Ministry of Information and Broadcasting Services Permanent Secretary Chanda Kasolo has charged that the manner in which the FIC Director Mary Chirwa is responding to concerns raised by government officials in the 2018 Trends Report, is unprofessional and uncalled for.

On Wednesday, Chirwa was quoted in the MAST news paper saying ‘Criminal minds won’t distract me…those going berserk about FIC report guilty.”

But Kasolo issued a strong statement, Wednesday, and later took to radio, expressing displeasure that a technical person like Chirwa, was mishandling the recent report as she was acting as Judge and Jury.

He said Chirwa was acting as Judge and Jury when the law was very clear that her job was not to go public and start accusing people but to prepare a report and submit to the Law Enforcement Agencies.

Kasolo added that government was not happy with the confrontational manner in which the Financial Intelligence Centre was responding to concerns raised by stakeholders in its 2018 Trends Report.

He charged that Chirwa’s response was unprofessional and uncalled for from a person presiding over an important governance institution.

“Ms. Chirwa’s response is unprofessional and uncalled for from a person presiding over an important governance institution. We have a situation where the President has spoken on the FIC report, my Minister, Honorable Siliya on Sunday during The Sunday Interview spoke at length about the FIC report, it is shocking that a technical person could go and label people who are merely being accused,” he said.

Kasolo further said it was not the work of the FIC to instigate any legal proceedings against anybody.

He added that the Chairperson of FIC was also quoted in some sections of the media as saying “Don’t embolden Criminals” when no one has been taken to the court of law and no one had been found guilty.

And Kasolo said government was not against the work of FIC but the manner in which the institution had continued to conduct itself, adding that government expected FIC to be professional.

He appealed to all well meaning Zambians to support government’s call to let investigative wings do their work and follow those found wanting.

Kasolo however said the FIC Act requires to be looked at.