By OLIVER SAMBOKO
ENERGY Minister Peter Kapala says he has always lived a transparent life and therefore any attempt by his opponents to paint him as a person who has dirty dealings will fail.
Mr Kapala also said he is no longer a partner in Cilvilstruts, meaning the firm cannot use his name in its pursuit or conducting of business while he remains a government minister as that amounts to conflict of interest.
He explained that prior to his appointment as minister, due diligence and vetting were done and he had to give full disclosure of his interests.
“As a result, I dropped my interests in CivilStruts prior to being a minister. This means the firm is now run by other partners,” he said.
Mr Kapala said there has been attempts on social media to paint a picture as if any of his past dealings are hidden from the public.
“To the contrary, when I was appointed Minister of Energy, I opened doors to my house to declare what I owned as part of my voluntary declaration of assets. This is to set a baseline for any future judgements of what I owned before and after I entered office,” he said.
He said he has always been transparent and will continue on that route of honesty and openness to avoid any suspicion.
Mr Kapala said his detractors should know that even before he was appointed Energy Minister, he was Managing Director of the company he own called CivilStruts Consulting Engineers.
He also said he is a registered Engineer, a registered consultant with the Association of Consulting Engineers in Zambia and a Fellow of the Engineering Institution of Zambia.
Mr Kapala said he learned and holds a Master’s Degree in Structural Engineering from the University of Sheffield in the UK and has practiced engineering for over 25 years in Zambia and several neighbouring countries.
“My specialisation is in structural designs of industrial and commercial projects, contract administration, commercial property development and development of technical specifications,” he said.
Mr Kapala said at the time of being appointed minister, he was the chairperson of the Engineers Registration Board, having earlier been former Vice President for the Engineering Institution of Zambia.
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