Cabinet Office has embarked on a performance audit review process and development of a strategic plan to guide its operations.

The strategic plan will be realigned to the policies outlined in the Patriotic Front (PF) administration manifesto and will run from 2013 to 2016.

Permanent Secretary in charge of administration at Cabinet Office Anna Mwitwa Mwewa said it was imperative for Cabinet to have a strategic plan for it to have a clear sense of direction.

Ms. Mwewa said the performance of Cabinet Office has a direct bearing on the overall performance of government.

She was speaking in at the retreat on visioning, performance audit review and 2013-2016 Cabinet Office strategic plan development and drafting.

She said running an institution without a strategic plan was like captaining a ship without a rudder on high seas.

The Permanent Secretary therefore challenged the participants of the retreat visioning, performance audit review to fully apply themselves during the retreat to help government attain its vision of “sustained economic growth and poverty reduction.”

She disclosed that Cabinet has in the interim been using the same expired strategic plan of 2010 adding that many things have happened since then.

“A number of changes that have taken place at Cabinet Office; of note, is the upgrading of the Gender In Development Division (GIDD) into a fully-fledged Ministry of Gender in 2012 and upgrading of the state functions unit into a department,” she said.

Ms. Mwewa said these changes, together with the creation of the civil service travel office, will need to be factored into the strategic plan under development.

ZANIS

The Technical Committee drafting the country’s Constitution has pledged to work without pay if its latest request to extend its work to July 31st is approved by government.

The latest request for the extension of the deadline if approved will gobble fifteen point eight million kwacha rebased.

Government earlier this week announced that it had rejected a six months request by the Technical committee for extension of its work.

Speaking during a media this morning, Technical Committee Spokesperson Ernest Mwansa disclosed that the draft persons are confident that they will finish their work by July 6th ,2013 to allow consideration of their work by the Technical Committee.

Mr. Mwansa says this will follow the editing of the final draft constitution and final report of the Technical Committee by Independent Editors, and thereafter the adoption of the edited final draft constitution and final report by the Technical Committee.

Mr. Mwansa notes that the printing of the adopted final constitution and Technical Committee’s final report will be followed by the actual handing over of the final draft constitution and Technical Committee’s final report to President Michael Sata and members of the public by July 31st this year.

Meanwhile Mr. Mwansa has maintained that the failure to beat the June 30th deadline is attributed to delay by some districts to submit their comments and recommendations on the popular version of the draft constitution.

And Mr. Mwansa has also clarified that the Technical Committee has spent only ninety nine point eight million kwacha rebased from its hundred and fifteen million kwacha rebased budget line.

Mr. Mwansa notes that the key expenditure has been on the initial set up of the Secretariat, purchase of office equipment and furniture, purchase of motor vehicles and operational overheads.

He further states that the Technical Committee has had only ninety eight sittings from 2011 to date

The Social Action for Development (SAD) Executive Secretary, John Mwendapole has called on the Auditor General to investigate the budget overruns by the technical committee on the constitution which may be an indicator of misuse of funds.

Mr Mwendapole has noted that the budget investigation must be carried out with zeal to seal any financial leakages or loop holes.

He told ZANIS in a telephone that the perpetual extension of deadlines and budget overruns are an indication of poor management and leadership.

Mr Mwendapole said his organization supports government’s decision through the Minister of Justice Wynter Kabimba not to allow the extension.

He also noted that the continued request for extension periods is a clear indication that the committee does not see the agency and importance of a new constitution being demanded by the Zambian people.

“We agree that their demand for an extension is outrageous as the committee has been responsible for planning and execution of the drafting process hence the perpetual extension must not be entertained,” he said.

Mr Mwendapole also said that the technical committee has on several occasions assured the Zambians that their work would be completed by June this year.

“We recommend government having given the autonomy to the committee and it is unfortunate that they have chosen to abuse the trust of government and that of the Zambian people,” said Mr Mwendapole.

Yesterday, government rejected a proposal by the constitution making process to extend the period by six months.

The committee has since been ordered to stick to the June 30, 2013 deadline.

Minister of Justice Wynter Kabimba said the proposed extension to December 30, this year would have required an additional budget of 44 million Kwacha rebased in addition to the already spent 100 million Kwacha rebased.

ZANIS

THE controversy surrounding the tribunal constituted to investigate the three judges continues to rage this time around with the panel maintaining that it will proceed to hear allegations of professional misconduct leveled against Supreme court judge Philip Musonda despite him tendering in his resignation letter.

This follows the action by Dr Justice Musonda’s lawyers representing him stating that the tribunal constituted to probe his professional misconduct has no jurisdiction to do so because he had decided to leave office.

The letter signed by Milner Katolo the lawyer representing Dr Justice Musonda to the tribunal secretariat is dated June 7, this year.

