By Venus N Msyani
People want President Hakainde Hichilema to declare his assets and it appears a lot of energy is needed to make him do so.
One of the reasons why people want the president to declare his assets is to prove his integrity in the fight against corruption.
Are deals (procurements) under the United Party for National Development (UPND) government being secured on merit?
Declaring his assets, President Hichilema will make it easy for the general public, rather Zambians to tell.
On Friday, during a live interaction with the public on Hot FM radio at state Hichilema disclosed that he still maintains interests in his businesses.
This means like many ordinary Zambians out there, Hichilema is interested in making money outside his job as a president. In other words, he is interested in deals (contracts) offered by the government.
The problem is that Zambians don’t know which companies, businesses, or assets belong to Hakainde Hichilema.
People know about the Community house in New Kasama because is the residence of Hichilema. A house in Kabulonga and farm 1924 of Kalomo because the two were once under investigation. The rest of Hakainde’s assets are not known to the public.
President Hichilema was asked why he is hesitating to declare his assets. He went as far as 2015 trying to answer. In short, he seems not ready to do so.
If he doesn’t declare his assets, how can he be trusted? By maintaining interest in his businesses, there is a possibility that his enterprises are favored when it comes to winning contracts.
It is possible some of these businesses have already won government contracts and it seems that is what the president is trying to cover. If discovered, it will be a severe blow to his waged war against corruption.
More energy is needed to force him to declare his assets.
Are you interested in knowing what your president owns? Your energy is needed. Together we can make Hichilema declare his assets. He must.
I think we all need to sign a petition to force our President to declare his Assets it is our right as the Masters as he put it on inauguration speech so it’s time he did the right so that others can follow
What’s there to hide? Why doesnt he declare? After running for our presidency he wants to take us for a ride? How are we going to know if he is using our presidency to amass wealth? HH come out of your own closet
He should not declare his assets as a matter of principle: no other president or politician in Zambia has ever had to do it. Kaunda did not, :Chipuba Simon Chabala Kafupi operating under the stolen identity of Frederick Chiluba did not; Mwanawassa did not, Rupiah the thief Banda did not; Michael “sakala” Satan did not; Johnatha Mutawire alis Edgar Chakolwa Chagwa Lungu did not. HH should stand his ground and refuse to be judged by a standard applied only to him. If people want him to declare his asserts they should change the law. That law should also be retroactively applied to any living president, minister and senior manager in the country. Let the all declare all of their assets.
yes zambian need to know, we dont need to force him he just has to declare . i for one i dont and even seen any of the presidents businesses here in zambia apart from the talk that he is a very rich man. for the seek of transparence the head has to declare.
I mentioned this just after that cr00k was installed as president. People called me jealous and all sorts. The problem with many Zambians is that they’re easily f00Ied. This guy will make you think that just because he is rich he cannot steal but many don’t realise that theft comes in different forms. The f00I has unfair advantage and conflict of interest written all over his ugly face.
VOTE LUSAMBO for continued development in kabushi
For continued ma labbish
No need for negative energy, the President said he declared his assets in 2021. Why don’t you go to ECZ and see the declaration? Don’t be lazy, the problem is that you want to Google everything!!!
It wont hurt for you to show us what he declared earlier. Some Jews may not know what is happening in Jerusalem, a quick run down can save as reminder, please.
One perturbing issue about BMW is that he comes out annoyingly evasive when responding to critical issues. We have a problem in there.
Zambian journalists are just lazy……….
Go to ECZ where you will also find lungus assets declared………….
There’s nothing ku ECZ
I blame the journalists. Journalists in Zambia are very poor at investigating financial matters and they have a limited understanding of such things. If you look hard enough, it is not complicated to know the networth of a Zambian citizen. Bank accounts, corporates, PACRA etc. This cannot be very complex. You can get a very close estimate.
