By CHINTU MALAMBO GOVERNMENT says it does not need approval of the National Assembly for contraction of the both local and foreign debt. In response to Former Minister of Commerce Dipak Patel’s petition in the Constitutional Court over government’s failure to consult the National Assembly before procuring debt as required by law, Solicitor General Abraham Mwansa says section 3 and 7 of the loans and guarantee Authorisation Act number 366 of the laws of Zambia does not require government to obtain any form of approval from the National Assembly as claimed. In this matter, Patel has sued the Minister of Finance Bwalya Ng’andu and the Attorney General as the respondents. He is challenging the failure by the government to present all loan agreements to Parliament for approval before they are signed. He argued that it is a constitutional requirement under Article 63(2)(d) that the National Assembly must approve all public debt. Patel wants the court […]
‘Dipak Patel is wrong’
