Thursday, April 25, 2024
Image Description

President Lungu’s participation in the Privatization Program was clean, says State House as the call for an Inquiry

Share

President Edgar Lungu
President Edgar Lungu with Amos Chanda

State House spokesperson Amos Chanda has called for a public and judge-led inquiry into the privatization of companies where leading opposition leader Hakainde Hichilema has been repeatedly named to have been at the centre of the privatization program that saw the cheap sale of state owned assets.

Speaking to the media on a number of issues, Mr Chanda also confirmed that the President Edgar Lungu was one of the people that participated in the privatization program, adding that unlike Mr Hichilema, who sold the companies to friends or relatives and himself, President Lungu’s participation was confined to being chairman in the sell of Zambia Cold Storage Limited to foreigners

Mr Chanda said that there was need for this inquiry to take place because the opposition has been trying to throw mad at President Lungu involvement in the privatization process, and has maintained that the Head of State did a clean job unlike others whose activities rises a lot of questions.

“President Lungu did not sale the Keembe storage to himself, or relatives and friends, ” said the State House Spokesperson.

Echoing the Presidential aide sentiments, the ruling party, Patriotic Front (PF), Director for Media Sunday Chanda added that President Lungu, unlike others, in reference to UPND leader, did not sale the assets to himself, proxies or relatives.

“When you’re negotiating Chairperson, your role is not to sale to yourself. You are not supposed to sale to your proxy. You are not to sale cheaply at the expense of the owners of the property. You have a duty to declare any interest, particularly of a conflicting nature,” Mr Chanda said

Mr Chanda said that if anyone examined the sale in which the President was involved, it was a very clean transaction.

“Compare and contrast with all the sales in which the UPND president was involved, they are all tainted with criminality,” Mr Chanda said

Mr Chanda said that recently, while in Kasama, the President’s statement was very clear that someone sold everything cheaply, to himself and or his friends, always used shady arrangements and that more examples abound.

“The fact that UPND want to drag the President’s name, and we know he’s innocent, it’s probably time Zambia reviewed the whole privatization to see exactly who is a criminal, and should be be brought to book!” stated Chanda.

“When you’re negotiating Chairperson, your role is not to sale to yourself. You are not supposed to sale to your proxy. You are not to sale cheaply at the expense of the owners of the property. You have a duty to declare any interest, particularly of a conflicting nature,” Mr Chanda said

The privatization inquiry has been sparked by Economics Association of Zambia President Dr Lubinda Haabazoka who recently called on those involved who were involved in the privatization of mine assets to apologize.

Dr Haabazoka observed that the privatization of Zambia’s mines was done exploitatively.

Writing on his Facebook page, Dr Haabazoka who, attempted to make a veiled attack on opposition leader Hakainde Hichilema who worked as a Consultant to the Zambia Privatization Agency, said the sale of mine assets was unpatriotic.

The EAZ President claimed that those that helped sell the mines are swimming in money leaving others to solve the problems they created.

“Each and every individual regardless of the role they played in Privatization of Zambia’s mines should apologize to the nation immediately,” Dr Haabazoka said.

“Privatization of Zambia’s mines at very exploitative terms is the highest level of unpatriotism,” he charged.

“20 years after the damage, some are swimming in money when others are solving problems created!!! 21000 job looses???”

111 COMMENTS

  1. People of Zambia we have a lot of issues to address right now unlike bringing up issues of yester years. Politics of vengeance in the Archives plz!

    • Amos Chanda is a civil servant and should not involve himself in cheap politics. This statement about HH may need to be verified through government documents and court processes. Can Amos prove what he claims?

    • What is the point of an expensive enquiry when you seem to know who did right and wrong?
      “Mr Chanda also confirmed that the President Edgar Lungu was one of the people that participated in the privatization program, adding that unlike Mr Hichilema, who sold the companies to friends or relatives and himself, President Lungu’s participation was confined to being chairman in the sell of Zambia Cold Storage Limited to foreigners.”

