THE PF IS A CANTANKEROUS REGIME, SAYS MIYANDA

Commenting on the stand-off between government and the Bemba Royal Establishment (Bashilubemba) over the selection of Paramount Chief Chitimukulu, Brigadier General Godfrey Miyanda accused the Patriotic Front (PF) government of creating fights for its political gains.

Find below a full statement by Brig. Gen. Miyanda.

STATEMENT: ABASH UNDECLARED WAR IN BEMBALAND

[By Brigadier General Godfrey Miyanda – 1stDecember 2013]

It is alarming that reports continue to expose a serious stand-off between the Bemba Royal Establishment and the PF Government, more accurately President Sata,the Commander-in- Chief who waging an undeclared war.The PF is a cantankerous regime, always creating and/or looking for fights where there are none!

In 2009 I wrote to the Law Association of Zambia and suggested some options for possible reforms in traditional affairs; the letter was never responded to. Now things are happening fast. It is NOT too late to do something about it. We thus call on all citizens, and especially LAZ and other BREs to challenge the President, particularly the Ministry of Justice, to publicly state which laws give the President power to interfere in traditional affairs in the manner he has done with regard to former Senior Chief Mwamba and now Paramount Chief Chitimukulu. We are convinced that there is no such law and repeat our declaration that the President does NOT have the powers he claims to have over chiefs or traditional leaders. This power is reposed, NOT in the President, but in the communities themselves through their systems of selection and succession.

The President has been ominously graduating from one degree to the next: threats against Members of Parliament, then ranting against some Church leaders to go to night school, and also Chiefs Nzamane,Madzimawe, Mwamba and Jumbe.

When the President issued threats in the House of Chiefs earlier this year we advised Zambians not to take that lightly. We challenged all chiefs to speak out against this intimidation. No chief came out in defence and support of their colleagues under presidential siege. We warned that this will become a practice and thisis happening. It is not too late to stop the President in his tracks before he turns “Chiefs abuse” into a new pastime and culture in Zambia.

These threats will continue until all the chiefdoms have capitulated and have become the red carpet for the President to danceon at ill. This is the biblical Writing on the Wall that we previously wrote about.

In this regard the Ministry of Justice has become moribund because they are idly standing by, letting the President breach his serious oath of defending and protecting the Constitution.Instead of advising him to respect the Rule of Law they are watching as he creates instability and precipitates a potentiallydangerous security situation. The President must lead by example by displaying good discipline, decorum and etiquette. There is no constitutional or legal ground justifying this act of besieging the Bembachiefdom as though an enemy force has landed from Mars!

This behaviour of the PF regime is part of their selfish long range strategy to prepare for general elections. They do not care what happens to Zambia when they are no longer in office as long as they get votes at any cost.   

We urge other Royal Establishments and all citizens to condemn the PF regime’s act and to speak with one voice against this Gun Boat diplomacy by the Commander-In-Chief. The nation must nip in the bud this style of leadership and governance that is based on intimidation and despising the Rule of Law, taking advantage of citizens’ ignorance.

Last but not least we applaud Bashi Lubemba for NOT capitulating orbeing cowed by intimidation from a mere subject who is now President. By becoming president he has become, NOT God, but Chief Servant. A servant serves and does not bully his employer. Theymust stand firm because they stand on firm royal ground.

It is courageousfor them to stand up to their intransigent employee and we urge them to remain steadfast, for surrendering will be a betrayal and disloyal act not only to Bemba-speaking people, but to all citizens and other Royal Establishments in Zambia. UMUNWE UMO TAUSALANDA!

GODFREY MIYANDA,

BRIGADIER GENERAL,

HERITAGE PARTY

[1^ST DECEMBER 2013]

AUDITOR GENERAL REPORTS FIVE MINISTRIES TO ACC

Anna Chifungula

The Auditor General’s Office has reported five government ministries to Anti-Corruption Commission (ACC) for investigation for alleged corruption cases involving huge public funds.

Auditor General Anna Chifungula, who announced the development, could however, not disclose the names of the affected ministries. 

Chifungula told journalists at the Cathedral of the Child Jesus in Lusaka today that the ACC is currently carrying out investigations in the five government ministries.

She said her office has a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with the ACC to report any cases involving corruption for possible investigation.

