10 July 2009
CHIPATA Municipal Council has suspended six workers in the accounts department in connectionwith financial irregularities revealed in an interim audit report.
The latest interim audit report at the council unearthed a scam in which some employees have defrauded the council out of millions of Kwacha through non-banking and issuance of fake receipts to clients. Chipata Town Clerk, Golden Banda confirmed the issuance of the suspension letters to the six council employees in Chipata yesterday.
Those who have been suspended are officers from the revenue collection team, which mainly comprises the cashiers from the bus stops, licence and the fire brigade section. The town clerk said although the auditing exercise was still going on, the council had already found the six with a case to answer and given them time to exculpate themselves.
Mr Banda said the employees in the accounts department may have taken advantage of the illness of the former town clerk, Bernard Siwakwi and consequently his departure, to plunder the council's resources.
"It is difficult to estimate how much money was stolen from the council because the investigations are still going on but it is evident that colossal sums of money have been stolen,' he said.
Mr Banda said Chipata Municipal Council was one of the best councils in the country, which had a sound revenue base over the past years, but the situation was no longer the same today due to a few selfish individuals who were enriching themselves. However, Mr Banda expressed hope that the council would recover the money that had been stolen from the council.
He said the council would follow the laid-down professional code of conduct when dealing with the erring officers. "Most of these people we have put on suspension have served the council for many years. Once dismissed, the council will still recover the stolen money from their benefits," he said.
Mr Banda said he preferred settling the matter administratively because the court may take longer for the case to be disposed of.
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