Friday, March 29, 2024

NGO’s call on Zambians to revolt against the government’s reckless abuse of public funds

Share

Members of the Civil Society during a news conference at Kapingila House in Lusaka
Members of the Civil Society during a news conference at Kapingila House in Lusaka

Some Civil Society Organisations in Zambians have appealed to citizens to revolt against the government’s reckless abuse of public funds.

The NGOs who held a press briefing at Kapingila House in Lusaka charged that Zambians needs to rise up and demand proper accountability of public funds.

Speaking on behalf of the other civil society leaders, Bishop John Mambo said Zambians should be bold enough and rise up against government.

“The problem with us Zambians is that we are cowards, we fear man instead of fearing God. We should rise up and revolt and we are not saying we should remove this Government, what we are saying is that we should demand that Government improves the way it utilizes public funds,” Bishop Mambo said.

He added, ” let us go out and burn tyres, let us go on the streets and say enough is enough.”

The NGOs stated that Zambia is in a state of financial emergency.

“It is no secret that Zambia is facing a critical budget deficit and debt burden that determines that there are very limited resources available for critical services such as health, education and water. The Civil society is very worried that limited resources available for service delivery are not reaching the poor,” the CSO said.

“In short, the basic needs of the poor are not being prioritized in the use of available resources and therefore are not translating into very achievable improved lives and quality of services for all Zambians. An example of this is the very preventable recent outbreak of cholera which shone the spot light on a dysfunctional local government system,” the said.

“We encourage citizens to be protective of government money because it is our money and it determines the quality of services that citizens, especially the very poor, can access. We call on citizens to not accept the current situation in which scandal after scandal is met by silence from the President and government because they know that storms never last in Zambia,” they demanded.

“We, the civil society organisations gathered here, call on all Zambians to rise and ensure that your money improves your lives,” they said.

Press Statement Released Monday, 19th March 2018

JOINT CIVIL SOCIETY PRESS CONFERENCE ON ACCOUNTABILITY CRISIS IN ZAMBIA
CCZ OFFICES – BISHOP ROAD, KABULONGA

On Wednesday 14 March 2018, News Diggers Newspaper published a story which suggested that there is rampant abuse of public resources during presidential international trips. The claims in the story were very concerning.

They are the reason the Civil Society Organisations represented here today, have come together to express our joint sense of concern at what is coming across as a critical abuse of public resources by the current administration.

The News Diggers dossier which included expenditure paid for from a government account for luxury items such as a boat cruise and shopping expeditions, as well as a highly bloated delegation list that included individuals with no identifiable government business on the trips, joins a long list of matters in the public sphere that require urgent explanation by government.

These matters suggest that there is at best, very poor prioritization in the use of public resources by government, and at worst, runaway corruption that treats public money with extreme recklessness.

In this regard, we refer to the following issues:

  • The purchase of 42 fire trucks for 42 million US dollars by the Ministry of Local Government
  •  The purchase of 50 ambulances by the Ministry of Health at the cost of 288,000 US dollars each
  • The intention to sell NRDC to AVIC international without consultation and against public opinion
  • The inflated costing of infrastructure projects such as the Lusaka-Ndola dual carriageway and the new Kenneth Kaunda International Airport terminal, in Lusaka
  • The astronomical size of, as well as the inclusion in, presidential delegations of individuals with no identifiable duties on international trips
  • The revelation by the Financial Intelligence Centre of astronomical amounts in illicit financial transactions in a nine-month period of 2017
  • The poor quality of projects carried out at great cost, such as the roads in Lusaka that have developed major potholes within a short period of their rehabilitation
  • The digital migration process that has been reported to be many times more expensive than any other on the continent
  • The non-payment of money accrued by the 96 ministers when they stayed in office illegally as ruled by the Constitutional court.
  • The Topstar deal
  • The general and routine overpricing of goods procured by government as shown in the Auditor General’s report
  •  Repeated use of service providers named in Auditor General’s reports as having mismanaged public resources
  • The weak internal control systems in government that result in shocking amounts lost as again reported in the Auditor General’s report.

The Civil society is of the view that the constant drip of scandals cannot be ignored as it suggests systemic accountability failure in government.
It requires in-depth investigation of specific issues but more importantly an overhaul of public resource management systems.

