The recent reports released by the Financial Intelligence team of FIC open a rather unfortunate and sorry state of affairs for the Zambian nation. Zambia is a developing nation and after decades of struggle, the nation has been able to uplift itself to a certain extent. However, this news of money laundering clearly indicates that until the nation is free from these activities as well as the culprits involved in the acts, it will never see growth and development such as other emerging nations across the globe.

Among the top of the list released by FIC was Masozi. M Banda, a legal counsellor working for Avic International. He is accused of laundering money more than USD 1 billion. When confronted with the accusation, he defended himself by stating that the money belongs to Edgar Lungu, the Zambian President, and he is just a middleman in this money exchange. He also stated that he received the money for various government contracts, such as road construction. Of course, no such information of government records has been found yet. Another name that made headlines was of Sakwiba Sikota. While he is the owner of Central Chambers, a law firm that has been accused of laundering money in millions, he is more infamous for his long-term association with the equally scandalous family of the Ventriglias. This family has been involved in numerous wrongdoings, most notable being the illegal takeover of the Portland Cement Zambia. The cement factory belongs to Dr. Rajan Lekhraj Mahtani, a respected businessman and citizen of Zambia. The case is pending at the Lusaka High Court and the lawyer who is handling the case from the Ventriglias end is Sakwiba Sikota!

The lack of government’s intervention and their inability to locate such big money laundering bust is appalling. Strong evidences have been collected against many of these accused and it is time the government starts taking stringent actions against them.