    • @Mayonwandi, you are naive my friend. It is the archives that make politics, POLITICS!!!. Without the Archives, politics is DEAD. It is Politics that created the Phrases like ” the chickens have come home to roost and your past will come back to haunt you.” If you stay away from politics, you don’t have to worry about your archives. Archives is the currency in politics. That is the same the world all over.

      This is pure politicking going on ahead of 2021 elections, with one side laying the ground work to get a Disqualification of the other before real campaign in 2020. Remember UPND failed to disqualify Lungu this year. It is now PF’s turn on HH.

      This is politics

    • THE PRIVATISATION ACT CHAPTER 386 OF THE LAWS OF ZAMBIA

      Eligible buyer
      24. The shares in a State owned enterprise shall be sold to a citizen of Zambia or a person who is not a citizen of Zambia.

      Sale of shares to an employee and consultant
      25. No member or members of a committee or any employee or consultant of the Agency or the spouse, child, mother, father, brother, sister or a professional business partner as the case may be, of the employee or consultant shall purchase shares unless the sale is by public offer of shares.

      26. Political leaders and public officers shall publicly disclose their intention to bid for the purchase of shares in a State owned enterprise.

    • @JomboMyanga, You underestimate the power of the people. I think you think Lungu and his minions are ALL powerful. Uzadabwa.

    • He knows that one of the grestest and number one issue that continues to drag him down politically is his messy dealings at the hand of privatization. He thinks that if he uses the same thing to the other side, he will gain some support and an equal force of resistance lashed at his opponent. Nothing can be swept under the carpet. Souls of miners and their families who lost their lives outa grief for their slave pays and job losses that keep hauting families of those working todate still haunt this unfortunate businessman masquerading as a option to leadership. Way forward, wrong doers must and should not rule over us. Unpatriotic pimps must not rule over us. Stop ’em embarrassing thieves.

    • @Mwana Chinondo, Exactly A.Mosi seems to know what happened, why not just disclose, He wants an inquest so that some people enrich themselves. Also we have seen many public inquest and no result in PF boma.

    • In politics, like in any field, your previous experience is your CV. So only a biased character would want to bury the past. Zambia has never had a person with experience as president become president. To become president your past is laid bare for the people to see who you are & make an informed decision. So instead of commissions rather open a court case

    • But when you say clean, you’re just protecting yourselves. Only a probe of some unbiased kind can like really declare you clean.

    • Koma Zambia is full of cowards. Do you all believe that :
      State House spokesperson Amos Chanda has called for a public and judge-led inquiry into the privatization of companies blablabla
      When we all know the story is
      President Lungu has called for a public and judge-led inquiry into the privatization of companies where blablabla
      Lungu is such a coward he is sending his henchman to taste the waters. In Chibemba they say ukusakisha imbwa

    • Amos this is the can of worms you shouldn’t open your boss was also part and parcel of the people who sold GRZ assets let it go you’ll live to regret if you don’t heed to my advice

    • Atase!! All this time they’ve been taunting HH, kansi Lungu was also a privatization negotiator. Did they have to wait until ZWD exposed him?
      HH wisely invested his paycheck in cattle & rose to become zambeef’s largest supplier whilst Lungu drunk all the money he was paid.
      Today ati nyo-nyo-nyo, how did HH become wealthy?
      By 2011, Lungu was destitute & homeless, staying in the garage of the MMD deputy transport minister. Thats how he got convinced to join politics to gain wealth.

    • Apologize only, or be held accountable too? Criminal activities have to be prosecuted, not asking criminals for apologies. Apologizing is not enough. People will not eat apologies. If it can be proven that HH benefited personally from the sale of national assets, he will have to forfeit whatever he acquired back to the State, and then face the law. Same thing goes for Lungu. Both of them will have to be prosecuted, including anybody else who benefited from the disastrous privatization. But we know that as long as Lungu is still in office, the investigation will not be free and fair. Unless parliament mans up and leads the investigation, together with ACC—making sure that Lungu doesn’t interfere. The documentary on YouTube, “Stealing Africa—Why Poverty?” shades light on what…

    • … happened regarding privatization in Zambia. It shows how foreigners became instant billions from that criminal disastrous privation. Lock these thieves up, every last one of them.