The Auditor General further stated that her office is finalising the 2012 audit report which will be released to the public on December 31.

And the Auditor General’s office is unable to fully undertake audits in government ministries and parastatals because it has a shortfall of 100 members of staff.

Chifungula has bemoaned the low staffing levels in her office which  has made it difficult for the auditors to adequately cover all the audit areas.

She said her office still has 100 vacancies and that although interviews for the recruitment of more staff were conducted a year ago no one has been recruited.

Chifungula said there is need to speed up the recruitment exercise for new auditors to ease the pressure on the current staff which she said was strained.

She said things would have been different had her office been given the authority to recruit its own staff than waiting for the Public Service Management Division-PSMD to conduct the exercise.

Meanwhile, the Auditor General’s office has donated a cheque worth K10, 000 to the Cathedral of the Child Jesus towards the construction of a pastoral youth centre.

 Chifungula said her office is committed to playing a critical role in raising the welfare of the less privileged in society.

She told Cathedral of the Child Jesus Administrator Father Albertus Chitoshi that auditors could also contribute more to society other than publishing the audit reports every year.

Cathedral of the Child Jesus Finance and Fundraising Committee Chairman Michael Mabenga assured the Auditor General that the donated money will be used for the intended.

Dr Mabenga said the Church was undertaking various projects which will require further support from well wishers. The construction of the pastoral youth centre will commence next year in 2014 at a cost of K200, 000.

ATTORNEY GENERAL IS WRONG OVER MASEBO TRIBUNAL – MIYANDA

THE Attorney General is wrong to halt the Masebo Tribunal, Heritage Party president Brigadier General Godfrey Miyanda has observed.

Commenting on the Attorney General’s appeal against the Masebo tribunal, Brig. Gen. Miyanda stated that the action was unconstitutional and irregular as it opposed the public policy.

Find below the full statement by Brig. Gen. Miyanda.

ATTORNEY GENERAL’S APPEAL IN THE MASEBO TRIBUNAL – IS THIS ANOTHER SCANDAL AT THE JUSTICE MINISTRY?

[27^TH NOVEMBER 2013]

The purported appeal by the Attorney General of Zambia to halt the Masebo Tribunal is unconstitutional and is highly irregularas it contradicts or opposes current public policy. I therefore call upon the Attorney General to withdraw the said appeal forthwith. Since the Masebo Tribunal is active I refrain from commenting on the merits or demerits of that case.

Ordinarily all persons involved or affected by a decision of a court in Zambia are entitled to appeal and must be allowed to do so if they so choose.Hon Masebo is entitled to appeal but I am NOT aware of such appeal by her or through her lawyers.  In this specific case of an inquiry established under the Parliamentary and Ministerial Code of Conduct Act, it is my humble opinion that the Attorney General CANNOT be and OUGHT NOT to be her lawyer.  If he feels strongly he should use his private law firm to represent her!

The Attorney General’s appeal is an abuse of office and a departure from custom and practice as his action is attacking the very core of public policy of the Zambian Government, as reflected in existing laws. It is unconstitutional and irregular because the Attorney General has purposed to prevent the enforcement of Section 13 of the Parliamentary and Ministerial Code of Conduct Act 16, as read with Article 52 0f the Republican Constitution. Public policy, as promulgated in the stated provisions, is that whenever allegations are raised by any concerned person and are submitted to the Chief Justice, the Chief Justice SHALL establish the tribunal; the holding of the tribunal is mandatory.

According to Article (52) “all Ministers and Deputy Ministers shall conduct themselves, during their tenure of office, in accordance with a code of conduct promulgated by Parliament”, end of quotation.  Pursuant to this Article Parliament enacted the Parliamentary and Ministerial Code of Conduct Act 16. The complainant, former Cabinet Minister William Harrington, has alleged that Hon Masebo has breached Section 13 of the said Act and has provided information to support his allegations.

Under Article 54 (2) of the Constitution one of the constitutional functions of the Attorney General is “to represent the Government in courts or any other legal proceedings to which the Government is a party”.I contend that the Government is NOT a party to the Masebo Tribunal; so whom is the Attorney General purporting to represent? In any case and strictly speaking Hon Masebo has NOT been sued nor is she being prosecuted. She is to be investigated in order to establish the truth or otherwise of the complaints submitted to the Chief Justice. Why should the Government pre-empt a mandatory investigation? This act borders on interference with the course of justice and may qualify as abuse of office.

