KATELE CALLS FOR STRONGER ECONOMIC LEADERSHIP

…as he contrasts Dr Denny Kalyalya to Stella Chibanda whom he says is not only a very intelligent economist hands-on but a diamond of a leader in monetary policy issues.

FORMER Finance Minister Dr Katele Kalumba, has expressed concern over the state of the Zambian economy.

Writing on his Facebook page, Dr Kalumba has suggested that the weak link in the management of the economy appeared to be at the Chief Executive Officer of the Bank of Zambia, Dr. Denny Kalyalya.

Dr Kalumba said the Chief Executive Officer of the Bank of Zambia Dr Denny Kalyalya was a good but tired technocrat who needed to rest.

Dr Kalumba explained that from his experience, he had learnt that Dr Kalyalya could not be a policy leader of the country’s most important institution responsible for the balancing act in the slippery relationship between the Zambian currency, the Kwacha the US dollar in the country’s banking system.

“While huge amounts of dollars may come into the country, without critical BoZ leadership, it may just be a conduit for mopping up even the existing dollar stock without producing tangible goods in the real economy. This is our economic entanglement under conditions a debt,” the bed-ridden Katele Kalumba explained.

He was elaborating this in his Facebook post when contacted.

But when contacted, Dr Kalumba contrasted Dr Kalyalya to Mrs Stella Chibanda who he said was not only a very intelligent economist hands-on but a diamond of a leader in monetary policy issues.

She (Mrs Chibanda) is pushy but gets a team coalesce and move to achieve tangible objectives,” Dr Kalumba said.

Dr Kalumba and Mrs Chibanda were both convicted for various corruption offences, one involving unretired US$4, 000

Office of the President (OP) expenditure for Kalumba and various counts for Chibanda.

Despite the DPP revising the prosecution charges in their favour after 20 years of trial and for Kalumba seven months of gruesome remand at Kamwala for which he was acquitted, their appeal at Supreme Court failed.

They were both incarcerated for five years at Chimbokaila but due to multiple operations and bone degeration and Spondylosis, President Hakiande Hichilema listened to both medical opinion and public appeals for Dr Kalumba’s pardon.

President Hichilema then exercised compassion and pardoned Dr Kalumba who was released on 2 August 2023 last year after serving for 7 months.

Dr Kalumba remained in hospital until he was discharged for alternative medicine.

His condition has remained degenerative and cited the Bible Sirach 10 and 11 for people and the story of Joseph in Jail in Egypt in prayers for appealing for mercy for Mrs Chibanda.

“I am a devoted Catholic,” Dr Kalumba said.