PF presidential hopeful, Mwamba, raises dust over alleged suit against FQM

Patriotic Front (PF) presidential contender, Emmanuel Mwamba, has called on Finance and National Planning Minister, Situmbeko Musokotwane, to help Zambia recover US$1.4 billion owed to ZCCM-IH by First Quantum Minerals (FQM).

According to Mwamba, in 2016, ZCCM-IH took a legal suit to recover $2.3billion from FQM as ZCCM-IH, and also filed a notice of arbitration against FQM in London over the same matter.

He alleged that this was after an audit established that FQM had illegaly externalised $2.3billion revenue from Kansanshi Copper and Gold Mine, fraudulently and without board approval.

Mwamba said FQM, on the other hand, claimed the money taken from Kansanshi Copper and Gold Mine, was a loan and that the loans were obtained at a fair market rate.

He added that ZCCM-IH which holds 20 percent shareholding in Kansanshi Copper and Gold Mine was seeking a pay-out of US$1.4billion, according to a post on his official social media handle on Wednesday.

“However, Minister of Finance, Situmbeko Musokotwane announced on December 6, 2022 that ZCCM-IH were directed to drop these recovery court cases and the State had engaged the Director of Public Prosecutions ( DPP) to also discontinue the criminal charges pending against the FQM directors,” Mwamba alleged.

He claimed that this was part of the larger deal to convert ZCCM-IH 20 percent shares to an annual 3.1 percent royalty payment.

He regretted that Musokotwane has not provided a path-way for ZCCM-IH to recover the $2.3billion belonging to Kansanshi Copper and Gold Mines.

“Instead of Zambia looking for foreign investment or seeking the return of the discredited Vedanta, Government should help ZCCM-IH, which urgently needs this money to run both Konkola Copper Mine and Mopani Copper Mines,” Mwamba said.

He said Dr Musokotwane must explain when FQM would pay ZCCM-IH “this collasal sum.”

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