PAC insists on meeting SPC Zamba 

A scheduled meeting between the Parliamentary Public Accounts Committee (PAC) and Secretary to President and Cabinet (SPC) Colleen Zamba failed to take place yesterday after Zamba delegated her deputy Janet Banda.

Zamba is said to have delegated her deputy because she had just returned from an international assignment and did not have time to prepare for the meeting.

But PAC sent back Banda, insisting that they wanted to meet the SPC as head of the civil service.

In an interview, PAC chairperson Mark Botomani said they have a number of issues to discuss with the SPC, which include audit queries affecting several ministries, departments and agencies.

He said: “Apart from the audit queries, you know she is the head of the civil service and there might be other issues parliamentarians would want to raise with her.

“We want to meet her in person and we have asked secretariat to arrange for a meeting at least before August 29.”

Efforts to speak to Zamba proved futile as she did not pick up our calls on several attempts.

This was expected to be the first meeting between Zamba, who is the new SPC and PAC.

Zamba was appointed in June this year, replacing Zanga-Zanga Chikhosi, who was the first SPC under the Tonse Alliance administration.

Among others, Zamba has so far introduced austerity measures which include a ban on lakeshore meetings for public officers as an expenditure control measure.