5 November 2009
CHIEF Government spokesperson Ronnie Shikapwasha has accused former Defence minister, George Mpombo and other former Government leaders of having launched a smear campaign against President Rupiah Banda and the ruling party through unsubstantiated statements.
Lieutenant-General Shikapwasha said in a statement in Lusaka yesterday that the Government was extremely saddened by the behaviour of the former senior Government officials who were reinforcing lies that the president's sons were using State machinery to secure Government contracts.
He said it was disheartening that Mr Mpombo had repeated unsubstantiated allegations made by former vice-president Enoch Kavindele after State House and the
Ministry of Defence denied any dealings with the President's children.
He said Mr Mpombo's incessant insults and accusations were part of his drive to misinform the public and ridicule the president.
In an interview with The Post Newspaper, Mr Mpombo is reported to have said that the president's children should do business in a transparent manner and that they should not use State machinery to conduct business just because they were the president's sons.
"These are serious allegations requiring a person of the experience and status of Hon Mpombo to have attempted to verify and so substantiate his public statement.
"If Hon Mpombo was making the statement in good faith, out of concern for this nation, he would have substantiated the allegations before making a statement," Lt-Gen Shikapwasha said.
He said Mr Mpombo was by implication saying that the president's children were involved in business in which they did not only use the State machinery but their father's name.
He urged former leaders speaking out of bitterness to restrain themselves from making statements that endangered national peace and harmony.
Gen Shikapwasha also said Senior Chief Bright Nalubamba had chosen to play partisan politics in his discharge of duties as a chief.
He said Chief Nalubamba should realise that he was an official of the Government and had many channels to use if he wanted to advise the Government, including the president.
He said the Government had noted that the chief spoke ignorantly about the late president, Levy Mwanawasa's policy on the future of the Task Force on Corruption.
Gen Shikapwasha said it was wrong for the chief to amplify allegations made by the opposition about the lack of benefit from attending meetings in foreign countries.
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