More Than Just Driving Lessons

How political influence and data tampering plague Mufulira’s CDF

By Kennedy Mbewe

Two driving schools in Mufulira—Libati and Road Range—enrolled over 540 out of 589 students under the 2025 CDF driving bursary, raising serious concerns about favouritism and possible corruption. Allegations have surfaced that the proprietors of both schools are linked to the ruling United Party for National Development (UPND)—claims they have strongly denied.

Records from three constituencies in Mufulira district—Kankoyo, Kantanshi, and Mufulira Central, accessed by MakanDay, show that although 589 students were selected for CDF-sponsored driving lessons. Of these, 542 were placed at just two institutions—Libati and Road Range driving schools.

Driving School	Student Distribution
Libati Driving School	328
Road Range Driving School	214
Nirvana, Better Choice, Mopani, & Exodus	47
Total	589

MakanDay’s investigation found fake contacts, ghost guardians, and students linked to officials. One school operates from a councillor’s premises. Another source alleges councilors and Ward Development Committee (WDC) members demanded kickbacks to direct students to specific schools.

A random sample check was conducted by calling over 50 contact numbers listed for students’ guardians. The findings were alarming – several phone numbers were inactive or did not exist, while others belonged to individuals who had no knowledge their details had been used. Some were shocked to find themselves listed as guardians for students they had never heard of.

“That’s not my name. I don’t have a child learning driving in Mufulira,” one woman said.

“I’m in Ndola. My child is 17 and still in secondary school. I don’t know how my number appears twice,” said another man, listed as guardian for two different students.

In one case, MakanDay established that a student listed as an orphan who lost both parents was actually the son of a WDC member, who had applied for two of his children using the same contact number.

Amid growing concerns over alleged irregularities in the allocation of CDF skills bursaries in Mufulira, local officials have offered mixed responses. Mufulira Central CDF Chairperson Andrew Msiska defended the allocation process, insisting it was done fairly. However, when questioned about ghost names and mismatched or fake phone numbers, he admitted there might have been a planning oversight.

“You never put numbers where they don’t belong—that would be wrong. I think it was an oversight,” he said. “You’ve opened up my mind. I need to speak with the Planning Director at the council.”

Meanwhile, Kantanshi CDF Chairperson Fr Francis Mufwaya dismissed the allegations as baseless, insisting that all decisions were made using verified information submitted through the WDCs and reviewed by the constituency secretariat.

If the selection of Libati and Road Range was not based on transparent criteria as alleged, it raises concerns about unfair competitive advantage, possibly through political connections or corrupt arrangements.

“It’s like they want to use these two institutions to channel government money and go and share it. We suspect a councilor is involved,” complained the proprietor of one of the driving schools in Mufulira.

A more startling finding is that the Mufulira branch of Road Range Driving School—whose head office is in Ndola—is operating from premises belonging to Maina Soko Ward Councillor Garry Kawayo, whose ward falls Kantanshi Constituency. This arrangement has raised suspicions of collusion among some observers.

It is also alleged that Kawayo occasionally serves as an instructor for the driving school—an accusation he denied.

He also said that he was not involved in selecting students for the driving lessons, describing the accusation as baseless. He further added that he had been a businessman even before becoming a councillor.

“I’m a businessman. I own shops, and behind those shops there is a garage and a warehouse that belongs to my father, which Road Range is renting,” he explained.

MakanDay visited Mufulira and interviewed a local driving school owner who described how some officials allegedly solicit kickbacks linked to the CDF skills training programme.

He said when the CDF skills component began, several councillors, WDC members, and constituency chairpersons approached him proposing that they channel students to his school in exchange for payments. He said they even suggested he pays them in advance before they delivered the students. He refused, warning that such an arrangement would be corrupt and could lead to arrests and jail terms.

He said that after he refused, his school was sidelined from receiving CDF-sponsored skills students.

“In 2022-23 I wrote to then Minister of Local Government, Garry Nkombo, to report what was happening in Mufulira regarding the CDF bursary for skills training,” he said.

The source added that CDF disbursements for skills in Mufulira were temporarily suspended to address the issues he raised, though he could not recall for how many months the suspension lasted. A meeting was reportedly held, and council officials promised to correct the problems—but he said nothing changed.