We therefore demand that each of the matters listed above, be investigated and the public provided with in-depth explanations of the extent to which claims in the public sphere are true.

We would like to emphasize here that it is not the duty of the public to provide evidence to the state when matters of accountability are raised. Rather, it is the duty of duty-bearers to provide full information on questions raised, and to institute disciplinary and criminal procedures when required.

On behalf of the Zambian people, we the organisations gathered here therefore demand that:

  1. Full information on the extent to which the News Diggers dossier is true is shared with the public
  2. All people that flouted financial regulations in any of the cases above be disciplined and resources recovered
  3. Going forward, clear guidelines of who can be included on a presidential delegation at tax-payer cost are set out
  4.  The stage at which the investigation into the 42For42 scandal by the Anti-Corruption Commission is made public
  5. All processes towards the sale of NRDC be halted until full information on the transaction is shared with the public. On this it is the view of the civil society that the NRDC should NOT be sold.
  6. A report on investigation and prosecution of individuals named in the Auditor General’s reports be published
  7. The “blacklisting” of any service providers named in the auditor General’s report to prevent them accessing any more contracts

The CSOs gathered here specially alert the public to the fact that the country is in a state of financial emergency.

It is no secret that Zambia is facing a critical budget deficit and debt burden that determines that there are very limited resources available for critical services such as health, education and water.

The Civil society is very worried that limited resources available for service delivery are not reaching the poor.

In short, the basic needs of the poor are not being prioritized in the use of available resources and therefore are not translating into very achievable improved lives and quality of services for all Zambians.

An example of this is the very preventable recent outbreak of cholera which shone the spot light on a dysfunctional local government system.

The cholera outbreak also revealed the routine loss of public resources at markets to ruling party cadres. With millions of Kwacha spent on the outbreak, and lives of vendors disrupted, the disease has not been contained.

Recent figures show that there are upwards of 20 new cases being admitted per day. Further, market places for the thousands of households that depend on vending have not been created as promised thus creating a major crisis of hunger and crime.

At a time such as this, it is unacceptable that even a ngwee of public money would be misused. We therefore call on Zambians to rise and demand accountability, starting from the local level and going up to the highest office in the land.

We encourage citizens to be protective of government money because it is our money and it determines the quality of services that citizens, especially the very poor, can access.
We call on citizens to not accept the current situation in which scandal after scandal is met by silence from the President and government because they know that storms never last in Zambia.

We urge citizens to understand government’s constitutional responsibility to act on all matters of accountability that are raised by the public.
To summarise our reason for being here:

We, the civil society organisations gathered here, call on all Zambians to rise and ensure that your money improves your lives!

Thank you.

Signed
Action Aid
Alliance for Community Action (ACA)
Civil Society Initiative for Constitutional Agenda (CiSCA)
Oasis Forum
PAN
Women for Change
ZCSD
Caritas Zambia

80 COMMENTS

  1. it is not right to revolt against the government. The best way to do things is to engage the government on matters affecting the nation and people of Zambia.

    • Zambians know that the PF govt is out there to LOOT and they are doing it on a massive scale. Lucky for these bandits, the average Zambian’s mental attitude is extremely passive, very docile, almost bordering on stupid!ty. They prefer to watch and wait for things to sort themselves out. They have watched lungu pocketing the money, the judiciary, the police, ACC, the ConCourt, ZRA, Investigative wings. Please people wake up already, before it’s too late!

    • How do you engage people who don’t have the capacity to think? How do you engage Lusambo? How do you engage a government that has embraced corruption and ukulya mwibala as a normal thing to do? Zambia will get no way if we don’t violently make our leaders accountable for this massive abuse of resources. We are so docile to the point where a head of state can boldly say : EVEN IF WE LOSE WE WILL STILL BE IN POWER”. That’s how our leaders think of us….stupid citizens. They abuse and disrespect the constitution and we applaud them as long as they throw crumbs of bread in our way. We are a disgrace and cowards. I fully support the Bishop.

    • They are going about it the wrong way ..they have been doing this for a long time and it does work; they should be lobbying for amending some governance issues like total independence of ACC so long as the President is handpicking these heads of these depts nothing will ever change.

