MP rejects lifestyle audit

By GIDEON NYENDWA

AN opposition Member of Parliament has rejected the introduction of the lifestyle audit for leaders, claiming that the country has enough laws to fight corruption.

Nalolo Member of Parliament Wamunyima Imanga has said there was no need for additional pieces of legislation like the lifestyle audit to fight against corruption, insisting that what this country needs is just to properly enforce the already existing laws.

Mr. Imanga, who is Party for National Unity and Progress (PNUP) MP said the country has enough pieces of legislation like Penal code cap 87 of the laws of Zambia, the Anti-Corruption Commission Act of 2012, Forfeiture of Proceeds of Crime of 2010 and Public Finance Management Act 2018 all these were aimed at fighting corruption, there was just need for enforcement of the laws.

He said that with all the pieces of legislation that were already in place, that showed that there was absence of enforcement and it was the problem in that case.

Mr. Imanga, who was speaking during a television interview, said that even countries that had the lowest corruption index do not have laws like lifestyle audits.

He said the reason why they had low corruption was because of the way enforcement was done.

Mr. Imanga said that he agrees with the political will to fight against corruption but not with the lifestyle audit.

He said Zambia as a free market economy, people were allowed to run their own businesses and if someone makes money that was not commensurate to their earnings but has not abrogated any law then that was not a problem.

Mr. Imanga said there was need to have strong institutions that fight corruption but that does not mean the President directing who needs to be followed.  Law enforcers should be following people who are abrogating the law.

He said he does not think this country had priority for additional pieces of legislation and auditing somebody’s life is something that was too wide.

Mr. Imanga also said that there was a need to do research and see which country had the lifestyle audit worked before this country could even bring it to the fall.

He said the Auditor General’s report reveals a lot of scary things that need to be followed and  that is the approach this country needs to take.

Mr. Imanga said one of the reasons the country had poor power enforcement of the law was because of political interference.