THE Zambia Congress of Trade Unions (ZCTU) and chief Government spokesperson Ronnie Shikapwasha have criticised Transparency International Zambia (TIZ) for threatening to campaign against President Rupiah if he assents to the amended Anti-Corruption Commission (ACC) Act.
ZCTU president Leonard Hikaumba said the decision to repeal article 37 of the ACC Act was in line with international standards and threats to campaign against President Banda if he assents to the Bill were misplaced.
Chief Government spokesperson, Ronnie Shikapwasha said he took great exception to TIZ’s threats to de-campaign President Banda ahead of the 2011 elections if he assented to the revised anti-corruption Bill, 2010.
Mr Hikaumba in an interview in Lusaka yesterday said civil servants were failing to invest in various sectors fearing that the ACC and other security wings would arrest them.
Describing the law as archaic and prohibitive in a liberalised market system where business innovation was unavoidable, Mr Hikaumba said the burden of proof in the current ACC Act lay with the accused person, which was against the international standards.
He said the ideal situation was for the accuser or the State to prove the accused person guilty by providing evidence of theft or corruption but this was not the case in the current law.
Mr Hikaumba said public service workers had been disadvantaged by the Act and were failing to find extra resources and build houses because they were already guilty before they stood trial.
He said threats by TIZ to de-campaign President Banda over the clause were erroneous considering that the abuse of authority clause had not been erased from the penal code and remained a criminal offence punishable by law.
TIZ did not have a good reason to launch a campaign against President Banda even though democracy allowed them to express their opinion in any way they wanted.
Mr Hikaumba said the only change the amendment had brought about was that the accuser would now be required to gather evidence and prove to the accused person why they should be placed on the guilty side.
And in a statement issued in Lusaka yesterday, Lieutenant-General Shikapwasha said the Government noted with dismay the remarks attributed to TIZ in the October 26, 2010 edition of The Post newspaper over the Anti-Corruption Bill 2010.
Gen Shikapwasha wondered why TIZ which had previously spoken positively about the Bill, which was largely borrowed from the South African law, considered as the best practice model by TIZ, was now against it.
“TIZ were pleased that the Bill reflects a position TIZ subscribers to, that the crime of corruption should cover both the payment as well as receipt of bribes.
“Another point related to this is that the law promotes symmetric punishment and both the briber givers-payers and the bribe-takers are mentioned and sanctions and penalties prescribed,” Gen Shikapwasha noted.
TIZ in hailing the new Bill noted that it encouraged whistle-blowing, which was a good point and an important element in the fight against corruption.
The anti-graft body acknowledged that the declaration of assets and liabilities by the board and staff of the ACC was a welcome development although it was not clearly stated whether the declarations would be annually.
Gen Shikapwasha said TIZ was also happy that the mandate for the investigating and prosecuting electoral corrupt practices had now been clearly given to the ACC.
“After making the above comments, TIZ stated that section 37 should not be removed and in view of the above comments, unless it has other hidden motives, the removal of section 37 of the ACC Act 1996, for the reasons which the Government has given, is no reason for the organisation to issue threats.
“TIZ is a non-governmental organisation (NGO) and is, therefore, advised to register itself as a political party if it wants to embark on political campaigns ahead of next year’s elections,” Gen Shikapwasha, who is Information and Broadcasting, said.
The minister said the new law had provisions which would effectively and efficiently support the provision in the Penal Code and enhance the prevention, detection, investigation, prosecution and punishment of corrupt practices and related offences.
Last week, Lusaka lawyer Mwangala Zaloumis said the amendment to the ACC Act was necessary because it presumed suspects guilty before they stood trial in the courts of law.
Mrs Zaloumis said the current ACC Act provided that officials from the ACC, police and other security wings could pounce on any one who owned property and ask them to show how they raised resources.
[Times of Zambia]
