Friday, March 29, 2024

Parliament told about K19.5 million embezzled at the Ministry of General Education

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Minister of Local Government Hon Vincent Mwale
Minister of Local Government Hon Vincent Mwale

About K19.5 million meant for various educational programmes has been embezzled at the Ministry of General Education, Parlianent has heard.

Acting Minister of General Education Vincent Mwale has also confirmed that the Department for International Development has suspended funding to the Ministry to pave way for investigations and clean up of the system before funding can resume.

Mr. Mwale said 80 officers alleged to have embezzled the funds have been suspended majority of them from the Ministry Headquarters in Lusaka.

Responding to a question from Chinsali Member of Parliament Kalalwe Mukosa during the question and answer session, Mr. Mwale said the misuse of funds has had a negative impact on the provision of education in the country.

“The misuse of funds Mr. Speaker has affected the provision of education in the country but i cant exactly point out for now which areas have been impacted”. He added.

Mr. Mwale said among those suspended are internal auditors and government will ensure that the embezzled money is recovered.

Recently, the DFID suspended funding to the Ministry of Community Development and demanded for a refund of 2.7 million pounds meant for beneficiaries of the social Cash Transfer programme which was alleged to have been stolen.

The Zambia government has since refunded the money.

41 COMMENTS

  1. How do you trust 80 officers with funds? It sounds like anyone working in government has access to funds? You need to review the processes of handling cash by civil servants. The police, for instance, should not be allowed to handle any cash but process fines by way of issuing tickets. You need to introduce tougher background checks and scrutinize anyone tasked with handling public finances. Tougher punishments such as jail, not just suspensions should be adopted. Transparency on your part is also important. Publishing how you are spending public money would also encourage accountability. Most importantly, you need to invest in training your staff on the impact of corruption. You don’t need to be a genius to put good systems in place.

    • Alright, so what’s your defense now Lungu & your rotten government? Is the K19.5M also in the ZANACO a/c? Am lost for words. #LunguWu must go

    • So it’s HH to blame again? Kaili it’s always his fault……Dununa regret tiye tiye mulesumina uno mwaka, wpya munzi

    • PF are Liars and masters of under estimations, when you hear that, multiply the figure he has mentioned by 15 times to come close to the real actual amount embezzled .

      The donor monies at the two ministries, edu and Com, is what these PF crooked idi0ts have been using for vote buying in bye elections and also in the so called presidential funds. Let the donors abash giving them money till an independent audit by independent external auditors such as KPMG if we are to know the real truth.

    • How can officers be suspended …what about their bosses and the minister? were they sleeping or alos eating together?

  2. Cavanaugh was discussed publicly because he was taking up a high post of supreme judge in USA

    Here in Zambia Lungu had record of drunkardness in compound bars in chawama. Embezzlement of widows money. Desertion at ZNS

    Then we have hh. Given consultancy to PRIVATISE. In stead he started setting prices and selling to himself.

    He bought a very big house next to golf club cheaply. The house was for Zambian airways. Ati ubomba mwi bala

    He is a tax evader by secretly hiding money in Panama.

    Dangoke has been in business for 40yrs. Hh become a billionaire in 10yrs

    Hh displaced his own natives in namwala and put animals on the land.

    When there was tribal violence in Namwala hh was mute.

    That is Lungu and Hh.

    These two are not fit to republican president.

    Am a non…

    • @it is political – Don’t just blame, give us iwe better alternatives. You are the people why Zambia is in a mess. If Lungu is bad and HH is worse, so who is the better alternative in your mind? We are tired of people campaigning in the backgrounds, if you are real men come out we see your alternative policies instead of wasting our time reading your comments written in parables. If you don’t have anyone then shut up until you find an alternative leader.

  3. So they steal from education and then on top of that kill students. You Zambians are slow..in other countries this would have ended the government in weeks. Wake up

  4. Silence means concent. Our head of state has never in any convincing strongest terms possible or in actions condemned corruption in the country.

  5. DFID cash was found and I am sure its not part of the K19m talked about. The question is why trust cash to over 80 people. Is this the way ministries should work and who are these 80 people. If its at Ministry Hq alone then who is working ? Its clear that it involves almost everyone stating from the top.
    Oh just wait before we hear that the money is intact and still in Zanaco accounts. Meanwhile people have been suspended.
    Disaster!!!!

  6. Cash bonanza mentality comes from ignorance. Ignorant leads to incompetent. Out of three technicians one is not qualified but out of three graduates two are not qualified. Cheating is increasing in direct proportion to education attainment. The solution is proper recruitment. When hiring, Government must not interfere but allow independent consultants to pick the best candidates for the country. Incompetent thrives on cheering ring leader and attacking visionary.

  7. It’s the case of Ubomba mwibala alya mwibala, Lungu encourages such things why did he fire Kabanshi when the money was in Zanaco account

  8. Funds ’embezzled’, or ‘misappropriated’ or ‘stolen’. The suitable is funds stolen. It’s a criminal case, and treat them like thieves.

