke district who cannot represent themselves in Parliament," he said. "She cannot go to Parliament to insult other people with the middle finger. We expected her to understand that Parliament is our honourable place where you are expected to behave in a respectable manner."
Dr Ng'oma said as an adult, Siliya should learn to control her emotions even under provocation.
"Adults should display maturity even when they are provoked. They must control their emotions and follow the laid down procedures of lodging complaints in Parliament. So, on that score Dora Siliya has failed. I can give her a D+," he said.
Dr Ng'oma said Siliya who is also MMD spokesperson should exercise humility and seek forgiveness.
"It does not help to be arrogant and defensive by hiring other people to speak on her behalf just because she has money," said Dr Ng'oma.
Siliya's gesture has received widespread condemnation from different sectors, including the Church, with some youth organisations threatening to block her from entering Parliament during the next session should the Speaker not expel her from the House.
Labels: ALEX NG'OMA, CORRUPTION, DORA SILIYA
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Kaingu defends Dora's 'finger'
By Kombe Chimpinde
Fri 22 Mar. 2013, 14:01 CAT
MICHAEL Kaingu says there is nothing wrong with a person raising a middle finger against another.
Kaingu who is MMD vice-president for politics and Mwandi member of parliament, said in an interview that Dora Siliya should be left alone to do her good works because debates on what punishment should be meted on her for raising her middle finger in Parliament last Friday is completely irrelevant to the Zambian culture.
He said there is nothing insulting about what the Petauke member of parliament did by raising her middle finger against those who remained in Parliament to debate a motion on the lifting of former president Rupiah Banda's immunity.
"Whether people like it or not, I am grounded in cultures. I have studied the Bemba cultures because they are many. There are Bisas, and all other tribes in that region. I have studied the Ngonis. There is
nothing insulting about raising a middle finger. They should just let Siliya continue with her good work," said Kaingu, whose daughter Iris, was found guilty and convicted for producing obscene material that corrupt morals.
"Even if that (Dora's action) is on video, what does the raising of a middle finger mean? Part of my PhD study is on culture, there is no culture in Zambia that uses that as an insult… 73 cultures in Zambia have nothing on record that shows that actually the raising of the middle finger is an insult."
He defended Siliya, describing her action as just a mere mocking expressing.
"Even if you are talking about globalisation, that we are living in today…that expression is not an insult per say. It is a mocking sign. Otherwise who can explain to you what it really means? Well people may come up with their own translations but it's no different from any other expression such as the PF's fist. It does not mean one is threatening violence, when they raise it; it is just a way to mock a person. UNIP has a slogan where they raise two fingers, does that mean an insult? It just means they are teasing those that are not UNIP. Somebody else could translate that to mean peace," Kaingu explained.
"…Its not an insult that is what I am saying. It could be offensive just as a fist is or Karate Chop which is the symbol of the UPND. Maybe a person who must be offended is an Italian because they know what it really means. It is a perception. We must be mindful how we mainstream other people's cultures in our cultures."
He said Zambians should learn to interact and express themselves freely.
"Let us learn to interact. We are so tensed up in this country," said Kaingu.
Parliamentary chief whip Yamfwa Mukanga on Tuesday said Parliament would definitely have to deal with the issue of Siliya's insulting gesture in the House.
And home affairs deputy minister Steven Kampyongo described Siliya as morally bankrupt, while some youth have called for Siliya's expulsion from Parliament.
Labels: DORA SILIYA, INSULTS, MICHAEL KAINGU, MMD
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Minister can't overrule PS, witness testifies in Dora's case
By Namatama Mundia
Thu 28 Feb. 2013, 13:02 CAT
A WITNESS in a case where
former transport minister Dora Siliya is charged with two counts of abuse of authority of office has testified that
a minister cannot overrule a permanent secretary on implementation of policy.
In this case, Siliya, the Petauke Central member of parliament is in count one alleged to have directed the cancellation of a duly awarded tender for the supply, delivery, installation and commissioning of the Zambia air traffic management surveillance radar system to Thales Air System SA.