DONT BE MISCHEVIOUS, THE PRESIDENT DECLARED HIS ASSETS AS PART OF THE JUST ENDED 2021 GENERAL ELECTIONS, MINISTERS DO NOT DECLARE THATS WHY THEY HAVE TO DO IT NOW. IF YOU WANT RECORDS THEY ARE PUBLIC NOW, GO ASK FOR THE DECLARATION OF 2021 ELECTIONS. WHAT IS SO DIFFICULT TO JUST THINK LIKE THIS …… DO YOU WANT HIM TO DECLARE EVERY YEAR? IMWE BA 1,8 YOU ARE BECOMING CHILDISH AND DESPERATE. ITS SO SHOWING NOW …. YOU HAVE TO LIVE WITH THE FACT THAT HE HAS A 5 YEAR MANDATE WITH THE PEOPLE OF ZAMBIA NOT PF THIEVES LIKE ECL, KZ, SPEWING NONSENSE EVERYDAY.
Capital letters sound rude!
Forget it !!! He already said that assets are known by the courts and other government agencies. The writer should do his research. We have court papers, ACC records…. Everything is in public domain. Don’t be lazy. Why not put together a dossier and let him admit or deny. I’m tired of this gossip journalism.
“LUSAKA– The United States is a friend of Democracy in Zambia and around the world. We support a free, fair, transparent, and peaceful democratic process.”
Five years mandate
Why should these issues come now simply because its HH. We have been demanding from PF in 2016 and 2021 to let former president Edgar Lungu declare his worth but all was in vain
It looks like UPND are experts in “if it didnt happen to Lungu it shouldnt happen to HH even if it’s wrong
I haaaate this Anus Nyunshi.
Declare wiso’s assets…
This writer is stupid indeed…go and petition ECZ everything is there since this man started standing for presidency.
Did he or did he not fulfil his legal requirement?
I viewed the whole interview and his answer indicated he clearly did.
Marc Ravalomanana was President of Madagascar for 7 years from 2002. He is a very rich man and when he became President everyone was happy that a rich man had become President and he would not steal from the country. By the end of his tenure, Ravalomanana was accused of authoritarianism AND corruption as he had continued to have interest in his companies. Even the international community and SADC agreed. SADC asked him and his rival not to contest the elections for the sake of peace. Donald Trump gave up control of his Trump Inc, when he became US President. HH is playing with fire. He may be a good man but he is setting a bad precedent for a future rich President who will be corrupt. Zambia MUST make a law on PROBITY.
Clearly you are not making sense! In one breathe you are saying the President is playing with fire, yet in another you are saying Zambia must enact a law ? So which law is the President breaking? The one yet to be made ? ??
@Musa. There is no law he is breaking. The point is that where there is no law, we are relying on the goodness and personal integrity of the person. But if a different man came into office, a man who can abuse the system, we would be in problems. This is why we need a law to guide the office bearers as far as their business interests are concerned. It is not enough to declare assets, it must go beyond that.
Why should this be an issue. For you to own a company you register with PACRA. For your to own land you register withMinistry of lands. For you to own a car you register with RATSA, for you to stand as President you declare all these registered assets with ECZ. You want him to be saying the same thing that you can dig and compile
He told President Mwanawasa that he is a businessman and not a politician. He is a businessman.
The diggers newspaper, you have been challenged to go to ECZ and dig out his declarations
Diggers dig and publish. There’s a big audience waiting
Can we all declare our assets please. The houses in some of the areas of Lusaka are surely beyond their means, but they are so occupied with Politicians. Weather Public or Private office, it is the same thing, If you steal you steal there is nothing like public office. And for Politicians the law must be swiftly amended preferably in the next sitting of parliament ‘Guilty until proven innocent’, this will be very very helpful
why should we? We aren’t standing for president
This is why crooks are more intelligent than ordinary citizens. why do you want him to declare his asstes? is it a law or a requirement? itf it is non of the above then don’ t waste your time asking Hakainde to declare his assets? But if it is a requirement then he has no choice but to declare assets like anyone else has done. He has said there are no “sacred cows” so there will be no sacred cows. I thought these guys declare their assets or their worthy when filing in the nominations? What has hakainde been doing all the more than five times he has been filing his nominations?
