Ng’andu Magande has explained that he did not ever at any point abet tax evasion by the now defunct Zambian Airways. He elaborated that he did not in fact even know the owners of the airline until Post Newspapers Proprietor, Fred M’membe and lawyer, Mutembo Nchito approached his then ministry.
Mr Magande said the two people introduced themselves as Zambian Airways Directors, seeking the deferment of a 1.9 million US dollars tax arrears payment to government. He further explained that Mr M’membe and Mr Nchito told him of their earlier meeting with then Minister of Transport and communications, Dora Siliya over the same matter.
Mr Magande also said he however objected the closure of the airline because it owned government huge amounts of money therefore he proposed the formulation of a mechanism in which the company would pay the tax arrears.
Meanwhile, Mr Magande also denied ever knowing why he was expelled from the MMD because he believes he espoused the party ideals. The former Finance Minister has since formed his own political party, the National Movement for Progress, whose concept was birthed when he was still in the MMD.
MUVI TV
ok we believe you Magande nomba join the pact. Viva Pact pabwatooooooo
Another liar & unprincipled leader who hopes to lead Zambia at some point in his life. Such is the calibre of leaders we have.
Zambian airways was a legitmate business and a business can owe debt. What is a problem here? If closure of Zambian airways was political then that is very bad. But owing this huge amount was not good for the company as a going concern. Every comapny and individual is liable to pay tax regardless of position except the president. Viva viava….. Africa.
#3 You are right on the money, the problem was this mismanaged company compromised the then Minister and sad that he has decided to be economical with the truth. I wonder why you don’t see anything wrong with somebody who owes you money to show up at your door and ask you to bail them out. That did not make sense at all.
There are good policies put in place by the MMD government that enable honest companies to raise capital or whatever short fall. There are banks and there is LuSE. Farmers House PLC has managed to raise tons of money through LuSE, so has CELTEL, ZANACO and many others because these are honest operations and Zambians will give you the money. ZA was a sham. Why didn’t they take it to LuSE if they were clean.
#3, the $1.9m was money that ZA was collecting on behalf of NACL and then used it to fund their mismanged operations; there is a big difference between struggling to pay taxes and fraud, theres was fraud!
As for Magande, it’s better you keep quiet. For someone who calls himself the best ever Zambian finance minister and Mr. HIPC you surely didn’t know much or you are just not telling the truth. Who in Zambia at that time didn’t know the owners of ZA? How can you say you don’t know what your Secretary to the Treasury went to discuss with RB, why didn’t you ask him as a supervisor? How can say you were not fired but just dropped, are you nuts? What’s the difference?
Magande should tell us what his plan to save Zambian Airways was and how the various creditors would all be serviced.
so Zambian Airways OWNED govt some money.
I now know why mine firms don’t pay much tax, because the owners can just walk into the ministers office to negotiate not paying tax.
Depending on which side of the fence you sit, you can justify fraud and tax evasion
#5 so why has the entire police failed to pronounce the word fraud as you put it? since when did the investigations begin over zambian airways? are zedians so daft that they can forget the right hand from the left in daylight? we all heard shikapwasha, dolla and rupiah blowing their mouths that these chaps have stolen 30million dollars, so up to now, almost 3 years they cant fail to nail them? zedians a little bit of memory is needed so u dont forget easily. this whole issue is political
What is wrong with this man? you just concentrate on your kantemba now.You will just deplete the little resources you managed to harness from GRZ if you continue politicking.Dont these men have wives to advise them?
it is a high risk to have a company in Zambia. only companies owned by foreigners are respected. look at finance bank. the government should try to play a neutral and try help where possible all the Zambian investors who invest in there country. as things stand today the government can just wake up in the morning and take the running of any company owned by Zambians using any bull **** crap around. even chickens now are reared by the Chinese. what is wrong with us Africans and Zambia in particular?.
Magande is not even a politician.He can not afford a mere 500 votes in an election and he wants to be president??imwe bantu sure…
Magande is being economical with the truth. Why can’t he say what his plan was for ZA to pay the money they owed the treasury and NAC? ZA collected money on behalf of ZRA and NAC but instead of remitting it, decided to use it for themselves, how stup!d could they get?