In count two, Siliya is alleged to have accepted a free offer from Selex Sistemi Integrati S.P.A for the repair of a radar head at the then Lusaka International Airport without following procedure.
During cross examination on Tuesday before Lusaka chief resident magistrate Joshua Banda, Cabinet Office permanent secretary in charge of administration Anna Mwitwa Mwewa, 33, said the minister cannot overrule a permanent secretary on implementation of policy because the later is a controlling officer.
She however, said the minister can overrule the permanent secretary on financial matters such as expenditure.
According to the Cabinet handbook on procurement which Mwewa read in court, it stated that a minister was supposed to refer to the permanent secretary and make it clear that he or she had no authority to commit to government expenditure as the same was vested into the controlling officer.
Mwewa outlined the various positions held by Siliya saying the former minister was first appointed commerce deputy minister by late president Levy Mwanawasa, on October 9, 2006 before being appointed as communications and transport minister in 2008.
She said Siliya resigned her position on April 2009 following a report of the tribunal on the same issues of the radar system.
Mwewa said that Siliya was re-appointed communications minister by former president Rupiah Banda before being appointed education minister.
When during re-examination on who should account for the initial acceptance of a free officer and acceptance of paying the additional costs, Mwewa told the court that the minister responsible at that moment should be responsible for the role played.
Hearing continues.
Labels: CORRUPTION, DORA SILIYA
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Probe team warns, cautions Dora
By Ernest Chanda
Wed 20 Feb. 2013, 14:00 CAT
THE Government Joint Investigations Team on Monday warned and cautioned Dora Siliya in connection with the
signing of a memorandum of understanding (MoU) with RP Capital Partners of Cayman Islands, which led to the privatisation of Zamtel.
According to team spokesperson Namukolo Kasumpa, Siliya, who is former communications and transport minister was cautioned for the offence of abuse of authority of office, by signing an MoU and an Addendum without authorisation.
She disclosed that as a result of such a transaction, Siliya committed the government to an expenditure of over K800 million (KR800 thousand), an act arbitrary and prejudicial to the interests of the government of the Republic of Zambia.
Kasumpa said that during the warn and caution process, Siliya opted to remain silent and did not respond to the allegation.
According to an MoU which Siliya, in 2008 signed with RP Capital Partners Limited to evaluate Zamtel's assets, ahead of its privatisation, the Zambian government was mandated to pay RP Capital Partners Limited a fee amounting to five per cent of the negotiated amount and would get US $2 million about K10.3 billion as transaction fees at the end of the transaction.
However, at the end of the transaction, RP Capital Partners Limited got about US $12.8 million (approximately K65 billion) from the Zambian government after the sale of Zamtel to Libya's Lap Green Network.
And despite legal advice from the Attorney General's Chambers against engaging RP Capital Partners Limited without following the procedures, Siliya, on behalf of the Zambian government, on December 22, 2008 signed the MoU with RP Capital.
According to the MoU, RP Capital Partners Limited had been contracted by the Zambian government to provide consultancy services to the government in connection with valuation of Zamtel for purposes of the potential sale of government shares in Zamtel, assistance in negotiations with prospective acquirers in conjunction with the government team and project management of the potential Zamtel sale process working with the Ministry of Communications and Transport and/or the Zambia Development Agency (ZDA), as the case may be.
And on Saturday, June 5, 2010, then finance and national planning minister Dr Situmbeko Musokotwane announced that the government had agreed to sell 75 per cent shares in Zamtel to Libya's LAP Green Network for US$257 million (about K1.3 trillion).
And since RP Capital Partners Limited was entitled to five per cent of the negotiated amount, in this case US$257 million, it meant that the firm would be given about US$12.8 million.
Then president Rupiah Banda's son, Henry, was said to have introduced RP Capital Partners Limited to Siliya and the Ministry of Communications and Transport.
