Evidence has emerged that the director of the Geological Survey Department Chipilauka Mukofu who is embroiled in a ring of corruption over mining licences involving Chinese is not qualified to head the institution.
And Sources at the Publlic Service Commission have confirmed that the commission has received scores of complaints against Mukofu, who has been named in the irregular awarding and transfer of prospecting licences in areas dotted around Zambia.
According to sources at the Public Service Commission, Mukofu is a metallurgist and not a mining to head the Geological Survey Department.
The sources at the Public Service Commission said there were irregularities in the employment of the director at the Geological Survey Department.
“We have realized that the Director at the Geological Survey Department is not a mining engineer but a metallurgist. The rule is that the person to head that institution must be a mining engineer going by the nature of the work involved. We are wondering how the appointment was done. The board at the Pulic Service Commission is looking into this matter and we would like these public bodies to be headed by the right people in order to ensure maximum efficiency in the delivery of services,” the source said.
Recently, this publication made an expose of illegal deals and other transactions in which Mukofu has been awarding prospecting licences to Chinese nationals dubiously. Some of the mining licences under probe are register in Mukofu’s name and some family friends and relatives.
Paper trail from the Patents and Company Registration Agency (PACRA) showed that Mukofu owns some large prospecting licences in Central, Copperbelt and Lusaka provinces.
Meanwhile, the source at the Public Service Commission said there were several complaints in form of letters regarding the awarding of prospecting licences at the Geological Survey Department.
The source said the complaints received at the Public Service Commission were from both local and foreign investors and some have submitted reports of the irregularities in the awarding of prospecting licences.
“There is one compliant which has indicated that that director at the Geological Survey Department has awarded himself some mining licences, but he is also the same person who considers applications for these licences. This complaint argues that the director who considers applications cannot be an applicant and the person to approve or deny the application. There is a complaint hinging on conflict of interest where the director should have declared his interest on the matter,” the source said.
The source said the fact that the director at the Geological Survey Department was a metallurgist and not a mining engineer could be the reason why corruption and other irregularities had blossomed at the institution.
Some of the licences owned by Mukofu include licence number 19415-HQ-SPP which is based in Chibombo, Central province and it was issues on 18th December 2013. This licence sits on 455.5361 hactres of land. The other licence that belongs to Mukofu is 14743-HQ-SPP under the company Sichase Mining Company in Chongwe on 132.2500 hactres of land. Another licence for Mukofu is a large prospecting licence 19042-HQ-LPL on 21553.1600 hactres of land in Lufwanyama on the Coppberbelt.
This publication would make efforts to get a comment from Mukofu in subsequent stories since some more details on the scam are being analysed.
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