#9 & # 7 are right. Right now the foreign investors have an upper hand. They have tax relief and Zambian don’t. Tax is the issue. The playing field must be leveled. Investors are investors.
You have all done enough shredding of this disingenuous political parody. I’m not going to add salt to his wounds. Salutations to you all above the thread!
I’ve never seen anything wrong with this or what Magande did. shut the topic we move onto something else
Bongobongo # 13,
You are another ignoramus on the Zambian investment act. Zambians qualify for the many investment incentives including tax exception there for the taking. Go to ZDA and comprehend the investment act or engage consultancy services on the market including mine.
Magande please grow up and live a life worth of the grandfather that you are. Even Maureen and Namakando Mmembe have come to terms with Levy’s passing and are pursuing other interests. Manje iwe chi Makandi you can’t seem to accept that your political star went off in 2008. Anyway, no donchi kubeba as the Kopalas say. Bring the money we share it and vote for Lupiya pa last. Lupiya Rocks.
Magande is very educated. He is able to expound economic issues unlike Sata who just knows insulting, vulgar language, homosexual and violence. This man is educated like many Tongas and Lozi’s. We Bembas are very jolous and are tribalists. We do not accept anybody who has progessive ideas. All we want is seeing a Bemba in State House. My fellow tribesmen lets not think like kaponyas (no wonder they call us that), lets be objective in our debates. If you would call for all the presidents debate to talk about economic issues Magande would be # 1 followed by HH, Milupi # 3, Chipimo Jnr #4, RB # 5, Humphrey Siulapwa #6, and last of alll Michael Sata.
So in short, Zambian Airways was mismanaged. My only problem with Zambian Airways was what was a lawyer and a newspaper editor doing running an airline?? They have no experience in this field and its complexities and this lack of experience reflected on the way the company was mismanaged it seems.
I agree with you, the problem here is your tribesmen would rather trust a corn man as long as he/she’s from the same tribe, even when he’s got nothing to offer…….that’s how selfish they are but quick to point fingers at other tribes
#18. Iagree with you, the problem here is your tribesmen would rather trust a corn man as long as he/she’s from the same tribe, even when he’s got nothing to offer…….that’s how selfish they are but quick to point fingers at other tribes
All airlines operating in Zambia pay landing and ground handling fees to National Airports corporation limited. Zambian Airways owed NACL a lot of money in Landing and ground handling fees about $800,000. Later they failed to remit even the PSC they were collecting on behalf of NACL. Mutembo Nchito had a lot of meetings with NACL management on how restructuring this debt. He actually started paying from his own dollar account as ZA cheques were bouncing. Magande tried to convince NACL management to agree to Nchito’s proposal to defer ZA payments for Landing, ground handling and PSC fees for five years. This debt was to be converted into govt shares held by NACL in ZA after that five years. Dora Siliya objected to this. With the demise of LPM, the friction between the two was inevitable.
Mutembo Nchito made a serious error. How do you do business with Mmembe who is always insulting presidents?
At least Senior Citizen at no. 16 agrees with what Fred and Nchito went to see Magande for. As for Capitalist, you dont need technical know how to be director of a copmany. The Gm was a very qualifed and experienced man in aviation.
#4 MMD Chief Bootlicker- I we Nkusa, business is business. Wait until your Dionasuer is out of Government to see how much your so called officials owe various insititutions.
Continued from #22.
Coupled with failure to remit taxes, repay loans, etc it was clear that ZA was doomed. however, Mmembe and Nchito wanted to ride on their ‘friendship’ with Mwanawasa to continue getting favours from all govt institutions without paying. You can judge for yourself if they really intended to fraud or syphone money using this airline or they just wanted to be helped to grow and then later make good of these huge debts. Like football commentators will say when a player deliberately fouls an opponent to stop his progress, I think Mutembo Nchito and Fred Mmembe “new exactly what they were doing.” Any further assistance to them by the Zambian govt would have been immoral and unfair to other investors – local or otherwise.
So why is Mmembe critical of mines on variable tax when he evades tax? ZA was a poorly managed company lacking corporate governance and expertise in the industry. It was even insolvent so i do not know how Magande was expecting to recover the tax arears. Basically these are some of the reasons Mmembee wants RB out at all costs and Sata in. He wants these things written off. God does not bless a campaign with an evil motive.
