Zambia’s anti-graft agency has apprehended and charged the country’s auditor general, Dick Sichembe for complicity in obtaining goods under false pretences, conspiring to defraud the government and theft.
In a statement on Thursday, the Anti-Corruption Commission further accused Shichembe of engaging in corrupt practices involving more than 1.1 million kwacha ($54,475).
Sichembe allegedly committed the offenses between 2018 and 2021 while serving as the accountant general and subsequently as auditor general.
The unfortunate incident is coming at a time Zambia is in discussions with international creditors.
The country plans to renegotiate $12.8 billion of external loans under the G-20 common framework after becoming the first pandemic-era sovereign defaulter in November 2020.