A leading civil society organization has said President Michael Sata’s silence on the constitution is fuelling speculation.

And the Technical Committee on the Constitution is set to meet tomorrow to forge the way forward on the constitution.

Foundation for Democratic Process Executive Director MacDonald Chipenzi said there had been no attempt by government to dispel rumours that a 10 member committee has been formed to validate the draft constitution with the Technical Committee refusing to sign the draft constitution following government’s diverting from the original plan.

Chipenzi said government needed to clarify on its intentions to form a ten member committee to take over the constitution making process.

“We want to challenge government on revelations that they intend to form a 10 member committee to validate the draft constitution and also on reports that government intends to extend the duration,” he said.

Chipenzi also demanded that the details of the meeting between President Sata and the Technical Committee be made public.

Meanwhile, the Technical Committee is set to meet tomorrow to decide on their next step following government’s order that they print only 10 copies for the President alone.

The post Technical Committee to Chart Way Forward on Constitution Tomorrow appeared first on Zambia Reports.

William Harrington, a private citizen of Zambia wrote the Chief Justice of Zambia requesting that a tribunal be instituted to probe the activities of a cabinet minister. Hon. Sylvia Masebo is alleged to have committed some irregularities with regard to her role in personnel firing, board appointments and subsequent awarding of tenders in the Ministry of Tourism and Wildlife. Harrington petitioned the Chief Justice in keeping with the Parliamentary and Ministerial Code of Conduct. At section 13 (1) the Code states that:

An allegation that a Member has breached Part II may be made to the Chief Justice by any person, in writing giving particulars of the breaches or breaches alleged, signed by the complainant and giving the complainant’s name and address.

What is so interesting about the facts of this case is how similar they are to a case, again brought by the same William Harrington (Harrington v. Siliya & Attorney General [2009]). In the Siliya case, Harrington had brought similar charges accusing Hon Dora Siliya of obtaining pecuniary advantage from her position as Minister of Transport and Communications. The Siliya case made its way up to the Supreme Court and its ratio decidendi must be relied on in this new case of Masebo.

With regard to Harrington v. Masebo, however, the Acting Chief Justice of Zambia, Lombe Chibesakunda neglected to constitute a tribunal. Among other reasons, she rationalized that she did not have sufficient information from Harrington. Harrington sought judicial review of Chibesakunda’s decision and Justice Sichinga of the Lusaka High Court ruled that under the Ministerial Code of Conduct the Chief Justice of Zambia should have constituted the tribunal.

When Harrington petitioned Justice Sichinga, Zambia’s Attorney General joined the proceedings, as expected. Mumba Malila was of the view that the Chief Justice was right in her decision to stall in appointing the tribunal. Obviously, Mumba Malila lost this case and Justice Sichinga sided with Harrington. Chibesakunda was going to appoint the tribunal.

Zambia’s Chief Justice, in so far as she functions within contemplation of the Ministerial Code of Conduct, is not functioning as a judicial officer but rather as an officer of the administrative state. And so with regard to her constituting of the tribunal she is subject to normal judicial review procedure. It is, therefore, not surprising that a judge, one court her junior, compelled her to appoint a tribunal. After Sichinga’s ruling, Chief Justice Chibesakunda complied with the court and appointed a tribunal to probe the conduct of Hon. Sylvia Masebo. However, before the tribunal could sit, Sylvia Masebo and the Attorney General applied to court to have this decision stayed as the Attorney General appeals to the Supreme Court.

What is at issue here is whether Zambia’s Attorney General can in fact appeal against a tribunal set-up to probe a political leader. In other words, is it legally right within our legal and political system of governance for Mumba Malila to appeal against the formation of a tribunal by the Chief Justice?

The goal of the Ministerial Code of Conduct is clearly laid down in statute. It is aimed at increasing political accountability of members of cabinet not only to the president but also to the people of Zambia directly. Section 3 (1) of the Ministerial Code of Conduct Act states that:

The provisions of this Part shall constitute part of the code of conduct for Members for the purposes of the Constitution, a breach of which results in the vacation of the seat of the Member concerned.

