By KETRA KALUNGA
CONSISTENCY in ensuring that those appointed to various positions in government institutions declare their assets and liabilities would enhance the country’s democracy and governance, opposition political parties have said.
People’s Alliance for Change (PAC) and National Restoration Party (NAREP) said in separate interviews that it’s time that public confidence in the leadership of the country which has been long over was restored by promoting transparency and accountability in the use of resources. PAC President Andyford Banda applauded the incoming UPND administration for assuring that those given positions in government declare their assets and liabilities which he said was progressive and should be supported.
Mr. Banda said the only way the UPND leadership would restore public confidence in the leadership of the country was to ensure that the incoming leaders are not only transparent but accountable in the use of public resources. “Accountability can only come about where there is transparency because it’s very difficult to hold leaders accountable if they are not transparent because you have no basis on which to hold them accountable,” he said.
And NAREP President Steve Nyirenda said the move would curtail corruption involving government officials because they would be held accountable for the public resources that they would be entrusted with. This is something that we would support because If today I declare that I have a million and two months later, I have 20 million, I need to show where I got the other 19 million so this would mitigate the abuse of public resources, he said.
