Mutotwe Kafwaya
HH LETS CAT OUT OF THE BAG ON AUDITOR GENERAL.
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I have taken time to read the articles on both the Mast newspaper & the Times of Zambia newspaper. I must say I am extremely alarmed regarding what the president said on the Auditor General.
The president sounded disappointed with the sampling of the Auditor General as he alleged to have had left out some areas without touching them for three, four or five years. The president urged the Auditor General to perform proper sampling.
On this subject, he begun by justifying why he localized a question asked to the Vice President of the United States of America on the former US President Donald Trump.
Then he complained that he is struggling with some officers he inherited from the previous regime. And reminded the newly appointed judges that they knew what was happening at Auditor General. The same office that is supposed to protect public resources.
My opinion, observation and inference:
(1) Constitutionally, the AG should plan and execute his work independently. The AG is not subject to direction by any person or authority. No one can even direct AG’s sampling. If someone could do so, then it might justify the Agriculture PS’s misadventure of refusing to give documents to the AG as someone would be saying, instead of auditing FISP, go and audit that or the other.
(2) The current AG has been in office for less than three years. He was appointed in 2020. As such if there is an area of concern, where the AG is assumed not to have audited for 3,4 or 5 years because there were his friends or relatives in those areas, it is certainly not Dr Dick Sichembe but the one who has instead been promoted as Deputy AG as he acted as AG that all time in question.
(3) I thought at the first opportunity the president would talk about the AG’s office, he would defend him against unfair treatment; where he has been arrested for alleged offenses which were committed by many while others are being promoted at ministry of finance.
(4) I am worried that should Dick’s case be heard by any of those judges who were sworn in yesterday. The chances of him obtaining Justice is completely gone. When a president talks about an individual officer or a person in the manner he did on AG, there should be sufficient cause for concern.
Remember Lillian Shawa, Milingo Lungu, Mumbi Phiri etc. it’s a very dangerous thing.
When I first perceived your troubles Dick, I hoped that you might get some support from the president. However, the clearer your case gets the deeper you get into trouble.
In my expectation, I though the president would ask the following questions to ACC and Public Service Commission:
(a) How can you arrest Dick and his friends for allowances and leave all those of his other friends who got the same allowances? The schedules are there and are clear – all concerned people know about that.
(b) Why is it that out all the people you put on transfer, some of them have not been arrested, while other have been arrested?
(c) Why are some of the beneficiaries of PAC allowances being promoted at MoF&ND instead of being arrested like Dick and a few names cherry picked?
(d) Why did the Civil Service Commission promote Theo to Director without recommendations from the AG, only to come and reverse it?
(c) Why is a auditor at entry level earmarked to become Deputy AG or Director Performance when there are more deserving senior auditors?
This work environment is becoming excessively difficult for Dr Dick and those unwanted few at AG’s office and MoF. I am sorry compatriots, frankly I stand by all of you who are victims of nothing but hatred.
If as a country we hated poverty with the passion with which the systems hates you colleagues, tonight no child would be going to bed hungry. Instead the systems passion is to get rid of you simply because you’re unwanted.
Of course the president added that it’s not about faces or names – I hope that’s true for your case too.
CONCLUSION.
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Could someone tell the president that contrary to his claim that the AG is supposed to safeguard public resources, it is actually him (the president) who is responsible for safeguarding public resources through his treasury. The AG instead is responsible for giving an opinion of the free and fairness of the public financial report to the people.
Dr Situmbeko Musokotwane told the National Assembly that all those people who were transferred and are being investigated will revert to their roles if found innocent. A new Deputy AG was sworn in, how will the one on transfer revert if found innocent? Is there anything to judge here?
The AG does not conduct investigations. It is erroneous for a board chairperson who is an expert in misleading the president to claim that the AG missed fraudulent activities in some place.
Dick, you should now be ready for suspension. Because a desirable office holder is now in. It’s about a face or a name – but about being desired or not not desired.
Lastly and very importantly, that same Deputy AG the president swore in was the acting AG for the 3, 4 and 5 years that the president referred to as a period when some areas were not audited. In this case, the man to take the blame takes the promotion.
As such I am deeply sorry there is gross inconsistency in the presidents action and sentiment on this.
God bless you!
Restoring EVERYTHING PATRIOTIC.
MK04.04.2023