In early 2009, sources revealed to The Post that Henry was one of the contact persons for RP Capital Partners Limited and that he had attended some meetings at the ministry.
Henry has since refused to appear before investigative wings and is on a self-imposed exile in South Africa.
Labels: CORRUPTION, DANNY GERTLER, DORA SILIYA, RP CAPITAL PARTNERS
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'Dora committed govt to paying additional funds for radar'
By Agness Changala
Thu 24 Jan. 2013, 14:00 CAT
A WITNESS on Tuesday told the Lusaka Magistrates' Court that Dora Siliya as minister in-charge of airports committed the government to paying additional funds towards what was supposed to be free radar repair by Selex.
And the witness told the court that the committee recommended the outright purchase of a radar system for Lusaka International Airport (now Kenneth Kaunda) because it had information that the equipment that existed was not serviceable.
During re-examination by the prosecution in a case where Siliya, a former Transport and Communications minister, is in court for two counts of abuse of authority of office, John Chipuwe, a former Ministry of Transport and Communications assistant secretary in-charge of air transport, told the court that Siliya accepted the free offer from Selex to repair the radar system at Lusaka International Airport.
He said additional costs arose from the same free offer.
"At first there was a free offer by Selex to repair the radar system at the airport but later they submitted additional interventions and according to technical people, free offer should have gone up to the time the equipment started working," he said.
Chipuwe said Thales was recommended because it met the criteria according to the evaluation committee and that it was not new for companies to form a consortium to bid for a tender.
And earlier, during examination in chief, Chipuwe told the court that in April 8, 2008, he was chairing a committee tasked to advise the ministry on the purchase of a radar system for Lusaka International Airport.
Chipuwa said among options were to repair the radar system at the airport or to out-rightly purchase a new one.
He said after the recommendations were accepted, the procurement process commenced and that later, site visits were conducted at Lusaka and Livingstone international airports.
Chipuwe said bidders submitted their bids and that six of them were evaluated.
He said the committee recommended the supply of equipment by Thales because they met all the criteria to be awarded a tender.
Chipuwe said Dr Eustern Mambwe, who was permanent secretary, referred the report to the Zambia Public Procurement Authority who also accepted the recommendation for Thales to supply the radar.
He said on December 8, 2008, he received a memo through the director of planning addressed to the permanent secretary and the minister seeking his opinion on Selex's proposal to repair the radar equipment.
"My observation was that I was wondering as to why Selex which said the equipment was serviceable had u-turned and was saying it was irreparable," Chipuwe said.
He also said there was a pledge from Ministry of Finance and National Planning to purchase the radar system.
In cross-examination, Chipuwe said his report on the irreparable radar system was based on a report which was submitted by the evaluation mission which stated that the radar system was unserviceable.
Chipuwe said he had no idea about the current status of the radar system and that it was beyond his control to comment further.
Chipuwa also said the committee recommended the single sourcing of Selex in 2008.
He also said Siliya did not sit in any committee but was quick to mention that once the committee made recommendation, the minister and permanent secretary made the decisions.
Trial continues.
Labels: CORRUPTION, DORA SILIYA, MMD
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In-fighting in MMD normal, says Dora
By Roy Habaalu, Allan Mulenga and Kombe Chimpinde
Mon 31 Dec. 2012, 13:00 CAT
DORA Siliya says the in-fighting in the MMD is normal.
Siliya, who is MMD spokesperson, said it was expected of any party that lost power to have its members deep in wrangles.
"It's normal to have squabbles in the party that has lost power not for a party that has won an election. When you lose an election, you have lost everything and you need to organise yourselves, so for a party that loses an election the fights are normal because some people feel disoriented because they feel their power base has been taken away," Siliya said in an interview.
Recently, several senior MMD members passed a vote of no confidence in their leader Nevers Mumba.
She said those that were not happy with the MMD leadership should show maturity by resigning.