A Ward Development Committee (WDC) treasurer in Chibolya expressed shock that two driving schools—Road Range and Libati—received the majority of CDF-sponsored students, contrary to what had been submitted from his ward.

“I saw students submit acceptance letters from different driving schools, including those we recommended as a WDC. How two schools ended up dominating, I don’t know,” he told MakanDay during a visit to Mufulira.

At Road Range Driving School, MakanDay observed a Volvo truck and trailer undergoing maintenance, while a light Canter truck used for C1 lessons was parked. Several students, sponsored under CDF and learning CE and C1, were found waiting for practical sessions.

“I’ve been learning CE for three months under CDF sponsorship. I should finish soon and will then wait to be helped with getting a driver’s license,” said one female student.

Here is a table version of the driving course fees from Road Range:

Course	Fee (ZMW)
CE	K6,500
Class C	K5,000
Class C1	K3,500
Class B	K2,200

Each course is meant to run for 24 days, with 35-minute sessions each day. But because there are only two training vehicles and many students, some have been in training for more than three months.

“Yes, we are many, so they split us into groups. That’s why it’s taking longer than planned,” another student explained.

Victoria Njobvu, a receptionist at Road Range, said the school received over 200 CDF-sponsored students, although more than 50 never reported. 

“The council came and collected names of those who didn’t show up to block them and make space for replacements in August,” she said.

At Libati Driving School, located in a garage within Mufulira town, several vehicles—including a Volvo truck, a Rosa bus, and a light truck—were seen conducting lessons. An instructor confirmed they too received over 200 CDF students, though some did not report.

“We have the capacity and segment students into groups. Many have already completed and left,” he said.

Some parents have raised concerns about the capacity of the selected driving schools.

“My children are still at home. Road Range told them their only training vehicle, a Canter light truck, has broken down,” one mother complained.

Others reported being asked to pay an additional K2,000 to help with obtaining a driver’s licence—despite the programme supposedly covering all costs.

“The school said the CDF money isn’t enough, which is why they’re asking for extra payments,” said another parent.

When contacted, Mufulira Council officials referred MakanDay to the Public Relations Unit. In a written response, Public Relations Manager Thandiwe Tembo said that student allocations to driving schools were based on applications received through WDCs, in line with the 2022 CDF guidelines, which set no limit on enrolments. She added that the council had received no formal or informal complaints and urged the public to report any concerns.

However, the owner of a local driving school, who had earlier raised concerns, rejected Tembo’s explanation. He said he disagreed with Madam Thandi’s claims, insisting that the selection process was biased. While he acknowledged that the council relies on submitted lists, he argued that the real issue lies at the ward level, where Ward Development Committees allegedly collude with councilors to alter application forms.

“Unlike in rural councils where chiefs’ representatives are involved and the process is fair, CDF skills selection in Mufulira has not been transparent,” he said.

Libati Driving School Principal and owner, Mulemwa Njamba, and Trust Malambo, Director of Road Range Driving School, denied having any links to the ruling party. Both said that their institutions are accredited by the Technical Education, Vocational and Entrepreneurship Training Authority (TEVETA), a requirement for eligibility under the CDF skills training programme.

“I had more students last year than this year. I’m not affiliated with the UPND — I’m just an ordinary person,” said Njamba.

Malambo added: “I don’t belong to any political party. I’m simply a businessman running a training institute. We did our groundwork early, which helped us attract that number of students. In fact, some schools have enrolled even more students than we have,” he said, though he did not name the schools.

When asked why the Road Range Mufulira branch is operating from property owned by Councillor Kawayo, Malambo said: “I pay rent and have a tenancy agreement. I have no dealings with the councillor.”

The government considers the CDF a vital tool for delivering resources directly to communities. It comprises three key components – community projects, youth, women, and community empowerment and secondary boarding school and skills development bursaries.

In addition to driving, the CDF skills bursary programme supports a wide range of vocational and technical courses, including engineering, agriculture, fashion and design, construction trades, heavy equipment operation, and health-related technologies.

Kennedy is a talented journalist based in Kitwe at Radio Icengelo. He is currently on a three-month paid internship at MakanDay after he emerged second in the prestigious 2024 MakanDay Media Awards.