THE Zambia Revenue Authority (ZRA) has transferred a lawyer who has been serving on the combined team of security personnel investigating corruption in the previous administration to Chirundu in unclear circumstances.
This has raised eyebrows as the move is suspected to be a cover up of corrupt activities that he may expose against some senior officials.
Mr Tresford Chali has also been moved from the legal department to customs services division with immediate effect following a memorandum authored by Commissioner General Berlin Msiska dated January 26, 2012 to the office of the director of Human Resources.
The development comes in the wake of a recommendation by Home Affairs Permanent Secretary Maxwell Nkole in a letter dated December 22, 2011 to the Attorney General for Mr Chali to be appointed co-prosecutor in the Pepsi deal and the single-sourced deal on the installation and management of scanners at some border posts.
Mr Msiska has noted that Mr Chali’s department lacked the ability to supervise subordinates by allowing him to operate from the task force offices without written authority from ZRA.
“I have received repetitive complaints from Mr Chali’s division about his irregular reporting for work and commitment to his duties. One such complaint was that Mr Chali was reporting from the task force office under the Inspector General’s office without written authority from ZRA,” Mr Msiska stated in his letter copied to the Board Secretary and Commissioner Customs Services.
The ZRA report constituted to probe allegations of corruption has revealed that Mr Chali objected to the deal in which Cargo Scans earned huge sums of money per month on the scanners that were procured using tax payers money.
“The commission noted that an assistant legal officer by the name of Tresford Chali had recommended for the termination of the contract in his legal opinion, on Cargo Scans rendered on March 10, 2011. As at November 2011, ZRA had not terminated the Cargo Scan contract,” the Kingsley Chanda Commission of Inquiry wrote in its report that was released by Minister of Finance and National Planning Alexander Chikwanda recently.
In his letter to the attorney general which was also copied to the director of public prosecutions (DPP), Mr Nkole recommended that Mr Chali should be attached to the combined team of security officers as a co-prosecutor in the Pepsi deal in the event that arrests were effected.
Mr Nkole said Mr Chali was already working with the team and had provided much valuable advice in finding critical evidence needed to compile the case file.
“This request is made against the understanding that Mr Chali possesses capacity and authority under the ZRA Act to, not only investigate but to prosecute on behalf of the institution,” Mr Nkole wrote.
But Mr Chali has since received a transfer letter to Chirundu on the same date that Mr Msiska wrote to the human resources asking them to transfer him.
The letter authored by acting director of human resources Oneson Musabi dated January 26, 2012 when the directive was issued, states that Mr Chali must move to Chirundu with immediate effect as a senior customs collector.
“By copy of this letter, the finance division is advised to amend their records and pay you subsistence allowance. Further, they should start paying you hardship allowance and arrange to pay you disturbance allowance as soon as you move to Chirundu, while administration department is advised to arrange transport to move your family and personal effects as soon as you are ready,” the letter to Mr Chali says.
Mr Msiska has instead recommended senior inspector of taxes Mrs Mahongo Machayi and ZRA prosecutor Eugene Chisenga for the taskforce assignment.
Mr Chali’s legal opinion rendered in March last year on the scanners was that the contract between ZRA and Cargo Scans be terminated and that ZRA should instead seek a refund or set off the money spent on buying spares and that the property must revert to the tax collector.
He recommended that ZRA should only pay Cargo Scans for the maintenance of the scanners during the period when the scanners were non-operational as opposed to paying them all the time.
Mr Chali referred to Clause 9.3.1 which did not oblige ZRA to give reasons for terminating the contract.
When he announced an all-round fight against corruption after assuming power, President Michael Sata urged Zambians to report incidents of corruption to law enforcement agencies.
[Times of Zambia]
First. Tinali nao…Can we also work towards eradicating poverty as well.
I don’t know WHOSE eyebrows are raised! Is it Whoopie Goldberg’s? Msiska was not around when this saga happened so what would he be trying to hide by transfering the man? I do not understand the relevance of the transfer to the on-going investigation.
However, what I think is a problem, is to have on the investigating team a person who has interest in the matter.
thats why we are stealing,it seems pf got not developmental agenda.
I thought the COI report on the operation of ZRA scanners was trashed publicly by the head of state and warned Chikwanda that next time he should not recommend people like Kingley Chanda to him because the report was useless.What has changed.Has Kingsley written another hate report?
…….and the more jobs for the youth?
This is a normal transfer – anyone in ZRA can be transferred to any other division. What “suspicious”?
Msiska must also be investigated. He is trying to protect his minions. I know Chali very well. Very hardworking young man. ZRA is full of self-serving officers. Guys who cannot innovate. They milk innocent citizens out of their hard earned cash and leave landlords and landladies without paying tax on their houses which we are paying for rent heavily. True, ZRA doesn’t make sense. How can they ask a taxi to pay tax while leaving people who rents out their houses get 100 % of their money? Shame.
PF is accusing Musokotwane of drawing two salaries. It seems to me like this man is doing the same thing.
Who feels it knows it. Let the sleeping dogs……, infact the team the CG has constituted to be sitting on the panel does not inspire anyone. Yes bwana culture is a thing of the past Mr CG let the Lawyer finish his act. Mind! we are watching you, These type of transfers are not going to improve staffing levels at chirundu just employee and inspire the zra work force period.
Chali is just an overzealous pf cadre who wants to benefit from the scanner saga.let him go and experience the Chirundu heat and prosecute the smugglers there.
Iwe #7
if pipo who are ready to reveal wrong things that happen in organisations will be treated this way, how is Sata going to fight curruption. Otherwise if the president will tolerate this from Msiska, then there is no need to help him fight corruption in our institutions. We’ll let the president fight it alone. Mr president if you dont act on this one, you can not count on the corporation of employees to expose wrong this in organisations. Please protect the pipo u are using.
oh Simone, rediareng your last emails and remembering our talks,your painful absence is fully present Knowing you made a difference as much as what you did .Danke fuer alles!Wendelin