It is the people of Zambia who appoint and vote for politicians to lead in governing. However, it is within contemplation of both the constitution and statute that politicians will have to account personally for their official acts. It is in this vein, therefore, that the role of Harrington should be seen and interpreted. This being the case, the Attorney General of Zambia, should not appear to be impeding political accountability of ministers to the people of Zambia. Instead of impeding this accountability, the Attorney General should be enhancing it.

The law governing the role of the Attorney General in our democracy can be found in at least three sources: the common law, the constitution and statute. Constitutionally, the role of the Attorney General is espoused in Article 54 of the constitution. Statutorily, the role of the Attorney General can be found in various statues that bring his role under contemplation. The common law also has some specific judge made rules regarding the role of the Attorney General. A review of all these three sources reveals the following principles.

First, the AG is the principal legal advisor of the government. This means that she is the lawyer or counsel for the president and his government. Typically then, President Sata and his government ministers go to court under the cover of the Attorney General. The role of legal adviser is just that “adviser”. This does not mean that government cannot make decisions unless the AG endorses them. According to the impeccable reasoning of Justice Musonda in the Dora Siliya Tribunal case, while the AG is indeed a legal adviser to the government, a government minister is not under legal duty to accept the advise from the AG. Just like what happens in any solicitor to client relationship, a client can refuse to follow counsel. Having the AG as legal adviser to government does not mean that government should only function according to the advise of the Attorney General. The Supreme Court on appeal did not have problems with Musonda’s reasoning per se, they only took issues with his decision to delve into constitutional matters considering that the case at his bar was a judicial review application.

In our political government it is not laws that rule through people, but rather people that rule through laws. Laws are not the principal but people are. It is politicians we hold responsible for government and not laws. As such, Musonda was right. Government can be crippled if it has to wait for an AG to advise on each and every issue. In fact, Musonda went even further by suggesting that sometimes the duty of governance entails taking political decisions that are at variance with the current state of the law. Laws take a long time to change, and no government should be held to ransom due to the inflexibility of laws in so far as governance is concerned. Just as no courts of law can promulgate an injunction against the state, so can’t the advise of the AG bind the state. A politician who makes a decision, with or without advise from the AG is still personally and politically responsible for her decision. It is quite telling, that during the time of the Dora Siliya case, it was Mumba Malila who was AG. It does appear like he never learnt from this opinion. As adviser to government, Mumba Malila should not assume that he could block political accountability of government ministers.

Second, the AG is the general officer of the juristic public interest. This role goes beyond being a legal counsel to a sitting government. If the public interest were a person, the lawyer it would hire would be and should be the AG. In a general sense, the AG acts for this public interest. Public interest could include the AG intervening in certain criminal prosecutions due to the general nature of its impact on public interest. Public interest is widely interpreted. In fact, most courts would let the AG join in court proceedings quite liberally. The courts respect the role of the AG in this respect. I see that Malila could use this power to say that he is interfering in the Masebo case due to public interest matters. The problem in arguing this would betray the very nature of public interest which is on the side of personal accountability of ministers to the people of Zambia. If Malila cannot tell what is truly in public interest, then he should resign from this position and the taxpayers can be better served by a leader of the Zambian bar who understands what is truly at the heart of this public interest.

Third, the AG is the lawyer not only of the political government, but also of the administrative government. What this means is that the AG is legal counsel for the Zambian administrative state with all its tributaries. All state institutions covered under administrative law are within cover of the Attorney General. The administrative law includes statutory bodies, tribunals and commissions of the state. It is this limb that makes the Attorney General to be party to court cases involving the ECZ and bodies such as the Mutuna tribunal. Once an administrative act is done, it automatically assumes a legal defender: the Attorney General.

Specifically, the tribunal is funded directly by the taxpayer (s.15 of the Ministerial Code of Conduct). A taxpayer funded operation; the tribunal deserves legal representation from the foremost taxpayer legal counsel, the Attorney General.

