Presidents’ widows engage Msiska over retirement houses
Government is actively considering the option of allowing former Republican Presidents design and build houses for themselves.
Secretary to the Cabinet Roland Msiska says government wants to be now giving former Presidents hard cash as opposed to itself building them houses.
Dr. Msiska says government has realized that the modality used in the case of former President Rupiah Banda, who was given money to build his own retirement house, has proved effective.
In an interview with QTV News Dr. Msiska has disclosed that besides constructing the house in the shortest possible time, the entire cost of the house was about K25 million.
Dr. Msiska states that it is therefore government’s considered view that this modality be the one used to construct houses for the other former Heads of State.
He says with this modality, former Presidents will have the latitude of supervising the construction works on their own.
The Secretary to the Cabinet notes that to this effect widows of late Presidents Levy Mwanawasa and Michael Sata have both requested that government uses this modality.
He says once the money is available, both widows will be given K25 million to design and supervise the construction of their respective late husbands’ retirement houses.