Claim
On 15th September 2021, Crown TV published an article on its Facebook page claiming the Member of Parliament for Chawama Constituency and former Nkoloma Ward Councilor, Mrs Tasila Lungu Mwansa is currently being investigated by the Anti-Corruption Commission for suspiciously purchasing a bank with all the assets worth K300 million. The article attracted many comments from the general public as Tasila Lungu Mwansa is the daughter of the former President of Zambia, Mr. Edgar Chagwa Lungu.
Rating Justification
The Fact-Checking process has established as unproven the claim made by Crown TV that the Anti-Corruption Commission (ACC) is investigating Hon. Tasila Lungu Mwansa for suspiciously purchasing a bank that has not been disclosed and assets worth K300 million. During a media briefing on 15th September 2021 by the ACC, the Commission Spokesperson, Queen K. Chibwe, said that since the 12th August 2021 General Elections, the Commission has received a total of 87 reports from the General Public of suspected cases of corruption. Of these cases, 55 were of high public interest as they involved politically exposed persons (PEPs). Ms Chibwe added that the 55 high-profile cases included that of a former Ward Councilor of Lusaka being investigated for suspicious purchase of a bank and its assets worth K300 million. However, the commission did not mention the name of the Ward Councilor related to the case. In response to allegations made against her, on 15th September 2021, Hon. Tasila Lungu Mwansa published an article on her official Facebook page where she refuted the allegations by Crown TV and other online media platforms. Mrs. Mwansa explained that she had not purchased any bank or its assets as she did not have the capacity to do so. She further stated that “I am not aware of any investigations by any agency against myself”. Crown TV had published the claim on 15th September 2021 but later deleted it two days later on 17th September 2021. The iVerify Team contacted Crown TV on 22nd September 2021 to find out why the post was no longer on their page. They explained that they put down the post because investigations were still ongoing. On 23rd September 2021, Crown TV station publicly apologized to Hon. Tasila Lungu Mwansa for the wrong news item that was posted by them and aired on 15th September 2021. Based on the facts gathered, the allegation against Hon. Tasila Lungu Mwansa is unproven because the ACC and other investigative agencies have not yet released the name of the involved Ward Councilor or the bank being investigated.
Unproven
