Konkola Copper Mine (KCM) Chief Executive officer Kishore Kumar has been deported.
Reports reaching QFM News indicate that Mr Kumar has been deported for defying President Michael Sata’s directive for the mining company not to layoff a single worker, after KCM went ahead to lay off 76 workers.
When contacted for a comment,Immigration Department public relations officer Namati Nshinka, told QFM that Mr Kumar left the country yesterday on his own without giving further details.
Mr Kumar had recently announced that KCM would lay off over 1,500 workers as they seek to mechanise their operations.
This announcement prompted President Sata to warn the mining giant not to dare lay off any worker or risk having its mining license revoked.
And MMD president Nevers Mumba has accused President Michael Sata of abusing his office by deporting the KCM chief executive officer.
Dr Mumba says issues such as the one involving KCM cannot be resolved by deporting people.
[pullquote]“We did not want to come out strong but at the same time investors must realised that effort of growing Zambia and distributing of its wealthy needs to be harmonised, I think there have been some careless talks by some investors,” said the Vice President.[/pullquote]
He says the best way is for government to sit down with KCM management and union representatives and find the way forward.
Dr Mumba says such heavy-handed tactics may result in the loss of even more jobs.
And vice president Guy Scott when asked in parliament today what immediate measures government would take against KCM for going against the presidential directive said he expected tough measures to be taken.
The Vice President has said Government will soon take appropriate action on the firing of 76 workers at Konkola Copper Mine as reported in the media on Thursday.
The Vice President said this in Parliament during the Vice President Question and Answer time when responding to MMD Chadiza Member of Parliament (MP) if PF Government was failing to bring law and order in the country following the firing of 76 KCM workers despite the President warning that no single worker should be dismissed.
“The matter was reported yesterday and we have not yet made any appropriate decision, by if the Member asks this in two week time I will give you an appropriate answer because we would have made a decision,” Dr Scott said.
MMD Mafinga MP Catherine Namugala also questioned the Vice President if he does not think castigating investors in public was going to scare away potential investors and make Zambia undesirable investment destination.
In his response Dr Scott told the House that governance was a balancing act and that Government had the right to protect the people of Zambia in as much as it also had the right to protect investors.
He said Government cannot abandon workers when it thinks management was being unreasonable.
“We did not want to come out strong but at the same time investors must realised that effort of growing Zambia and distributing of its wealthy needs to be harmonised, I think there have been some careless talks by some investors,” said the Vice President.
Ndeloleshafye !
Not a very wise move i should say.
This is so wrong in every sense of the word
Thanks
This is hh s fault
Look kumar and hh are friends from selling the mines
Also when a cobra is looking at you how can you dare it ? Dont you know cobras bite
Let him go and take his raja spices with him
This is why sata should be voted in 2016 mwaumfwa hh mamina fye ngalelanda no lulenda lulepona
Viva sata
@Saulosi this is the typical way African politicians settle issues. But I agree with you that the move is not wise because deporting the person may not change the company’s policy. All this has done is to tarnish the government’s image and Zambia as a good investment destination.
@Jo please take you dullness elsewhere. ZCCM sale was handled by Francis Kaunda and not HH. Was HH president of Zambia when MMD decided to privatize ZCCM? Please stop hallucinating so early in your life.
What a year!! PF cadres are killing each other in streets of Lusaka, good Permanent secretaries are being shouted at, then fired in public.
Now Indian CEO start running away.
We want Sata visit KCM today, and witness the mass resignation of employees.
This Ukwa political grand standing will not help anything.. when you removed subsidies on fuel, increase electricity and minimum wages… did you think business will not be affected? The worse is yet ti come as more companies start firing workers….
It pays to have a president who has been to school not a village headman
Bamwenye balayumfwa pa z they think basungu
In fact they treat zambians with disdain . Good riddance . This shows our president is willing to die for us. This is a powerful message by sata
Insoka cobra ilefwaya ukufwisa amate bena ba kumar bayidelela nomba moneni baya by air
Sata mwaume
The cobra has struck and injected its venom.
actions of a wise serpent !!
Ati ndeloleshafye! We have with immediate effect dissallowed this dangerous attitude of saying “ndeloleshafye”! It’s irresponsible and should be curbed right now. When it comes to naming the stadium, tamwaloleshefye! Now, when a person is tearing down your future and that of your children, you want to just watch? Awe, noti ukuloleshafye! Pangeni ko noise.
The investor atmosphere be very tense.
Uwaisa kuya ya…..
