Zambia : Former Labour Minister Austin Liato Dies At 60

Former Cabinet Minister and Independent candidate for Nkeyema Constituency, Austin Chisangu Liato, has died, bringing to an end a career in Zambian politics and public service that spanned more than two decades. He was 60.

Liato served as Member of Parliament for Kaoma Central from 2002 to 2011, after winning the seat in the 2001 general election.

During his time in government, he held several senior positions, including Deputy Minister of Energy, Minister for Lusaka Province, Deputy Minister of Labour and Social Security, and later Minister of Labour and Social Security. He also represented Zambia in the Pan-African Parliament, where he contributed to continental legislative affairs.

In 2011, while serving as Labour Minister, Liato was at the centre of a major scandal after K2.1 billion was found buried at his farm in Mwembeshi.

The Magistrate’s Court convicted him the following year, sentencing him to two years with hard labour and ordering forfeiture of both the money and the farm.

The High Court overturned that conviction in 2013, ruling that burying money was not itself a crime and that the State had failed to prove the cash was proceeds of crime.

The Supreme Court reinstated the original conviction and sentence in 2015, however, finding that the suspicious circumstances surrounding the buried cash were sufficient to warrant a conviction.

Despite the scandal, Liato remained active in national politics in the years that followed. He entered the 2026 general election race as an Independent candidate for Nkeyema Constituency, telling supporters he wished to continue serving the people.

Tributes have begun pouring in from across the political spectrum, with many remembering him as a committed public servant whose career in Parliament and government spanned more than two decades.

His death has been described as a significant loss to his family, supporters, the people of Nkeyema, and the nation at large. Funeral arrangements are expected to be announced by the family in due course.

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