Q FM Africa's Modern Radio
Governance, Elections, Advocacy, Research Services (GEARS) initiative Zambia Executive Director Mcdonald Chipenzi has charged that the delay to appoint a board of directors and director general for the Financial Intelligence Center (FIC) by President Hakainde Hichilema and the board respectively has potential to compromise the fight against financial and economic crimes in Zambia.
Mr. Chipenzi has expressed concern that it is months now since the board was dissolved by the president and since the director general for the center was transferred to head the Drug Enforcement Commission (DEC) respectively.
He says since then, no new one board has been constituted neither new director general appointed whose appointment is dependent on the constitution of the fic board.
According to section 7(3) of the Financial Intelligence Centre act (2010) as an amended in 2020, the board is appointed by the president while the director general is appointed by the board.
But Mr. Chipenzi is concerned that the delayed appointment of the board by the president has made the center to stay without a director general especially that the one who was there was appointed to head the DEC.
He is of the view that the absence of the board and the director general at fic is and has created a gap in the fight against illicit financial flows value chain stressing that this has also disjointed the joint investigation team of law enforcement agencies on corruption, financial and economic crimes and money laundering.