Tonse Alliance presidential candidate Brian Mundubile has directly challenged President Hakainde Hichilema to account for an alleged US$10 billion in funds he says were illicitly moved out of Zambia, telling a large rally in Kasama that the President has roughly a month left in office to provide an explanation.
Mundubile contrasted the scale of the alleged outflow with hardship he said he witnessed among farmers in the same district, some of whom he described as waiting days for payment on maize sold to the Food Reserve Agency. He argued that the gap between reported financial figures and conditions on the ground was untenable, and questioned why no arrests had followed if the allegation were true.
No documentary evidence was presented alongside the claim at the rally. The Ministry of Information and Media swiftly rejected it, with Permanent Secretary Thabo Kawana describing the allegation as false and intended to mislead the public, and warning that authorities would act against the spread of misinformation ahead of the election. Neither the Presidency, the Ministry of Finance, nor the Anti-Corruption Commission had issued a substantive response to the specific $10 billion figure at time of writing.
The Kasama stop was part of a broader Northern Province push by Mundubile and running mate Makebi Zulu, who also used the visit to outline constitutional reform and civil service depoliticisation plans. The rally drew a courtesy call from Paramount Chief Chitimukulu, who urged the Tonse alliance partners to guard against internal friction as campaigning intensifies. The exchange adds to an increasingly sharp economic debate between the two camps, with Mundubile also having criticised the government’s approach to foreign exchange reserves in recent weeks, and Hichilema defending his administration’s record on debt restructuring and reserve accumulation in response.
Sources: Lusaka Times — Mundubile challenges Hichilema over $10 billion | The Zambian Observer — Government rubbishes $10 billion claim
