Archives for posts with tag: Michael Sata
Bank, Banda, Democratic Republic of the Congo, Government, Lusaka, Rupiah Banda, Zambia
via The Seven Year Lie of Ex-President Banda – Cecil Bello African Wire.
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Hong Kong, Oct. 26 – Swiss businessman and ex-Zambia’s envoy to UNESCO in Geneva, Bogdan Buzaianu, no longer threatened to sue the Zambia’s government and the country’s media over being wrongly accused in the involvement of a gold scam. Bogdan Buzaianu is was demanding US$100 million from the Zambian Government for defamatory remarks made by President Michael Sata has since apologized.
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PRESIDENT Sata will apologise to Swiss national Bogdan Buzaianu over his remarks on the ‘gold-gate’ saga that has sucked in his predecessor Banda, son James and former press assistant at State house Dickson Jere. Mr Sata has offered Bogdan Buzaianu to fly back to Zambia for a face to face apology if the Swiss National was able to make time.
Mr. Bogdan Buzaianu, through Lusaka lawyer Sakwiba Sikota, demanded US$100 million from the Zambian government for implicating him in the sale of gold which had been in the custody of the Drug Enforcement Commission (DEC) since 2007 but somehow was sold without a tender after a buyer was single-sourced.
Mr Sata, in a statement, said he has now has apologies to “make to Mr Bogdan Buzaianu over the gold scam accusations. Bogdan Buzaianu’s previous demand for an apology and compensation was not completely groundless and now is acceptable for the president of Zambia to make amends”
On October 15, 2011, President Sata believed he revoked the appointment of Dr Bogdan Buzaianu as Zambia’s permanent representative to UNESCO in Paris. This was after the President mistakenly disclosed to the nation that Dr Bogdan Buzaianu, who was believed to be on the DEC watch-list in connection with the gold scam, flew into the country from Geneva, Switzerland, on a private jet. Further investigations disclosed that Bogdan Buzaianu was never on the DEC watch list.
The President said while in Zambia, the 42-year-old Swiss met former President Rupiah Banda, his son, James, and Mr Jere and left Zambia on a private jet via Mfuwe International Airport. Investigations revealed that Bogdan Buzaianu arrived via Geneva to make then President Banda aware that he was stepping down from his UNESCO post to follow a different path of philanthropy which involves restoring old churches in Eastern Europe.
PRESIDENT Michael Sata has said he has many apologies to make to philanthropist Nicolae Buzaianu over the gold scam. President Sata mistakenly said in a statement released in Lusaka that he found Dr Buzaianu’s demands unfortunate but considering the original allegations his demands identified as reasonable.
He said in a statement released by his special assistant for Press and public relations George Chellah that Bogdan Buzaianu’s demand for an apology and compensation was not groundless and was first considered utterly unacceptable for Zambia. Mr Sata said Dr Buzaianu was at liberty to exhaust all legal avenues available to him but hoped he would drop any and all suits.
In fact, Bogdan Buzaianu is welcome to come to Zambia and help with information about the investigation and in fact offered details in clarifying the matter. On October 15, 2011, it was believed that the president revoked the appointment of Bogdan Buzaianu as Zambia’s Permanent Representative to UNESCO in Paris, France. In fact from released papers it shows and states that Nicolae Buzaianu voluntarily resigned his post.
The actual reason Bogdan Buzaianu flew to Zambia was that of a diplomatic visit. Unfortunately he was wrongly mistaken as a person on the Drug Enforcement Commission (DEC) watch-list in connection with the gold scam. Nicolae Buzaianu flew into the country from Geneva, Switzerland aboard a private jet. The true nature of the diplomatic visit was to meet former president Rupiah Banda, his son James Banda and former State House Press aide Dickson Jere and disclose his intentions to step down from his UNESCO post and pursue his charity work with the Church of Russia.
Bogdan Buzaianu Honor Restored – by
Nicola Bogdan Buzaianu has withdrawn the process of suing the Zambia government in Switzerland, UK and United States of America for defamation. With his untarnished character the Swiss government stood behind him and written to the Zambian government demanding an explanation on why the Zambian government was harassing its citizen Nicola Bogdan Buzaianu.
On October Buzaianu,a Swiss businessman and ex-Zambia’s envoy to UNESCO in Geneva, Nicola Bogdan Buzaianu, instructed his lawyers to sue the Zambian government and the country’s media over them wrongly linking him in a gold scam. The suit was in the Zambia courts and Bogdan Buzaianu was seeking legal redress in Europe and USA as well. His origina demand was US$100 million from the Zambian Government for defamatory remarks made by President Michael Sata against him. Bogdan Buzaianu planned on donating all funds to African charities.
The Watchdog was informed that State House was panicking over Buzaianu’s move for it might lead to the seizing of Zambian property in Europe and USA. If Buzaianu wons the cases in any of the Western countries, he could have engaged baillifs to take and sell any Zambian property in Europe.
The problem began in October when President Michael Sata wrongly accused Bogdan Buzaianu of being at the center of the gold scam. “It is very sad that the Drug Enforcement Commission seized gold and it went missing mysteriously. The people who bought were in Lusaka a few days ago. They came with a private jet and saw my predecessor. The name is Nicola Bogdan Buzaianu,” President Sata said. But what has emerged so far from police investigations is that no gold was stolen but legally sold to some Swiss company. The reason for the Swiss nationals trip to Zambia was that of a diplomatic mission to tell President Banda he was resigning from his UNESCO post to follow other charitable acts.
A few years back the gold was forfeited to the Zambian government after two Zimbabweans were convicted of trying to sale it through Zambia illegally. A tender was taken out in Zambian embassies abroad and four bidders came forward and the gold was sold to the highest bidder at K19 billion. It is reported that close to K9 billion was then given to the DEC by the ministry of Finance to clear its backlog of debt.
DEC, which has about 500 officers countrywide, was drowning in debt and its commissioners submitted a budget to the ministry of Finance. The Watchdog understands that DEC had not paid its retired officers, had not paid for rentals sometimes for close to seven years and had not paid its officers allowances and that this money was used to settle these debts. One must wonder if Bogdan Buzaianu was a scape goat for others to use and hide the truth of the missing gold.
Police sources say the issue of gold being stolen is out of question as it has being established that the sale was properly done and authorised by the Attorney General who actually drafted the contract of sale. The Director of Public Prosecution is also said to have issued a certificate of release of the gold. Therefore President Sata’s accusatory actions about Bogdan Buzaianu was totally out of line and hostile for some unknown reason.
The police are now said to be trying to target DEC officials saying the money given to DEC has been misappropriated. The police have since confiscated vehicles belonging to some DEC officials. Meanwhile, sources at the ministry of foreign affairs have disclosed that the government of Switzerland had written a letter to the Zambian government seeking an explanation. The Swiss government contended in its letter that Buzaianu has committed no offence as he came to Zambia legally and was using a Swiss passport and that he left the country a free man.
UNESCO was also said to be seeking a clarification on why Buzaianu was withdrawn from representing Zambia as a special envoy. Soon clarification was discovered that Bogdan Buzaianu has changed courses and his interest is now in saving old churches in disrepair for the Church of Russia.
Buzaianu is a generous philanthropist and has many business dealings in Europe and those closed to him expressed his disenchantment with the Zambian government for being so rash in their finger pointing. Justice came for Bogdan Buzaianu in the form of an apology from President Sata.
Zambian Answers 