The news that the former President of Zambia, Frederick Chiluba, has been exonerated on charges of corruption comes as another devastating blow for all right-thinking members of society.
The verdict in the trial of Chiluba is particularly disappointing as it was one of the first occasions in which an African country made the courageous decision to take one if its own former leaders to the courts.
We wondered naively at the time whether Zambia may perhaps be blazing a trail for other African countries to do the same – countries which, up to that stage, had been unwilling or too frightened to call crooked politicians to question.
We gave Zambia an opportunity to show us that they meant business, but six years down the line, they have finally revealed their hand: it was a bluff. Sadly, they have allowed Chiluba to retire in comfort, like so many corrupt African politicians have been allowed to do before him.
Chiluba had been accused of embezzling a sum of $500,000 over the course of his 10-year presidential term. However, a judge ruled on Monday that the funds Chiluba stood accused of thieving could not be traced to government money. Instead, the court ruled that the money originated from private donations intended for Chiluba’s own personal use.
This decision came two years after the High Court in London ruled that Chiluba had defrauded the Zambian government of £23m using London-based bank accounts.
This week’s verdict again rams home the point that the only way in which we, the global community, can prevent more of the same is to stop channelling aid through governments with a history of corruption and impose severe economic sanctions until they finally get the message. This is the only language they seem to understand.
John O’Shea
Goal
Dun Laoghaire, Co Dublin