  2. “Compare and contrast with all the sales in which the UPND president was involved, they are all tainted with criminality,” Mr Chanda said. Criminality? PF has been trying to arrest HH and charge him with anything in order to stop him from contesting future elections. Here they have things that HH criminally committed. Instead of fake treason cases, why not use these?

    • If you were not thieving and engaging in corrupt practices we would have taken you seriously,. Now your desparation is driving you nuts. You can smell and see MUKOBEKO in the horizon. Can you simply account for properties beyond your means, is it through money laundering and tax evasion?

    • HH is not suitable for President or any leadership position due to qhat he did to Zambia. Lest we all look stuupid in his eyes He should be tried and locked up. Chapwa.Ask that chap who did exactly what HH did in Russia. He is still in prison and they have lost the key

    • If a grade 7 can be president what should stop him. Mind you he is among the most qualified like it not. He can even restore our dented image, here we are mama first lady is never seen on these tripes. What has happened, we are a Christian nation with family values. A bit of corruptly obtained eeslth should not dislodge us from our values.

  3. Hehehehehe….hohohohoho ………

    So Lungu sold cold storage board , hehehehe ………he drank all his bribes instead of investing like others….

    • One is a convicted debarred thieving lawyer who found guilty of stealing from a widow and the other does not have a criminal record to his name, who do u think will likely steal from privatisation

  4. All this time it was HH sold the mines now because the truth has come out that Edgar Chagwa Lungu was also involved in the privatisation process , Amos Chanda is quick to defend because it is now out in the papers and now he wants to twist the whole issue. Lies have short legs. We never knew that Edgar Chagwa Lungu was also involved until it came out through the papers and now they are on the defensive.

    • Did Lungu sell to himself or his proxies? Hakainde ended up buying shares in a hotel he was privatizing. He also sold to himself a lima bank kabulonga house when he was a liquidator. That’s the issue, not mere involvement in the privatization process

    • Lungu chewed bribes when selling…

      Look closely at how cold storage board was sold and you will find lungu recived unexplained monies during the selling…

    • @danielle: Role of the Liquidator in CVL. On appointment, the liquidator will manage the liquidation process by dealing with creditors and organising creditors’ meetings where necessary. He or she will sell the company’s assets, and the proceeds will be used to pay creditors after agreed costs and fees have been deducted.

      Can a liquidator buy the assets and pay the creditors…YES!

  5. HH broke the law bigtime. Check item 25 of privatisation act. He needs to be jailed as it is clear.You can’t get shares in all companies you sell.The bugger was given shares as payback. He needs to go to prison.We

  6. HH was not the only one involved in privatisation as the documents are now revealing, for me i think everyone involved was paid money and given an opportunity to use that money to buy shares but while others used that advantage wisely others did not. It is a case of the 10 virgins in the bible, while all of them were invited to the wedding feast 5 were wise and 5 were foolish. We don’t need a public inquiry, the PF will never admit to anything, they never even mentioned it that their Edgar was involved until the papers brought it to light just like the stolen money which was later found in the bank if that is even true. Habaazoka is just a PF stooge no different from the likes of Dan Pule. An inquiry is a waste of time and money, the truth has come out and if there was no proof like…

  7. Ba mwine didn’t invest his kickbacks kuti waseka so all along he’s been talking about privatization not mentioning that he was part and parcel of the lot that sold the assets.

  8. Rumour has it, ati winangu zamene anaaba anamwela, winangu zake anachita invest. Elo futi we anamwela akamba anachita invest ndiye kawalala – koma bonse banatibela.
    There is a lot of bias surrounding this. If Amosi has the facts let him publish them, kulibe ati wenze shushushu so uviziba. ECL has never at anytime revealed he was part of the privatization program. There is no need to open an inquiry, mufuna mube zinangu? Just ‘declassify’ the privatization records like minutes etc.

