Business Coalition Taskforce raises alarm against graft, looting of public funds

By NATION REPORTER

THE Business Coalition Taskforce (BCT) has raised alarm against the grand corruption, plunder and the looting of public resources by what it has termed self-serving criminal agents who feel they are above the law and can avoid justice.
The BCT has also raised a red flag against an array of governance issues, including the inertia being exhibited by State investigative bodies to clamp down on corruption and the corrupt, who have been plundering the country with impunity on account of being able to avoid justice.
The BCT is wondering that investigative bodies, including Financial Intelligence Centre (FIC), which had flagged an incredulous K61 billion (US$2.26 billion) of fraudulent activities, including tax evasion, tainted trade operations and illicit mining.

In three consecutive days, the coalition has issued three strong statements all chastising Government over corruption, particularly in the health sector, which has been engulfed in several corruption scandals with no action being taken by the appointing authority.
“It is therefore disturbing, that even after the discovery of 61 medicine-filled containers in privately owned warehouses, in an attempted plunder of USS65 million Zambia / Egypt single-sourced procurement, such criminal acts are still entrenched in the Ministry of Health and ZMMSA.
President Hakainde Hichilema has announced that the Cabinet has resolved to classify all thefts within the health sector as economic crimes, as they undermine investments in that area,” the BCT said.
“The dubious procurement process for USS13 million CDF ambulances, of which only 11 of the 156 have been delivered, and is now being investigated by the ACC. Our health sector and economy is being looted by these self-serving criminal agents who appear confident that they are above the law and can avoid the justice,” the coalition said.
On the illegal police roadblocks and their corruption, the BCT stated that the graft being perpetrated by the Zambia Police not only tarnishes the international reputation of Zambia but also had a direct financial impact on the country.
“The recent and highly publicised exploitation of a group of tourists by Zambian traffic police, during their journey through Zambia, where they were stopped multiple times, on spurious charges and detained for several hours until they paid cash fines to secure their release, is not only tarnishing the international reputation of Zambia as a tourist destination, but also has a direct financial impact.
This corruption, according to the Tourism Council of Zambia, deprives Zambian-owned businesses of approximately K7 billion in revenue opportunities,” the BCT stated.
The coalition stated that in the World Internal Security and Police Index 2024, released in November, the Zambian Police were ranked amongst the worst forces in the world in corruption at a shocking 118 out of 125 countries.
“This rampant corruption by officials has now reached such an appalling level, that it’s putting a serious strain on the relationship between citizens and state officials, which should be based on trust and mutual respect for the police as upholders of law and order,” the coalition said.
On Private Sector Dialogue Forum (PSDF), the BCT complained that it had raised concerns regarding the efficacy of the forum, which was originally established to streamline the cost of doing business and reduce government bureaucracy, licences, controls and restrictions.
“Unfortunately, the very structure and methodology of the PPDF has evolved into exactly what it was designed to reduce and remove. It has become extremely bureaucratic, slow, cumbersome and unable to make meaningful decisions that lead to positive changes,” the BCT said.
The coalition stated that it was unfortunate that the PPDF agenda had been hijacked by overly-entrenched civil servants who were suppressing the valid and practical concerns of the private sector and who were wrongly advising government officials.
It said the overly-entrenched civil servants were presenting a positive, rose-tinted spin on the economy, that there was no need for a material change to how the country was being governed.