Since a tribunal constituted by the administrative state should have the Attorney General as its lawyer, it becomes quite questionable that in the case of Sylvia Masebo tribunal, the Attorney General has decided to join proceedings against the tribunal. This is quite unusual. The major question to ask here is: who is the client of the AG between Masebo and the tribunal?

Munshya wa Munshya
Masebo cannot be client of the Attorney General because within the contemplation of the Ministerial Code of Conduct, a minister is personally responsible for his or her action. What Harrington is petitioning is that Masebo might have gotten pecuniary advantage from her position as minister. The Code is aimed at increasing personal accountability of government political leaders. If the Attorney General impedes this then personal accountability will be betrayed. Even if Masebo made decisions on advise of the AG in the first instance, once a tribunal has been instituted against her, the AG ceases to be her lawyer. She must find other lawyers to represent her. As it were, the tribunal is a government organ while Sylvia Masebo in so far as the tribunal is concerned does not function as a government organ. The tribunal is a political process of accountability of government ministers directly to the people. In fact, specifically the Code of Conduct brings a ministerial tribunal at par with Commission of Inquiry instituted under the Inquiries Act (Code of Conduct section 14 [10]). Therefore, there should no difference between a constitutional review commission and ministerial tribunal. They are both organs instituted by the State.

By insisting that he represent her or rather that he defends her, Malila has betrayed the Zambian people who are actually his clients. If Malila wants to be Masebo’s lawyer then the honourable thing he should do is to give up the taxpayers’ salary and go and become Masebo’s lawyer. The Zambian people have already hired Malila. He has a duty to defend both good and bad decisions made by the Zambian state. He has a duty to defend the tribunal even if it were irregularly constituted. In fact, he should be spending time trying to defend the tribunal rather than betraying it.

The principle here is not that Chibesakunda was right or wrong to constitute a tribunal. The issue is whose client will the tribunal be? And it is clear that the tribunal already has a lawyer: Mumba Malila. If Malila does not want that then he should resign. A new AG will meet him in court and defeat him viciously.

This article is an independent write up sourced from Elias Munshya wa Munshya’s literature.

The post Opinion: Why Mumba Malila Is Wrong on Masebo Tribunal appeared first on Zambia Reports.

Patrotic Front (PF) officials in Chongwe constituency are scheming how to shield a corrupt official in Kapwayambale ward who has plundered over K40, 000 Constituency Development Funds (CDF).

Information has emerged that the ward official only identified as Tembo mapped out a plan in which he managed to withdraw CDF funds from the Chongwe District Council meant for erecting bridges and shelters at bus stops in the ward.

However, none of the other officials in the ward are aware of the procedure Tembo used to withdraw the funds and there is a fight among the PF officials because some individuals want Tembo to face the law while others want to shield him from the possible arrest and prosecution.

The CDF has been one of the controversial and most abused funds by PF parliamentarians and their councillors even when there are stringent guidelines meant to stop abuse.

In the case from Chongwe, anonymous sources who confirmed the corruption said Tembo must have connived with other people at the Chongwe District Council because it was not possible for an individual to withdraw CDF resources without authenticated signatures of ther officials.

According to the PF sources from Chongwe, Tembo was given over K40, 000 which he used to erect substandard bridges and bus stop shelters.

“It is so disheartening to see trusted officials from the ruling party stealing in broad day light and without shame. We came with the promise to work for the people, but it has turned out that we are now the one stealing from the people and are involved in the worst forms of corruption than the previous government,” the source said.

According to the source, Tembo collected K40, 000 and he used some of his relatives to work on the substandard infrastructure.

“Tembo went to gather his relatives from Matero and other places. He bought a few bags of cement and did shoddy works. >From the look of things, he did not even use all the money because the work he did is laughable,” the source said.

Last week, PF officials from Chongwe and some wards within the constituency met to discuss the matter but confusion reigned because some people wanted to fan violence against those who pushed for Tembo to account for the public money.