The investor atmosphere must be very tense.
We dont have industries neither do we have enough local professionals
With the expertise to run new industries or existing ones
And yet…. Every chance we get at actually progressing we destroy
It ourselves. Africans are their own worst enemies.
We have good options yet we want neanderthal style of leadership.
You buggar of a president, can u come up with sound policies and procedures
And not this firing, hiring, resigning, endorsing, borrowing e.t.c.ing crap.
This is what I was saying – having minerals in the ground alone doesn’t benefit anyone unless they are mined. But getting them mined alone is also useless unless the owners (citizens of the country) benefit through employment opportunities and government taxes. So, it’s a balancing act between the interests of the investor as well as the citizens and once there’s no MUTUAL benefit it renders the whole relationship futile. Kumar and his KCM management clan shouldn’t be selfish. When copper prices are good they pocket huge profits, but when the prices plammate these guys still want to pocket the same huge profits instead of them equally taking the knock – that can’t be said to be a MUTUALLY beneficial relationship.
The game now starts….we are all spectators….apalelelwile insofu iciculilamo cani..
Just wondering what measures these guys will take because there is no way you can punish the body without the head..
Confusion at its best.
Good move these guys shud hv respect
PASTOR MUMBA SAYS THAT THE BEST WAY WAS FOR GOVERNMENT TO SIT DOWN WITH KCM MANAGEMENT AND UNION REPRESENTATIVES AND FIND THE WAY FORWARD.
SORRY PASTOR, WHAT WAS THE MOST CIVILIZED WAY? WAS IT NOT THE OTHER WAY AROUND BEFORE ONE (IN THE TRIPARTITE PARTY) EFFECTS REDUNDANCIES?
If Michael Sata behaves in a funny way and cancels the KCM License,he must brace for 12,000 Zambians being thrown out of jobs.Add to this is the indirect employment of several Zambians mostly females who sell their merchandise at the various work places and the numerous suppliers who supply to both the mines and the women.At the tail end,Sata will have created hardship for more people than the 1,500 employees he wants to protect.
WoW!!!
Ba LT you like speculating.Please get details for us to know the truth.The little i know about these deportations “a deportation order should have been issued by the minister”,kindly go the the minister of home affairs and find out.Otherwise Khumah is at liberty to go and celebrate “DIWALI” in India at any time,that doesn’t constitute a deportation.
Rule of Law? lol
I’m happy about this. Zambians lets realize that investors need to negotiate with us on fair and equal grounds not on their terms. Glen core steals so much from Zambia and at the same time they want to hold the country at ransom. The next investor needs to learn to engage government and negotiate but don’t dare the owners of the commodity. Cho chiseh with Sata is a no no
Dialogue is the best. Kumar should have engaged the govt first before going ahead to fire the workers especially that the presidential order was already in the public domain. In as much as I may not be for the idea of deportation, to publicly defy the president is a big insult Kumar should have known better. FREE ADVICE TO ALL – “NEVER TRY TO OUTSHINE YOUR BOSS”.
Good move Mr President. Investors must have respect to the citizen of a certain republic. How can you argue with the president.
This a government in total melt-down. 1.Deportation clergy under the cover of darkness. 2. Never-ending by-election murders. 3. Genocide on the streets of Lusaka in front of the president Sata, 4.Sky-rocketing national debt in 24months of power, 5.Balance of trade deficit with quick tumbling Kwacha. 5. Fear-suffocated media citizenry and resurrection ruthless dictator-super Ken. God help us!
Hahahahahahha….Nice.
@cindy
No Cindy NOT nice,,, Zambia is a delicate thrid world economy,, there are better ways of solving or finding lasting solutions than not bullying and deporting..
we have well educated people(civil servants not politicians like shamenda and Sata) in the ministry of commerce and trade, ministry of finance and planing, ministry of mines and Ministry of Labour, those people should have been given time to put their heads together and find a solution.
Off course the laying off those workers is/was not good for the economy,,, but emontional reactions are also usually not the answer to complex equations like this one,,
@Ndobo,
I know dear am just being sarcastic with that expression for i couldnt find words to add to this comedy, otherwise, you are very correct.
Great Move Mr. President! Nevers Mumba … you must be too dull!
They had been warned in good time. Why didn’t they go ahead and find an alternative solution to the issues they must be facing? Do you even know why the sucker intended to lay off workers?
Ask FQML, it knows what it takes to insult the owners of the farm … defy the presidential orders.
FQML, knows how to behave themselves because they’ve suffered the consequences; such as those that led to them losing Kolwezi, Frontier and Lonshi in Congo.
