A witness yesterday told the Livingstone Magistrate’s Court that Former Southern Province Minister Joseph Mulyata instructed him to release an impounded bus belonging to businessman Geoffrey Mwamba Bwalya because it was a presidential directive.

Edward Ntinda Senior Road Inspector in the Road Development Agency (RDA) said this when giving evidence in the former minister’s abuse of authority of office case.

He told the court that Mulyata directed him to release the impounded bus because the owner, Bwalya was an MMD party official who had made huge financial contributions to the ruling party.

However, Ntinda explained that he had told Mulyata it was not within his authority to do so since the bus had by-passed the weigh bridge and attracted a penalty fee of 2,000 United States dollars in the process which had to be paid in full before the bus could be released.

The Senior Road Inspector told the court that Mulyata did not accept this explanation even after being told that there was no provision in the RDA statutory instrument were an impounded vehicle could be released regardless of the circumstances if the penalty fee was not paid.

Instead, he said Mulyata allegedly continued to insist that the bus be released as the penalty fee would be paid at a later date.

He further accused the former provincial minister of continuing to put pressure on him until Ntinda’s Supervisor Mubuyaeta Kapinga, the Regional Engineer returned from Lusaka where he had gone for official duties.

Ntinda said it was at this point that Mulyata allegedly arranged to meet him and Kapinga at the Livingstone Weighbridge where the impounded bus was and insisted that it be released in his presence to ensure his directive was complied with by the RDA officers.

He said the bus was then reluctantly released by Kapinga who handed over the keys to the bus driver of Germins Motorways and Mulyata commended them for a job well done before driving off after the released bus.

Two weighbridge operators and a Police Constable have so far given evidence in the case and the matter has been adjourned to tomorrow for continued trial.

Mulyata is on bail for a sum of K6 million after his police bond was revoked yesterday because he had missed a court session.

Lusaka Mayor, Steven Chilatu, has withdrawan his participation from the National Constitutional Conference (NCC).

In a Letter to Patriotic Front President, Michael Sata, the Mayor, said he was duped to particpate in the NCC by people who he claims had ulterior motives.

Mr. Chilatu further said his participation in the NCC was not only a violation of his party’s regulations, but also an act of betrayal.

The Mayor, who has pleaded with Mr. Sata to forgive him, said he has betrayed the confidence and trust that the party president had in him.

He said he was naive to participate in the NCC and that it is one of the most regretable and costly mistakes of his life.

Mr. Chilatu has asked Mr. Sata and the Patriotic Front to accept him back into the party, describing himself as a prodigal son.

A row over new Zambia mining taxes has deepened after foreign mine owners rejected the proposed fiscal regime and threatened to seek international arbitration to resolve the stand-off, officials said on Tuesday.

The foreign firms told a watchdog committee of the parliament that they were rejecting the proposed windfall profit tax at a minimum of 25 percent and an increase in mineral royalty to 3.0 percent from 0.6 percent because the government had not consulted them over the proposals.

Attorney general Mumba Malila however, told Reuters that there was no need for litigation because the new tax regime was “fair for the mining companies to continue making profits.”

“We hope they will not drag the government into an expensive litigation exercise. There is no need for litigation because the new regime still allows them to make profits and they will soon see that,” Malila told Reuters.

In January, the government also introduced a variable profit tax at 15 percent on taxable income above eight percent and raised corporate tax to 30 percent from 25 percent in a move that will effectively raise mining taxes to 47 percent from the previous 31.7 percent, starting from April.

First Quantum Minerals country manager for Zambia, Chisanga Puta-Chekwe, said the Canadian-based firm would seek to renegotiate its 15-year agreement on low taxes with Zambian authorities.

“We are really eager to renegotiate with the government, but if this fails, it will be difficult to avoid invoking (a clause on) international arbitration over the matter, although this is not our preferred course of action,” Chekwe-Puta told Reuters.

He said the government had assured First Quantum Minerals it would not increase existing taxes or introduce new taxes during the 15-year stability period.

“The reason First Quantum raised money to invest in Zambia was because there was a guarantee that for 15 years, tax agreed upon would not go up and that there would be no new tax introduced,” Puta-Chekwe said.

Chekwe-Puta said the proposed taxes would prevent First Quantum Minerals from conducting expansions at its mining units.

Managers of the major copper and cobalt mines also told the parliamentary committee that they wanted to renegotiate contracts they signed with the government, which awarded them exemptions on taxes for periods between five and 20 years.