The source said that some receipts were produced for the work that had been done, but it was suspected that the proof of payment presented were bogus papers that lacked proper credibility.

“The receipts which were shown to us during the meeting were clearly fake. So we rejected them but Tembo promised to bring original receipts. There were two boys who were sponsored to bring confusion at the meeting because we did not conclude the meeting amicably as the gathering was thrown into turmoil by those who sided with Tembo. What is happening in the ruling party here is not good. There are so many other wrong that some of our colleagues have done and it would be difficult to campaign next time. We have clearly wronged and angered the people,” the source said.

Efforts to get a comment from area Member of Parliament Sylvia Masebo failed by press time because her mobile phone went an answered, while a attempt to interview her at her office was not possible because she was out for a meeting.

Other efforts to get an interview from Tembo failed because his mobile phone was switched off.

The post Chongwe Development Funds Allegedly Stolen appeared first on Zambia Reports.

Political activist Dante Saunders says Zambians must forget about a good constitution under the Patrotic Front (PF) government.

Speaking in an interview, Saunders says he PF government had shown a trend of consistent inconsistencies with regard to the constitution making process.

He said President Sata had shown unwillingness to support and adopt progressive clauses that respond to the wishes of Zambians in the constitution under review.

Saunders said the PF government had lost the trust and confidence of the Zambian people because of their lies and fake promises.

He said leaders like vice president Dr Guy Scott had become blatant liars who had no shame to cheat Zambians even on the floor of parliament that all was well with the constitution making process when in fact not.

Saunders said Dr Guy Scott’s promise that the government decision to publish only 10 copies of the new constitution were for ceremonial purposes did not make sense because all Zambians and other interested stakeholders wanted to access the proposed constitution simultaneously.

Saunders said the idea of printing only 10 copies for the executive was one of the selfish tricks to manipulate the constitution of Zambia.

“Personally and it is the view of many other people out there that we must forget about these people giving us a good constitution. They have shown all the signs that a good constitution is not coming. Remember Sata had even openly refused good clauses such as the Presidential running mate and the 50 plus one percent. They have failed to adhere to any timeline and they are at loggerheads with the technical committee mandated to work on the constitution. From these, an observer like me notes so many consistent inconsistencies that point to the idea that a good constitution is not coming. We are doomed once again,” he said.

Saunders said Zambians expected a good constitution that would last the test of time from the PF government since Mr Sata and his team had promised the people a good constitution within 90 days after ascending to power.

He said the promise of a good constitution was one of the failed pledges that Mr Sata had tabled before Zambians in his days as an opposition leader.

Saunders, a former ally of Mr Sata said Zambians were not gullible to be hoodwinked in such callous manner.

“The people of Zambia are not sleepy as the PF and Sata want to believe. Zambians are more enlightened and alert now than ever before. Therefore, people out there are recording and booking the PF for all the wrongs and lies going on. A time will come when the people shall bring the party in power to book because enough is enough,” he said.

Saunders said Justice Minister Wynter Kabimba was the wrong man to have at the rudder of the constitution making process because of the controversy surrounding him in the ruling PF and that Kabimba had not shown any real commitment to working on a good constitution.

Wynter Kabimba has been issuing threats and other derogatory statements against his own committee that is working on the constitution. From the onset, you can see that Kabimba is not working well with the committee and so then how can we expect a good constitution. He is the wrong man to have in charge of such a serious national programme,” he said.

Saunders said the PF government would have a difficult time convincing Zambians for a second chance in office because of the consistent lies and wrongs committed in the current term of office.

The post PF Will Not Produce a Fair Constitution – Saunders appeared first on Zambia Reports.

Prominent Choma farmer Peter Greene has died after being attacked by a wild animal.

The 84 year old Greene who has been an agricultural pillar in the area in the post Independence era is said to have been attacked by an un-identified wild animal on Monday evening at his farm located about 10 kilomtres from the town centre.

The animal also killed his dog in unclear circumstances.

The post Wild Animal Kills Prominent Choma Farmer appeared first on Zambia Reports.

