By LUCY PHIRI
FORMER Director General at the Water Resources Management Authority WARMA, Kenneth Nyundu has denied forging a contract of employment as alleged by the state.
Mr. Nyundu said when he opened his defence that his contract was authentic and not forged.
In this matter, Nyundu appeared before magistrate Anna Holland and pleaded not guilty to corruption charges.
Nyundu is among other allegations said to have dishonestly obtained an accumulated sum of K 709,000 as vehicle allowance from the authority pretending that he had purchased a vehicle namely Toyota Hilux from Jerumu General Trading Limited when in fact not.
“I have never at any given point forged a contract of employment as alleged by the prosecution. This is confirmed by my employer who at the time the matter of forgery was brought to the attention, they carried out their own internal investigations without the knowledge of management and established that on my confidential file there was only one copy of my contract of employment which is authentic, which read, housing allowance, 20 percent of basic salary,” Nyundu said.
Nyundu told the court that the observation by state witness, Ms.Grace Njumpi, an internal auditor carried out an internal audit and found a copy of his contract of employment which was written 20 percent of basic salary yet he was being paid net of tax.
He said as a result, Njumpi raised an audit query as to why he was being paid net of tax when the contract on his personal file did not indicate net of tax.
“So, this goes to show, again that the copy of my employment contract on my file was authentic, otherwise a query would not have arisen. And as such, she made recommendations to my employer for recovery of overpayment of my housing allowance,” said Nyundu.
“The recommendation was upheld and it was directed that the overall payment of housing allowance be recovered and that was effect and there are receipts in the bundle of documents to show that fact,” he said.
Nyundu testified that none of the state’s witnesses provided documents that he forged his contract.
“I want to put it on record that having listened to all the witnesses, none of them provided documents that I forged this contract. Instead, they testified that they were given copies of the forged contract by the WARMA legal director Misozi Ngulube,” Nyundu said.
“What is surprising is that the prosecution did not bring the legal director as part of their witnesses to prove their allegation. I want to put it on record that I have never instructed the legal director or any other person to alter the contract of employment,” he said.
He further testified that former permanent secretary at the Ministry of Water Development and Sanitation, Joe Kalusa went to report him to Anti-Corruption Commission (ACC) because he was unhappy with board decisions.
“Over obtaining pecuniary advantage, I have never obtained pecuniary advantage as alleged by the prosecution,” he said.
Defence continues.
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