By DELPHINE ZULU –
A LUSAKA business executive, Eliud Sikwabi has sued the Millennium Challenge Account (MCA) over discrimination.
The plaintiff says MCA is discriminating him because it is offering to pay him his compensation package in Kwacha instead of United States dollars as it has been doing to all hired contractors on the project.
He says many owners of the land affected by the project would be paid in Zambian Kwacha while the contractors for the project are being paid in dollars, a situation he describes as unfair as they would lose in the process.
Mr Sikwabi states that the projectias being funded by MCA, thereby making him entitled to compensation being offered to all project’s affected persons as a result of either loss of land or inconvenience on the enjoyment of their property.
The plaintiff is now claiming payment of his compensation in dollars, payment of K60,000 for loss of income and refund of K11,200 for hired excavators on his land.
He is claiming for the recalculation of the compensation of K964,083.39 to include loss of income and inflation- linked loss, a declaration that it was discriminatory for the affected people to be paid in Kwacha while contractors would be paid in dollars.
Mr Sikwabi is also asking the court to order the defendant to be consistent with the plans by the plaintiff of constructing him a bridge to allow him access his other side of the property which was not part of the land that was sold.
He said in a statement of claim that his property situated across Ngwerere River had part of the portion targeted for the project and the defendant tabulated the compensation in the Kwacha which was not supposed to be the case as MCA charged its services in dollars.
The property was valued at K964,083.39 in August this year, excluding the K11,200 for a hired excavator per hour to construct a bridge to enable him access the other part of his property.
“Works for the projects have commenced on my property notwithstanding the fact that my concerns have not been addressed by the defendants. It is a known fact, all the contract works to be done are quoted in dollars and yet I am being discriminated,” he says.
Mr Sikwabi says by reason of the foregoing, the plaintiff has suffered and continues to suffer damage by way of loss of income on his planned property of building flats, which had been halted by the defendant.