Nurses at the Levy Mwanawasa General Hospital have joined their colleagues at the University Teaching Hospital by downing tools following government’s failure to meet their demands.

The nurses at the University Teaching Hospital have continued their strike action despite Health Minister Joseph Kasonde ordering them to go back for work.

Yesterday nurses and other medical staff at Livingstone General Hospital joined the strike that is slowly getting out of hand as they hope to press government to address their concerns.

At Levy Mwanawasa hospital the nurses took to idling as they stayed away from their duty posts.

The nurses are demanding the bettering of the four percent salary increment they received despite government having bragged about having offered an up to 200% salary increment.

Naturally, nurses are almost at the foot of the pay chain and government’s claim that lowly paid workers in the civil service would receive the highest percentage would have meant nurses got a better percentage.

Nurses want their K2, 800 monthly salary increased and also want the disparities in the pay roll system corrected.

The post More Nurses Join Strike as Action Spreads appeared first on Zambia Reports.

Movement for Multi Party Democracy President Nevers Mumba has watered down the statement by party chairperson for finance Situmbeko Musokotwane about opposing the 50 plus one vote.

Mumba who spoke through his spokesperson Muhabi Lungu said Musokotwane was in principle in support of a majoritarian system but may have had his remarks taken out of context.

He said the MMD was in firm support of the 50 plus one as the best way of choosing a legitimately accepted leader.

“The MMD is in support of the 50 plus one vote and it was the position we submitted to the Technical Committee so I talked to Dr Musokotwane and I think his comments were taken out of context because he is in support of a majoritarian system,” Mumba said.

He said the MMD believed that if a referendum was to be hled before the end of the PF’s first term of office lapsed the best moment was next year.

Mumba said if the referendum is not held next year it would close any chance of holding it in the PF’s first year in office.

The post MMD Disowns Musokotwane’s 50+1 Remark appeared first on Zambia Reports.

Opposition Movement for Multi Party Democracy (MMD) president Nevers Mumba says the late delivery of inputs will jeopardize the food security of the country.

Dr Mumba said the Patriotic Front government had been causal in their approach to improving the food security in the country with their chaotic agricultural policies.

He said the late delivery of inputs and the delay in paying farmers who supplied maize to the Food Reserve Agency was hurting the morale of the farmers ahead of the 2014 farming season.

“The promise of the PF government was that they will deliver inputs on time and that farmers will be paid but the situation on the ground is not the corresponding which is typical of the PF,” he said.

Dr Mumba said the PF was departing from the healthy record of the of bumper harvests left by the MMD.

The post Zambia’s Food Security Compromised, says Nevers Mumba appeared first on Zambia Reports.

The Patriotic Front’s appetite for borrowing is getting bolder with Finance Minister Alexander Chikwanda presenting a motion to Parliament to allow for the increase of the amount outstanding.

Chikwanda seeks to increase the external debt threshold from K20 billion to a staggering K30 billion rebased currency.

The PF government seeks to amend section 3 of the Loans and Guarantees (Authorization) Act 366 of the laws of Zambia and Chikwanda has asked Parliament to support the move at a time President Michael Sata is being advised to halt the excessive borrowing.

Zambia is slowly steeping into a debt trap with various civil society organizations voicing their concerns.

The post PF’s Appetite for Loans Keep Growing appeared first on Zambia Reports.

Zambia Congress of Trade Unions president Leonard Hikaumba says government’s threats against striking nurses have only helped aggravate the situation.

Hikaumba said the strike action that has entered day five has been mishandled by government who has not admitted as being the instigator of the strike action.

“We are not sure that government is being strategic by using intimidation and threats on nurses because the nurses demands are crystal clear,” Hikaumba said.

“In our interaction with the nurses we have noted that they are willing go back to work as long as government assures them that their concerns will be addressed.”

The strike action that started with the University Teaching Hospital is slowly spreading to other parts of the country with government’s only response being a threat to return to work.

In a rather I don’t care attitude, the PF government has also gone ahead to deploy a small number of military personnel at UTH who cannot meet the demands of servicing the institution.