Good move CNP. Investors are big headed. Let the chap Kumar rot in India
KCM is now going to be profitable after the deportation of its CEO. Let us wait and see. The legacy of the PF government is made up of tribalism, nepotism and deportations.
MAYBE I DON’T UNDERSTAND ENGLISH. BUT THE STORY DOES NOT CULMINATE TO DEPORTATION. THE STORY LEAVES SO MUCH TRUTH IN IT. IT DOESN’T CONFIRM WHICH AUTHORITY CONFIRMED THE DEPORTATION. LT, PLS EMPLOY GRADUATES AND NOT GRADE SWVWNS, PLS.
Moreover how many times government will please KCM. sometime this year they had a similar dialogue. they wanted to lay off over 2000 workers when the copper prices on the London metal exchange went down. But when the get supper normal profit from higher prices of copper, they do not ask the Govt to sit so that they can share the super normal profit.
Well done Mr President if zambians can respect your office what more umutulatula.
AM NOW THE NEW CEO,AND MY WIFE BECAMES THE VP HR,MY SON WILL BE FINACIAL MANAGER.
Good move, Mr. President! Stupid investors, are you trying to test him? Learn to respect and to obey.
Immigration Dept says the man left on is own. What’s all this hullabaloo about deportation? There is a difference!
The only trick in these Zambian governments’ hat…deporting people…what message are you sending?
dictators..yaba
if you really a true Zambian you wont allow investors to mistreat your fellow Zambian…put your self in the shoes of those people who lost their jobs…one Zambia one Nation.
In as much as this has far bearing consequences, it is not right in any country to have an Investor defying the president…
But you will your president to be tribalistic, and take away your fuel and maize subsidy whilst giving himself a third salary increment in two years whilst all he does is doze in state house, ride a chopper (whatever happened to the minibus loving man of the people) or issue with ‘immediate effects’!
GRZ Vs Kumar (10-1)
if u r in diaspora please get citizenship.
Why? Just because someone online publication alleges that Kumar has been deported? I love my country and will never change my citizenship. In fact I am counting the weeks before we travel for christmas holidays.
yes yes yes, let’s show them who is in charge, it’s too much of these investors taking us for a ride. Go go President Sata.
Someone is Idi Amin’s disciple ……., just thinking loudly
Are you sure musatanyonko
Dialogue. From the reports I have read so far, there appear not to have been any civilised dialogue between the government and KCM. This would have allowed both parties reach a long lasting solution.
These guys bought that mine for $25m which they recovered in two months from then onwards they’ve been making profits. the government should by it back for $10m considering depreciation.
Pastor, who should seek audience first?
The landlord or the tenant?
This is why the President wants the tenant to engage in negotiations before the lay offs are effected…BUT the tenant has already gone ahead unilaterally!
Please this is not Chiluba’s MMD that gave our mines away at peanut price!!!
Gud move government this kumar is to arogant, he was even saying dat there z nothin the gvnt wil do and he even boasted dat he has closed three mines.
I donot agree with what the president has done but I think we need to be careful who we sell these big companies to. We understand they need to make a profit but they also need to have a heart for their workers too.
Bonse muli fipuba
Indeed u are demons. Yo LT has said the immigrations said khumar left on his own but u still accuse the govt of that. But even if that happens the govt will still be right. Mumba wilabosa icibosebose. Zambia for Zambians period!
This move of government shows how they handle situation. Just of sake of your ego, you are damaging whole image of country for investors and pity thing is, still people are feeling proud in it. Now more trouble will come to people working in KCM if Vedanta decide to pull out completely. No one will be ready to invest here and whole 20000 people will be on road. Government can’t run mine that’s already proved long back.
What this government can bring new Chinese investor who will literally beat Zambian and government will see as they were just looking in case of Chambeshi case.
Verbal persuasion and failure to listen and dialogue KCM and the rooming case failure against ZRA.
What could have been done was to sit done and here the trade off not to laying off
They still have huge investments done and I know the chairman will visite to negotiate the amicable solution.
Its also true they need to buy in and make a trade off China Man is looking like a vulture to operationalize and others.
