- Stay Connected
Socialize
Public Offices Are Not ATMs – Kabimba
WYNTER Kabimba
WYNTER Kabimba says the technical committee on drafting the constitution presented him with a K3.5 million bill for allowances and other expenditures during the month of January and February this year.
Giving a talk on the constitution-making process to Post employees on Wednesday, Kabimba, who is justice minister, said public offices should not be perceived as Automated Teller Machines but a platform for serving the people.
“The last bill that the technical committee presented to me was K3.5 million; that’s the amount they were demanding from the government. They wanted to use this money on allowances and other expenditures for the month of January and February. I said ‘No! How can we spend this amount in two months on 20 people?’ On top of that, they wanted to have the vehicles they were using sold to them. But I told them that was not part of their terms or conditions,” said Kabimba after he was asked to confirm if the members of the technical committee had asked the government to sell them the vehicles they were using in the course of their work.
He said the government would have set a bad precedent if they had allowed members of the technical committee to buy the vehicles they were using.
“Already, we have the commission set up to look into legal and justice reform programmes to be chaired by justice Fredrick Chomba. So if they need vehicles, then we should go to the treasury for money? No! You cannot operate like that. It would have been irresponsible on our part as government if we went ahead to sell the vehicles. The government has a duty to the Zambian people and we should not look at public offices as ATMs; it is a service to the Zambian people,” he said.
And Kabimba (below) said some of the people that were advocating a new constitution were doing it as a political project.
He said political parties such as the UPND were hoping to grow by pushing for the 50 per cent plus one vote threshold in the constitution.
“Just because someone is running a party which is not growing and only hopes it will grow through the 50 per cent plus one vote threshold, then they should make noise about the constitution. This constitution process has been turned into a political project or agenda for those who think they are weak and can only be strong through a new constitution. The duty we have as government is to guard the process,” Kabimba said.
Meanwhile, Kabimba said had the technical committee on drafting the constitution adhered to what was contained in the PF manifesto, the country would have had a new constitution within 90 days of PF being in power.
He said the technical committee did not have recourse to the PF manifesto and came up with their own terms of reference.
“We endorsed their terms of reference and this resulted in the work being so much that it could not be completed in 90 days. So the 90 days issue must be understood in this context, between what was actually intended and what the technical committee decided. The latter has now backfired against the government,” he said.
Kabimba said the mistake the government made was giving the technical committee the latitude to come up with their own terms of reference against what was contained in the PF manifesto.
He, nonetheless, noted that the mistake was made in good faith.
Kabimba also wondered why changes in the constitution had always been tied to elections and political power as opposed to issues of good governance and the fundamental needs of the people.
Posted by
lady Gaga
May 24, 2014 at 9:29 am
GRZ is actually ATM starting from the top
Israel holds annual gay parade
May 24, 2014 at 10:38 am
Its ATM for political thieves
chimbokaila mukobeko
May 24, 2014 at 11:02 am
if thy are not ATMs…how come you woke them to GBMs house this morning…….fyoola.
Holy Gay
May 24, 2014 at 11:04 am
hahahaha
May 24, 2014 at 11:18 am
In a class lecture given by Israeli kabbalist Rabbi Yaakov Adas, Adas ruled that Jews should not look at the pope when he visits Israel because he is “metamei” – an impure person who causes others to be come impure.
hahahaha
May 24, 2014 at 11:21 am
A person who sees the pope should “quickly run and immerse in a mikva [ritual bath] to remove the impurity [that has now attached to him from seeing] this person who represents the avoda zara (idol worship), may God protect us,” Adas said.
In the name of millions of Jews around the world he does not represent, Adas also called on the pope to stay away from the Kotel (Western Wall), from King David’s purported tomb on Mount Zion, and from other Jewish holy sites.
“It’s not the man, nothing personal, but [it’s] what his position represents. This is a religion [Roman Catholicism] with a purpose of combating Judaism, [it is] a religion that spends millions [of dollars] on converting Jews…,” Adas said.
Chimbwi nayena alikwata abanankwe.
May 24, 2014 at 12:20 pm
Chikomera mbuzi kukhoma galu;galu akati alumeko ati iyai.Even parliament is an ATM .Why should useless MPs mint 1 million(one billion kwacha-unrebased)in five years? And yet we have civil servants who work for 35yrs and get a paltly 400 000 kwacha only as pension.Greedy politicians.
Kingsley
May 24, 2014 at 3:49 pm
can sombody tell me,i ask:is it the UPND that demanded 4constitution or its the nation at large?why cant this govt deliver its promises so as to make citizens trust them again?No wonder pipo ar saying U ar afraid of HH bcoz its all political parties that demanded 4constitution but why z it only HH seen as demanding 4constitution 4his popularity?Mr KABIMBA THINK.
kakolwe
May 24, 2014 at 6:39 pm
I opt to remain quiet, my lady. (as Osca Pisto can say)
chile1
May 24, 2014 at 6:55 pm
Tell them boss
Manhimself
May 24, 2014 at 8:47 pm
Timaiziba! He’s just trying to find the reasons why the 90 days thing didn’t workout -trying to find an excuse,every one who has worked deserves a pay, pay those guyz their money’s as it is your negligence which has lead to this, who doesn’t know about the ATM?
Manhimself
May 24, 2014 at 8:59 pm
Mr the next to the president”He knows me better than my Father” Wynter “Kamimba”always engaging HH even when it is their internal issues,was HH there when making the 90 days manifesto?when they hired those pipo to draft the constitution did He also contributed to the idea?when you are scared of someone you tend to speak much about him
sidibhe
May 25, 2014 at 10:16 am
Kabimba dats a ****** defence I wonder hw u bkam a lawyr when u knt even analys ad look at yo mistaks u ar da 1 wu ws suoposzd 2adviz Paya Farmer hw 2deal wth da issue of da costitution dnt say zey did nt follow yo blood manifesto, wat typ of a lawyer ar u? Shame upon u, u even acuse HH 4wat u ar so scared of him da “TONGA BULL” ulabola uyo yowa dad, u wnt 2deal da issue of da constitution lyk u did wth Baroste promises atase wil vote u out kam 2016 ulacibona webo, HH aleisa…..