A FARMER of Mumbwa district in Central Province has lodged a complaint against Ministry of Mines director at the cadastre department Michael Chiboonga, some police officers and owners of Array Metals who usurped his 17.3 hectares of land which contains some minerals, to the Drug Enforcement Commission (DEC) for money laundering.

Noble Mumbi, whose farm is situated in Chief Mumba’s village has accused Chiboonga of fraudulently issuing mining licences to trespassers without cancelling the mining rights isuued to him by the ministry of mines.

“I came here to follow up on the matter I reported to DEC where people are conducting illegal mining on my property and knowing the fact that the law doesn’t allow somebody to conduct such illegal mining on somebody’s property because that’s tantamount to proceeds of crime. Whatever they are realising from there is proceeds of crime and wherever they are applying that money that is money laundering,” Mumbi said.

“Understanding that this country has laws I believe this institution (DEC) is mandated to tackle such issues and to arrest such criminality. To my surprise my case started in 2018 where my property, I have a title deed to that property and there’s a mine on that property I have a mining license, the police came with these illegal minors claiming they’ve got exploration license but when you analyze the exploration license it’s fake”.

Mumbi said he had submitted documentation to the Commission in 2018 as evidence in relation to his claims but it has been delaying to act on the matter to date.

He claimed that the DEC was hesitant to institute investigations since the time he lodged his complaint as the encroanchers were associated to former President Edgar Lungu.

“This his is my fourth letter I have written to DEC, no response has ever been issued and no action has ever been taken so I wonder if they are involved or not. When I went to inquire on this case they’ve just said they will write to me and I should expect their response probably in a few weeks time. Am now wondering if these people (DEC officers) mean to arrest criminality or they mean to abet it,” Mumbi said.

“Those involved one is the son of the former inspector general of police (Kakoma Kanganja) Mwaka Kalengo, there’s Frank Chimpusa, Chris Mugali who came through the PF government at the time President Lungu was in state house. He’s (Mugali) a close relation if not a nephew to Museveni he came through State house and that contributed to my case not being attended to by the police and all these institutions.”

He said senior police officers all of Mumbwa police abetted the trespassers in grabbing in his farm and produced illegal mining licences purpoted to have been issued to them by Chiboonga.

Mumbi disclosed that Chibonga had appended two different signatures on the purported mining licences.

“When I was given the fake mining license by the police they said the criminals have the document so I analyzed the document and found the document was fake and signed by head of cadastre but documents that we get from ministry of mines are signed by the director and when you analyze the font and everything about that license it’s fake so I challenged the police and said this is a fake license under Pentagon Resources so the next time the police produced another license signed by Micheal Chiboonga a ministry of mines cadastre and then the signature on this Array Metals and Natural Resources limited indicating that it has transformed from Pentagon to Array metals,” said Mumbi.

“I went to Chiboonga I asked did you sign these documents he admitted. I said but how can you have two signatures what is your official signature he couldn’t tell I went to the director Lumamba asking if the licenses were genuine. These fake licenses prove to me to say ministry of mines which was delegated to create harmony and legal operations of mines is actually being used to perpetuate illegality to the benefit of few individuals thereby facilitating robing of Zambians the benefits of these resources.”