Fellow Zambians tell me which western country subsidise fuel where I work we pay huge amoun of money for electricity and fuel.In fact fuel in Europe is more expensive than Zambia.What do you explain bringing general workers from India I was in Zambia Where i witnessed hundreds of our dear friends from India sharing a three bed in chingola i challenge HH to go to Chingola and take s walk in 5,6,7 the street he eull support HE Sata .its a pit our journalists have failed us Zamvians to expose these evil act if it was BBC would have exposed them not the fake watch dog who have no heart for our country.You can’t break the law just because U are an investor .Its not about HE Sata but Govt laws.The Govt has an interest to protect .. when you prepare any business plan you take into…
Why since Kaunda era deportation of expatriates who come to take part and help us in our development is the first medicine that use the State? is not this a sign of incapacity of the government of the day to solve matter as per civilized manner?
it is disappointing to see a lot of you people in diaspora condemning the move, there is no country where you have Foreign Chaps going against the presidential orders especially when dealing with Citizens. Touch an American and you be followed all the way! why not touch a Zambian and you will be dealt with, we need this action in order to earn respect. Loose Copper and Loose Jobs thus too much better win one at least. There is no modernisation at KCM but a gymic to engage GRZ over the huge ZRA debt, you cant use the same trick everyday. Foolish nsamya!
Lozis know Indians better thus why they are never found doing business in Barotse.
unfortunately, what most of the bloggers here are forgetting is that, the needs of the workers/zambians should always be priority. Work with b mwenye and you will quickly realize and understand that they have no respect for certain groups of people aka zedians in this case. It is abt time that as a people we stood up for ourselves and yes this may mean that starting from nothing and or suffering a bit – we have to think abt our children’s future.
go to chililibombwe and see if there is any indication that KCM is in the business of growing or cleaning up the town – this would and is unacceptable anywhere else in the world let alone an investor standing up to the president – what crap!
lets be proud of who we are and stop the abuse – we set the standards and investors will follow
When PCs and laptops were introduced, typing pools eventually faded off, meaning that people (typists) lost jobs. When machinery and technology is improved in mining, there will be less human involvement meaning loss of employment (miners). Deporting Kumar or any other investor is not the final solution. GRZ should not just talk and threaten people who have created these jobs until such a time when they want ti improve machinery in order to increase efficiency and profitability. Let these three parties (GRZ, Union and KCM) agree to the way forward. The truth will still remain that some miners will lose their jobs for every machinery introduced or improved.
Kumar run away alone. Nobody deported him. The guilty are afraid
Okay, things are bad. U investors, dont think too much of your selves, learn to respect the rule of law governing the land. The president is the final authority and you disregard hes direct order, lwenu.
THE MOVE IS A POSITIVE ONE, BUT IT HAS GREAT CONSEQUENSES. WHICH WE MUST BE READY TO BEAR. INFACT WE ARE GOING THE ZIMBABWE WAY..THE PRICE WILL BE TOO HUGE FOR US TO BEAR. THIS IS THE TIME THAT ZAMBIANS THAT HAVE THE MANAGERIAL CAPACITY AND HAVE THE MONEY SHOULD TAKE UP THE CHALLENGE AND RUN THE MINES..WITHOUT WHICH WE ARE GOING DOWN THE SPIRAL AND INTO GREAT DILEMA…
country men and women only some one who has worked with this kumar can tell you how useles this man is ,this is the man who used to boest in RB s time that workes at kcm can do nothing cause he speaks directly to the president and now here is a chance for the true patriot to correct the wrongs at kcm and we have some one claming to be the man of god thicking other wise , pliz mwabatu come to kcm now and find out the inhuman tretment will are reciving now ,what ever you say mr hh and mr mumba about this, the pipo of chingola will not forget,gud day
Fellow Zambians tell me which western country subsidise fuel where I work we pay huge amount of money for power..HH plse shut up why did u not advise Zanaco not to liquidate the mines? Fuel in Europe is more expensive than Zambia.What do u explain general workers from India without skills ,I was in Zambia Where i witnessed hundreds of our dear friends from India sharing a three bed in chingola i challenge HH to go to Chingola and take a walk in 5,6,7..streets he will support HE Sata .its a pit our journalists have failed us, to expose these evil acts .BBC would have exposed them not the fake online watch dog whose agenda is to champion hatred .You can’t break the law just because U are an investor .Its not about HE Sata but Govt laws.The Govt has an interest to protect .Arrest him
Total disregard for authority,the head of state wants to dialogue you don’t want,go ahead pack up & go.this CEO ran away we have no comment.
