Kabushi PF member of parliament Bowman Lusambo says the money he used to buy assorted food and other items that he donated to his constituents last weekend derive from his personal resources and not government.

On Sunday, June 2, 2019, Lusambo donated 4,000 25Kg bags of breakfast mealie-meal to the elderly in Kabushi, while he also distributed 4,000 five litre containers of cooking oil; 6,000 boxes of boom detergent paste, drinks and biscuits, among other things, which were all valued in millions of kwacha.

The next day, the Lusaka Province Minister donated computer units to several schools in Kabushi, forcing the alarmed public to question the source of his donations.

Explaining his philanthropic gesture, Lusambo said as a minister, he had no access to public resources, as such it was not possible that he could have stollen from government.

He claimed to be an accomplished businessman whose desire to share started before he became a member of parliament.

“After so much hullabaloo about our weekend activities in Kabushi constituency, I feel it’s prudent to put a few things into proper perspective. Firstly, I am not entirely surprised that some of our citizens have reacted negatively to our gesture and this is because for some people, extending a hand to the needy is something alien to them. However, what is important is for me to state that I have been sharing with people for the best part of my life, years before taking up public office,” Lusambo stated.

“Even before I decided to run for parliamentary office, I was always assisting the needy in Kabushi. As far back as 2014-2015, I organised youth football tournaments, donated food items to the aged, renovated and painted dilapidated houses for some senior citizens in Kabushi; handed over musical equipment for a number of churches and made cash donations to several organisations. My philanthropy has not only been restricted to Kabushi, I have made similar donations to areas such as Munali constituency in Lusaka and several parts of this country. As a public official serving in the administration of His Excellency President Edgar Chagwa Lungu, my activities are above reproach.”

He said his office was not a spending agency, and he did not have access to public coffers.

“I cannot use public funds for personal gain. Moreover, as Provincial Minister, I have no direct access to government funds and my office is not a spending agency. Anyone who has worked in government knows that ministers do not directly approve any spending activities. Ours is policy formulation and supervision of government programmes aimed at ensuring that the vision of His Excellency President Edgar Chagwa Lungu is fulfilled,” he argued.

“The funds I use to share with my people are generated from my own private business. There is nothing that stops an MP from sharing some personal resources with the people. Anyone who knows me should know that even before joining politics, I ran successful businesses, which are still operational. One of my companies supplies high-end electronics equipment to corporate organisations and individual customers and I have been doing this business for well over 15 years. The records are there at PACRA and anyone who cares to check is free to do so,” Lusambo stated.