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The ruling United Party for National Development (UPND) has denied allegations that President Hakainde Hichilema is persecuting his predecessor, Edgar Lungu.
The denial was made by UPND Chairperson for Labour and Social Security, Godfrey Beene.
Beene in a statement issued in Lusaka on Thursday, said the accusation was far from the truth and that the fact suggested Lungu was the one relentlessly trying to embarrass Hichilema.
“Is it not Lungu who is embarrassing Zambians by refusing to sit with other retired former world leaders and be of use to international politics,” Beene asked.
He said the former president should know that the use of individuals such as lawyer Makebi Zulu to divert people’s attention from the ongoing renewed fight against corruption would not work.
“Makebi should know that some suspects he is representing will lose their properties which are in millions of dollars because they engaged themselves in corruption and theft of national resources,” Beene stated.
He added that the millions of kwacha the suspects misapropriated could have been used to improve service delivery in hospitals and other social sectors such as road networks and education infrastructure.
Read More: Ex-president Lungu denies having properties or investments in Eswatini
Beene said instead of painting Hichilema’s administration black over the use of public funds, Makebi should be explaining to the nation how his client, former Konkola Copper Mines (KCM) Provisional Liquidator, Milingo Lungu, dubiously amassed $24 million.
“The entire world is aware that Milingo has forfeited US$24 million to the State because he knew and still knows that it is illegal to dubiously acquire the money as Provisional Liquidator,” he stated.
Beene further noted that people were not satisfied that the State was only repossessing assets without securing custodial convictions against the perpetrators of financial and economic crimes.
“Makebi must stop lying that President Hichilema is scared of Lungu’s comeback to active politics just because the current leadership is prosecuting and repossessing properties from corrupt elements,” he said.
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