PURSUE PLUNDERERS

PRESIDENT Edgar Lungu has finally broken his silence over the raging debate on the country’s privatisation programme of the 1990s in which State-owned enterprises were sold – often dubiously.

And his statement will definitely send shivers among some of the key players in the privatisation programme who allegedly abused the system and profited handsomely.

Some ended up as major shareholders in the companies they were assigned to sell on behalf of the government. All these allegations are in the public domain.

President Lungu has been a silent listener to the debate and has not made any public comment until yesterday.

Mr Lungu warned that individuals who sold public properties dubiously will be followed up. He was speaking during a rally at Chilindi Secondary School in Mbereshi to drum up support for the PF candidate in the Mwansabombwe parliamentary by-election, Mr Kabaso Kampampi.

“Inga bashama twalabakonka (if they are unlucky we will follow them). They have sold our mines, our hotels but Zambians will not allow that anymore,” declared President Lungu.

What has come to the fore is that one of the country’s leading opposition leaders has been mentioned as one of the beneficiaries of the flawed privatisation process.

What has brought a public furore is that prized state assets were undervalued, leaving the country with nothing to show for – the sale of KCM and Livingstone’s Hotel Intercontinental.

Lending credence to President Lungu’s warning is the disclosure that Government may not have received any payment from the sale of the mine and assets valued at $2.909 billion.

The mine was handed to Vedanta before consideration was paid, although a $25 million is believed to have been injected into working capital and not as consideration for the sale of the mine and assets.

United Party for National Development (UPND) president Hakainde Hichilema has found himself in the spotlight to shed light about his role in the privatisation programme of the 1990s.

The gist of the matter is that Mr Hichilema allegedly manipulated the privatisation programme in which he was one of the consultants engaged by the MMD government to help in the disposal or sale of state-owned enterprises.

The calls for Mr Hichilema to come out clean increased when former Finance Minister Edith Nawakwi questioned his conduct during the privatisation era when she appeared on a recent programme on ZNBC’s Sunday Interview.

Ms Nawakwi, who is FDD president said Mr Hichilema did not declare interest in the sale of Intercontinental Hotel in Livingstone to Sun International despite having interest in it.

She said he only advised Government that the lowest bidder was the best because the firm would invest US$50 million and create more jobs unlike other bidders.

According to Ms Nawakwi, the privatisation documents for Intercontinental Hotel indicate that Sun International of South Africa, with a bid of US$5.65 million for the hotel was the lowest bidder even if it was offered the deal.

The transaction document states that Victoria Falls Travel Bureau, a private company incorporated in Zambia bid US$20 million but was sidelined.

“Mr Hakainde convinced us that the highest bidders were only going to buy the hotel and change a few things but use it as it was. He said the lowest bidder was ready to invest US$50 million, which would result in more jobs. We accepted because we wanted more jobs for our people,” she said.

In a nutshell, Sun International, registered in South Africa was linked to Mr Hichilema. And to add some drama, Senior Chief Mukuni is a partner in the business.

Indeed, President Lungu is right that suspected plunderers of state assets be followed up even though some are now claiming that it is a veiled threat to “eliminate” them.

Let the truth prevail.