Ministry public relations officer Chileshe Kandeta appealed to Zambians especially former ministers to stop issuing irresponsible statements on the fiscal situation of the country.
Press Statement
Recently, there has been a spate of dramatic statements about the fiscal position of government, worryingly and significantly, from some former Ministers.
The Treasury is concerned that these statements, which are predicated on serious distortions of facts, have the capacity to mislead the public and create unnecessary despondence.
In the Budget for fiscal year 2013, the size of the deficit and how it would be financed was indicated, debated by Members of Parliament and endorsed. In all years, because of the demands of development there have been deficits and there will be even bigger deficits as the development agenda unfolds.
What is important is that we continue to reduce the imbalance between outlays on recurrent or consumption component of the budget and growth promoting projects. Only in this way can we accelerate development, create more jobs and increase the nation’s stock of wealth. We are on course and moving in the right direction on this matter.
All countries including the most developed economies have deficits. In most cases these deficits are very sizeable proportions of the Gross Domestic Product. Zambia’s deficit is currently of the order of 5% of Gross Domestic Product and our thrust is to keep the deficits at that level or at least not significantly much above that level to avoid running into debt service difficulties.
The public should know that the state of the world economy has decelerated and the immediate prospects for higher growth rates are not very promising. All countries including Zambia are subject to externally induced shocks. One way to circumvent these shocks is to quicken development in sectors with huge potential for growth and short gestation. Agriculture and the energy sectors stand out and hence the enhanced investments in these sectors.
The question of dealing with short-term shortfalls is essentially a management issue. There is ample and adequate competence and skills in the Treasury to manage short-term crises and the country should be rest assured we have no insurmountable problems. The international financial community has all the confidence in Zambia because of our policy consistency and predictability.
The Treasury wishes to appeal to citizens especially those who have held responsibilities in government to desist from dubious accolades and irresponsible limelight which have effect of engendering alarm and erosion of confidence in our peaceful country. We all have individual and collective responsibility and duty to maintain a favorable image of our country.
It is clear from this statement that civil servants will lose all allowances on 31/08/13 as rumoured by all and sundry.If the september increments will be effected,they will be financed from the money that will be saved from the severance of allowances and so the increments will have no net effect.One has just to read between the lines.This is the worst govt ever.
Thanks Chileshe, unfortunately your advise is falling on deaf ears. The opposition in Zambia are a bunch of haters who are just focusing at removing PF at any cost. I just feel sorry for them becoz, come 2016, HH will be disowned by his party for failing many times while MMD will be distinct like the dinosaurs.
HH? What he has to do with Budgeted allocations?
YOUR PARTY IS PATHETIC FAILURE.ZAMBIANS ARE GOING TO REJECT THIS PARTY LED BY PEOPLE FROM THE SAME REGION AS IF THEY ARE THE ONLY ONES WITH THE INTELLIGENCE TO RUN THIS COUNTRY. YOU FAILURES YOU HAVE FAILED THAT IS WHY YOUR PRESIDENT CANNOT FACE THE NATION TO BE INTERVIEWED ON MANY ISSUES AFFECTING THIS NATION SINCE HE CAME TO POWER. THE ONLY THING HE KNOWS IS TO FIGHT EVERY ZAMBIAN AND CALLING US NAMES USING KAPONYA AND STREET LANGUAGE. LORD JESUS DELIVER US FROM THIS REGIME MASQUAREDING AS LEADERS.
Which haters mapolo yako.na nsoni ulibe.
MOF oofices are very dirty!
MOF offices are very dirty!
MMD raped this country in all the angles, look at the ministry of finance premises. HH is an evil twit for siding with MMD.
@kwekwe u say ‘MMD Will Be DISTINCT’
What do you mean? Just write in your rotten Bemba.
I also noticed that error.
BUT, Bemba is not rotten. What’s rotten is the disease infested, pus-filled sink hole that you were birthed from. What a shame the village abortionist was away the year you came!
(Just speak your truth without insulting any one tribe. I am Bemba and do not take kindly to those that insult me and my identity, unprovoked.)
The most shallow and backward analysis of issues is to be racial and tribal.
This statement is worrying as it is couched in financial cliches and not being forthright and clear on the financial position of the country. The smoke billowing will be more likely a fire soon. You can already see what the excuse is going to be- we have overspent and in serious debt as aresult of the so called infrastructure we have put in place. I am not an economist but infrastructure must be matched by putting into place and investing into productive sectors such as manufacturing, unfortunately ni sangwapo as always, consumption and more consumption through a bloated government.
You thought running a country was easy. Your lies and the fake jobs you’ve been creating for your relatives and cadres are now catching up with you. You’ve been spending taxpayers money carelessly and promising heaven and earth to all and sundry. All the PF projects initiated by Sata wont see the light of the day because they were never costed. The only projects that will be completed are those initiated by the MMD because they were fully costed and the finances ring fenced as evidenced by the failure of initial PF attempts to gut the Mongu-kalabo road which was alleged to be a political project!
Mr Chileshe, I liked the way you used to present ” Cultural Remodeling” on ZNBC & you used to end with a Bible prayer. things were very orderly then. I fell to understand how you have fitted well in the disorderly, chaotic situation prevailing now in the Ministry of Finance to make matters worse criticizing your former respected BOSSES.
Ba LT do you know why you the media have reporters? So as to avoid boring us with speeches by politicians and their muppets. You cant be throwing speeches at us. That is being lazy. Summarise the story giving us only what is important. Otherwise all your news sources should start a journal where they all dump their speeches for us to find.
@Munsha, useless Gongacalve be matured and debate normaly.Yo hate 4 Bembas will destroy u, tribalist. Cocroaches. Did Sata give himself de Presidence? Work 4 it.Tho with u its idio ticy on de basis of tribalism,falsehood and dullness.
U want a Bemba to seat down and say let Munsha and his fellows have it when they have been sleeping while flying with witches in their dreams?ldi ots! l am a pround Bemba who’ll never let any human being tremple on me. l teach my children de same.
Yo tribalism has made u hate the Bembas. Yo hate has made u blind and dull. Even when 1 is reasoning well all that u see is Bemba. U are setting a very bad precedence. l warn u we can put this country on fire.We can blow off yo hh’s stinking head.