  9. This is sounds like the story of talents in the Bible, ba chang didn’t invest whatever he made during that process hence his hate for the brother.

    • What ? It was the Mazoka Freemason triangle. We hear now ati he is Mazoka s’ sibling. That’s how he is even UPND boss.. Damn criminal cattle rustlers turned ranchers. Open the public inquiry so that this chapter can be rested

    • @Kim leka efsushi fyube, jerlousy and envy is what we have been sold all along. Immediately they sow his investments and bank balance, they went bolistic. If he was a Chinese it wouldn’t have mattered, learn to appreciate your own.

  10. HH PRIVITISATION MISMANAGER. I’m A victim of HH”s mismanagement of privatization of state owned enterprises. My uncle was a miner at Changa division of ZCCM in Chingola and I was being kept by him. When the mines were privatized most of the miners, my uncle included, were not paid any terminal benefits. My uncle ended up being a charcoal burner to support us until he died in 2003. His children and myself were withdrawn from mine schools to schools of lower standards due to lack of funds to maintain us in those schools. IT is just by the grace of GOD that some of us finished school. It is for this reason that I hate HH and those that mishandled the privatization process to benefit themselves. Like Habazoka said today HH and others are swimming in money while others are abject poverty. HH…

    • I have many friends who were left destitute when lungu sold Cold Storage Board of Zambia , CSBZ.

      Whole communities in Lusaka who depended on CSB died when lungu sold it to foringners…

    • You should be ashamed of yourself for lying. I worked for the mines during the privatisation process. I know all the retrenched miners were paid. In addition they all got housing units, I benefited from that.

      Not one miner was unpaid.

    • Firstly, it was the MMD government that privatised the Mines. Not HH. Sata was part of the decision to privatise.
      Secondly, HH was working for Coopers & Lybrand. They were employed by the MMD government to undertake work for them.
      It now appears ECL was also given the same type of work. We don’t know where he took his money becoz he ended up in Chawama. The friend invested it, and that probably shows he can invest and plan for this country. Not the stealing we are currently seeing. Pipo who can’t account for their wealth accummulated in 3 years.

  11. No sane Zambian would be interested in the sale of Keembe storage!!!Plus this is the first time am hearing that Zambia had a company called Keembe storage!!!
    THE MAIN INTERESTS OF ALL ZAMBIANS ARE THE MINES,HOTELS WHICH HH SOLD FOR A SONG WITH FTJ CHILUBA!!!To make matters worse,HH does not accept or say anything about privatization confirming that he is a THIEF!!!Zambians have caught HH pants down on privatization issues.PLEASE PF GOVNT PROBE THIS ISSUE SO THAT WE CAN KNOW HOW HH BECAME RICH ABD KILLED MILLION OF ZAMBIANS WHO WORKED IN ZCCM MINES BUT ARE DEAD TODAY DUE TO LOSS OF EMPLOYMENT!!!
    Indeed ECL is clean because he was a simple lawyer and lived in Chawama,meaning that he got almost nothing from the sale of Keembe storage!!THE MAJOR CULPRIT IS HH-A KNOWN PRIVATIZATION LAZO IN…

    • Cold storage was sold by lungu..
      …..be 6.5 sold cold storage and drank all the money,

      Hehehehe cold storage board of Zambia….was sold to foringners by lungu

    • Njimbu …

      You from Congo and only sneaked into CB

      …..us who are Zambians know Cold storage board of Zambia and its subsiduary companies in Lusaka that lungu sold…

  12. Why is nawaz sherif going to jail for 7 years

    He simply failed to state how he made his money

    All those politicians that fail to explain their bank accounts must be considered as criminals

    Kaunda had established SITET or was it it CITET to investigate people with unexplained money but Chiluba abolished it.

    We can sweep privatisation under the market. In the usa they investigate crimes you committed as a teenager at high school and thats enough to disqualify you for public office

    • Dont mislead people Sata never in investigated anyone on privatization

      This issue was started by hh who said lungu had sold zaffico. Nrdc and znbc to Chinese

      Hh started this battle unfortunately he will end up being bruised himself

    • Ati HH started this battle ??