Father tell us something we don’t know already.
Magande just join the likes of HH, you can make a good team!
Why does everyone who get the boot from the ruling party go and form their own parties i don’t see the sense in it.
With due respect if Mr. Mangande mad a good finance minister he cant make a good president let us know the areas of our expertise and contribute to Zambia’s development in that way not everyone running to be president. Let Mr. Mangande go and teach at the university of Zambia if he is that educated.
I doubt the credibility of Mmembe and Nchito but I don’t doubt Magande’s abilities. This was a honest minister that served his country well, with dignity and honor. The only problem with us Zambians is that we never learn to appreciate anyone let alone good leaders (maybe until they die). We like to pull him/her down all the time. This was a great minister who helped Zambia receive debt forgiveness in excess of USD6Bn. We may disagree with him politically (all sane people don’t agree on all things), but this was an example of an honest leader. That is why even MMD can’t find a case on him to drag him to court as they did with the principle-less George Mpompo. Thanks Magande for serving your country. Let’s stop hating. It helps none.
#18 you are sick. Where doae Sata come in here between Magade and ZA? muleba ko reasonable. Sata is the cleanest politician in this land and thus deserves respect and any reasonable Zambian’s vote. How much mudslinging has he suffered. Who insults more Sata or RB and Kunda.
#32 Ati Sata is the cleanest politician we have? What planet are you on or am I steal asleep dreaming? Has he collected the ‘clean’ $27000 he left at the airport in South Africa by the way?
How can a minister of finance be in darkness on who is running private entities like an airline in Zambia. A finance minister should work hand in hand with big private entities in the country.
# 33 I would have loved you to ask if he was prosecuted over the $27,000 if at all it was dirty as you want to put it. I agree with # 32 that atleast he is some clean politician coz if all these crimes were there aba ba Mpono could have been happy to arrest him but why aint they arresting him.
“…….Whose concept was birthed while he was still in the MMD”…., so how come he does not know why MMD fired him, yet he had been planning his way out?Or was he that stupid not to know that MMD realise that he only had one foot in? Magande, to me you look like a very competent person that knows what they are doing, so just ACCEPT you’ve left MMD and get on with the business unapologetically!!!!!
#35 I think you are in the same dream as your friend if you think that Sata is clean. Anyway you are free to carry on in your slumber – your nightmare will begin when you wake up after the elections.
I guess Magande was compromised on Zambian Airways. There are alot companies that owe the Govt Billions of Nkongole but non of them seeks an audiance with a Finance Minister. If QZ was owing ZRA and Napsa HUGE SUMS OF MONEY THE BEST WOULD HAVE BEEN TO ENTER INTO DEBT MANAGEMENT WITH THE CONCERNED PUBLIC INSTITUTIONS. THAT EXPLANATION IS SUSPECT. THERE WAS AN INVISIBLE HAND THAT WAS INFLUENCING MAGANDE AT THE TIME IN QUESTION. CHAPWA NO MORE COMMENTS I LEAVE IT TO OTHER BLOGGERS TO MAKE COMMENTS.
Mmembe and POST hates HH to dearth.Mmembe and Mutembo Nchito are two-in-one in Zambian Airways.Mmembe andd POST were sapped to the bone crying over the removal of Nchito from prosecution.Mmembe and Nchito deprived Zambians of the treasury fund by diverting NACL TAX tax. POST STAFF Malupenga was among the people who convened to tell HH to accept to be vice to sata. POST/MMEMBE are for SATA decampaigning HH.
ZAMBIANS LET US NOT GLORIFY MMEMBE. MMEMBE IS AND SHALL CONTINUE INJURING CITIZENS USING HIS POST . See how they demonised SATA and how they are defending him now for their interest AND for sure to use SATA against the enemies of MMEMBE.
IF MAGANDE means well for Zambians let him and his new part not split votes 2011 because the time for him to make meaningful impact is gone BUT for 2016 or beyond.Let him not act out of vengence against MMD/BANDA like SATA did form PF out of vengence against MMD/CHILUBA.Such ground for forming a party is not meant for Zambians but to drive hatred and vegence BUT coated with NEED TO SERVE ZAMBIANS. AND GOT DOES NOT APPROVE OF IT HOW NEAR OF FAR IT MAY LOOK. Zambians please DONT start debating and reasoning to help Magande to build A VENGEFUL TEAM while you sacrifice your present opportunity to get read of MMD for real change.
