KAGEM AND LOSSES – Who is Lying?
By Amb.Emmanuel Mwamba
I have learnt with utter dismay through a ZNBC report that during the visit to Kagem Mining by Minister of Mines and Mineral Development Hon. Paul Kabuswe, an official from Kagem, Board Chairperson, Dr. Sixtus Mulenga called me (Amb. Emmanuel Mwamba) a liar and my report laughable. He said I had posted lies on my page about the losses made by KAGEM and their failure to render dividends.
In my article; “Kagem and its declared losses”, I quoted the 2021 Auditor General’s Report which stated that Kagem was among a list of companies that declared losses and never submitted dividends to the state.
The Auditor General’s Report has consistently named Kagem Mining Limited as one of the companies that have not rendered any dividends in the last five years.
The Report revealed that out of 33 companies in which IDC holds shares, 21 recorded a net loss of K3.8billion in 2018, K7.3 billion in 2019 and K17.3 billion in 2020.
These companies included ZESCO, Zambia Railways and Kagem Mining Ltd.
Kagem Mining is owned by ZCCM-IH (25%) and Gemfields (75%).
Kagem is the single largest producing emerald mine in the world and Zambia is the second largest producer of emeralds after Columbia.
The Auditor General’s Report stated that a review of the State Owned Enterprise (SOEs) Situational Analysis Brief issued in September 2021 revealed that out of the thirty nine (39) companies that were operational, twenty five (25) companies reported losses during the period under review as indicated in table 7.7 below which include Kagem Mining as attached below.
A report; “Extracting Wealth- Extracting Minerals by Want or War”, stated that Zambia loses over $1 billion a year through tax evasion and tax avoidance schemes by multi-nationals especially those operating in the mining sector.
Dr. Sixtus Mulenga must answer to the Report by the Auditor Generals and not to me.