The post Hikaumba Cautions PF Against Aggression on Nurses appeared first on Zambia Reports.

People’s Party President Mike Mulongoti has charged that President Michael Sata has disappointed Zambians who thought he would bring change to the country.

Mulongoti told QFM News in an interview that the people of Zambia had so much confidence in President Sata but are now disappointed by his failure to fulfill the campaign promises within the promised timeframe and his public castigation of his Ministers.

Mulongoti says people are now beginning to wonder whether there is any dignity in serving in the public service because of the way ministers are being humiliated.

He adds that this is also killing the interest of young people aspiring for political office.

Mulongoti, who campaigned for Sata ahead of the September 2011 elections and later apologised for what he admitted as a huge mistake, further states that the President and his Ministers are supposed to be role models to young people in their conduct and language.

The post Sata Has Disappointed Zambians, says Mulongoti appeared first on Zambia Reports.

Opposition United Liberal Party (ULP) president Sakwiba Sikota says he is still not convinced with government’s explanation on the directive for the technical committee drafting the constitution to print only 10 copies of the final draft constitution.

Vice President Guy Scott recently clarified in Parliament that the printing of the 10 copies of the final draft constitution is only ceremonial as the first copies to be handed over to President Michael Sata.

Sikota is however of the view that the onus is still on the Patriotic Front (PF) government to convince the nation on its decision to printing only 10 copies of the final document.

He says the decision by the PF government to exclusively have access to the final draft constitution is also suspicious.

Sikota says by direct the printing of only 10 copies of the draft constitution, the PF government is hypothetically mudding the waters on the country’s new constitution and that it is unlikely things will settle.

The post Sikota says Scott is Vague on Constitution Copies appeared first on Zambia Reports.

The Zambia Police has sealed off the Patriotic Front Lusaka District office a day after ruling party cadres had re-opened it. The office, located in the Central Business District, has been the boiling point for warring factions.

Warring factions supporting defence minister Geoffrey Bwalya Mwamba and his justice counterpart Wynter Kabimba have clashed in bloody showdowns several times. Deaths have been recorded from the clashes triggered by a power struggle.

Top PF leadership believes Sata will not be ready for 2016 on medical grounds the reason GBM and Kabimba are position themselves to take over.

Meanwhile, armed police officers have also been deployed to keep away any cadres that may wish to wrestle the office from the law enforcement officers.

On Monday, Panga survivor Julius Komaki announced the re-opening of the office with a strong attack on party Secretary General Wynter Kabimba who he said must relinquish his position.

The post Police Seal of PF Battleground in Lusaka appeared first on Zambia Reports.

Defiant striking University Teaching Hospital nurses have continued with their strike action.

The strike action has now entered day five with no solution in sight as government has refused to meet the nurses claiming that negotiations with the union representatives have been progressing well.

With nurses and other health staff at Levy Mwanawasa and Livingstone joining the strike, the situation is slowly slipping out of hand.

Nurses are demanding for the rectifying of the discrepancies in the pay structure and also bettering of the four percent salary increment they received.

Government had announced that it had increased salaries across the board with the lowest paid standing to receive as high as 200 percent which whipped up expectations among the nurses.

The post Nurses Defiant, Strike Continues appeared first on Zambia Reports.

The ruling Patriotic Front in Eastern Province says it is disturbed by the long term presence of former Anti Voter Apathy President Bonny Tembo.

Eastern Province PF chairperson Lameck Mangani said Tembo had been in the province since the Chipata Central by-election four months ago.

Tembo, a once upon a time vocal governance activist, has been incorporated in the PF party structure with an obscure role in the elections committee.

“The presence of Bonny Tembo in the province for a very long time in the province is causing confusion in the province because no one knows what he is doing,” Mangani said.

“He has been in Petauke since the Chipata Central by-election and we had Mkaika and the members are confused as to what he is doing here. We do not know why he is here and he has not interacted with the provincial leadership.”