    • Entire bishop proposing violence? Mambo has forgotten what had happened in Ruanda? Why incite others to start burning tyres on the streets? He should set an example himself.

    • VERY IRRESPONSIBLE , CARELESS AND CHILDISH STATEMENT OR HEADLINE FROM THE NGO OR LT
      “”””””””””””””””””””””””””””””””””””””””””””””””””
      Every time you chaps yap about revolution or revolts think about SYRIA. In a democracy revolts are cowardice. You have structural apparatus or institutions that deal with abuse of public funds. Civil Society Organisations in Zambians cited in this article are a liability. If you have proof of your allegations kindly invoke the ACC or other relevant institutions rather than inciting people with impunity to rise against Government in the name of not fearing man. Don’t take your peace for granted. Irresponsible Civil Society. Be rest assured that your predecessors dealt with alleged scenarios like this…

    • When I started reading this, I said to myself “… okay civil activism ~ it’s their constitutional right!!” Then I read, burn tyres … that was it!!! No longer civil activism but hooliganism!!!

      One is within the legal framework and the other is totally against the law. You start burning tyres on the streets in the US and you are charged with arson. What’s wrong with these Bishops???

      So, the innocent blood spelt during the crusaders reign in the name of God is not good enough???? These are the Sons Of Perdition, the Lord talked about.

      You might have a legitimate claim on misuse of public resources but 2 wrongs never make anything right, especially coming from Bashi Mapepo.

      Fortunately for use, the smart people of the Zambian Enterprise ain’t gonna fall for that. They are way…

    • SIMPLY PUT, THERE’S NO GOVERNMENT IN ZAMBIA – ONLY THIEVES IN CABINET AND TOP CIVIL SERVICE POSITIONS. Just look at the case of massive tender rigging at Zesco by one Indian this by the name of Krishna Kumar Malan who wins himself ALL of Zesco’s most attractive tenders using his 4 companies with the following accomplices at Zesco, who are his OBVIOUS future PRISONMATES:

      1. VICTOR CHAKOLWA MUNDENDE – Zesco’s most corrupt MD ever
      2. BRIAN KAMBOLE – Senior Procurement Manager (Head of all thieves and plunderers)
      3. CHITI MULENGA – Red-eyed Procurement Manager
      4. SINKAMBA – Tender RIGGING SPECIALIST
      5. MATHEW NDHLOVU – Tender rigging facilitator
      Their corrupt companies are:
      1. OCTO TRADING (Z) LTD
      2. KBH INDUSTRIES (Z)LTD
      3. SRC CONSTRUCTION (Z)LTD
      4. WEB INTERNATIONAL
      5…

    • @ !mbecile above

      Read article you 5tupid moronic arse l!cker instead of showing your inbred genetic !mbecility.
      We are rulled by the criminals for the criminals.
      What more f*cking evidence you need?
      F*CK OFF

  2. “The problem with us Zambians is that we are cowards, we fear man instead of fearing God. We should rise up and revolt and we are not saying we should remove this Government, what we are saying is that we should demand that Government improves the way it utilizes public funds,” Bishop Mambo said.

    He added, ” let us go out and burn tyres, let us go on the streets and say enough is enough.”

    Words coming from a so called man of God shame on you.

    • Do you support the looting of GRZ funds ? And where did the bishop say kill anyone ??
      Non violent Demonstration is a democratic right and burning a tire is not violence.

    • @ Loliwe, shame on you for eating where you are and the mass of Zambians starving just to finance your stay in a government that is blind and deaf to their own people just to enrich a few of you.

    • Instead of “thorn in the flesh”, it is more apropriate THORN IN THE HUMAN DECENCY you piece of smelly dog sh!t.
      Evidence you ask? Check at SCANIA and you will get evidence you moronic arse l!cker

  3. Finally, some momentum in the fight against corruption. The civil society is finally awake and leading this fight. Remember the fight against Chiluba’s 3rd term bid was led by the civil society. We people will support you in the protests.

    • Ooh! Please! We have head yaps like this before. Simply provide evidence and the skeptics like us will fall in line. Not these unsubstantiated alarms with no head.

