Answering Laura Miti’s boot-licking Antics
By Amb. Emmanuel Mwamba
Civil Society activist Laura Miti has stirred up a hornets’ nest by her irrational claims that President Hichilema has not had a personal financial scandal in 3 years.
President Hichilema’s proximity to the recent large-scale scandals and acts of corruption,disqualifies Laura’s statement.
Infact Socialist Party President, Fred M’membe has stated that Hichilema’s sophisticated acts of corruption and plunder of national resources “makes the Patriotic Front” look like “pick-pocketers”.
There are times I think that Laura Miti’s personal quest to ensure that President Hichilema succeeds, blinds her so much that she embarrasses herself with her rattling and empty praises and noises in favour of Hichilema.
Let’s tabulate President Hichilema’s financial scandals, which I bet will one day be investigated;
1. $50million- fresh in State House in 2021, President Hichilema perpetrated this fraudulent procurement involving fertiliser worth $50million. This was a contract single-sourced and awarded to his long-time friend, Maurice Jangulo and tje company Alpha Commodities.
2. US$40 million Environmental Protection Fun. This fund has always been managed by the Ministry of Mines, but a fund manager was sourced and awarded to African Life Financial Services Limited, a company belonging to President Hichilema until 2019. His long-time business partners; Munakupya Hantuba and Valentine Chitalu remain shareholders.
3. $2.5billion at Kansanshi Copper and Gold Mine and the irregular incentives given to First Quantum Minerals(FQM). The Guardian Newspaper of UK exposed FQM’s financial and technical support given to UPND in elections. Following a high-level security meeting hosted by President Hichilema in May 2022 with delegates to the African Security Dialogue hosted by Brenthurst Foundation held at Royal Zambezi Lodge, the meeting birthed the USA Africom Security Office in Zambia and incentives to FQM. Earlier ZCCM-IH took to court FQM for siphoning $2.5billion from KansanshiCopper and Gold Mine. A special audit of Kansanshi Copper and Gold Mine revealed the plunder. FQM Directors were facing criminal charges and court process were underway in Lusaka and an arbitration in London for ZCCM-IH to recover the $2.5billion. After this meeting in Lower Zambezi, the DPP dropped the criminal charges against FQM Directors, and ZCCM-IH was asked to drop the court cases. There is no pathway announced how Zambia will recover the $2.5billion stolen from Kansanshi Copper and Gold Mine. Further ZCCM-IH 20% shareholding in the lucrative mine were irregularly converted to a royalty payment.
4. The Mopani Deal-ZCCM-IH has hired investment bank Rothschild & Co to sale Mopani. Rothschild brought in a law firm Baker McKenzie to help coordinate the sale. By October 2023, Government announced that prospective equity partner had been whittled down from ten to four.
The finalists was made up of entities comprising; China’s Zijin Mining, South Africa’s Sibanye Stillwater, China-based Norinco Group and an investment vehicle owned by ex-Glencore officials.
From nowhere, an unknown non-mining firm International Resource Holding(IRH) were presented to scoop Mopani Copper. Prior to Glencore leaving Mopani in 2020, it had invested $4.5billion to extend the life of the mine by over 25 years, improve production efficiencies and safeguard the existing jobs. Mopani sunk Syclinorium and Mindola Deeps Shafts at Nkana Mine in Kitwe and The Henderson Shaft at Mufulira Mine site. Mopani also built a brand new Concentrator at Nkana mine site, The New Syclinorium Concentrator.
In short, this a precious mine with newly investment in the assets.
President Hichilema proceeded to transfer shares without approval of Parliament.
The details are that the share price of 51% were sold at the price of $620million.
However this money is not being paid to ZCCM-IH but is a mere investment pledge into the mine.
Rothschild & Co and Baker McKenzie have walked away with $15.7million as transaction fees.
Further, the new owners IRH through their new subsidiary Delta Mining and the new deal involving Jubilee Metals on mine slags in Mufulira and Luanshya raises concerns. The company recently appointed Munakupya Hantuba as its Board Chairperson in Zambia.
Jubilee secured one of Zambia’s largest copper waste rock assets and entered into a partnership with International Resources Holding.The asset has been independently verified to contain a minimum of 260 million tonnes of historical waste rock, with Jubilee’s sampling indicating copper grades above 1.5%.Jubilee CEO Leon Coetzer said: “At Munkoyo, early test work of approximately 80,000t has revealed excellent copper grades of 1.5–3% for what was believed to be an uneconomic source of copper by previous owners.
5. Investment at Community House- Since President Hakainde Hichilema has refused to shift to the designated State House, the State has been forced to invest in security and infrastructure wares to make Community House safe and secure. A new access road, water and electricity installations have been done using public resources. A second helipad has been made and Community House has been designated as an area enjoying flight restrictions in the proximity of Community House near the area like State House is.
So to Laura, there are dozens large-scale acts of suspected corruption associated with State House. To absolve President Hichilema of corruption is to betray your patriotism to this country. Infact, many analyst have termed Hichilema’s Government is probably the biggest looter of national assets and the Treasury making previous acts of corruption to be pick-pocketing.
