By Staff Reporter
Bowman Lusambo says he has told his workers to go back and start greening his seized house surroundings in Chamba Valley, saying “ishi inchushi shaku ACC” have no money to do that, and suspects that the same “inchushi shamu last” have stolen his Zebra, while claiming three Impalas have gone missing.
But the Anti- Corruption Commission (ACC) has arrested and charged Lusambo for electoral corruption.
Speaking with Daily Revelation on the fact that the outside yard of his seized Chamba valley, which had browned up over time after the house was seized due to lack of watering, are beginning to green up again, and asked if he had been in touch with those who seized his house to start doing the watering, Lusambo said cleaning a house in Zambia was considered a criminal offence.
“Ngawa wamya ing’anda mu Zambia payamba ukumoneka green it’s the proceeds of crime, so kufilekafye fileumafye. That’s what the government that has come in wants (in this country if you green your surroundings, its proceedings of crime. So you just allow the grass and flowers to dry up because that is what the government wants). They want us to be dirty people. Because if you clean your surroundings and plant flowers it’s proceeds of crime,” Lusambo said.
But asked if he had been in touch with the ACC to green up his surroundings, Lusambo said they did not have the money, claiming that they even killed one of his Zebras.
“I don’t know if they killed it or stole it. I don’t know. Up to now they have not given me a report on the Zebra. They have not given me a report on the missing impalas. So I don’t know. I don’t know ngabaliba!!,” Lusambo said, saying they told him that one of his Zebras died but they have not taken him to see where it died from and neither have they showed him its remains. “And I need my Zebra from ACC. And I want ACC to tell me why three of my Impalas are missing. Up to now they have not responded to me.”
Lusambo said his lawyers have already submitted before the ACC demanding answers on the same.
But asked again on the greenery around his house, Lusambo said the ACC could not sustain the house’s leafy and well maintained surroundings.
“They can’t, they have no money, ninchushi shilya naimwe, kuti shafumya kwisa impiya? They are failing to reduce mealie meal for our people where can they get the money to clean my surrounding (They can’t, those are extremely poor people, where can they even get the money to clean my surroundings)?” Lusambo asked. “Ni nchushi shilya isha last, they have just come to make Zambians more poorer.”
Lusambo said he has workers who have been working there, saying “I have told my workers to go back and start their daily routine. So definitely the surrounding is supposed to look like there is a person who is living there.”
He said his parents brought them up to love cleanliness.
But asked how his workers were allowed back when the house remains seized by the ACC, Lusambo argued that that is his house and the government has no authority over it
And asked what next he would do if the court case where he is challenging the decision by the Electoral Commission of Zambia (ECZ) to bar him from contesting, goes against him, Lusambo argued that the people of Kabushi have already decided that they want an MP from PF, saying no one will take away their rights.
He said the UPND should not fear an individual, implying himself, and trying everything to stop him, wondering how a party that won the elections with 2.8 million against the then PF’s 1.8 million could behave in that manner just one year after being elected into office.
Lusambo said if indeed the results came from the people, the people must therefore be allowed to express their will over the candidates they wanted to represent them
But put to him that the courts will have the final say in the matter, Lusambo said it was the people with the final authority.
“The courts they will do the law. The courts they will handle the law. The final judges are the people of Kabushi. That’s where the final judgement will come from,” he said, however expressing confidence in the ability of the courts to handle matters beyond partisan politics. “We know that our men and women they are working under very difficult conditions, under difficult regime but we pray to God that let them exercise integrity and let them protect the democracy. Let them protect the rule of law and let them defend the constitution of our land.”
Asked if at all he had any regrets in the manner his former boss Edgar Lungu conducted national affairs, including his own conduct and that of his party when they were in government, Lusambo said the mistake the UPND was making was channeling their fury towards him as if he were a president of this country.
“I wasn’t a president of this country. I wasn’t a minister for justice, minister for Home Affairs. I wasn’t a minister for finance…me I was just a junior minister. Now the entire UPND from the President to the last cadre they are now portraying to the world that Bowman was a president. That’s why they are following me like no man’s business. They are infringing on my rights because in the back of their minds they think I was a president,” he said.
Lusambo said president Lungu presided over the affairs of the country above board.
But most people in PF and indeed the country have agreed that Lungu and the PF made mistakes, including saying on several occasions that cadres were part of his office despite the havoc they were causing in the country, Lusambo said all the people in PF were cadres, as even those supporting President Hichilema are cadres.
But asked why Lungu was voted out overwhelmingly if he presided over the country’s affairs above board, Lusambo said the people gave the UPND the chance to rule and therefore they must do that, saying they must show the 2.8 million in Kabushi.
He said other people’s mistakes could not be blamed on Lungu.
He said he was being targeted because “they are fearing me politically because they know, Mr Hakainde Hichilema is not dull to see Bowman in the next few years from no.”
“He’s seeing the grace of God upon Bowman. He’s seeing that. Because if he is not seeing that then he’s not a politician. So he has seen that the person who will be untouchable in the next few years is Bowman. Why? Bowman is a grassroots politician,” Lusambo said, warning against playing with “God’s work” saying “today you may feel you are powerful, (but) tomorrow you will be at your weakened point.”
He said “when he becomes president in this country” he would not be wasting time to do what President Hichilema was doing to him.”
“I will make sure that I protect Mutinta and I protect Hakainde Hichilema,” said Lusambo.
But the ACC has arrested Lusambo and charged with four (4) counts of Bribery contrary to Section 81 of the Electoral Process Act No. 35 of 2016. The offences were committed between 1st April 2021 and 14th August 2021 in Ndola during the August 2021 General Elections campaign period.
The remaining portion of the statement issued by ACC public relations manager is here below:
The arrest follows the recent ruling of the Constitutional Court which nullified the election of Lusambo as Member of Parliament for Kabushi Constituency for engaging in electoral corruption. Resulting from its decision, the Constitutional Court issued a Report which detailed the electoral malpractices that were perpetrated by Mr. Lusambo. It is on the strength of this Report that the Anti-Corruption Commission instituted investigations into the alleged malpractices and corruption. The Commission proceeded to record a warn and caution statement from Lusambo and he has subsequently been arrested.
In the first count, Lusambo being a private person namely an aspiring candidate for Kabushi constituency under the Patriotic Front ticket, jointly and whilst acting together with other persons unknown, corruptly offered K500 and actually gave K50 each to some United Party for National Development supporters and actually promised K500 each, 2.5 litres of cooking oil and a bag of mealie meal after the elections.
In the second count Lusambo has been arrested and charged for corruptly giving K1,300.00 to youths in Lubuto West to share. In the third count, Lusambo has been arrested and charged for corruptly giving K4,000.00 to youths from Kabushi Ward to share. In the fourth count, Lusambo has been arrested and charged for corruptly giving K300 each to some women of Saint Kizito Catholic Church after attending mass before the elections. The offences were committed as an inducement or reward for the recipients of the money from Lusambo for them to vote for him and the Patriotic Front Party in the August 12th 2021 general elections.
Lusambo has been released on Bond and is expected to appear in court soon.
