By Darius Choonya
An investigation by Diamond Media has revealed how the Ministry of Defense allegedly suspiciously awarded a contract to a named Lusaka businessman for the supply of goods and services worth an eye-watering 600 million dollars.
According to sources close to the investigation say the businessman is suspected to have used under-hand methods to obtain the contract and some former government officials are allegedly linked to the case that is likely to be uncovered by six auditing companies engaged to assess the financial records of the Defense wings.
The sources claim the panic seen in some quarters of society condemning government for awarding private audit firms is a mere attempt to derail the process of pursuing suspicious leads at the ministry.
This follows concerns by members of the opposition that have condemned government for contracting Grant Thornton, PriceWaterHouseCoopers, C-Y-M-A, Mark Daniels, Client Focus and EY audit firms to scrutinize goods and services that are supposed to be cleared by government.
In a recent statement made in Parliament Minister of Finance Dr. Situmbeko Musokotwane maintains the process is supported by law to verify procurement in the Ministry of Defense for general goods and services and not sensitive military installations or details as perceived by critics.
