THE case in which former Minister of Information and Broadcasting Services, Ronnie Shikapwasha and his co-accused person are facing charges of diversion of public funds has been allocated to magistrate Obbister Musukwa.

Chief Resident Magistrate, Joshua Banda who is among the four that recused themselves from handling the matter since it was taken to court re-allocated it to Kasama Principal Resident Magistrate Musukwa yesterday.

Others jointly charged with Shikapwaha are his former Permanent Secretary, Samson Phiri and journalist, Chanda Chimba.

Others that recused themselves were magistrates Mwaka Mikalile, Aridah Chuulu and Ketrina Walusiku on grounds that she was taking up a new position at the Sheriff’s office while others cited moral grounds.

The trio could, however, not take plea because the new magistrate scheduled to take up the matter was not yet in Lusaka. The matter was then mentioned by magistrate Boniface Mwiinga.

In the first count, Lt Gen Shikapwasha and Dr Phiri were charged with abuse of authority of office for arbitrarily directing, and in disregard to defamation laws, the ZNBC management to broadcast Chimba’s Stand up for Zambia documentaries.

The two are in the second count also charged with a similar offence where it was alleged that they arbitrarily disregarded professional legal advice not to broadcast the said “Stand up for Zambia” on ZNBC and committed the government to liabilities and legal fees emanating from the documentaries.

Chimba is in the third count charged with unlawful printing and publication and it is alleged that he unlawfully published a newspaper called “Stand Up for Zambia” without registering it with the National Archives of Zambia.

He is in the fourth count charged with a similar offence as in the previous where it was alleged that he unlawfully published a newspaper called News of our Times.

Dr Phiri is in the fifth count charged with abuse of authority of office where it was alleged that he arbitrarily directed the ZNBC to repeat Chimba’s “Stand up for Zambia” documentaries at no fee.

Chimba is in the sixth and last count charged with possession of property suspected to be proceeds of crime for allegedly possessing an accumulated total K611, 440,433.12 which he paid for his private media and printing services to ZNBC, Muvi television and the Zambia Daily Mail.

The matter was adjourned to May 13, this year for plea.

THE Anti-Corruption Commission (ACC) has concluded questioning dissolved Board members of Zambia Railways Limited (ZRL), former Board vice chairperson Oliver Saasa has confirmed.

Professor Saasa said similarly the Office of the Auditor General had conducted similar questioning on the Board members and was availed with the relevant information.

The ACC and the Auditor General’s office had commenced investigations on corruption allegations against the dissolved Board members and suspended chief executive officer, Clive Chirwa.

This followed President Michael Sata’s directive to the ACC to probe the happenings at ZRL following differences between the then Board led by Mark Chona and Prof Chirwa.

Prof Saasa said the ACC was expected to conclude its findings within the next two weeks as it probes the institution’s management over allegations of corruption.

He said in an interview in Lusaka yesterday that it was also important that all members including suspended CEO, Clive Chirwa, who was reported to have attempted to leave the country without clearance, were available for questioning over the allegations of corruption.

“The ACC has concluded questioning the former Board members and I was informed that investigations will be concluded within the next two weeks and it was our desire as Board members then, that the probe be instituted because of the irregularities that had befallen the institution,” Prof Saasa said.

Solwezi East Member of Parliament, Richard Taima has with immediate effect resigned from the Movement for Multi-party Democracy (MMD) and joined the ruling Patriotic Front (PF).

Mr Taima who, is also Commerce, Trade and Industry Deputy Minister, said he has decided to join the PF so that he could push for more developmental projects within the government unlike what he termed wearing two jackets.

Mr Taima announced his resignation during a press briefing held at his Hill View Lodge in Solwezi today.

He said by resigning from the MMD party, he has consequently relinquished his position as Member of Parliament for Solwezi East.

Mr Taima has since called on all political giants and traditional leaders in the province to consider getting close to work with the Patriotic Front for the common good of the province.

He said it is sad to note that during the September 2011 general elections the whole North-western province emerged as an opposition province as no single seat was given to the Patriotic Front.

Mr Taima said it is, therefore, unfair to expect President Michael Sata or the Patriotic Front in general to include people from a region of the country that did not provide him the primary source of human resource from which he can pick people to include in government.

