By NATION REPORTER
Mutotwe Kafwaya says it is illegal for President Hakainde Hichilema to direct Secretary to Cabinet to put on sale all the Toyota VXs luxurious land cruisers procured for Ministers and Permanent Secretaries because the disposal policy does not allow the head of State to be involved in the process.
Mr Kafwaya, the Lunte Patriotic Front (PF) Member of Parliament says the process of disposing government assets does not start with the President but with a legally constituted board to assess government assets due for disposal.
Mr Kafwaya, said he was shocked by the directive by President Hichilema to compel Patrick Kangwa, the Secretary to Cabinet to initiate the process of auctioning the VXs motor vehicles bought for Cabinet Ministers and Permanent Secretaries.
Mr Kafwaya is urging Finance Minister Dr Situmbeko Musokotwane to caution President Hichilema about what the provisions of the Public Financial Management Act if there was a provision for disposal of brand new assets to be sold in such a manner.
He is wondering the kind of criteria that would be used to dispose of the assets because the people who had the resources to buy the cars were the same high-ranking government and UPND officials who were accumulating sudden wealth.
“This disposal of the brand new VXs luxurious motor vehicles is questionable because, if any member linked to the PF takes part, they will be arrested for involving themselves in corruption. We reason to suspect that the UPND members are the ones to benefit from the disposal,” Mr Kafwaya said.
Mr Kafwaya said Cabinet Ministers needed to have high vehicles because of the line of work they did and the use of the same cars each time they went out of station in far flung areas.
Mr Kafwaya wondered who the UPND was trying to empower with the brand new vehicles which were recently purchased at high cost to the treasury.
Meanwhile Mr Kafwaya has said that it is shocking that the UPND are attacking Catholic Priest Anthony Sangaleta who has challenged President Hichilema that the graphical representation of the performance of Zambia’s economy from 1973 was not translating into food and reduced cost of living.
He said the Catholic Prelate in his message was just being factual and not politicking because Zambians countrywide were suffering as there was no food on the table because the cost of living was still high and almost prohibitive prices for mealie meal, the staple food.