  9. Surprisingly, the people involved in theft of money at education ministry are our ordinary brothers and sisters. Some are even our relatives! Starting with the president to the lowest ranked employee, we must be good stewards of resource entrusted to our care. Let me now address the bloggers on LT, some of you are bad mouthing others and yet in your respective businesses or companies, you are busy amassing wealth dubiously, are quick to see a speck in other people’s eyes and yet you are carrying a log in your eyes. Repent and stop the theft.

  10. This is nothing, no one will be prosecuted for these crimes, but open a what’s app group you will see how the PF police will come and get you. The president himself approves of corruption he has never come out to condemn corruption in the strongest possible way. Ni Dununa Reverse kanshi

  11. Ok ubupuba bwachila nelyashi lya embezzlement, misappropriation, misapplication and corruption…..These are deadly vices lurking in minds of those entrusted with the capital resources of nation……it’s a shame mwebantu if all we hear being discussed in parliament is such vices instead of advances in manufacturing plants and areas where we can advance in trade with other countries….really it’s a shame, shame, shame and shame…..I look forward when we have proper learned people in parliament…..people well vested with knowledge of how the world operates….people who understand the acumen of world business….how to run the country with well coordinated business systems…..Sata put it right…learned people are cowards….indeed!

  12. Do we really have a leader in this country?? When all government depts are stealing for fun then you question the top leadership of the country. This president lacks stamina to control anything! I doubt he can run and control his own home! His very reactive but never proactive. His got the whole state machinery to keep him informed but somehow he behaves like all of us getting surprised at the happenings in his own government! Is it a question of the state machinery failing him or pure incompetency where reports are submitted and he chooses not to read them or act on them?? As someone has stated, its not rocket science to put up systems in place to prevent this daylight stealing!!

  13. All this is because you have a leader in state house who does not deny that he is a corrupt theif, now all civil servants think being a corrupt theif is ok…..

  14. SUCH LIES – – SUDDENLY NOW THAT DONORS ARE WITHDRAWING FUNDING YOU FIND OUT MONEY IS MISSING – THIS IS ALL A COVER UP TO PREVENT ZAMBIANS FROM KNOWING THAT THE PF HAS LAUNDERED THIS MONEY FOR ELECTION CAMPAIGNS AND VOTER BUYING !!!!!!!!!!!!!!
    STOP LYING TO US !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

  15. You want to sue Africa Confidential that they are on a smear campaign against Zambia and the PF and yet it is the PF led govt which is decamping itself by its own clandestine activities. Its you who create scandals and AC just reports even what yourselves have confirmed.There is absolutely no logic in going ahead with this litigation. It is shear nonsense.

  16. EVERY MORNING, BRAND NEW SCANDAL!!
    P.F, is soaked in corruption, if you now removed corruption from P.F the Party would Die, like a Fish removed from water.
    This P.F is so lucky we are NOT in West Africa, otherwise they would wake up one morning to the sound of Army boots in their houses & guns pointed to their corrupt foreheads, with the words, “GET UP, the game is over”

  17. It appears the country is in for a rougher ride than anticipated… embezzled/stolen is the order of the day.. What a calibre of leaders we are experiencing as a nation!

  18. @Malala. Upendi should fiield in forma unzasu president Cornelius Mweetwa

    PF Should field in Given Lubinda or Dr Chilufya kays Ministry of health.

    Mmd field in Mutati.

  19. I keep saying this , and I will say it again,

    When you have a president who does not deny or even attempt to deny that he is a corrupt theif after accusations everyday, all civil servants think being a corrupt theif is no big deal….

    Here the saying

    ….monkey see monkey do,

    rings true…

  20. They are definitely imitating someone.They know they won’t suffer any punishment.suspension and then transferred. That is why stealing will never end.

  21. People think some of us are just anti lungu,

    No, it is the zero morality and zero integrity that is exhibited by lungu that is what some of us hate.

    Now some will say lungu can not be watching every negwee is not stolen , yes, but we expect him to come out and issue a full statement to reassure the nation.

    We expect lungu to take the forward step in fighting corruption and stealing….

    But what we get from lungu is the opposite….complete silence and most times even collusion on corruption scandals rocking the nation…

  22. Let’s not make this a zero-sum game. It cannot be that a transgressor must be a member of a particular political persuasion or tribe. This is why we keep making the same mistakes of voting in the same useless people just because they have changed allegiance. I believe we are human beings FIRST before we are anything else. Let’s regard ourselves from our actions and not what we believe or the language we speak. Awe mwe!!!

  23. This how the PF government has taken the Zambian people for fools. There is so much thieft and corruption, even this that has been revealed is just a tip of the iceberg. When the opposition points these evils to the Zambian people they are branded to be alarming the nation and threatened to be arrested. When frustrated students demonstrate they are killed, and the point the finger to the opposition as the inciters of the commotions. WHAT THE PF GOVERNMENT ACTUALLY MEAN IS THAT THE ZAMBIAN PEOPLE A FOOLS, THEY CAN NOT DO ANY THING ON THEIR OWN, WITHOUT INCITEMENT.

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