Why didn’t Magande tell MMEMBE and NCHITO that where were they for the amount to swell to $1.9M? Where were they taking all the collections?What was interest…
# 18 “Bwalya”
You are sick in the head. Your thoughts are hollow with no shred of understanding of how govts are run. You want to saturate your underdeveloped brain with stuff that is way beyond your comprehension.
Whatever tribe you are the rest of the country is not interested in tribal politics. We will move forward as one country, as one people, leaving tribalists like you weepy and wallowing in self pit.
All the best to your miserable tribal mawkish
Our country is riddled by croocks in high places, who pretend to be angels. Once in a while we get to hear of what they really are and yet, some people will stand on a mountain to shout their innocence. Magande is a tired man, who has done his part. He should leave room for his grand children to shape their future. Apparently, Magande looked that good and knowledgeable because of the technocrats like Musokotwane who worked tirelesly from the background. All the likes of Magande and the whole tired band of old folks should take a rest…it is only moraly right that they do so!
#18 Bwalya or whoever you are.
The issue here is about Magande and Zambia Airway. Why have you brought in your tribalism? You can’t fool us with your simple mind games. We the real Bembas are very tolerant and accommodating of others. So stop it and just address the issue at hand.
After raving and ranting about how Magande helped the Airline to evade tax. RB Has to this day failed to provide evidence. A tribunal was called for against Magende but. RB sat on it and to this day it has never been set up. So all those who love commenting would do well to do a bit of research!
#39,40 The Truth Pains. You have eyes,can see and understand.Many Zedians cant read beyond what Membe writes.He is a holier than thou.Part of his interest is to have control on GRZ and Zed financial and other resources.But he cant f.ool all people because am one of the few that know him.We have never met though!But I know him!
ZA had to collaps because it was surrounded by lots of secrecy.
Magande you are not telling the truth. You are very much aware about the Lloyds Bank Account in London that is connected to this entire saga. Primarily why dont you start with the meetings you had with Levy Mwanawasa and the instruction that he gave you before M’membe & Nchito went to meet Siliya.
Therefore, the notion that you did not know owners of ZA is all debris. You saw the their business plan way before and you made your recommendations. At that time you thought Levy was to hand power to you after his tenancy was over. Guess what, he did not trust you enough and had other plans.
cont…
If you had succeeded Levy, you would have ensured that ZA saga was fixed at all cost. This itself, was the reason why M’membe was so desperate to quash off RB from going to Plot 1and went insulting Thandiwe and her family week in week out from out of anger.
Why dont you review your position that was to cut off BOZ Concerns.
You people thought you were clever, but us over here in the UK saw the corrupt waterway in UK Banks. Besides, we are well connected to UK Banks.
cont…
#33 Lyambai – If it is true Sata stole that money why havent you produced the evidence to DEC. You seem to know a lot about this case so why hide the information from the police. You know how happy the DEC would be to receive your information. Go a head man and earn yoursel a name.
I am not going to go spiral on LT as I do not have enough space. If you keep opening your mouth, this will end up pointing at: Yourself & Levy very heavily. And of course the two culprits Nchito & M’membe.
Levy cannot defend himself right now, as to why Nchito & M’membe duped him.
Magande – You know the story behind Roan Air and its lawyers chasing their money and how this lead to the creation of ZA
We all agree that Chiluba was corrupt and should have been brave to stand in court. But you guys preached against corruption on top of corruption.
cont..
We all know that RB does not want to expose you because everything will lead to Levy. Maybe he just wants to honour the dead man’s legacy. Or it could backfire for RB as he was appointed by Levy.
Your statement will not help you gain support for your party. Purely, I don’t see you as a shrewd Politian. Maybe just an economist!!!