Senior managers of Mopani Copper Mines, a joint venture of Swiss firm Glencore International AG and First Quantum Minerals, Chibuluma Mine Plc, a unit of South Africa’s Metorex , Chinese-owned Chambishi Copper Mine complained over the new taxes.

Others were from Luanshya Copper Mines and Lumwana Mining Plc, owned by Australia’s Equinox Minerals Ltd. .

“The stand-point is the approach the government has taken (because) they told us we have to renegotiate the development agreements and up to now we are waiting to be spoken to,” Frederick Bantubonse, the head of Zambia’s Chamber of Mines, a think-tank on mining, told Reuters.

“This (stand-off) means that Zambia will not be credible to foreign investors and it will discourage further foreign direct investments,” Bantubonse added.

Head of operations at the country’s premier Konkola Copper Mines (KCM), C.P Baid, said the proposed taxes would ‘jeorpadise’ KCM operations.

“The new taxes will make Zambia uncompetitive, unattractive and will lead to destruction. There is need for meaningful dialogue before new taxes are implemented,” the state owned Zambia daily Mail quoted Baid as saying to the parliamentary committee.

Government says it is not in a hurry to withdraw its membership from either the Common Market for Eastern and Southern Africa (COMESA) and the Southern Africa Development Community (SADC) regional groupings.

Commerce Trade and Industry Minister, Felix Mutati, said the issue of dual membership is not a problem to Zambia only, but that more than 12 other African Countries are facing the same challenge.

Mr. Mutati said this at a press briefing in Lusaka today.

He noted that there is need for different regional groupings to come together and identify common goals and differences and amalgamate.

Mr. Mutati said the different regional groupings need to harmonize their differences and unite into one large economic block.

Mr Michael Sullivan QC, a London-based Lawyer who has acted as counsel for the Republic of Zambia in a number of high profile legal cases in London was among five eminent practitioners shortlisted for the United Kingdom (UK) Lawyer of the Year 2007 Award.

Mr Sullivan was shortlisted for his conduct of the corruption proceedings in the ZAMTROP, Donegal as well as his involvement in an ICC arbitration in London relating to the former lottery, Kwachamania.

According to a statement released by Second Press Secretary at the Zambian embassy in Britain Rejoyce Lukumba and obtained by ZANIS, the Awards, which are intended to acknowledge lawyers pre-eminent in their fields, were conducted by the Legal Business Awards at the well attended ceremony held last Thursday at the Grosvenor House Hotel, Park Lane, in London.

The nomination of Mr Sullivan reflects recognition in the English legal community of the importance of the cases brought in London on behalf of the Republic of Zambia and the fight against corruption.

Asked to comment on his being shortlisted for the Lawyer of the Year Award, Mr Sullivan said: “the progress that is being made in the fight against corruption would not have been possible without the political will and determination of President Levy Mwanawasa, who has taken a direct interest in the cases and has spearheaded the fight against corruption”.

Mr Sullivan has also been appointed as a Queen’s Counsel of Her Majesty the Queen.

Her Majesty the Queen recently approved the appointment of Mr. Sullivan.

On his appointment as the Queen’s Counsel, Mr Sullivan said: “it is an honour to be bestowed the title Queen’s Counsel”.

Mr Sullivan, a Barrister practising at One Essex Court, is instructed in the cases by Solicitors, DLA Piper, who also won the Dispute Resolution Team of the Year Award.

The Award was in recognition of DLA Piper team led by, Janet Legrand that represented the Republic of Zambia on three highly significant matters, including the Republic’s flagship anti-corruption proceedings against former second republican president Dr Frederick Chiluba, and its defence of a major vulture fund claim.

Instructed in the cases by Solicitors, DLA Piper, Mr Sullivan has co-led the cases with Mr William Blair QC, in a London High Court, which later held Dr. Chiluba and four others to have conspired in defrauding Zambia of US$25 million and US$21 million respectively from two major conspiracies.

Mr Blair, a specialist in banking and commercial fraud, joined the team upon Mr Sullivan’s recommendation.

Mr Blair has since been appointed as High Court Judge.

The team defended the Government of the Republic of Zambia after a High Court judge ruled that Zambia must pay a substantial sum to a so-called “vulture fund” when a British Virgin Islands-based Donegal International paid less than US$4m for a debt Zambia owed, but later sued Zambia for a US$42m repayment.