By 
Chief Government Spokesperson, Cornelius Mweetwa, has said that Zambia has no law which compels a sitting Head of State to declare his or her assets annually.
US Ambassador to Zambia, Michael Gonzales, urged President Hakainde Hichilema and Vice-President Mutale Nalumango to consider declaring their assets annually until their term in office expired so that they set an example for all other public servants to emulate.
On Tuesday, in Lusaka at a media briefing, Mweetwa insisted that Hichilema would not declare his assets as proposed by the Ambassador because there was no such law requiring him to do so.
He said the only law which required declaration of assets was the Electoral Commission of Zambia during the filing in of nominations and there was no requirement for publication.
“You will all recall that the previous government eliminated Article 30 which provided previously that such declaration should be made public,” Mweetwa stated.
He alleged that the Patriotic Front (PF) removed this clause from the Constitution following a debate on the accumulation of wealth by former President, Edgar Lungu, within a year of his presidency.
Mweetwa stated that the PF left the country with a Constitution full of either lacunas or provisions that are plugging and negating good governance.
“Talks to amend the Constitution were orchestrated by our colleagues in the opposition and they wanted to u-turn over the same,” he said.
Mweetwa expressed shock with the u-turn from the opposition who have, however, acknowledged their decision to request for the amendment.
He stated that government was worried with such maneouvers and left wondering what next the opposition would bring to the table.
WARNING! All rights reserved. This material, and other digital content on this website, may not be reproduced, published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed in whole or in part without prior express permission from ZAMBIA MONITOR!
Comments