Copperbelt-based Catholic Priest Fr. Augustine Mwewa has charged that the fight against corruption under the United Party for National Development (UPND) led Government is selective and defective.
Fr. Mwewa of St. Ignatius Parish in Tug Argan, Ndola said government wings such as Anti Corruption Commission (ACC) and Drug Enforcement Commission (DEC) are not investigating fresh cases linked to UPND Ministers and technocrats.
He observed that ACC and DEC are mute on corruption allegations levelled against some UPND government officials.
Fr. Mwewa said investigative wings are receiving instructions from the State House on whom to investigate or arrest.
He said the crusade against corruption under the New Dawn Government is flawed.
“We have seen the fight against corruption under the new Government. The fight against corruption was even there under PF especially when we had ba Sata. Ba Lungu at one point lost the fight against corruption especially since some political cadres seemed to have more power and I think this is what cost them to lose power. The current fight against corruption has its own weaknesses. The fight against corruption is selective. I stand to be challenged. We have a minister who has had his own wife appointed Ku Zesco Limited. When are we going to investigate that? That appointment has not been denounced,” Fr. Mwewa said.
“As we are fighting corruption let us be professional and your conscience will tell you, you are investigating me because you have been sent by the President. Your conscience must prick you. The selective fight against corruption or any other abuse should stop. It must stop.”
“We have the political advisor to the President and a permanent secretary trying to come in the open to say the President sent them to destroy Democratic Party and they have managed to destroy the party for Harry Kalaba. That is fighting democracy and nothing has been done. We have seen people declaring their assets, they are not being investigated. If we can investigate 15 flats when I compare the amount of money I can spend on 15 flats and then people declaring 100 plus million and all those dollars or thousands in their accounts. When are we going to investigate them? So you can tell DEC, ACC are receiving instructions from the State House on whom to investigate. The Presidential Spokesman (Anthony Bwalya) was on Diamond TV and when he was asked why they had not arrested people accused of corruption in the new government; he refused to say I am not a police officer. But is he an economist because he had earlier tackled economic issues in the same interview? So he was playing double standards. We see questionable acts within UPND they are not being followed, they are not being investigated but these others are being followed. Those are the defects in the fight against corruption,” Fr. Mwewa said.
He said even the recently conducted recruitment of teachers and health workers was marred with corruption despite the presence of ACC officers on the recruitment panel.
Fr. Mwewa said he has information that some government officials were bringing names of people to recruit without the following procedure.
He emphasised that the recruitment of government workers is good but transparency was needed in the process.
“Another area, we have seen our youths being recruited and still being asked to pay a lot of money. People are looking for jobs because they have no money and yet you are demanding money from them. Was the teacher recruitment really transparent? Despite them promising us that ACC and what will be part of the recruitment, corruption is still rampant. Corruption is still happening in the recruitment of government workers. Yes the recruitment of government workers is good but we need to be assured that things will be done as transparently as possible and we want ACC and DEC to come out on these matters. This is why I propose that the President should stop appointing Directors for these institutions like ACC and DEC,” Fr. Mwewa added.
PLEASE CARRY ON FLEECING YOUR FLOCK AND STAY OUT OF POLITICS
YOU CANNOT DO BOTH
What he’s saying is true
Where I live those officials of Upnd who had finished shoes due to walking are now driving
Where have they gotten the money to buy vehicles.
De javu
Why don’t you report them to the authorities………???
Father……….
Keeping information about crimes from authorities is a crime in its self………..
You call your self a man of God but you are shilding theives by not reporting them…………
Shame on you…….
We have a lot of backlog from the PF that you never spoke against despite everything being in your face. Did you speak against firetenders, ambulances, toll gates?
The UPND might prove to be the most corrupt soon. They look like they’re not stealing because the aren’t buying. The few selective tenders that they have run are all suspect. Let’s wait until they begin to run serious tenders then we’ll see who’s who. We have heard issues at MoH, Ministry of Agriculture, etc. Many are just waiting for an opportunity to receive Calendars from tenderpreneurs and Bally seems to be not too eager to take action. He’ll soon be shocked that most of the people he has appointed are criminals that were fired before. Let’s wait and see
I have Been saying this for many months. Hh tells UPND ACC who to go after. Hh is a chicarla
1.2 Spaka report to who? These guys are now friends to the very people you are supposed to report them. Not different from the PF goons…misango ya ba chaimani.