The post Mangani Upset with Bonny Tembo in Petauke appeared first on Zambia Reports.

Nurses in Kasama have joined their counterparts in some parts of the country in striking over irregularities in pay structure and also improved conditions of service.

The nurses convened a meeting with the Zambia National Union of Nurses and agreed to go on an indefinite strike until government addresses their concerns.

Among other demands are that Labour Minister Fackson Shamenda addresses them having promised to put his head of the chopping board for them during last month’s strike action that was called off at his behest.

Zambia National Union of Nurses Kasama Branch General Secretary Francis Musonda said the nurses would not go back to work until their grievances were met.

“We met today and resolved that we want Minister Shamenda to come and address us since the last time he told us to go back to work while he addresses our concerns. He even said he was putting his head on the chopping board,” Musonda said.

“We will not accept anything less than a 100% increment that is our message.”

Nurses have downed tools with the University Teaching Hospital industrial action entering day six while in Livingstone today marks day four with the action spreading.

The post Nurses in Kasama Join Strike appeared first on Zambia Reports.

Operation Young Vote chairperson Guess Nyirenda says the recent victory by the Patriotic Front in the Mansa Central by-election confirms Zambia’s voting on tribal lines.

Nyirenda said the pattern was worrying and needed to be corrected to promote unity in the country.

“The recent victory by the PF in Mansa confirms what we all have been talking about that there is a consistent pattern of voting on tribal lines. In Easstern Province the trend is to vote for the MMD while in Northern and Luapula Provinces they vote PF with Southern Province stubbornly voting for the UPND,” he said.

“There is need for political sensitization on the matter.”

The post PF Mansa Victory Confirms Tribal Voting appeared first on Zambia Reports.

Transparency International says the Patriotic Front government has fallen short in their fight against corruption.

TIZ President Lee Habasonda said the accusations of corruption against each other among ministers were a sign that there were strands of corruption in the PF government.

Habasonda said the PF had got to power promising to run a corruption free government a message that went well with the Zambian public.

“The PF came to power on the platform for fighting corruption but so far the perfomance has fallen below expectations. When you see cabinet ministers accusing each other of corruption then you know they are not capable of fighting corrruption beyond themselves.”

The post TIZ says PF Is Failing to Fight Corruption appeared first on Zambia Reports.

The purported appeal by the Attorney General of Zambia to halt the Masebo Tribunal is unconstitutional and is highly irregular as it contradicts or opposes current public policy. I therefore call upon the Attorney General to withdraw the said appeal forthwith. Since the Masebo Tribunal is active I refrain from commenting on the merits or demerits of that case.

Ordinarily all persons involved or affected by a decision of a court in Zambia are entitled to appeal and must be allowed to do so if they so choose. Hon Masebo is entitled to appeal but I am NOT aware of such appeal by her or through her lawyers. In this specific case of an inquiry established under the Parliamentary and Ministerial Code of Conduct Act, it is my humble opinion that the Attorney General CANNOT be and OUGHT NOT to be her lawyer. If he feels strongly he should use his private law firm to represent her!

The Attorney General’s appeal is an abuse of office and a departure from custom and practice as his action is attacking the very core of public policy of the Zambian Government, as reflected in existing laws. It is unconstitutional and irregular because the Attorney General has purposed to prevent the enforcement of Section 13 of the Parliamentary and Ministerial Code of Conduct Act 16, as read with Article 52 0f the Republican Constitution. Public policy, as promulgated in the stated provisions, is that whenever allegations are raised by any concerned person and are submitted to the Chief Justice, the Chief Justice SHALL establish the tribunal; the holding of the tribunal is mandatory.

According to Article (52) “all Ministers and Deputy Ministers shall conduct themselves, during their tenure of office, in accordance with a code of conduct promulgated by Parliament”, end of quotation. Pursuant to this Article Parliament enacted the Parliamentary and Ministerial Code of Conduct Act 16. The complainant, former Cabinet Minister William Harrington, has alleged that Hon Masebo has breached Section 13 of the said Act and has provided information to support his allegations.