In a response to Dr Justice Musonda’s letter to the tribunal secretariat where he contended that it had no jurisdiction to hear his evidence since he had left office, the secretary, Chipili Magayane advised that her office would sit on June 18 2013 to hear the issues raised by the judge.

The letter from Ms Magayane is dated June 10 2013 and copied to the Attorney general Mumba Malila.

This was the initial date that was set by the tribunal to start receiving evidence in the alleged professional misconduct involving Dr Justice Musonda and two High Court Judges Nigel Mutuna and Charles Kajimanga.

But Mr Justice Mutuna and Mr Justice Kajimanga rushed to the High Court to challenge the legality of constituting the tribunal and were granted leave to stay the proceedings by Judge Timothy Katenekwa until further determination of the matter.

Ms Magayane had since advised Dr Musonda’s lawyers Milner Katolo and Associates to formally bring the said issues raised before the tribunal for consideration and not through the exchange of letters.

“Please be advised that the tribunal will sit on June 18, 2013 at 09:30 hours to hear your client on the issues raised in your correspondence, in addition, we wish to reiterate that he tribunal doubts the propriety of exchanging matters of this nature by way of letter as it does not make for proper case management,” Ms Magayane said.

The Tribunal was tasked to also probe the professional misconduct of Dr Justice Musonda who instead decided to write to President Michael Sata on June 4, this year, informing him of his intention to be retired in national interest saying he had almost reached retirement age.

In his letter to the tribunal, Dr Justice Musonda through his lawyers alleged that the tribunal had no jurisdiction to probe his alleged professional misconduct because he was of the considered view that the tribunal had now no jurisdiction over him since he had voluntarily decided to leave office.

“We write to seek confirmation on the reports reaching our client to the effect that the tribunal intends to continue sitting to hear evidence against Dr Musonda notwithstanding the stay of proceedings granted by the High Court,” the lawyers said.

Dr Justice Musonda through his lawyers, Milner Katolo and Associates said there was no need to sit because he had voluntarily left office and that he was part to the proceedings before the Ndola High Court as he was facing joint allegations.

Mr Katolo said the action by Justices Kajimanga and Mutuna was challenging the very legality of the tribunal, it was his considered view that the tribunal was better advised to wait for the outcome of that matter.

He said if the court found that the tribunal was illegal and unconstitutional, then it would challenge the very core of powers of the tribunal constituted to investigate any person not only the applicants in that case.

Former South African president Thabo Mbeki is expected in Zambia on 17th June, 2013 to chair a two-day high level meeting on illicit financial flows.

The high level panel on illicit financial flows in Africa, which was established by the United Nations Economic Commission for Africa (UNECA) and the African Union (AU), was inaugurated in February 2012 to address the debilitating problem of illicit financial outflows from Africa which is estimated at US$50 billion a year.

This is contained in a press statement released to ZANIS in Lusaka today by UNECA Communications Officer Sampa Kangwa-Wilkie.

Ms. Kangwa-Wilkie said illicit financial flows constitute among others things undocumented commercial transactions and criminal activities characterized by over pricing, tax evasion and false declarations
facilitated by some 60 international tax havens and secrecy jurisdictions that enable creating and operating millions of disguised corporations, shell companies, anonymous trust accounts and fake
charitable foundations.

Ms. Kangwa-Wilkie further said other techniques used include money laundering, transfer pricing and corruption.

“Illicit financial flows are a global problem. Their impact on the continent is monumental thereby representing a significant threat to Africa’s governance and economic development and governance. Current evidence shows that Africa lost over US$ 854 billion in illicit financial flows between 1970 and 2008 corresponding to a yearly average of about US$22 billion,” she said.

The trend has been increasing over time and especially in the last decade, with an annual average illicit financial flow of US$ 50 billion between 2000 and 2008 against a yearly average of only US$ 9
billion for the period 1970-1999.

Ms. Kangwa-Wilkie however said these estimates may well be short of reality as they exclude such other forms of illicit financial flows as proceeds from smuggling and mispricing of services.
She added that some of the effects of illicit financial outflows are the draining of foreign exchange reserves, reduced tax collection, cancelling out of investment inflows and a worsening of poverty.
She said preliminary evidence shows that taking prompt action to curtail illicit financial outflows from Africa will provide a major source of funds for development programmes in the continent in the
near future.

Ms. Kangwa-Wilkie said one of the keys to achieving success is the adoption of laws, regulations and policies that encourage transparent financial transactions.
The panel chaired by Mr. Mbeki will be composed of nine other members from Africa and outside the continent.

Over 60 delegates from East and Southern Africa are expected to attend the high level panel meeting in the Zambian capital, Lusaka as part of several regional consultations with key stakeholders on the project Africa including the executive, legislature, judiciary and key civil society and private sector representatives.
Other consultations have already taken place in North Africa and Kenya, Tunisia, Liberia and Nigeria.

Meanwhile the former Mbeki will hold private talks with President Michael Sata to enhance dialogue and policy discourse on the matter.

ZANIS