By Isaac Zulu
Transparency International Zambia (TIZ) president Sampa Kalungu says Zambians only speak the loudest when a corruption incident has happened and soon go quiet, like on the Sinoma issue which President Hakainde Hichilema brushed aside by simply saying that he had talked to the minister.
Speaking with Daily Revelation, Kalungu has said that the fight against corruption cannot succeed because people have not been consistently talking about graft, while those in government consistently shield individuals engaging in corrupt activities.
He said that there is some inertia from members of the public on the fight against corruption.
“We have realised that the Zambian people act like a bush fire, it gets to its peak and after sometime it slowly starts dying out. People tend to speak the loudest when an issue to do with corruption happens but they are not consistent. Partly we are to blame. The law enforcement agencies are not being given enough information to form the basis for investigating corruption cases,” Kalungu explained. “So for me, I would attribute this to the inertia by members of the public to give out information to investigative wings.”
He also said that successive governments have been shielding individuals engaging in corrupt activities.
“But also government – past and present – tries by all means to shield those that are engaging in corrupt activities. The case in point is the Sinoma issue where the President said I have talked to the minister and it ended there. We recently brought to the fore the issue where people in government were getting two salaries. It was a heated debate, but it has died a natural death. Some people are even called and told to hold on to the information,” Kalungu said. “And because of that people get into self reservation and think they cannot speak too much because they fear that they might be targeted by government. They shut up and participate less in the fight against corruption. I think we need to have transparency in the fight against corruption.”
Some of the topical issues on alleged massive corruption leading into the 2021 general elections included the controversial purchase of 42 fire tenders at $1 million each, the presidential jet and the 28 ambulances among others, which were said to have been procured at inflated costs, but little on those issues has been realized.
And Kalungu said that individuals facing corruption charges cannot be barred from contesting for political office.
He stressed that from the legal and human rights perspective, a person is innocent until proven guilty by the Courts of Law.
“In the eyes of the law and human rights, you cannot bar someone from contesting for a parliamentary seat just because they are facing corruption charges. A person is innocent until proven guilty by the Courts of Law,” said Kalungu. “So we should not judge people by perception because by doing so, we will be going against our own human rights. It is within their democratic right to contest for any political position.”
