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Former Secretary to the Treasury, Fredson Yamba, has denied any involvement in procuring properties in Turkey, telling the Lusaka Magistrates’ Court that his role was strictly limited to disbursing funds as per the approved budget.
Yamba, who served from 2011 to 2021, faced two counts of willful failure to comply with the law over the transfer of more than K100 million to the Zambian Mission in Turkey.
His co-accused, former Foreign Affairs Minister Joseph Malanji, faced three counts of possession of property suspected to be proceeds of crime.
Magistrate Irene Wishimanga has ruled that both have a case to answer.
In his defense, Yamba maintained that his office was responsible only for releasing funds from the Consolidated Fund to government agencies in accordance with legal mandates.
He stressed that procurement decisions were handled by designated committees, not by the Secretary to the Treasury.
“With regard to the procurement of properties in Turkey, I did not play any role,” Yamba said. “The Public Procurement Act is clear on the responsibilities of procuring entities. I was neither part of the procurement committee nor involved in any meetings regarding the purchase.”
He clarified that Dr. Chalwe Lombe, the controlling officer at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs at the time, was responsible for managing the allocated funds.
He also referenced testimony from an accountant who confirmed that Yamba had no role in disbursing funds to Turkey.
Presenting the 2020 and 2021 Auditor General’s reports as evidence, Yamba argued that the documents exonerated him, showing no record of K108,401,197.00 being transferred for real estate procurement.
Instead, he pointed out that the audit reflected underfunding rather than over-expenditure.
“The audit clearly shows underfunding, not overfunding. There was no unconstitutional expenditure under the relevant budget heads,” he said.
Yamba also questioned why other officials directly involved in the procurement process had not been held accountable.
Dismissing allegations that he violated Article 203 of the Constitution, Yamba explained that budget allocation and expenditure oversight fall under the Minister of Finance, not the Secretary to the Treasury.
“I was not the Minister of Finance. The prosecution has not indicated which specific section of the law I breached. My function was to manage the Consolidated Fund, and it is shocking that this is now being criminalized,” he added.
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