By Mubanga Mubanga
Drug Enforcement Commission (DEC) director general Nason Banda has questioned the motive behind former Foreign Affairs minister Joseph Malanji’s use of a presidential jet to a commit crime.
Speaking during a press briefing at DEC headquarters in Lusaka today, Banda said it was very difficult for DEC to fight crime if those in higher offices used their positions to commit crimes.
“Come on, think about it colleagues, how do you use the Presidential jet? Do you know what it means? Let me tell you something. What it means is that, that Presidential jet was an instrumentality in that criminal commission. You get my point? It is like you get a van, you steal money from Bank of Zambia you put it on a van to take it to your house,” Banda said. “That van is an instrumentality, it must be brought into the case. So, sure should we have seized the Presidential jet? So it makes it very difficult for us if people who are in high position use their position to commit crimes. But, I will not stop, will continue to bring them to book.”
Banda also said DEC welcomed the conviction of Malanji and former secretary to treasury Fredson Yamba.
He said the conviction highlighted Zambia’s commitment to upholding not only the rule of law, but also the desire to recover stolen public resources.
“This case is an example of the far reaching ramifications of transnational crimes, where a sitting minister of Foreign Affairs uses the country’s Presidential jet to facilitate hauling of millions of Dollars in cash from Turkey and makes deposits of hundreds of thousands of Dollars in days, in a very short period of time. Using this money and in the same period, he goes on to purchase not one helicopter, but two for himself,” Banda said.
He, however, said despite the investigation process over the matter coming to an end, a lot more money was yet to be recovered.
He said soon DEC was going to update the nation adding that investigations were still ongoing.
“I can’t say exactly right now, what we can speak to is what we seized. But the indications have shown that actually there is more money. So very soon, again when we reach that stage, we shall update you. Cause we want when we talk to you, we give you accurate information. We don’t want to give you figures that bring speculation,” Banda said.
“Will be informing you, very, very shortly because the investigations are almost there. So, this is ongoing and we want to ensure whoever put his fingers in the treasury, and got money from the people of this country, is brought to book.”
Banda expressed gratitude to the government of DR Congo, South Africa, and Turkey for collaborating and the support they gave to the Zambian government over the same matter.
