JAIL THEM – SAUNDERS

By Fulman Mukobeko

PROMINENT political activist Dante Saunders has emphasised the need for the country to step up investigations into alleged graft cases so that corrupt people are exposed and caged before the 2026 general election.

Speaking to The Scoop, Mr. Saunders said it was sad that the very people who should be behind bars for stealing from the Zambians were the ones making a mockery of the fight against corruption in Zambia.

He said it should not be that while ordinary citizens were being sent to prison every day over small crimes, those who stole from Zambians with impunity were making the loudest noise because they had their own way of weaving through the investigative wings, rendering the fight against corruption an academic exercise in futility.

He challenged the investigative wings to be serious with their work and bring culprits to book as opposed to the current situation where cases with prima facie evidence were either abandoned on account of insufficient evidence or were unnecessarily lost in court for reasons best known to themselves.

He said with the 2026 general elections approaching, there was growing demand to expose and prosecute corrupt individuals effectively.

“You can’t have a situation where people that have stolen huge sums of money are walking freely everywhere while an ordinary person who steals a watermelon is jailed within a week of committing the offence.

“It is very sad that the very people who should be rotting in jail are today making a mockery of the fight against corruption and this is because those charged with the responsibility of investigating them and taking them to court are not doing a good job probably because they are compromised,” Mr. Saunders said.

He said as a result of the current state of affairs, known criminals were regrouping using stolen resources and were insulting the intelligence of Zambians because they were treated with kid gloves.

“When you look at it, these same people are treading on a thin line.  They are bordering on economic sabotage, treason and espionage. They are bordering on all that,” he said.

He regretted that the same alleged corrupt elements were insulting President Hakainde Hichilema every day, making headlines and receiving praises from the gullible yet they were the ones responsible for the suffering of the Zambians.

Meanwhile, Mr. Saunders has demanded that foreign companies involved in corrupt practices must be held responsible and prevented from operating in Zambia to champion global anti-corruption efforts.

“We cannot be bringing a batch of plunderers from other countries to plunder the little that we have here. Things are going very wrong in our country when it comes to corruption.

“We need a country where anyone found corrupting a Government official, together with the same Government official, is made to face the consequences. This will send a strong signal to those in Government and outside that the fight against corruption is a serious one,” he said.

He stressed that tackling corruption required urgency, accountability, inclusivity, and international cooperation but that the current situation left a lot to be desired.