Friday, March 29, 2024

Fred M’membe Denounces Corrupt and Ineffective Anti-Corruption Commission

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In a scathing statement issued yesterday, Dr. Fred M’membe, the President of the Socialist Party, expressed deep concern over the state of the Anti-Corruption Commission (ACC) in Zambia. Dr. M’membe questioned the ability of a corrupt and abusive institution to effectively combat corruption, highlighting the recent findings of the Auditor General’s Interim Management Letter as evidence of the ACC’s failures.

Dr. M’membe stated, “Those in the dark are in no position to light the way for others. The Auditor General’s audit on ACC could just be the merest tip of the iceberg. Evidently, this government has no desire to genuinely fight corruption in this country.”

The audit, which examined the financial years ended December 31, 2022, painted a bleak picture of the ACC’s operations. The report revealed a series of potential scams and fraudulent activities taking place within an institution that is entrusted with preventing corruption in both public and private sectors. These findings have raised serious doubts about the ACC’s credibility and integrity, undermining its ability to fulfill its mandate effectively.

Dr. M’membe further added, “This audit has laid bare the shambolic nature of the current ACC management and their little affection and dedication in the task our people have entrusted them with. The ACC in its current state and management is an exercise in humiliation for the country.”

Among the numerous abuses and irregularities exposed in the audit were instances of missing forfeited funds, failure to follow procurement guidelines, improper asset declaration by senior management, questionable conditions of service for high-ranking officials, and irregularities in the management of seized properties. The list goes on, painting a disturbing picture of incompetence and malfeasance within the ACC.

“For instance, how does one explain the Auditor General’s detailed inventory of abuses at ACC such as the failure to implement Board recommendations on establishing an investigation directorate for investigating corrupt cases, wasteful expenditure, and irregular payments of Board allowances?” asked Dr. M’membe.

Dr. M’membe criticized the government led by President Hakainde Hichilema, highlighting the lack of genuine commitment to fighting corruption. He argued that the leadership’s failure to address the rampant corruption within the ACC raises questions about its willingness to tackle corruption in other sectors of governance.

“One does not even need to ask where the President stands in all this mess because we have a President whose working methods are far from persuading the citizens that he means what he says, particularly when it concerns the moneyed and politically favored elite,” Dr. M’membe said. “And it does not require a genius to understand that this government has no desire to genuinely fight corruption in this country.”

The President of the Socialist Party called on stakeholders such as the Church, political parties, and civil society to take note of the ACC’s failings. He emphasized the need for collective action to address the issue, warning that ignoring these matters could lead to the collapse of the fight against corruption in the country.

“Skirting these matters will ultimately collapse the fight against graft in this country owing to Mr. Hichilema’s lack of capacity for sound judgment and action in strengthening the crusade,” Dr. M’membe stated. “A corrupt and abusive ACC cannot reasonably be expected to fight corruption on our behalf. This is nothing but a fraud, a deception, a joke!”

11 COMMENTS

  1. Fred M’membe’s political fight should be with his fellow politicians in government who decide the ACC’s budget. If he has a serious complaint of corruption in the ACC, he’s perfectly entitled to take it to the doorstep of the Minister of Justice. Don’t do politics with unelected public officers.

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  2. When I tell you that hh is a corrupt slimey liar you say pweee. You won’t see any upnd diasporan thugs commenting on this news story because they can’t stand the truth. Today we have welcomed 20 upnd members who have defected to pf.

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  3. Just for a minute let’s imagine These
    If Lungu’s administration wasn’t that corrupt
    If Lungu hadn’t sent Hakainde to Mukobeko
    What would the Upnd government be doing. Nothing.

  4. I wish you had also taken time to investigate the matter before speaking. Verify with the banks involved to see if the money was indeed paid. There you go, ACC has affirmed the money moved. We saw them handing over to Minister of Finance. We also saw Minister giving money to education to get more on bursaries. Let us not be lazy to investigate simple matters. That document you are basing your argument was not signed. What if it was manipulated by someone? Have you forgotten that a number of staff at Auditor General are also being investigated by ACC?

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  5. There has never been the fight against corruption especially with HH. What has been there is just persecuting of opponents and appeasing UPND cadres who are now heading every institution in the country. How do you convict Faith Musonda if the evidence is not there? What about the diary man and single sourcing that is currently going on? The reason every case that is being taken to court comes out in a nolle is because the fight against corruption is a fight against PF. Before HH begins the fight against corruption he should clear the air on how he got rich during privatization.

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    • If I become a rich man why would I hide my sources for the treasure I have especially if Iam running for public office? I would want all autobiographers to come and sing my success song so as to inspire others. Unless my name is Omar Bongo Gabon President or Paul Biya Cameroon President or President Dos Santos father of the continent’s richest woman or perhaps HH is in that class of corrupt presidents?

  6. No one is above the law. If senior officers or commissioners are involved in this fraudulent activities as the report suggests then they should equally be arrested and brought to book. If this government is not willing to do it them the next government surely will so better now then later.

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  7. Most of those working in the acc are those who were schooled in corruption and stealing public properties

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    • I wont agree Kikikikiki! The ACC came to UNZA when I was graduating in the 90s and took 5 to 7 of my classmates for investigation teams. None of these were schooled in corruption and stealing public properties

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