Melo News | Thursday,18 January 2024 | Lusaka
Kenneth Nyundu, the Director General of the Water Resources Management Authority (WARMA), has been apprehended and accused of corruption by the Anti-Corruption Commission (ACC). The charges against him involve a sum exceeding K700,000.
Plot 13844 Chalala in Lusaka is the residence of Mr. Nyundu, who is facing three (3) charges of Abuse of Authority of Office under Section 21(c) of the Anti-Corruption Act Number 3 of 2012.
The initial findings indicate that Mr. Nyundu, in collaboration with unidentified individuals, created a fraudulent document called the Performance Based Contract on February 5, 2021, in Lusaka. This document falsely claimed that he was eligible for a 20% Housing Allowance and a 35% Vehicle Allowance, both deducted from his basic monthly salary, while in reality, he was not entitled to these benefits.
The second set of details reveals that between 5th February, 2021 and 30th July, 2022 in Lusaka, Mr. Nyundu knowingly and fraudulently presented a false document to Mr. Joe Kalusa, the Permanent Secretary in the Ministry of Water Development and Sanitation. The document in question is a Performance Based Contract dated 5th February 2021, which supposedly indicated that Mr. Nyundu was eligible for a 20% Housing Allowance net of tax and a 35% Vehicle Allowance net of tax, based on his basic monthly salary. However, this was not the case.
In the third count, it is revealed that Mr. Nyundu, between 5th February 2021 and 30th July 2022 in Lusaka, deceitfully acquired a total of K709,366.92 as a Vehicle allowance from the Water Resources Management Authority. He falsely claimed to have purchased a Toyota Hilux from a specific car dealer, when in reality, he had not made any such purchase.
Mr. Nyundu has been arrested after investigations revealed that he fabricated his employment contract by adding the phrase ‘net of tax’, resulting in him receiving additional allowances that he was not eligible for.
Mr. Nyundu was eligible for a Vehicle Allowance, but it would only be granted once he buys a Personal To Holder Motor Vehicle.
Allegedly, he was not the owner of a Personal to Holder Motor Vehicle, but instead, he was utilizing a vehicle owned by an institution.
Mr. Nyundu is accused of submitting a contract to WARMA, claiming that he bought a vehicle from a specific car dealer, even though he did not actually make the purchase.
Nyundu, who was released on bond, is anticipated to make a court appearance in the near future, according to Timothy Moono, the ACC Head of Corporate Communications.
Last year, PHOENIX FM initially broke this story following its extensive investigations into the matter.
The arrest has been welcomed and praised by the Zambian Civil Liberties Union, which had initiated the private prosecution process. They have commended the Commission for their actions.