Siliya claimed there were no camps in the former ruling party and that there was only one MMD.
"There is only one MMD. Anybody else in another camp is an enemy of the party and they must leave. For those intending to join PF, let them be sure that they will be welcome before they defect because sooner than later they will need us.
Our party is about ideas not a person. Politics is about having a following not those opposing yet they only have a handful of supporters," said Siliya.
Siliya said as the largest opposition party, MMD had set democratic standards in the country's history.
She said in 2013, the party would provide new hope for economic growth by growing investment.
She said MMD would provide guidance on national matters such as health and education and ensure citizens were empowered.
"In the coming year, we hope to see the President more often and hear him address challenges the country was going through. Zambian's would like to see their President more often and know what is passion is," said Siliya.
But Gladys Lundwe said the suspensions of MMD senior members would diminish the party. Lundwe, who is chairperson for tourism, said politics was about numbers.
"You start subtracting membership then you are also diminishing the party in a way. There are people who have families. In politics, if you find a mad person who is an eligible voter, you must respect that person because that vote can give you something," she said.
Lundwe, who was commenting on the suspension of Catherine Namugala, urged the party leadership to respect the rule of law and abide by the party constitution.
"If they have done something wrong, procedure should be followed. You call that person, ask the person to exculpate themselves and then like in any other organisation, there are those warnings, verbal warnings and written warnings.
Those things must be followed before you are suspended. We are not respecting the rule of law. So now if people are not able to talk, I think that is infringing on their rights. They must respect the rule of law," she said.
Lundwe said the party leadership should accept that there were problems in MMD.
"If there is no dialogue, the problems will be building on. MMD needs to have proper guidance from founder members because now, the party, it is not being run seriously," she said.
Lundwe urged Mumba to seek advice from founder members on how to run the party.
"The only way that MMD is going to stand on its two feet again is to call upon all founder members like the VJs, Mabengas and others to come and sit the members down and advise the way forward. Otherwise these problems will not end and you will find that every now and then there will be suspensions, expulsions and that will diminish the party," said Lundwe.
But MMD vice-president for politics Michael Kaingu said party members had not given Mumba time to excel since he was elected.
"For me, I feel that president Mumba has not been given an opportunity to actually excel and propel himself. It looks like from the time he came into power, he has been fought. Today its Nevers, the other day it will be Mutati, the other day it will be Kaingu," he said.
And Kaingu said that the party did not have a provision currently to remove the president on grounds other than medical as stipulated in the constitution.
Kaingu said members that were not happy with Mumba's leadership would have to wait for another elective convention that would be held before elections.
Even Namugala knows that in the party, you can only ascend to power through an election and after our defeat last year, a decision was made that we have a convention to elect a president. People went into campaign and president Mumba was elected.
Whether president Mumba is not the president Catherine has wanted, whether president Mumba is what…this is what we have got and our constitution which Catherine has sworn to protect has no provision to remove an elected president. Our Constitution has only one article that can only nullify or invalidate a sitting president - article 40 which states clearly that a president can only be removed if incapacitated or he has gone berserk," he said.
"In 2016, we will have another convention. If president Mumba wins, probably, he will be president but for our party, the president may not necessarily be the presidential candidate. As you are aware that president Mwanawasa was picked completely outside. So the NEC sits to look at the names to come up with the presidential candidate."
Kaingu said all NEC members would have to go and re-seek a fresh mandate from party members.
He said the argument that Kapembwa Simbao was holding the office of national secretary in an acting capacity was a buried issue.
"Simbao is acting for convenience sake. He does not also necessarily need to be a member of NEC. The constitution does not say so. In fact, I think our constitution has provided for a space for national secretary.
Having a national secretary who is also a NEC member has been an anomaly. It's like having a board of directors where a manager is also a director. We have already said a quorum was formed so that line by Namugala cannot be over exhausted unless all of us want to be so foolish that we cannot find new materials to discuss," said Kaingu.
Labels: DORA SILIYA, MMD
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