@ Spaka 1.2 and 2, Maurice Jangalo’s Company Alpha commodities got a contract for over 50 million USD to supply fertilizer to Southern province. This contract was single sourced and it even made things worse because his wife is now Minister of Information and Media, a post you agree is too big for her.
Speculations are that his wife got that post as reward for him funding the UPND and he received further reward by getting that single sourced contract.
This is in public domain, and it has been reported to ACC by Mwamba Emmanuel, one patriotic thing he has done, despite his obvious interest.
Will ACC take action? They have new management under Gilbert Phiri, HH’s personal lawyer and HH is friends with Jangalo. The same HH who apparently has refused to take action over Mary Chirwa.
PF and independent MPs are too slow………
Why are they not making noise in parliament until someone from GRZ comes and explains……..?
I can’t wait the day they squeeze ka kz kazatunda
Nizatundile mukamwa mwako ka chicarla iwe
Not about PF or independent MPs, it’s about us collectively as Zambians. We are complacent with our rights and we think it ends at voting.
An alert and informed citizen is one that elected members of public office should fear, it should never be the other way.
When you speak out, people tend to label you as bitter about not getting a job or PF losing the election.
Above comment, replying to Spaka at 7.1
What a great discovery! Like the one made by David Livingstone. ACC and DEC are mute on corruption allegations levelled against some UPND government officials. Kikikikiki ACC and DEC and Zambia Police are always mute on corruption allegations levelled against government officials. They are dogs on a leash. The leash goes up to New Kasama. We all see it. Zambia awaits a brave leader who will remove himself from his greed for the people’s interests. This leader will defend democracy and not himself. When will that time come?
He is offside.. People expect to hear the words of God from him
Upnd ministers will be investigated by the next government. It’s a cycle.
AND THERE ARE NO MEDICINES IN HOSPITALS. CHECK GOVERNMENT HOSPITALS IN CHILILABOMBWE.
AND YET THEY BOAST FROM DAWN TO SUNSET ABOUT IMPROVED CONDINTIONS.
He thinks UPND are stealing because he thinks that they are like him. We do not steal bro, we farm, raise cattle and earn everything we have. Take HH for example, you investigated that poor man for 15 years, arrested him 15 times, and have never been able to charge him with anything. HH is the cleanest politician in Zambian history. That is how we roll. On the other hand, within a few months, your wives and daughters are already having to explain suspicious wealth, well before we even get to you
Jangulo’s wfe, Chushi Kasanda, lived in our neighbourhood. She was at that time a sales assistant at Airtel and usually hitched lifts from neighbours to get to work. Most of her neighbours were therefore shocked when she declared millions of kwacha worth of assets recently.
PF was in power for 10 years, during that time the corruption “industry” was the exclusive abode of PF, people in other parties were totally excluded.
Therefore priest, who else should they be looking for?
It begs me to ask, are you PF and were a beneficiary of the corruption?
Ben! Should dissenting statements make you a member of some political party? When is the right time to offer criticism? Would you enjoy living in a world of such low level mindset?
The trouble with Zambia is that even priests/pastors/Bishops are crooks and liars. Where was this buffoon and fake priest when the criminal and Gangster Pf brutalised us, did he open his mouth when Lazy Lungu failed to do anything about fire tenders, tollgates, ambulances, face masks, gassing, PF thugs displaying cash and sleeping on it, over-priced Road contracts, brown envelopes to Pastors and Christians for Lungu,failure to arrest Mumbi Phiri when she clearly knew who killed L. Banda etc. This priest is clearly indulging in rumours, only yesterday the DG at ACC was telling us that they only pursue cases which have good evidence. The teaching on social justice in the Catholic church is, among other things that priests should always stand with the poor, this one is siding with rich…
Uncle! anger and emotions never offered a transparent lens in which to see things unbiased. Remove these and you will begin to stand even on the scales of justice. That priests and pastors are liars does not discount objectiveness when plunder and kleptomaniac activities become a daily bread. Ati “nifwe ba mwana mpaka, tatulila musowa usuma”
Uncle! anger and emotions never offered a transparent lens in which to see things unbiased. Remove these and you will begin to stand even on the scales of justice. That priests and pastors are liars does not discount objectiveness when plunder and kleptomaniac activities become a daily bread. Ati “nifwe ba mwana mpaka, tatulila musowa usuma”. Bwafya mukwai.
PF thieves, how did we come to this as a country dear God.
This is so sad, Zambia wechalo caba Christian