Kasempa council to be probed for misapplied funds

Kasempa council to be probed for misapplied funds

Solwezi, May 14, ZANIS ——-Local Government and Housing Deputy Minister Forrie Tembo says Kasempa district council will be probed to establish how it used K 700,000 (rebased) released to the local authority to construct 10 housing units.

Mr Tembo said he is also not happy with Mwinilunga district council where management has failed to properly explain how it used K1 billion (K1 million rebased) meant for land development.

Speaking during a familiarisation tour of local authorities in North Western province, Mr Tembo said Kasempa was among the local authorities that were given funds by his to construct housing units.

He explained that the housing units were intended to accommodate senior staff being engaged by the local government service commission.

He noted that after visiting Kasempa he discovered that the quality of the 10 houses constructed is not pleasing while some of them have not been completed.

The deputy minister said there will be need to probe Kasempa district council because the manner in which they spent the money for the houses is worrying.

Mr Tembo warned that government was not going to release additional funds to Kasempa until after ascertaining how the initial K700,000 rebased was utilised.

In Chavuma, Mr Tembo was happy with the district council management for putting the K700,000 (rebased) to good use.

The deputy minister who checked on the seven houses constructed from the housing fund said it was pleasing to see Chavuma construct good houses from the K700,000 despite the high cost of transporting materials due to distance.

But Mr Tembo has said the K1 million rebased given to Mwinilunga district council for land development has been misapplied.

“The council in Mwinilunga was given K1 billion for land development. They were supposed to service the new area for development by providing roads, water and sanitation but up to now they cannot properly explain how they used the money,” Mr Tembo said.

And Chavuma district Council Secretary Hudson Kachenjela told the minister that the council received K952,000 (rebased) for land development of which part of the money was used for opening up 319 plots which have also been surveyed by Ministry of Lands officers from Ndola.

Mr Kachenjela said the local authority has also identified an addition of 250 plots to be sold to developers.