      How come the only song of rats have been singing apart from dunnuna is privertisation ???

      Kanshi lungu was busy selling companies to foringners…

      Upnd cader and kudos will even change their names….njimbu will take cover for a while…

  13. 1.5 Mama says:
    THE PRIVATISATION ACT CHAPTER 386 OF THE LAWS OF ZAMBIA
    Sale of shares to an employee and consultant
    25. No member or members of a committee or any employee or consultant of the Agency or the spouse, child, mother, father, brother, sister or a professional business partner as the case may be, of the employee or consultant shall purchase shares unless the sale is by public offer of shares.

    Where was this ACT when rampant tunneling of state assets was going on which saw members of the privatisation committee become instant Kwacha Billionaires and have shares and sit on the boards of the companies they privatised on behalf of Zambian govt?

  14. Selective investigation. Zambians carry the misconception that the mines had a high value at the time of disposal. During KK’s time, mines overemployed and were undercapitalized. The copper prices had contracted. The West was unfriendly to Zambia following KK’s communist sympathies. Zambians got fair value for their assets. The question I ask is this- why is the PF carrying out privatization secretively?

  15. Kudos and UPND cader will even change names. ….

    “….Mr Hichilema, who sold the companies to friends or relatives and himself, President Lungu’s participation was confined to being chairman in the sell of Zambia Cold Storage Limited to foreigners…”

    All equipment from cold storage board was stripped and taken out of the country…..at the time of the sale, lungu recived unexplained funds…

  16. For a long time his supporters have been saying he did nothing wrong otherwise he would be in jail by now. He said same thing at sabc

    Let him be investigated thoroughly now.

    Dont say ” ITS POLITICAL”

    In my view him and the sitting president must be disqualified

    • Firstly, let us investigate CURRENT BUNCH OF CORRUPT members of Government.
      Evidence is there and witnesses do have fresh memory.
      Let us start with the Endemically Corrupt Leader

  17. Njimbu….

    I had a lot of friends who worked for cold storage board of zambia and died of frustration when lungu sold everything to foringners ……

  18. Whole communities who depended on cold storage board and it’s supply companies were left destitute and devastated when lungu sold that Zambian company to foringners…..

    • It is interesting that every time there is a choice between Foreigners and Zambians, Lungu seems to weigh heavily on the foreign side. Is it just a coincidence or is there something we do not know about him? Iam just wondering while not insinuating anything.

  19. Let use the law be use to prosecute whoever was involved in the illegal components of the privatisation process. Let HH defend himself if at all he is innocent. Can being the consultant bring all the wealth that he has acquired? Please let the arms of law b extended to every person who was involved in the scam.

  20. Let’s have the Judge-led inquiry. Period! It’s one think to participate in privatization like many other lawyers and UNZA dons did but it’s another thing to engage in cri.minality like HH did.

    • Edgar Lungu should also resign so as to pave way for a full and independent investigation by the Commission of Inquiry on Privatisation.He was the Head negotiator for the sale of Zambia Cold Storage Board and a player in the privatization of state assets.
      Let Inonge Wina take over until 2021.
      ECL can not set up a commission and hide behind presidential immunity when he was directly involved.

  21. What is this long overdue inquiry still waiting for? Let a Judge led inquiry begin immediately with a clear timetable to finish this job within 18 months. Anyone opposing this patriotic idea has vested interest.

  22. Sadly we glorify thi.eves….What HH did was not only un.ethical but cri.minal too. Let’s have an inquiry to put this matter to rest once and for all.

  23. “…Mr Chanda said that if anyone examined the sale in which the President was involved, it was a very clean transaction….”

    Iwe chanda…..Lungu is a convicted fraudster, to tell us a convicted fraudster overlooked a clean privertisation is like telling us a chakolwa barman did not have a beer while behind the bar….

