Former Zambia Revenue Authority (ZRA) Commissioner General Kingsley Chanda has been sentenced to six years imprisonment.
His co-accused Callistus Kaoma will serve nine years imprisonment.
The duo were jointly charged with 22 counts for wilful failure to comply with procedures in the disposal of 22 motor vehicles belonging to ZRA
Kingsley Chanda, the former Commissioner General of the Zambia Revenue Authority (ZRA), has been in court regarding charges of willful failure to follow procedure in the disposal of government vehicles.
Chanda argued that he acted within his mandate during his tenure and followed internal structures and board approvals for the vehicle disposal process. He supported his claims with memos and a letter from the Treasury that authorized the disposal of obsolete vehicles.
Chanda asserted that the actual disposal of vehicles was handled by an independent interdepartmental Asset Disposal Committee (ADC), which was within its remit to carry out operational matters.
Chanda’s co-accused, Calistus Kaoma, testified that the Asset Disposal Policy presented by the prosecution as evidence was “falsified” and not in effect during the period in question (2017–2020). Kaoma noted several inconsistencies, including the policy citing a 2018 law for disposals made in 2017.
Chanda highlighted ZRA’s rigorous audit framework, stating that the institution was subject to annual audits by internal and external auditors and that none of these audits raised queries about the vehicle disposals during his five-year tenure.
He denied allegations that some vehicles were used for political campaigns or that he had influenced sales to individuals connected to him, calling the claims unfounded.
But Principal Resident Magistrate Sylvia Munyinya-Okoh proceeded to convict the accused and sentenced them to years in prison.