Under Article 54 (2) of the Constitution one of the constitutional functions of the Attorney General is “to represent the Government in courts or any other legal proceedings to which the Government is a party”. I contend that the Government is NOT a party to the Masebo Tribunal; so whom is the Attorney General purporting to represent? In any case and strictly speaking Hon Masebo has NOT been sued nor is she being prosecuted. She is to be investigated in order to establish the truth or otherwise of the complaints submitted to the Chief Justice. Why should the Government pre-empt a mandatory investigation? This act borders on interference with the course of justice and may qualify as abuse of office.

It is undesirable and politically ill-advised for the Attorney General to act in this manner in the light of the contentious appointment of the Acting Chief Justice which is itself under question. Literary within hours of the Acting Chief Justice establishing the Tribunal the Attorney General obtained an injunction! Under the prevailing circumstances, the least the public would have expected was for the Acting Chief Justice to recuse herself from all judicial functions until questions concerning the constitutionality and legality of her appointment are resolved; this is the injunction which the Attorney General should have been busy with to stop Her Ladyship from superintending any court activities.

For the foregoing reasons, I urge the Attorney General, in effect the Government, to step aside and let the Tribunal to carry out its mandate to enforce public policy as envisaged in Article 52 of the Constitution and Section 13 of the Act and as ordered by the High Court for Zambia.

GODFREY MIYANDA,
BRIGADIER GENERAL,
HERITAGE PARTY
[27TH NOVEMBER 2013)

The post Malila Injunction Baffles Gen Miyanda appeared first on Zambia Reports.

There seems to be a certain sense of contentment by the government with the on-going strike action by nurses. Government does not seem bothered by the status quo.

It seems to be business as usual with Health Minister Joseph Kasonde and his labour counterpart Fackson Shamenda only making passing comments about the strike action. If anything government has been more aggressive touting nurses as having a mercenary streak to them.

Five days of industrial action has left the University Teaching Hospital in a coma as it is barely hanging on – no doubt lives have been lost and more are still being lost. But why the silence by government?

Government brought this mess upon themselves because they made such a big fuss about the increment of salaries when the collective bargaining process had been concluded. His Excellency President Michael Sata led the anthem with an announcement that it was a historic moment in the life of Zambia that salaries had been increased across the board by as high as 200 percent.

His Excellency rumbled before television cameras about how so much he cared about civil servants and how their lives would be bettered by their new ‘MORE MONEY IN THEIR POCKETS’. With that the nurses who are among the lowest paid civil servants were bracing themselves for at least a more than 100 percent increment. Did not His Excellency not say the lowest paid workers will get the biggest increment?

Remember health workers and nurses in particular are a politician’s meal when it comes to promises during the campaign period. Did not his Excellency whip up emotions among teachers and nurses when he promised to increase their salaries once in power to ensure that they stayed in the country and not seek greener pastures across the borders of our country. Did they not get hooked on his sermon of economic liberation?

Did he not ridicule their uniforms as being tattered promising to dress them once in power? So today when nurses raise the flag on the LYING politicians there are attempts to says they are heaRtless. Who is heartless! Did you not say they will get at least K5, 000 and they did not ask you to lie to them.

There is an apt Tonga adage that captures the scenario beautifully- muchenge ng’ombe machete atakoni (promise a poor man riches and he will not sleep). Surely Minister Shamenda thinks the problems will just vanish by just flaunting his beard in his office and refusing to meet the nurses.

Did Shamenda not before the loyal national cameras promise that the discrepancies in the pay roll structure will be addressed in two weeks time? Has not a month elapsed without word from Shamenda? Just before you forget, the nurses are not fooled that a public relations stunt that negotiations be given a chance will work.

It was tried last time and its failure is part of the reason they are striking. Besides it is difficult to negotiate when everyone knows there is a wage freeze in place.

So please do not give us that heartless vibe we know the nurses deserve better to save our lives! No doubt come 2016 every politician will be on hand to once again sing how they will better the health sector and staff remuneration – how cheap!

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