. Soko

By CHILA NAMAIKO –
PRESIDENT Edgar Lungu has expressed concern at reports of some police officers running illegal businesses such as pirating and transporting goods and services including passengers.
Mr Lungu cited reports such as ‘nimotoka yaba bwana iyi (This is an officer (Police)’s vehicle) in reference that it could not be impounded, a syndrome that contribute to corruption.
He mentioned this when he visited the Zambia Police Service stand at the Showgrounds in Lusaka yesterday during commemoration of this year’s International Anti-Corruption Day held under the theme ‘United against Corruption’.
Mr Lungu then sought clarity from Police assistant director Professional Standards Charity Munganga whom he found at the stand on the truth about reports of officers engaged in such activities.
“I hear that sometimes Policemen run businesses…pirating, transporting goods and services and people (passengers) and they contribute to the corruption in the process because ‘nimotoka yaba bwana iyi (This is an officer’s vehicle) …how true is it? The President wondered.
Mr Lungu called on the Police to observe the law because they were law keepers by virtue of their operation.
Ms Munganga, who is Secretary for the Zambia Police’s Integrity Committee Secretariat, said such a syndrome could be true, but the Police Command regularly conducted sensitisation to its own officers that they were not special in any way.
“We are also supposed to pay tax and the infact that we are supposed to pay taxes, we have to make sure that our vehicles have all the necessary requirements,” she said.
President Lungu also asked Ms Munganga about what was the most perceived corrupt unit in the Police service, of which she responded that it was the traffic section.
She said the Police was perceived to be leading in corruption, because officers frequently interact with members of the public.
She said, however, a number of measures were being put in place to reduce incidence of corruption such as people depositing cash directly into banks as opposed to Police officers receiving the hard cash on some penalties.
Ms Munganga said some officers had been removed from traffic section and taken in other departments and those new ones that took over the traffic section, were sensitised to the need to uphold professionalism.
President Lungu wished the Police officers good luck in their day-to-day undertakings.
Earlier, the President toured among other institutions, the Road Transport and Safety Agency (RTSA) where he urged the officers not to relent in implementing corrupt free measures in the provision of services due to public resistance.
Mr Lungu encouraged RTSA chief executive officer Zindaba Soko and his team to remain focused and not swayed by detractors working to undermine their efforts tin safeguarding the lives of road udders.
The President said the Government would remain steadfast in supporting operations o0f RTSA.
Mr Soko said the implementation of roadside speed cameras had reduced corruption among the law enforcement agencies including road traffic accidents.