FORMER Zambia National Broadcasting Corporation employee Faith Musonda has dismissed submissions by the State that she has properties deemed to be proceeds of crime.
Ms Musonda submits before the Economic and Financial Crimes Court that the properties worth over K118million the State wants to forfeit for being proceeds of crime were legally acquired.
She further tells the court through her lawyers that it is unjustified that the State wants to attribute suspicion of proceeds of crime to assets she lawfully acquired.
The TV presenter and Public Relations expert states that the lawsuit filed against her where the Director of Public Prosecutions (DPP) where he wants to have her properties forfeited is a a fit and proper case for this court to conclude that the properties in question were legitimately acquired.
Ms Musonda was submitting a reply in a case in which the DPP, through the Anti Corruption Commission, wants the court to allow for the forfeiture of her assets deemed proceeds of crime.
The properties in question include Sela Property Investments Limited, Covenant Broadcasting Company and Life Television Limited, government bonds, treasury bills and Madison Finance fixed term deposit unit.
Others are a house in Kingsland City’s and other plots in Chisamba and Ibex Hill.
But the journalist has countered the lawsuit arguing to that her properties should not be forfeited to the State.
She said this is so because contrary to the complaint received by ACC regarding the Kingsland City property, she never bought the house at US$180,000 and that the figure is not accurate.
Ms Musonda says while it is true that she initiated a transaction for the acquisition of the property, the transaction was not formalised due to financial constraints.
She submits that consequently, ownership of the property remains with the seller as the sale was not completed.
Ms Musonda says, therefore, the assertion that she purchased the property for the stated amount is misleading.
She adds that such allegations are aimed at inflating the perceived value of my assets in an attempt to cast doubt on the legitimacy of my personal income.
The former Zambia Development Agency head of public relations stressed that her financial status commensurate with her lawful earnings.
She accuses ACC of omitting several of her legitimate sources of income when she help various positions in her 24 years of experience as a communications expert.
Ms Musonda submits that she earned gratuities and allowances when she held various positions including at SABC and Tsogo Sun Group of Hotels (Southern Sun), Pretoria.
She submits that she assumed senior management roles on prominent local institutions, serving as head of channel for ZNBC TV 2 and holding a position within the Director General’s office at ZDA where she received gratuities and other payments.
On the loans issue, she adds that acquisition of a fixed term deposit facility from Madison Finance Limited was facilitated by revenues generated from multiple advertising contracts executed by Life TV.
She contends that the DPP’s assertions regarding the origins of the properties in question are baseless and without merit.
(Mwebantu)
This is what you get when you treat thieves with kids gloves. Does this prostitute think we are all stupid not to make money like manna falling from heaven? STUPID IDIOT.
Zambia is truly a looters’ paradise. This forfeiture of property is not working. The looters need to be convicted and jailed AND their ill gotten properties forfeited to the state.
With the current approach, the message we are sending to would be looters (and there are many even in the UPND administration) is that you can loot and IF we catch up with you, we will just grab the properties. Oh,
by the way we might even allow you to keep some of the loot!
What a country!!