    • A person who sees a second hand Scania Truck that is not manufactured anymore because there are newer models and hears that this same old second hand model was bought for US$1 million and then says ati ‘show us evidence’ is simply a blind !d!ot’ and must be ignored.

  4. Can GRZ respond to those points raised by the bishop ??

    I guess not, lungu and his team are too corrupt.

  5. WE SHALL NEVER TRUST NGOs AS THE CORRECT MOUTHPIECE FOR US…..THESE CHARACTERS ARE WOLVES IN SHEEP SKINS….99% OF THOSE CHARACTERS HAVE POLITICAL AMBITIONS..
    WHY SHOULD YOU DEMAND FOR A REVOLT ….A revolt is an illegal and often violent attempt by a group of people to change their country’s political system…… THIS WHAT EVEN SOME SO CALLED MEN OF THE CLOTH ARE DEMANDING FOR..THE ERA OF REVOLTS IS LONG GONE..REPLACED WITH A BALLOT !!!!!!! I SEE WHY THE CHURCH IS GUILTY INSTIGATING OF GENOCIDE IN RWANDA.

    WE NEED A PUTIN IN ZAMBIA…….

  6. you mofo (hibalwa) are a pf cadre

    you wanna talk legalities? pf are in office illegally, how about we start there.
    I rest my case

  7. This is the way to go, not the irrelevant issues of tax avoidance by multi-corporations which are too remote to deal with.

  8. We Zambians are docile especially this unproductive generation of snap-chat kids only highly active at blogging about topics relating to $ex …Lazy Lungu knows it hence the reason he sent his chola boy and decided to crack silly jokes in Parliament. If he was serious he would swiftly hosted a press conference and invited everyone not just Times and Daily Mail…we Zambians are to blame as we let our Public Officials take us for granted.

    • Thorn in the flesh – I told you before on the Chanda Chimba article that dingbats like you and silly political parties (see the plural there) are not taking the country anywhere!!

    • Let’s face it. It’s checkmate. The article above is fake news. It’s actually your pettiness that is not driving your tompweless heads nowhere. Sick puppies. Pukeable retur(d)s.

    • This is what it has come to with you utterly corrupt nincompoops…using lazy words such as fake to write off everything and pigeon-hole everyone as silly UPNDs who does not subscribe to your imbecility!!

  9. I can see PF going the way UNIP went. Take heed, you shouldn’t take the people of Zambia for granted.

    • How can PF end up like UNIP?? It is the party of choice of 7 provinces. I think you should be more concerned with the regional upnd which from 2001 has been concentrated on 3 regions and has never grown out of those regions. Your hate and deceit will never convince the majority. You have no agenda for the people except your tribalist amd imperialist selfishness. That is why you abandon parliament and want to decieve the masses. Pathetic creatures!!!

    • Zambian Citizen…Waba ifmaibol0 ukufita chi colour , Party of choice when you were busy stealing votes and forging g12 forms? Todate you have failed to tell us what that Ugandan idi0t was doing in the ECZ IT server room. If PF is the party of choice why the grand malpractices and violence at such large scale prior to the elections?. You are a loser together with yr visionless chakolwa Chagwa!

    • Zambian Citizen @12.1, clearly you have failed to see the wood for the trees. My assertion @12 is based on the fact that the people in 1990 were in want of basic essentials i.e., mealie meal, cooking oil, sugar….etc. Discontent was built around this. Now tell me, if there is no parallel between now and 1990, in terms of the poor having easy accesses to the mentioned essential commodities?
      I haven’t mentioned UNDP in my assertion. So where has that come from?

    • And what is the comparison to the current situation??? What commodities are in short supply?? Which planet do yo live on?? That’s why I said it’s upnd rubbish, it is they who are brainwashing retards like you to believe the economy is bad and it’s time for revolution. YOU ARE SICK AND ARE IMAGINING THINGS. I dare you to go on the streets and you will find out how brutal ZP is, bwana amenya vaupuba!!!

