By Staff Reporter
Ministry of Information media director Thabo Kawana says the PF were unable to secure debt restructuring because they were an indisciplined lot who were stealing money and stacking some of the loot in the homes of some female journalists.
Speaking with Daily Revelation, Kawana in responding to arguments that the government should have sought debt cancellation as opposed to debt cancellation, said it is immoral to borrow other people’s money and fail to pay back.
Kawana said the country owes money and morally it will have to be repaid to the creditors, saying no one should expect to borrow money and think that they should be forgiven.
He said the fact that the country owed money and failed to repay it, and being in a position were it was difficult to pay, the county needed a debt restructuring to buy time for growing the economy in order to have the capacity to pay back the money.
He said that has now been granted, arguing that it was the same route the PF administration was seeking but were denied because they were an “indisciplined rot” and could not even account where they took the borrowed money.
“This is money that they outrightly stole. This is money that we are now just finding in little girls journalists homes in stacks, in trunks. The money that they purposed themselves to pay back after being the first country to default in Africa. They went there, they wanted the exact programme that we are talking about for five years they pursued it they were denied,” Kawana said, but that the UPND administration came in and fulfilled the same programme in less than two years.
He claimed this was on account of the character the UPND administration has been able to show to the international community on how they were using public resources and the prudence in utilisation.
Kawana argued that the country will not be required to repay the debt now but later is cause for celebration.
“Nobody went for debt cancellation. Going for debt cancellation is immoral. Where the money is coming from is taxpayers money. Where the money is coming from is pensioners money. How can you get their money and eat it and look back and say forgive us? That is immoral. That’s why we are saying yes, out people before us, the PF, were irresponsible but we are responsible. And we know that we must pay you this money,” said Kawana.
But questions have been raised about the need for the government to publish details of the restructuring, Kawana said that is something Finance minister Dr Situmbeko Musokotwane will be announcing and would not want to delve into the matter.
