State House clears Dora Siliya in maizegate scandal

Mon, 06 Mar 2017 12:23:37 +0000

 By OSCAR MALIPENGA

THERE is no scandal whatsoever on the Zambian side in the Malawi maizegate, special assistant to the President for press and public relations Amos Chanda has said.

And Mr. Chanda has clarified that Agriculture Minister Dora Siliya was not involved in any scandal whatsoever.

Commenting on the maizegate during a press briefing at State House yesterday, Mr. Chanda explained that what Zambia did was simply on the special request from President Mutharika to his brother President Edgar Lungu was to waive the export ban that was in place to allow for 100, 000 metric tonnes to be exported.

“We want to put it on record, yet again that if at all there is any problem about maize export from Zambia to Malawi it is on the Malawian side.

“I am going to repeat what I said in Addis-Ababa that President Mutharika informed President Lungu that there is no wrong doing whatsoever on the Zambian side of the transaction.

“Even on the Malawian side, he says there are some “controversies” those are the terminologies he used,” Mr. Chanda said.

Mr. Chanda said the price was agreed between the buyers and the sellers.

He said the sellers was the Zambia Cooperative Federation (ZCF), adding that the Zambian government had nothing to do with that.

“I must state with disappointment here that the commission report in Malawi that mentioned Ms. Siliya, I think went a little bit too far. They did not follow the rules of natural justice which require that they needed to speak to her.

“So, if that is the basis upon which the minister is being mentioned that is all misguided,” Mr. Chanda said.

He said the President gave instructions to the Minister of Agriculture to facilitate the export of that maize, adding that, that was the only role that the Government played.

President Lungu also authorised that at the special request of President Kabila some maize export be allowed to Congo and that it was a normal practice.