Transparency International Zambia (TI-Z) has noted with a sense of trepidation the comments made by the Minister of Information and Chief Government Spokesperson Hon. Dora Siliya when she featured on a Diamond TV programme on Thursday 9th July 2020. Among the many things she said, Hon. Siliya made the misguided assertion that we as a country are wasting a lot of money on the fight against corruption. We have as TI-Z noted that for a long time now, the Chief Government Spokesperson has consistently made reckless remarks that not only trivialize the fight against corruption, but also raise serious questions about government’s commitment to fighting this scourge.
We would like to put it to the Hon. Minister that corruption is a serious and growing problem in Zambia, and it has the potential to decimate our economy across all sectors. In a country where key health workers leading the fight against the COVID-19 pandemic needlessly lose their lives in the course of duty despite the millions that have been donated to enhance their work; where a Ministry awards a US$17 million contract to a company that does not exist; where a staggering US$42 million is spent to procure clearly overpriced fire tenders; where natural resources such as the Mukula tree are seemingly being exploited with impunity for the benefit of individuals; and where the Auditor General’s report consistently reveals misappropriation of public funds year in year out, to have the Chief Government Spokesperson issue the sort of statements we have consistently seen from Hon. Siliya makes a mockery of the fight against corruption.
We wish to urge Hon. Siliya to put a stop to her consistent characterization of corruption as a non-issue in Zambia or as an issue which we should accept as being part of our existence as a country. Again, we reiterate that corruption in all its forms remains one of the biggest obstacles to Zambia’s development aspirations and to have a senior government official like the Minister of Information trivializing it in the way Hon. Siliya has consistently done does not bode well for our progress as a country or, for that matter, for our standing in the global community. The fact that the British government stated that they are no longer supporting our Social Cash Transfer programme due to corruption surely points to the seriousness of this problem and calls for a more serious and effective response from the government, rather than the continued mischaracterization we keep seeing from the Chief Government Spokesperson.
We agree with Hon. Siliya’s other remarks during the same programme, to the effect that the Anti-Corruption Commission (ACC) should be allowed to do its work professionally. This is a call that we have repeatedly made as TI-Z, but we are also alive to the many challenges that the Commission is facing, including the fact that it is poorly funded. If Hon. Siliya’s desire to see the ACC work professionally is genuine, then rather than trivialize the fight against corruption in the manner she has consistently done, she should be at the forefront to convince her colleagues in Cabinet about the importance of addressing the challenges that the Commission faces in order for it to fulfil its constitutional mandate of leading the fight against corruption in Zambia.
Lastly, we would like to further note with growing concern that President Edgar Lungu, on whom the buck ultimately stops when it comes to governance issues in Zambia, has chosen to remain silent over Hon. Siliya’s consistent undesirable remarks over the fight against corruption. It is our considered view that the time has come for the President to pronounce himself on this issue and possibly reprimand Hon. Siliya because her comments are not only undermining the fight against corruption, but also portraying the entire government as one that does not take corruption as a serious problem that needs to be dealt with.
Rueben L. Lifuka
Chapter President0
