By PERPETUAL SICHIKWENKWE –
TRIAL involving Chongwe Member of Parliament (MP) Sylvia Masebo, who is charged with abuse of authority, has commenced with a witness telling the Lusaka magistrates court that a minister has no authority to cancel a tender.
Masebo, 52, of Lusaka’s Ibex Hill, is facing two counts of abuse of authority in relation with the cancellation of hunting licences and sacking of senior directors at the Zambia Wildlife Authority (ZAWA).

. Masebo

Masebo, who has denied both charges, is alleged to have illegally cancelled hunting licences and unlawfully firing senior officers at ZAWA when she served as Tourism and Arts minister.
Former principal procurement officer Kenneth Mapani, who was in charge of inspection and standards at the Zambia Public Procurement Authority (ZPPA), told magistrate Irene Wishimanga that the minister had no role in tender processes.
Mr Mapani, 43, who is now head of procurement and supply at the Ministry of Community Development Mother and Child Health, said the law currently vested the powers in the evaluation committee or the chief executive officer of ZAWA.
He told the court that on October 8, 2014 he was approached by officials from the Anti-Corruption Commission (ACC) who wanted clarifications on the procurement of hunting concessions and the
applicable process.
He informed the officials that the first phase was to advertise in the public media after which the CEO or controlling officer would appoint an evaluation committee to look at the tenders.
The committee would then evaluate the bids in line with the provisions of solicitation documents.
It was at this stage that recommendations would be made by the committee to award a tender and submit it to the relevant authority for approval before formally awarding the tender.
The ACC officials further wanted to know who was mandated to cancel a procurement tender but he drew them to Section 22 (1) (f) of the ZPPA Act of 2008 and regulation number 24 of the Public Procurement Regulations of 2011.
Mr Mapani, however, during cross-examination told the court that the Act was silent on the role of the minister in the procurement process and agreed with Masebo’s defence lawyer Robert Simeza that the Act did not say that the minister has no role to play.
Ms Wishimanga adjourned the matter to September 15, 2015 for continued trial.
Shortly after the court proceedings, Masebo and UPND vice-president Canisius Banda held a rally opposite the Lusaka magistrates’ court complex where they denounced the PF Government.