The Southern African Centre for Constructive Resolution of Dispute (SACCORD) has applauded the Ant Corruption Commission (ACC) for its prudent work in exposing corrupt practices in the country.

Reacting to reports that ACC unearthed a scam where some officials at the Ministry of Health have allegedly misappropriated more than K10 billion of public resources meant for various programmes, SACCORD Executive Director, Lee Habasonda said the ACC was doing a commendable job.

Mr. Habasonda said the unearthing of the scandal has exposed the many lapses that exist in the monitoring of public resources in the country.

He said it was sad that some people who have been entrusted with public resources have been involved in what he termed ‘cruel acts’.

He said the ACC should deepen its investigations and extend to other ministries, noting that this was not the first time such scandals were happening in the Ministry of Health.

Mr. Habasonda said such scandals portrayed a bad picture of government and were likely to threaten the donor community’s good will of funding developmental projects, especially in the health sector.

He said there was therefore need for the government to quickly put up an inquiry in the ministry to prevent further loss of public money.

Mr. Habasonda has further urged Permanent Secretaries (PS) in all the ministries to be alert and prevent the rampant theft of public funds by putting in place effective mechanism.

He has since appealed to members of the public to assist the ACC and other security wings to expose and stop cases of theft in public institutions.

ZANIS

Education Minister, Geoffrey Lungwangwa says government has made a budgetary allocation of K 60 Billion that will go towards the payment of outstanding allowances for teachers through out the country.

Professor Lungwangwa said in Mazabuka this morning, government has since released K 11. 5 Billion which has been paid to teachers as leave benefits and settling allowances.

The minister who was speaking when he paid a courtesy call on Mazabuka District Commissioner, Tyson Hamaamba said government is committed to ensuring that problems that hinder stability in the teaching fraternity are resolved.

And the Minister has commended teachers in Mazabuka for refusing to join the strike action by their fellow teachers.

Prof. Lungwangwa said in Mazabuka today when he paid a courtesy call on Mazabuka District Commissioner, Tyson Hamaamba that there is need for the teachers countrywide to emulate their counterparts in Mazabuka and give government ample time to conclude the negotiations.

He said the release of the K 11 Billion by his ministry for the payment of outstanding fixed band housing allowances is enough testimony of government commitment in addressing challenges facing teachers.

Prof. Lungwangwa said the Ministry of Finance has assured him that it will release the remaining balance payment on fixed band housing allowance in three installments, in a bid to overhaul the backlog of arrears.

He said government is not sitting idle but is doing everything possible to address the problems facing the education sector.

Speaking earlier, Mazabuka District Commissioner, informed the Minister that teachers in Mazabuka have rejected calls by the Basic Education Teachers Union of Zambia (BETUZ) provincial leadership to down chalks.

He said local union leaders from the Zambia National Union of Teachers (ZNUT) , BETUZ and Secondary Education Schools Teachers Union of Zambia (SESTUZ) have been going round briefing teachers on the status quo regarding the salary negotiations.

He also commended government for injecting colossal sums of money towards infrastructure development.

Mr Hamaamba said government last year built 17 classrooms from the K 1.5 Billion released for infrastructure development adding that another K 2.2 Billion has this year been released for the construction 32 classrooms.

He also commended Mazabuka District Education Board Secretary for being instrumental in ensuring that the implementation of infrastructure development is enhanced.

ZANIS

The Zambia Agency for Persons with Disability (ZAPD) has observed an increase in the number of foreign blind people on the streets in Lusaka and on the Copperbelt province who are begging for money.

ZAPD Acting Director General, Charles Mwape, said some of the blind people are suspected to be from Zimbabwe and the Democratic Republic of Congo.

Dr. Mwape told ZANIS in an interview in Lusaka today that this has affected the reintegration programme which the agency, working with government under the auspices of the ministry of Community Development and Social Services, has embarked on.

He said government and the agency have found it difficult to clear the blind persons from the streets because of the new people that have since thronged the streets.

Dr. Mwape has since appealed to the Department of Immigration to help scrutinize travel documents of the suspected foreigners on the streets.

He said the department of immigration should move in if the programme of integrating the blind is to succeed.

Meanwhile, the Zambia Agency for Persons with Disability (ZAPD) has extended the period of registration for its affiliates.

Dr. Mwape has disclosed that the agency has extended the registration period to May 27, 2009.

He said the extension follows an appeal by stakeholders to have the date extended after ZAPD ran out of application forms for the registration.

He has however maintained that no organization whether local or foreign, that will not register with ZAPD would be allowed to operate and offer services to disabled people once the extension period elapses.

Dr. Mwape said there is therefore need for all organizations dealing with disabled people to register with his agency so that the agency can start monitoring their activities and help better the lives of the disabled people.

Act 33 of 1999 of the Laws of Zambia provides that every organization providing services to the disabled should be registered with ZAPD.

ZANIS

The parliamentary public accounts committee has heard how K108 million meant for poverty reduction in Northern Province were diverted to repair the Provincial Minister’s house.

Provincial Accountant, James Munkanta said K108 million was diverted to rehabilitate the official residence of the minister.

Mr. Munkanta admitted that he succumbed to pressure from the then Permanent Secretary Joel Ngo to divert the funds.

He said this was done without authority from the secretary to the treasury.[quote]

This came to light Wednesday, when Northern province permanent Secretary Mwalimu Simfukwe and his delegation appeared before the committee chaired by Luena MP, Charles Milupi.

Mr. Simfukwe said K300 million unretired imprest for the 2007 financial year has now been regularised.

The parliamentary public accounts committee chairman urged Mr. Simfukwe and his accounting staff to strictly adhere to financial regulations.

[ZNBC]00