Zambia to review ZNCB sale to Rabobank

LUSAKA (AFP) - Zambian President Michael Sata has ordered a review of a 2007 sale of the state-run ZNCB bank, it was announced on Sunday, the latest inquiry to be opened into deals done under his predecessor.

"This is to inform the public that president Sata has directed the minister of justice Sebastian Zulu to conduct an inquiry into the sale of ZNCB," read a public notice published in the state-run Sunday Mail.

Rabobank of the Netherlands bought a 49-percent stake in the Zambia National Commercial Bank in April 2007 for 8.25 million dollars under Sata's predecessor Rupiah Banda.

The inquiry is charged with determining whether the sale met privatisation requirements, the statement said.

Sata, who unseated his predecessor Rupiah Banda in elections last year, had campaigned on a promise to reverse several controversial sales which he said had failed to serve the public good.

Since assuming office in September, he has embarked on an anti-corruption drive, opening inquiries into shady business deals.

This week, Zambia took back its 75 percent stake in fixed-line operator Zamtel, which had been sold to Libya's LAP Green for $257 million (191 million euros) in 2010.

He has also reversed the $5.4 million sale of a commercial bank, Finance Bank Zambia, to South Africa's First Rand Group.