“The property in question was not purchased at K805,000,” testified Mrs. Wanziya Chirwa Kampyongo
…..as the court admitted the land register from the Ministry of Lands as evidence in COUNT 4 of the indictment….
WED. 20-03-2024
Former Minister of Home Affairs, Hon. Stephen Kampyongo’s wife, Wanziya Chirwa Kampyongo, expressed her astonishment today over her arrest and charge in count 4 of the indictment.
She stated that she acquired the said property through a direct lease from the government of the Republic of Zambia, where she only spent less than 5000 in administrative fees as evidenced in the Ministry of Lands land register.
Addressing the court this morning during her defense before Magistrate Silvia Muninya, Mrs. Kampyongo, a Chief Planner at the Ministry of Youth, Sport, and Art, stated that the charge in count 4, regarding possession of a plot in Chifwema valued at K805,000, was inaccurate. She clarified that she did not spend that amount to purchase the property, aside from statutory fees.
“Your Honor, upon graduating with a Bachelor’s degree in Economics from the University of Zambia in 2005, I was employed in the Civil Service as a planner at the Ministry of Lands. During that time, I was allocated several properties, including residential property in the Foxdale area, a farm in Mikango, and another property in the Chifwema area,” she explained.
“As evidenced by documents obtained from the Ministry of Lands land register, the property I was charged with possessing, valued at K805,000, was an offer from the Commissioner of Lands to myself when I was a planner at Lands. I only paid the statutory fees, which were less than 5000.”
Mrs. Kampyongo, a seasoned civil servant, further stated her confusion over being arrested for a property for which she only paid statutory or administrative fees.
Magistrate Muninya accepted Mrs. Kampyongo’s defense evidence and testimony in the matter.
Stay tuned as we document all counts based on evidence before the court and testimonies.
I agree with her testimony.
However, it’s a known fact that staff at MoL really abused the system by allocating themselves so many prime properties at the expense of ordinary Zambians.
…During that time, I was allocated several properties, including residential property in the Foxdale area, a farm in Mikango, and another property in the Chifwema area,” she explained. This is the abuse we are talking about. How could one individual and an employee at the ministry of lands be offered all that. In any case, isn’t the K805,000 the value of valuation of the property and not the K5000 statutory fees she’s talking about. Well, we wait and see and hope ACC have not botched up this case
Exactly my thought why allocating one individual all that property at no feee when there are a lot of us who where looking for land during the same period and we were denied thats proper abuse office and we can’t allow that as a nation
Macpherson Chanda and his fellow thieves have gone in. Next please.