The Law Association of Zambia has warned that it will take legal action against all former ministers and their deputies refusing to pay back the money they illegally received after the dissolution of Parliament ahead of the 2016 general election.
LAZ President Abyudi Shonga says the legal steps will include instituting contempt of court proceedings and taking out appropriate writs of execution against the affected party.
He said in a statement that the ministers do not have an option but to pay back the money within 30 days.
“LAZ has welcomed the Ruling on Assessment by the Registrar of the Constitutional Court handed down on 7th December, 2020 in relation to the case involving the Ministers who illegally stayed in office in 2016. Through the said Ruling, state coffers will be boosted by a sum of about K4.2 million within the next 30 days. However, LAZ is deeply concerned with remarks circulating in the media attributed to the Minister of Lands and Natural Resources, Honourable Jean Kapata in which the Honourable Minister is quoted as saying that she will not pay back the money as adjudged by the Court,” Mr Shonga said.
“Our concern stems from the fact that decisions emanating from our Courts of law should not, under any circumstances, be ignored or belittled. We do not expect citizens, let alone sitting Cabinet Ministers, to undermine the Judiciary or decisions handed down by courts of law. As LAZ, we wish to remind all the Ministers affected by the Judgment of the Constitutional Court that they do not have an option in the matter, but to abide by the decision of the court and pay back monies ordered to be paid within 30 days from the date of the assessment,” he said.
“LAZ warns all those ordered to pay back the duly assessed sums of money that LAZ will take every legal step possible to ensure that the Judgment of the Court is complied with. These steps will include citing those who undermine the court decision for contempt of court, and taking out appropriate writs of execution.”
Me. Shonga said LAZ will deploy all available options to ensure that every person, regardless of their standing in society, does not demean or undermine the sanctity of decisions of our courts.
“It must be stressed that everyone is duty bound to respect decisions of our courts of law. We therefore, call upon all the Ministers (as they then were) affected by the Constitutional Court’s decision to promptly comply to avoid the adverse consequences of the court’s coercive powers.”
It’s important that the former Ministers do not go against the Concourt ruling and the presidential directive. They should pay back whatever dues they got during that period
And how is the illegality in all this being handled? This is not a civil matter. Who is pursuing that on behalf of Zambians?
Muchedwa
And I reckon that the suing of the one who directed them to stay on in office will have to wait for the immunity to be lifted in 2021
This is how greedy these politicians are, to even refuse to pay back a meagre 65,000 ZMW.
This is equivalent to how much they spend on side chicks in one week.
Even those that have made millions of US dollars by selling our mukula trees are refusing to pay back. These are the people have stolen Euro bonds and gotten loans secretly from the Chinese.
Worry not, all their assets will be seized once they leave office. Worry not citizens.
Thieving pf ministers should just pay up. Zambians agree with LAZ stance to issue writs of execution against pf MPs failure to pay back within 30 days.
Pay up! We need money to pay DAEWOO for the Kazungula bridge.
One can see clearly now why all the maneuvers to introduce the late Billy, to block the impeachment of the humble ones and the insistence on eligibility of the humble ones to contest 2021 are matters that have given some people sleepless nights.
But tekanyeni fye bane ukuya kwena kuya bebele, and everything you are afraid of will systematically follow and consume you legally and to the satisfaction of all law abiding Zambians.
Not a single person has said will not pay back but LAZ as usual is on the hill top sensetionalizing falsehood.
Who has said they will not pay? It seems laz has run out of things to do. I thought laz role is to protect the interests of the legal fraternity. How is threatening to sue government officials any of their business? This is what happens when an organisation is politically inclined to opposition. We know upnd is funding many laz members. 2021 we will clear the mess
Another missed call here. Yapping without facts as usual
This one misled his boss, hence the mess you are seeing. His relegation to a mere blogger is understandable
No minister has refused to pay…
Sydney Maseleni imagine bro..4 5 million kwacha..about 200 000 dollars making laz sleepless
Who on earth sues an employee for receiving a salary for the work done?
Malama CM there was no work done. If your contract ends in june, then you continue working in july Augustvand September, thats your fault.
Samson Chisulo Phiri your analysis can work if these ministers worked and sued the employee for salary payments. In this case the court supposed to recover the money from the controlling officers who includes president Lungu, attorney general, minister of finance at the time and the entire treasury for illegally employing and paying the minister.
Malama CM the whole ruling is confusing.
Samson Chisulo Phiri did you have sight of lapsed contracts?
Malama CM you can be sued. The more reason its indicated on the pay slip that overpayments must be reported
Malama CM in this case there is a law at play. Ignorance has no defence.
Edwin Tembo There was not irregularities in the amounts paid to the ministers so they can’t be compelled to pay back after receiving a salary they worked for.
Chiza Chirwa which law and who is ignorant?
Malama CM if someone give you an illegal command to follow it does not matter who the instructor is. The command is illegal
Hlupo Ziba exactly if justice is to be seen to be deliver you can’t charge the commanded leaving the commander free especially when the commanded was vulnerable to the commander.
Malama CM unfortunately the president enjoys immunity
Hlupo Ziba Yes he enjoys immunity from prosecution, in this case no minister was called to the court to testify, so the same way the court delivered judgement without ministers testifying the court would have delivered the judgement against the president.
Malama CM the case wasn’t brought against the president
Hlupo Ziba That’s my concern the wrong people were sued.
Is this not just campaign language?Ama fooling twakana.
They have been refusing to pay all along. That’s why we’ve reached where we are. Even your president Lungu is telling them that they should respect the law and payback. He can only issue such statements because they are refusing to pay
True my friend Kaizar LAZ can’t even prove the source of their accusations.