  10. ONLY A TONGA MUST LEAD UPND says Sejani. This is a UPND sponsored conference to dent the image of the government, just look at the composition of this panel; Misbishop mambo, Laura Miti etc , they are all staunch UPND cohorts bent on helping UPND misleader HH to go to the state house using whatever strategy is at their disposal. HH is so desperate to go to the state house that he is now inciting the public against the government. This man must be tamed before it is too late. HH and his followers are becoming a danger to the national peace and security. To their shame and surprise NO Well meaning Zambian will revolt against the government, only these Stupid UPND supporters. HH A TICKING TIME BOMB TO NATIONAL PEACE AND SECURITY

    • Laura Miti has been like that all her adult life. She speaks her mind because she thinks we can be better than what we are now. Obviously you are disappointed and sad that she is not Tonga because only Tongas dislike PF in the world you live in.

    • I AM READY TO TELL COURT THAT DOUBLE H IS A SATANIST, says TAYALI

      Agents of doom. No hope from a gang of bitter lots. Terrible alarmists. They attempted these alarms from campaign times of the 2016 polls. Poor rejectamentas. Zambians are elite Zambians are peaceful thanks.

  11. But engagement is always there and it has achieved nothing. Tell those who disagree with you how it will be different this time? We have Christian thieves and they are believed to be preferable to thieves from other religions or non-believers according to Christian nation values. This is as illogical as believing that a kilo of paper weighs less than a kilo of steel.

  12. How can you trust a grouping with a definite regime change agenda in its books??? The prophets of doom gathered to decieve the masses. These are the soothsayers who fashion themselves as the elders of the nation who determine the hegemony of this nation. It’s all gone, they did their part in the FTJ third term bid and that is history. They never approved of ECL because he didn’t bow down to them. Sadly democracy of Zambia determines who becomes president and the majority won, God bless Edgar Lungu. May God curse this fountain of evil!!!

  13. I would rather be killed fighting for my children’s rights on PFs side than pay attention to these imperialist a.s.s lickers determined to enslave this nation. I will go on the streets anyday to denounce these NGOs and the catholics who want to kill our democracy and have their tonga stooge hakainde in state house who the majority have rejected five times. It is the Zambians who choose their leaders, THERE WILL BE NO REVOLT AT THE BEHEST OF YOU TRIBALIST, IMPERIALIST DEVILS!! Zambia is a free and democratic state belonging to its people!!!

    • “On behalf of the Zambian people, we the organisations gathered here therefore demand that:”
      NEVER!!! SPEAK FOR YOURSELVES, YOU DON’T REPRESENT ZAMBIANS!!! WE THE ZAMBIANS DID NOT GIVE YOU AUTHORITY TO SPEAK ON OUR BEHALF. SPEAK FOR THE TONGAS, THE UPND AND YOUR SUPPORTERS. WE CHOSE A CONSTITUTION IN 2016 THAT WILL CREATE INSTITUTIONS THAT WILL GUIDE US, NOT INDIVIDUALS FROM SHADOWY ORGANISATIONS MASQUERADING TO REPRESENT US. WE SPOKE IN 2016 AND HAVE A PARLIAMENT WE TRUST!!

    • Console each other all you want my two dunderhead countrymen but your PF with its sick dull leader are leaving and if by any chance you !d!ots are direct beneficiaries of the rampant corruption in PF you better make plans to relocate because there shall be no moving forward till all of you pay. 🙂

    • It’s 2021 dear. We shall evaluate whether to kick the Patriots out or keep them. If we kick them out the replacement will definitely not be one double H. The stakes are high.

  14. They want people to use violence and risk violence so that HH can be president? Why would I risk my life so that GBM can become vice-president?

  15. The NGO s have worken up. They have really been quiet for so long. I was wondering what was happening.
    Anyway, organise some protest marches and let’s do placards and write some of those corruption cases like balances, fire engines etc and demand answers from the passive Kateka whose main agenda is to conduct as many trips as possible and rake in money. What a shameless bunch of greedy people

    • The era of credible NGO is gone. Fallen out favour for misappropriating donor funds. What checks and balances can come from the filthy hands of merciless NGOs. They can’t have it both ways. Violence begets violence. Zambia can not go that route. Take the appropriate step with facts on all your allegations. Disproven statements. Zambia is greater than individuals but we shall not take to the street.