It is undesirable and politically ill-advised for the Attorney General to act in this manner in the light of the contentious appointment of the Acting Chief Justice which is itself under question. Literary within hours of the Acting Chief Justice establishing the Tribunal the Attorney General obtained an injunction! Under the prevailing circumstances, the least the public would have expected was for the Acting Chief Justice to recuse herself from all judicial functions until questions concerning the constitutionality and legality of her appointment are resolved; this is the injunction which the Attorney General should have been busy with to stop Her Ladyship from superintending any court activities.

For the foregoing reasons, I urge the Attorney General, in effect the Government, to step aside and let the Tribunal to carry out its mandate to enforce public policy as envisaged in Article 52 of the Constitution and Section 13 of the Act and as ordered by the High Court for Zambia.

AFRICAN MINING MINISTERS TO MEET IN MOZAMBIQUE

The 3^rd African Union (AU) Conference of Ministers Responsible for Mineral Resources Development will be held in Maputo, Mozambique from 13-17 December on the theme: Leveraging the Africa Mining Vision for Africa’s Renaissance towards broader ownership. The conference will be preceded by a meeting of Senior Officials, which will take place on 3-15 December.

The theme has been deliberately chosen to deepen the participation by member States and their institutions in the implementation of the African Mining Vision and it takes place in the context of a sector characterized by complex relationships and competing demands, rights, and claims.

The Conference has become the premier forum on the continent for African Ministers Responsible for Mineral Resources to address issues related to the development of the mineral resources in the continent. There will also be a subtheme on “Mineral Resources Governance and community Engagement.”

The objectives of the conference include: Proposing to African leaders approaches and policy options on the execution of the Action Plan for the African Mining Vision (AMV) with the aim to promote sustainable development in Africa in line with 2015 Development Agenda and 2063 Africa’s agenda;

-       Reflecting on the adequacy, relevancy and gaps in the Business Plan for the AMDC as an institutional framework which seeks to support the implementation of the AMV;

-       Enhancing ownership and participation of Member States and Regional Economic Communities in the implementation of the Action Plan for AMV and enhance the understanding of its implications on Africa’s mineral development; and Launching the African Mineral Development Centre as a project;

-       Considering modalities to strengthen forward planning and information exchange on the Action Plan for AMV among Member states and stakeholders;

The Experts in their official session will prepare and adopt a concise report on the main recommendations, Declaration and decision of their meeting, and submit it to the Conference for adoption.

In attendance will be African Ministers and Senior Officials responsible for mineral resources development, AUC and RECs’ officials. Participants will also be drawn from a broad spectrum of stake-holders including, Development Partners, representatives of UN agencies, African private sector, African Chambers of mines and industry, NGOs and CSOs, AfDB, and the World Bank.

Delegates will brainstorm on how African countries could design and implement effective strategies and policies of Mineral Resources through the African Mining Vision, which could include the promotion of value addition and economic transformation, which can reduce dependence on commodity exports, thus promoting sustainable long-term growth. This, according to the organizers will ensure that the benefits of such growth are widely shared in order to reduce poverty and improve the standard of living for all Africans.

The AU Executive Council, in Decision No. EX.CL/Dec.368 (XI), instituted a statutory Conference for the African Union Ministers Responsible for Mineral Resources Development with the aim of developing common and consistent positions on issues pertaining to the management of Africa’s mineral resources.

 The Conference of African Ministers Responsible for Mineral Resources

Development (CAMRMRD) has taken deliberate steps to address challenges in the mineral sector, inter alia, the formulation of the Africa Mining Vision (AMV) and its Action Plan and endorsement to establish an African Minerals Development Centre (AMDC) to provide strategic technical support capacity for implementing the Action Plan for AMV.  

In October 2008, the first Session of AU Ministers Responsible for Mineral Resources Development, held in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, considered the AMV as a strategic framework for the management of Africa’s mineral resources in order to promote growth, poverty reduction and sustainable development in Africa. The AU Heads of State and government, at their assembly in Addis in February 2009, welcomed the AMV and requested the “AU Ministers in charge of Mineral Resources Development to develop a concrete action plan for its realization”.