By the way kaizar what has happened to the beauty we once say Nalumango vs Kapata???ndeloleshafye
This is the LAZ we know and missed. Welcome back!
The law will visit any one refusing to Honor Concourt ruling.
We need to continue respecting the Independence of the judiciary and one way of doing that is by respecting the court rulings
Kikiki!!! I thought someone told them to stay on so what now. Who pays the one who wanted the journey or the one who joined the journey. Another one the one invited or the one who invites who pays for the food – I mean the African way not the bazungu style.
Let them all have criminal record/ charges for not paying – obtaining money by false pretences. Yaba! we start afresh next year. Over 60 ministers arrested for obtaining cash by false pretences!!!!
Disaster.
For sitting MPs and cabinet ministers like Jean Kapata and Given Lubinda, money can be recovered from their gratuities with interest.
LAZ sue. No need to issues statements. All Zambians are with you on this one. They have misused Zambian funds for too long.
If these lawmakers were truly honourable, they would have done the right thing long ago… years ago!
Now they are pointing partisan fingers at LAZ and dancing around words such as “refused”, “not refused” and other blah-blah. How long does it take an “hon” person to stand up and say they will respect the rule of law? They make the law for God’s sake, so follow it!
A PRESIDENT WHO IS A LAWYER, AND CALLS HIMSELF A REAL LAWKEEPPER WOULD MISLEAD THE WHOLE CABINET MINISTERS INCLUDING HIS ATTONEY GENERAL WHO IS A LAWYER, CHIEF JUSTICE WHO IS ALSO A LAWYER, MINISTER OF JUSTICE WHO CLAIMS TO BE A LAWYER, THEN WHAT ABOUT ME A LAYMAN OVER BILL 10?
DO YOU TRUST SUCH A LEADERS AS AT NOW TO TAKE THE NATION IN THE RIGHT DIRECTION IF AT ALL HE CONTINUES TO LEAD THIS NATION?
GOD HELP ZAMBIANS PLEASE, TWACHULA PAFULA
If she refused then fire her, this is our taxpayer money.
What of the appointing authority & finance ministry?
Abuid Shonga as a former Attorney General knows that LAZ doesn’t have to wait until the immunity is lifted to institute an enquiry as to whether the Attorney General was consulted and whether his advice was ignored. That’s a serious matter aside from pursuing the Ministers that have been caught up in somebody’s breach
Upholding the constitution and failure to are at play here.
Shamenda says I can’t pay back because I worked. How do you want to get paid for a job you were not supposed to do as your contract had expired with dissolution of parliament , your mandate had expired you should have told your boss. If your boss sends you to go and steal, do you go and steal? The problem with Africa and African ministers think that a President is a small God, no ways he is human, tell him this is wrong Sir.
Yes, I hear one minister says I can’t pay because the President told me to continue, don’t these people have the intellect to interpret what is wrong or right on their own. A president tells them to do a wrong thing and they do it. Very dall indeed
How much has each MP made in
One term? How can they fail to pay small amount of k60000?
How much is the value of land cruiser or hilux they drive?
The ministers should just own up and pay back the money. But also remember to respect the Concourt decision on ECL’s legibility to stand for president in 2021. It is the same respected court and LAZ should also be in the forefront on this issue.
Ala naikosa
The High Court in Kenya has ordered the country’s 416 lawmakers pay back 1.2bn shillings ($10m; £7.5m) after ruling that the money had been unlawfully given to them as housing allowances, local media report.
A full cabinet minister saying, ‘I will not pay back the monies’, is basically her saying, ‘I will break the law with impunity and no one will do sh!t about it not even eagle 1’.
It would be admirable if it was bravery, only this is not it’s… what’s the word in the Queen’s language ‘f.o.o.l.i.s.h.n.e.s.s’.
ITS VERY UNFORTUNATE FOR A MINISTER LIKE JANIPHER KAPATULA TO DEMEAN THE CONCOURT RULING ON PAYING BACK TO THE STATE THE MONIES THEY GOT PAID AFTER DISSOLUTION OF PARLIAMENT IN MAY 2016. IF A SEATING MINISTER CAN IGNORE A COURT RULING THEN WHAT DO YOU EXPECT FOR A SIMPLE PERSON LIKE ME? SHOULD WE ALL BE RUNNING AWAY FROM JUSTICE LIKE MAJOR 1? MYM ADVISE TO JENIPHER KAPATULA IS TO BEHAVE HERSELF, SHE IS NOT ABOVE THE LAW. IN FACT HER APPOINTING AUTHORITY HAS CLEARLY STATED THAT ALL THOSE WHO GOT PAID MONIES ILLIGALYY MUST PAY BACK. SO THERE ARE NO TWO WAYS ABOUT THE SITUATIONS THE MINISTERS HAVE FOUND THEMSELVES IN. IF I CAN RECALL HON. HARRY KALABANYA STATED THAT HE WAS WILLING TO PAY BACK. THERE IS ANOTHER KALUFYANYA IN THE NAME OF GIFT LUMBINYA SHAMELESSLY STATING THAT IF HE PAID…
They just have to pay..
THIS JUDGEMENT? DOES THAT MEAN THAT EVEN THOUGH WE GOT THE MONEY THAT WAS SIGNED AND PAID THE OVER STAYED MINISTER MUST PAY BACK THE MONEY? IN ALL FARENESS ANYONE WHO WAS SERVED BY THE OVERSTAYED MINISTERS MUST PAY BACK WHAT THEY GOT DURING THAT TIME….FROM THIS SCHEME WE CAN COLLECT ALOT OF MONEY ACROSS ALL SECTORS OF OUR ECONOMY ? IS THE IMPLICATION OF PAY BACK?
How can LAZ be quoting social media? This is an old story on Jean – before the recent order.