In this post i don’t see how you explain why crooks are more intelligent than ordinary citizens
PF is a sick party with sick supporters and followers
Did any presidential candidate declare assets to the run up to 2021 elections? If any did, not HH and ECL. They both did not declare their assets. HH came into power with the understanding that he will improve and work on handling national resources with maximum transparency and integrity. Now if he is following in ECL footsteps even in this matter like he has in many issues e.g., detentions without trial, bus operators continued to pay money for loading their buses to cadres, single sourcing government deals like the fertilizers deal given to the family of the minister of information, arresting those said to insult HH, cadres attacking those who criticize HH,e.g Shishiwa etc then what change did the Zambians really vote for?
” A pakomaila nondo ninshi pali umulundo” goes the Bemba adage. This cannot be far from the truth. One journalist was literally insulted by Hakainde for asking how he got his wealthy. And now we understand the ECZ accepts norminations together with a declaration of assets why hasn’t Hakainde been declaring his worthy? There could be many reasons for this. ECL declared his on two or three occassions. But we have not heard the figure for Hakainde. Journalists are afraid to ask for obvious reasons. If it is a requirement why would one person defy the requirement? if it is not law then we need to make it a law. Because it will help Zambians to know their leaders. If Hakainde is serious about fighting corruption he must be in the forefront. “NOT do as I say NOT as I do.”
I can see UPND has sponsored posts on this topic. Just look at the response. LT hasn’t had this much traffic in years
The Zambia law compels Members of Parliament going down wards for public office bearers and not presidents to declare. That’s why in 2015 and 2016, HH and EL only did it publicly to save face. It was not an obligation.
Today only ECZ knows about the assets which are not for public eyes to see.
However, the records elsewhere have pegged him to be USD1 billion (networth) without conclusively itemising riches. Hakainde Hichilema can only choose to inform Zambians about his wealth on moral standards not that he is legally duty bound.
Vernus Msyani or any other scribe went to fetch the President’s declarations, he will come back empty handed.
The Zambian law compels Members of Parliament going down wards for public office bearers and not presidents to declare. That’s why in 2015 and 2016, HH and EL only did it publicly to save face. It was not an obligation.
Today only ECZ knows about the assets which are not for public eyes to see.
However, the records elsewhere have pegged him to be USD1 billion (networth) without conclusively itemising riches. Hakainde Hichilema can only choose to inform Zambians about his wealth on moral standards not that he is legally duty bound.
Even if Vernus Msyani, or any other scribe, went to fetch the President’s declarations, he will come back empty handed.
Today only ECZ knows about the assets which are not for public eyes to see. Why not for public eyes? We ave te rit to information. We are a democracy.
Am not hear to defend anyone, but to say as it is. The president in your people centred democracy has a system that speaks for him.
In March, Sean Tembo of PEP petitioned the Concourt and the verdict is here for you:
“The Court has observed that the omission by President Hichilema and other candidates in the 2021 General Election, to declare their assets did not contravene article 52 sub-article three of the Zambian Constitution.
The Constitutional Court has anchored its decision on the provisions of Section 31 clause ‘C’ and Regulation 22 of the Electoral Process Act.”
Therefore, the People have to go to court again or wait for HH to reveal it himself in his own time or never.
Mulongoti in short the President is using loop holes in law to evade telling the Zambian people his source of wealth and why not declare it and some of his money might not be in Zambian banks but we have people who are being followed by DEC who have invested in zambia and have money in Zambian banks
He should not declare his assets as a matter of principle: no other president or politician in Zambia has ever had to do it. Kaunda did not, :Chipuba Simon Chabala Kafupi operating under the stolen identity of Frederick Chiluba did not; Mwanawassa did not, Rupiah the thief Banda did not; Michael “sakala” Satan did not; Johnatha Mutawire alis Edgar Chakolwa Chagwa Lungu did not. HH should stand his ground and refuse to be judged by a standard applied only to him. If people want him to declare his asserts they should change the law. That law should also be retroactively applied to any living president, minister and senior manager in the country. Let the all declare all of their assets.