    • 3 different GRZs have tried to pin that privertisation on HH, if any of them had a case , HH would be finished.

      No one is a shelding HH only , only now the privertisation saga just got more interesting after revelations lungu sold cold storage board of Zambia….

  24. Privatization was ma.rred with cri.minality, producing a few millionaires like HH and millions of pov.erty stric.ken Zambians. Even the poverty on the Copperbelt is all rooted in Privatization. Let’s have the Commission of inquiry…what is the Opposition sca.red of?

    • Badala , whole communities and compounds in lusaka depended on cold storage board of Zambia that lungu sold….Whole lively hoods were wiped out by lungu selling that company to foringners who stripped all the equipment and shipped it out of the country….

    • Chimwemwe

      Do you think the whole communities who were killed off by lungu selling cold storage board in Lusaka are less important that those who suffered from the sale of mines on CB ?????

  25. Amos who was president during the privatisation period? I think all this inquiery nonsense is to distract us from bigger issues currently happening in our country. what independent judge exactly? does one exist in Zambia. The person that should be put under investigation on privatisetion is the late president Chiluba. do not open a can of worms because many things will be exposed.

  26. Edgar Lungu should also resign so as to pave way for a full and independent investigation by the Commission of Inquiry on Privatisation.He was the Head negotiator for the sale of Zambia Cold Storage Board and a player in the privatization of state assets.
    Let Inonge Wina take over until 2021.
    ECL can not set up a commission and hide behind presidential immunity when he was directly involved.

  27. I urge every Zambian to be patriotic to Zambia not your party let their be an independent inquiry into every candidate just like in developed countries the presidency is a big deal but before the inquiry is done the immunity of Mr Lungu should be lifted and he should hand over power to someone else we can’t keep living this way by the way an inquiry should be done on every candidate contesting not just on privatisation but every aspect of the candidates life should be inspected and we should have the police declare each candidate clean and eligible to stand this one the major reasons Zambia has not developed we don’t take matters seriously it’s not that we don’t have money it’s because of our bad policies

  28. Imagine we even vote without official debates how can a country develop just imagine for anyone to be given even just a simple job in shoprite they will write a letter and even attend interviews but we vote without official debates and without the police investigating every candidate contesting for elections i blame us the people for condition Zambia is in .Imagine the PF government can even justify the thieving going in our country all because they are not stealing more than the privatisation era this not how a country should be

  29. Overall I do believe HH could be innocent simply because he has seen more than 3 governments Mr Lungu who is the president with immerse power has only been in the lime light for a short period of time but look at the number of scandals he has endured now imagine if he was the leader of the biggest opposition party in Zambia looking at the number of scandals I believe that Mr Lungu would be in jail by now

  30. And these are the same people you are entertaining in your party the MMD and also our former President Data his soul rest in peace was part of this game you want to push on HH. What if all who participated are found wanting? I mean everyone direct or indirect. You know what I mean. Waste of tax money one will die pofye

  31. What a load of b.ull! This is all meant to divert peoples attention from the real issues and failures of this regime. They know what is coming with the war that is pending with the mines. They are preparing grounds for failure. Every sane and well read and versed person on this issue knows that the govt. of the day already decided to sell the mines – they called in auditors and consultants only for the modalities. If anyone committed any crimes in the process, why haven’t you brought them to book all these years? This is similar to when a company winds up on it’s own accord and contracts liquidators to work out the practicalities.
    The shameless Habazooka has figured this idea as a ‘chance’ to get into government – hence the despicable collusion with the equally despicable Chanda’s…

  32. They shot themselves in the foot as they thought no one knew that ECL participated in the sale of Zambian companies! This is what happens when a fool is caught urinating in the dark! It’s only comes to be known during day time after hanging the bedsheets in the sun to dry!!! The fools will now keep quiet till they have something to say. The Privatization of companies is beyond them as the Saint was also involved in the sale! Hahaha!

  33. Two people involved in the same game and one is being labelled as clean? How? If people are robbing a bank and they are caught, how can one be clean?

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