He said Solwezi East Constituency has lagged behind in development because it has had more opposing members of parliament than those working with the government of the day thereby, resulting in having very little trickling in the constituency in terms of development.

Mr Taima, who was accompanied by over 150 people from his constituency who have defected to the ruling Patriotic Front, said the entire constituency is in support of his decision to join the ruling party because they are interested in seeing development.

Former Solwezi District Commissioner, Frobisher Fulayi and proprietor of Food 24 Restaurant, Frederick Foloshi, also announced their joining the ruling Patriotic Front.

In received, the defectors, PF Provincial Treasurer, Richard Kamboyi, assured Mr Taima the party leadership’s support to him and that they will offer massive support to him even during the campaigns so that he retains the seat.

Mr Kamboyi appealed to the party leadership in the province to be accommodative to all those that join them because they are contributing to the party’s growth.

Mr Taima becomes the second Member of Parliament in the province to resign from the opposition and join the ruling Patriotic Front after Mufumbwe Member of Parliament, Stephen Masumba, who did the same late last year.

ZANIS

Government has decided to bury the 17 Chibombo road traffic accident victims in a Mass grave in Kabwe where all the deceased came from.

Briefing the press in Kabwe today, Central province Permanent Secretary Annie Sinyangwe said government in the province will take over the burden responsibility of burying the accident victims from their families.

Mrs Sinyangwe said the government authorities at the province have visited all the homes and identified the deceased who happened to have been all Kabwe residents and traders of the market, adding that the day they met their fate they were all going to Lusaka to order
merchandise for sale.

She said the burials which will take place on Saturday 4th May will be conducted by the government at the old St. Mary’s cemetery in Kabwe, after the church service to be conducted by the Zambia Army Chaplains and the Church mother bodies at Railways grounds where all mourners will assemble.

She said some families have requested to bury their deceased relatives elsewhere and that government will not restrain them from doing so, adding that the Municipal council has already issued the burial permits to all the families.

The Permanent Secretary welcomes everyone who wants to attend the burial to Kabwe and that for further details, they could contact Kabwe District Commissioner, Mr Patrick Chishala.

Earlier Kabwe District Commissioner who was accompanied by His worship the Mayor, Moses Mwansa, two Members of Parliament, Honorables Sydney Mushanga and James Kapyanga and the Councillors gathered in a meeting with the deceased families to discuss the funeral arrangements.

And Disaster Management and Mitigation Unit Regional Coordinator Ingribet Bondo said his office has given to each deceased family five 50 kilograms bags of mealie-meal, 10 litres of cooking oil, a 50 kg bag of Kapenta and 50 kg bag of beans to help out at the funeral.

On Tuesday 30th April, 17 people died in the traffic road accident which involved a Kabwe- Lusaka bound Mini bus in Chibombo district in Central province.

ZANIS

Justice Minister Winter Kabimba says Zambia shall remain a democracy for now and in the future in accordance with the will and aspirations of the people.

Mr Kabimba noted that in order to attain that, the judiciary must be an instrument of social change and move along to fulfill the aspirations of people.

He said this when he officially opened a two day annual conference for the Law Association of Zambia (LAZ) held at Zambezi Sun in Livingstone.

The justice Minister said the Law Association of Zambia as a professional body advocates has played a very important role in guarding the tenets of the legal profession and the professional conduct of its individual members.

He explained that government believes in strong civil societies who are a group of consultative partners to the government in the execution of its mandate to serve the people.

He said it is government’s desire to exchange views with civil society movement which is intent on promoting a locally driven agenda for the good governance in line with the social conditions.

“Civil society stand in a position which is in contrast with opposition political parties and are not in a political power contestation with the PF and government” he said.

Meanwhile Mr Kabimba has noted that the justice system must also respond to the social and economic inequalities predicated on the social conditions of the society if it has to win the confidence of the citizens it serves.

“It is unjust if the poor continue to languish in prison because their records of appeal have gone missing out of no fault of theirs but the justice system itself”, he pointed out.

He added that as lawyers attending the conference they should be determined to promote civil liberties and the rule of law in the country.

And LAZ President James Banda said the legal practioners act needs to be amended and that lawyers should conduct themselves in a professional manner.

ZANIS