  16. Zambia Awards New Mobile-Network License to Angola’s Unitel
    (Bloomberg) — Zambia awarded licenses to start a fourth mobile-network operator to a company part-owned by Isabel Dos Santos, the daughter of Angola’s former president whose influence is waning in her home country.

    Unitel International Holdings BV, in which Dos Santos owns a 25 percent stake, pledged to invest more than $350 million through a local unit and will compete with market leader MTN Group Ltd. and Bharti Airtel Ltd. The expansion comes less than four months after new Angola President Joao Lourenco announced an auction for a new operator in the oil-rich African nation, challenging Unitel in its home market.

    Dos Santos, Africa’s richest woman, was stripped of her role as chairwoman of Angola’s state-oil company…

    • company last year as Lourenco sought to reduce the influence of the family of predecessor Eduardo Dos Santos, who he succeeded in September elections. Isabel this month denied wrongdoing related to a transfer of $38.2 million from the oil company, Sonangol, following allegations by its chairman, Carlos Saturnino.

      For Zambia’s part, the country’s telecommunications regulator concluded after a two-year review that more competition is needed to improve services and lower prices. Two companies including Unitel expressed an interest in the licenses, the Zambia Information & Communications Technology Authority said in a statement Monday.

      During the first half of 2017, active mobile-phone subscriptions in Zambia increased by 3.4 percent to 12.4 million, according to the finance ministry,…

  17. The problem of us Zambians we lack analytical knowledge.we always think of politics. The group that meet did not mention any political part but Government. All the issues talked about need government attention. The right person to respond to all allegations is the Republican President who should have addressed the nation to clear the air about all the issues of people’s concern. Such issues are of national interest and bear but picture and name of the nation. Keeping quiet does not solve the problem and people will continue talking and who knows will consequently furnish the name of the country and leadership. It is not about ECL. or HH,PF or UPND or any party buy Zambia as a Nation and the Republican President to address the nation about all the issues of concern.

  18. A revolt is not a revolution and burning tyres is not the solution. You call yourself “Bishop” and yet you are leading the sheep astray! Do you seriously think you are solving a problem by creating another one?

    If NGO’s are so fed up with the government, simply tell your members what to do with their ballot papers next time but stop inciting the entire nation to commit civil unrest.

  19. It is high time government accounted for their careless spending especially on the fire tender and ambulances. The prices they paid for them are not from this world but from the PF crooked minds .

  20. Revolt and meet live ammunition. God loves citizens who do right things .You can disagree with expenditures but revolting will make you end up with the hole in the head

  21. Please ba Lungu boreholes awe.tell council and lusaka to provide water the u can ask for borehole taxes.Thanks

    • Leadership is a balancing act. If you take something, you must give something also,especially, services. When the agenda becomes all about taking without giving, it becomes exploitation and that becomes recipe for turmoil.

  22. @Thorn in the flesh.
    LT does not give your commentary reply icon, which may imply inconsequential commentary from you.

  23. Bishop John Mambo is a thief who stole alot of money from Church of God World Mission, he created more problems and the church is still facing million challenges today. Bishop Mambo should get real with himself about his life and every-body in this NGO.

  24. If the burning of tyres on the streets passes, Let Bishop Mambo and Laura be in forefront rather than risking innocent lives. Violence begets violence is the golden rule. If citizens resort to such will equally meet forciful police service and zambia army on the streets and loss of lives might be exoerienced. The civil societies cited have never sought audience with the president, Auditor General and other wings of govt for amicable solutions to problems cited.
    We have got only one Zambia and lets protect it jelously.

  25. Amos Chanda wants CSO to provide evidence of corruption.
    Then my question is why do we have ACC?
    Is ACC meant for only investigating government perceived enemies?
    I pity Amos Chanda, his an intelligent person God fearing man, but the company he keeps has corrupted him. his sold his conscience to protect corruption every where around him.
    The type of answers and press conferences his giving show a man who has run out of lies, all to protect lungu. Amos your soul shall never be at peace again until you repent.

Comments are closed.

Read more

Local News

Discover more from Lusaka Times-Zambia's Leading Online News Site - LusakaTimes.com

Subscribe now to keep reading and get access to the full archive.

Continue reading