TONSE ALLIANCE STATEMENT ON THE DECISION BY THE US GOVT TO SUSPENDED K1.4BN WORTH OF MEDICAL AID PER ANNUM TO ZAMBIA DUE TO RAMPANT THEFT OF MEDICINES

TONSE ALLIANCE STATEMENT ON THE DECISION BY THE US GOVT TO SUSPENDED K1.4BN WORTH OF MEDICAL AID PER ANNUM TO ZAMBIA DUE TO RAMPANT THEFT OF MEDICINES

Liberty House, 9th May 2025

1. The TONSE ALLIANCE is very saddened by the failure of the UPND Government to prevent theft of donated medicines, as well as failure to take responsibility for these continued thefts. As a result of the UPND Government’s continued incompetence and lack of appetite to fight corruption and theft of medicines, various donors, including the US Government are now suspending donations of medicines to our health sector, much to the detriment of ordinary Zambians.

2. As TONSE ALLIANCE, it is our strong belief that the main reason the UPND Government is failing to fight corruption and theft of medicines in the supply chain is because the majority of the people that have been appointed to senior positions in the entire medical supply chain, are either friends, relatives or children of friends and relatives to President Hakainde Hichilema or party cadres of the UPND party.

3. Due to these close relations which most of the offending culprits share with President Hakainde Hichilema or his UPND party, they feel untouchable and above the law. Therefore, as long as the current dispensation persists, whereby the majority of senior positions in the entire medical supply chain are occupied by either friends or relatives or children of friends and relatives to President Hakainde Hichilema or party cadres of the UPND party, the theft of medicines as well as general corruption shall persist.

4. As an illustration, the immediate past Director General of the Zambia Medicines and Medical Supplies Agency (ZAMMSA) is a well documented UPND cadre who recently stood as a Lusaka Mayoral candidate on the UPND ticket. Additionally, despite four senior staff members of ZAMMSA being reportedly arrested for alleged theft of medicines a few months ago, this matter has never commenced in court and is unlikely to commence, to the best of our knowledge.

5. The reason for adopting a casual approach to the fight against theft of medicines, by the UPND Government is simple. It is because President Hakainde Hichilema and his Government are unwilling to prosecute and send to prison his friends or relatives or children of his friends and relatives or party cadres of the UPND party. Meanwhile, the ordinary citizens are the ones who are suffering the effects of this selective fight against corruption and theft of medicines.

6. As TONSE ALLIANCE, we wish to take this opportunity to advise President Hakainde Hichilema to consider firing all his friends and relatives as well as children of his friends and relatives and cadres of his UPND party, and replace them with independent and professional Zambians, who will not have any entitlement mentality and will be afraid to engage in corruption or theft of medicines.

7. If President Hakainde Hichilema is either unwilling or unable to implement the proposed reforms above, not only at ZAMMSA and Ministry of Health, but across the entire civil service and parastatal firms, then enforcement of discipline to stop corruption and theft, will remain an impossibility. That is because it is impossible to enforce discipline among your friends or relatives or children of your friends or relatives or cadres of your political party.

8. However, the Zambian people will render a final verdict on 13th August 2026, on whether they want to continue to be led by a Government that is run for the benefit of one man, and his friends and relatives, as well as children of his friends and relatives and cadres of his political party, to the exclusion of ordinary citizens who have to endure the pain of having medicines stolen away from them. Medicines which were not bought by their Government, because their Government was busy compensating it’s cadres with millions of Kwacha in consent judgements, for spending a few days in cells. But medicines bought by a foreign Government and donated to the people. The only job which the UPND Government had to do was to deliver the donated medicines to the intended recipients. And they have failed to do that small task.

May the Zambian people render an appropriate judgement to President Hakainde Hichilema and his UPND party on 13th August 2026.

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ISSUED BY:

Sean E. Tembo (SET)
PeP President & TONSE ALLIANCE Spokesperson
Lusaka, Zambia