JAIL PLUNDERERS – SAUNDERS

By Kalobwe Bwalya

ALL plunderers should have their day in court without favour and no one must play victim for the mess they got us into by using tribal or regional politics, Dante Saunders has charged.

Speaking to The Scoop, Mr. Saunders said it was sad that almost 60 years after independence, Zambia had not attained the desired economic development because of politicians who were in the habit of looting resources under their care and that when the law visited them, they played victims.

He urged the Anti-Corruption Commission (ACC) to extend the fight against corruption to even those that were currently serving, saying those who hold public offices should not be spared from investigations, as doing so would render the fight against corruption selective.

He also appealed to President Hakainde Hichilema to ensure that every ministry and sector was cleaned up so that people who were still getting involved in corrupt practices were fished out from the system.

He noted that some of the people with records of misappropriating public resources wanted to appear innocent to seek sympathy from unsuspecting Zambians and that the same people who had destroyed the economy wanted to play victim over the problems they created which plunged the country into problems.

He charged that no one should be let scot-free, saying all those who stole public resources must account for it adding that many people were eager to see to it that people who plundered public funds were arrested and jailed.

“Anyone found wanting should not only be arrested, but jailed because corruption was like cancer which had no cure and such has since put the country in a mess.

He said it was unacceptable that some leaders enriched themselves when they were entrusted by Zambians to govern the country adding that it was sad that people who plundered public resources without shame still wanted to come back so that they could plunder more.

“Let the plunderers be arrested and jailed because corruption is detrimental to any developing nation and should not be condoned as it only benefits an individual and not the country,” Mr. Saunders said.

And Mr. Saunders called on the people of Zambia to beware of known thieves who wanted to bounce back into office saying such people had no developmental agenda for Zambia save for plundering public resources for the second time.

He also called on stakeholders to come on board in the fight against corruption in the country and to see to it that corruption cases were being reported to the relevant authorities for probe.

“My appeal to President Hichilema is that anyone facing corruption allegations should be dealt with before 2026 general elections including those that are currently serving and those that are out of the Government,” he said.