“”” The truth of the matter is that you did benefit from ZA”””
Poor Magande is egoistic (self-centred) by nature. Zambian Airways owed National Airport Corporation (NAC) huge sums of money. For instance, if the denfuct airline owed NAC K2million, what would be the nature of economics game for GRZ to raise K2million for the airline? This would amount to Zambian Airways owing K4million gross. Tax payers money could have diverted to pay for the luxuries of the airlines’s Chief Executives. It is possible these guys had deposited money due to NAC to their secret overseas bank accounts. Some big guns were certainly behind Zambian Airways. The clique that supported Magande’s Presidency remains mysteriously linked to the Zambian Airways saga. The truth will emerge one day.
Ba #18 are you a retard why can you not debate like a normal person instead of generalising and demeaning other tribes. I suspect your name is not even Bwalya you retard,Pa manso monga a robber’s dog grow up you twart.
All Sata mudslingers, should be ashamed of themselves becoz of all the times he has been charged /accused of something, ALL THE ARMS OF SECURITY AS WELL AS THE COURTS HAVE FAILED TO CONVICT HIM, unless your imaginary evidence or should it be “new evidence”, as you may wish to call it, will bring more substance to the fact to obtain the conviction you so crave!!!
It is alright to HATE HIM, BUT DON’T MUDSLING for no reason, FACE UP TO THE FACT THAT he is making the “goolies shake” in certain peoples pants, & that could be inclusive of you!!!
#53, either you are mentally unbalanced or you are just a kid who cannot see things in their right perspective. The issue at hand is not about YOUR SATA ( or is it SATANA?), but the deunct Zambian Airways. Please re-route your thought and argument otherwise the message you send is that you are just a kid or some immature political cadre who should not be allowed access on this forum!
i think PVT should be allowed so that the PF can count their own losses – to avoid civil strife. MMD get those service men ready to contain violence. Perhaps state of emergency would do.
A good tax system does not work to close down or make businesses collapse and that is exactly what we have in Zambia,so if Zambian Airways collapsed on issues of taxes then it was not Tax administrators but Politics at play which is unhealthy.
In our current system we have what we call (TPA) time to pay agreements,where arrears can be spread into intalments untill all the taxes are recovered…..Politics in Zambian Airways have made alot of negativities on a common employee which could have been avoided but GOVT did not care!!!!
How do u have a party with your initials. NMP. Ngandu Magande Peter?
Magande when are you joining a pact with PF. Thats the only way to go now. So make up your mind quickly!
I dont believe Magande is telling the truth when he says he didnt know the owners of Zambian Airways. If Zambian Airways was a kantemba, yes i would believe him, but not Zambian Airways. Anyway, he may waffle about Zambian Airways but he cant full me coz there definitely was an invisible hand in the whole saga and we all know where the buck stops at. I also know he is a bitter man because he thought Zambia was a monarch and he was the heir apparent to Levy, and when he could not convince democracy (he wanted the presidency thru shortcut), he felt bitter and betrayed by the inner circle hence his outbursts and self praise as mr hipc, forgetting that he had a very good team of technocrats for him to succeed, it was team effort. You dont vie for presidency with a bitter heart. Just sober up.
Is it hard for us Zambians to make our comments without insulting someone? What wrong has Magande done to be insulted already? How about us express our opinions without using foul language? It seems whenever there is someone who has a potential in Zambia, the first weapon to pull him down as someone said here is to call them names. “Buffon”, “Tired”…if you call Magande tired, then I dont know what you would call our two best contenders for Zambian presidency today? Zambians! Jus shows how some of us here reason below the belt.
#60 bravo..I wonder why people can never be objective without insults..it is sad!!!!
It is possible to speculate that when Magande was Finance Minister, there could have been an invisible hand behind his reported wish to rescue Zambian Airways. The interests of the shareholders in the defunct airline could have been paramount in Magande’s mind. Hence the hatched plot for being annointed by Mwanawasa to take over the Republican Presidency despite the then prevailing democratic processes that he defied NOT to accept. History will tell us the quality of water that flowed past under the bridge. Let’s hope he has a sizable following for his political ambition. The man is arrogant.
This man wants to come out smelling roses when the whole issue is points him to some dodgy minister of finance with no mercy for hard working common men earning peanuts or nothing.
Magande was just being used by the corupt m’membe.**==
Imwe mwebantu u think Sata is porpular he only campagns mu urban tell him to campagn mu rural