We have a lot of blind following by PF cadres. This is a bad move. Your President may have sounded all bold and correct. Truth is that KCM came to make money. Your president wants to act like Zambia bankrolled the KCM operation. He does not want to dialogue. When things went sour in 2002 when Anglo pulled out, PF cadres should ask ichipowe chali ku Chingola. Don’t speak with foolishness. Rather have a rational approach with issues such as these. Ku Chingola there will be hunger mu State House ninshi ama T-Bone yali pya po….
so must we sell our dignity for food????????
iwe chi viva chimba chanda,u re useless together with ur HH, what do u know about mining,even if kcm were to leave these mines today not even 4days u wil see many investors bidding,not ukumona kwati ba kcm eba investor beka
Immediately Govt should start visibility studies on sailing KCM mines to screened buyers ,while buying back slightly more shares to enable control…
Feasibility studies or Visibility studies? Selling or Sailing? Mwalatinya bakaponya imwe ba chinyama
Time to pull the plug?
An indian is an idian. Best known for evading tax… Low pay… Abusing workers etc.. Zra should also consider these indian in the whole freedom way and kamwala in widening the tax base… Balikwata akasoo.. Baad
Hope some ministers and other important pipo don’t have to go to India for medical treatment coz they might also be deported! Hah…..ha..
we have got another zamtel back ,right chance .these are peoples companies and people comes first .can we again start thinking of managing our mines .’nothing is imposssible’ .
Why the PF Government has a strong case for repossessing KCM
Recently we have observed that KCM has been daring the PF Government in the manner it has been handling its planned retrenchment of over 1,500 employees. Here are few pointers which the PF Government can use to deal with KCM.
1. Plan of Mining Operations
As part of the requirements for acquiring a mining licence, each Mine is supposed to submit a plan of mining operations which contains schedule on the technology it will be using and the employment projections. It is not clear whether KCM varied its employment commitments under the Plan of Mining operations when it announced that it will lay off over 1,500 employees.
2. KCM alleged Tax avoidance and Transfer Pricing
The Zambia Revenue Authority discovered a tax…
African presidents have to be respected by these outside africa investors in Zambia and africa in general. Kudos to Sata. That was a great chess gambit!!
I now know why the bible cannot be understood after analysis some postings. Kishore Kumar is not respective to all the Zambians despite political party affiliations period. It’s not only the President Mr Sata who he disrespected. Therefore, deportation or runaway that is the best for him since he realized the wrong done to us. KCM has passed through many stages and Jordan Soko’s era the company performed well. Let us trust ourselves and improve on management discipline as Zambians than crying for fake foreign expats who come to learn from Zambians. At KCM 99.99% production is done by poorly paid and demotivated Zambians. So why confusing ourselves on the leaving of Kishore Kumar.
These indians have failed to reinvest into the mining operations but only want a finished product at…
LT
HOW DO YOU REPORT ON HEARSAY WITHOUT FACTS, WITHOUT CARRYING OUT YOUR OWN INVESTIGATIONS WITH THE CHIEF IMMIGRATION OFFICER, HR KCM, OR MINISTER OF HOME AFFAIRS HIMSELF!
@Viva Chanda Chimba, when Anglo American left KCM no poverty was there in Chingola. The running of KCM was taken over by Mr Jordan Soko as CEO and performed well. We only don’t trust ourselves as Zambians reason the late President Mr Mwanawasa (MHSRIP) brought in Vedanta into KCM as major share holders.
Zambians, getting to bed with everyone. Indian company investing in Zambia?? That alone is disaster. Nothing person with Indians but sorry, They are very Naïve and would never contribute to economic Growth. They want everything cheap, very selfish and surely Zambians would not have the best conditions of service. Let them Go, all these are wrongs of Chiluba who did not understand privatization. Let’s get back these Mines. Nothing wrong we can run them better than Indians.
Why is FTJ accused of so many wrong things. It is Mwanawasa who told the mines to KCM . Remember they polluted kafue river under hiswatch. TheKCm problem was created by Mwanawasa. Who in the world sells a mine to traders. Chilubs and Nwanawasa
Before the vote, it was already well known that diplomacy is not one of Sata’s strong points. He was not diplomatic with the nurses when he was health minister. He was not diplomatic withthe street vendors when he was Lusaka governor, and he was not diplomatic with the forma presidenst when he was opposition leader. This sudden knee jerk dipotation is n different. We got what we asked for. Anti-Diplomacy is what we voted for
in fact this is not fair. even me i have been deported in an illegal way.. no country ever did that before the way u immigration deported me from Zambia.. is it because am white investor.. although i love Zambian environment and its people. Why u dont have justice and look forward with us and find another rules or laws which can make things better between us instead of being racist as i can see and then things will be fine.