LICENCE SCANDAL EXPLODES
The concessionaires complained bitterly about the cancellation of their hunting concession agreements.
Mr Muhanga in his circular dated April 22, 2022 to the Director of Department of National Parks and Wild Life (DNPW) directed that all the HCAs should be cancelled and re-advertised for what he termed due to public interest.
In the circular under the subject: Cancellation of Tender Process and Retendering the Tender for Granting of Safari Hunting/ Photographic Tourism Concessions in 19)Hunting Blocks of 2020, Mr Muhanga has instructed that the procurement process for the Hunting Concession Agreements should be started all over again.
But according to the concessionaires, this is in direct conflict with the legal advice from the Attorney General not to consider cancelling the tender as doing so would be at variance with the rule of law which he said the new dawn administration has been preaching about.
They claimed that in a letter dated January 5, 2022 to President Hichilema, Mr Kabesha advised that in the absence of evidence of infringement of section 69 (1), it was legally unsustainable to terminate the HCAs.
Attorney General Kabesha reportedly advised President Hichilema that any attempt to effect the cancellation of the tender would undoubtedly lead to law suits against government, which he said was striving to resuscitate the economy of the country.
The aggrieved concessionaires revealed that Mr Kabesha had advised government that cancelling the tender would be against the respect of the rule of law which the new deal administration was promoting and would be a negation to the advance of creating an enabling environment for investment.
“In the absence of cogent evidence of infringement of section 69 (1), it becomes legally unsustainable to terminate the HCAs. Any attempt to effect the (cancellation) will undoubtedly lead to law suits against government which is striving to resuscitate the economy of the country and at the same time creating an enabling environment for investment and the respect of the rule of law,” Attorney General Kabesha reportedly advised in his letter to the President.
But Mr Muhanga has instructed the DNPW to prepare submissions to the Ministerial Procurement Committee to end the tendering process to the tenders which had granted hunting rights to the selected bidders.