Lands corruption scam deepens

Fri, 31 Mar 2017 11:15:28 +0000

….as 4 transferred from registry, interns contracts terminated

THE Ministry of Lands has transferred four registry clerks on suspicion that they are the ones leaking information to the Daily Nation over its alleged corrupt activities and has retained only three, one of whom is the alleged ring leader of corruption in the administration and allocation  of land which is centred in the registry.

And the ministry has further terminated all the contracts with its interns, including those who were conducting the titling pilot project in Kamwala with a view to seal the information leakage which has exposed massive corruption in the ministry.

Sources within the ministry told the Daily Nation yesterday that some corrupt elements had embarked on a process of purging all those opposed to corruption and were suspected to have been the ones leaking the information to the Daily Nation.

The exposure of corruption involving the acquisition of eight plots in Roma by, a mong them, a foreign national had irked top officials who were involved in the syndicate and were said to have “vowed to weed out” anyone suspected to have links with the Daily Nation.

The source said a gloomy atmosphere has enveloped the ministry as workers, mostly subordinates, fear they could be next to be either transferred or fired on trumped up charges based on suspicion that they were stabbing their bosses in the back.

“It is a sad state of affairs. Four registry clerks received their transfer letters on Tuesday on suspicion that they are the ones who were feeding you with information on what has been happening here

because the information that has been coming out in your paper is very accurate and this has agitated most of them because they are directly involved in corrupt activities.

“You remember the woman we told you about some time back who went to China without the consent from her superiors? She is among the three who has been retained for the obvious reason that she is being used as a cat’s pawn to do all the dirty work for some bosses here.

‘‘People are living in fear now because of this development. Our bosses want to instil fear in everyone so that we keep quiet as they continue looting,” the source said.

The source wondered how the titling programme will be conducted since the interns’ services had been terminated.

“All the interns received their letters on Thursday. This is coming at a time when the titling project in Kamwala is going on. These bosses chewed the money which was allocated for that exercise before contracting the interns to do the job while offering them peanuts. Now, these interns have been removed; who will do the job and where will the money come from to pay other people?

“The ACC is fully aware of what is happening but is not doing anything to stop the rot. When we say there is corruption at the Ministry of Lands, it is not a joke. People are crying out there as unscrupulous individuals with the financial muscle and influence are using underhand methods to grab properties from them.

‘‘This is why it is easy for us to talk to you guys in the media because we know our identity will not be revealed. Who can trust the ACC today that when you feed them with information they will protect you? No one,” the source said.