Forum for Democracy and Development spokesperson (FDD)Antonio Mwanza says his party supports the intended calls for countrywide demonstration by public workers over the wage freeze.
Mr. Mwanza wondered why the public workers and their unions have been so lenient with the PF Government when it has continued to implement unpopular policies such as the wage freeze without any consultations.
He noted the public workers should know by now that the PF government does not listen to reason and that they will continue to ride on their backs as long as the continue bending them.
He said public workers and Zambians should not continue tightening their belts when PF Ministers and their families are busy fattening themselves by sharing the country’s resources through road contracts at the expense of poor workers and Zambians who are just scraping by for survival.
He added that PF Government will not give into their demands of lifting the wage freeze as long as no action is taken.
Meanwhile, Mr. Mwanza has called on Government to scrap off the bursaries committee and give the money to the banks to provide student loans.
Mr. Mwanza said the current system is not sustainable and that it has outlived its usefulness as the country’s population has grown to still have a centralized system administered in Lusaka.
He observed that the bursaries committee has challenges and that it has become an institution where corruption thrives hence the need to scrap it off and give the money to the banks to administer loans to students something he said is sustainable as the funds will be revolving.
He noted that currently with the system based in Lusaka most of the children living in rural areas are disadvantage as they do not know about bursaries hence end up becoming peasant farmers or fishermen even after acquiring good results at grade twelve.
He further said the K200million given to Universities is not enough to carter for all the students as it is only enough to carter for 1 academic year at UNZA and not all the public universities.
Zambian opposition will jump at every opportunity to show their relevance.So who is going to benefit from these demonstrations?
just wondering these opposition,wage freeze iliche most these public workers are there for loans.
PF was in opposition today they are failing the same public workers workers.
lt planned and planed do not mean the same thing.
You mean planned? What is planed? getting on an airplane?
There we go again !! Anyway we expected this. In Africa when you are in opposition you have to oppose whatever the government does or anything that might make them to achieve certain goals. It becomes personal and not about the country.
Banks to administer student loans? No. They do not know how. How do other countries do it? I am sure our “overtravelled and over exposed” civil servants can make one more trip to UK, NEW ZEALAND etc to learn how they are doing it. Name the Fund after the girl who took her life to make the Zambian government pay attention to this problem.
This is what kills Zambia and other African Economies. Unions and nonsense of dirty Politics. Being opposition does not mean work against the Government / encourage such rubbish. Demonstrations country wide will have an impact to the economy. When I come to run that Country. I will make sure Unions & PAYE & other Rubbish Taxes are abolished. Just makes Governments / ZCTU leadership Lazy and not innovative. Responsible institutions / companies should look after their employees. These Unions are just a cost with no tangible benefit to the people.
we have respectable pipo like miyanda, magande and chipimo. Next it will be mumba, known NGOs and HH. They are bound to fail
PF government is stretching to the limit the patience of Zambian workers and the general public with its poor leadership. There is no country world wide that runs its government with inactive leader, chaotic and contradictory information to its citizenry. Mr Sata is taking advantage of the docile of Zambians. Yes, country wide demos are welcome and we support this move as a sign that Zambians are alive to their rights.
what a lousy political scene, rubbish entities and useless players full of hunger and Kwashiokor. FDD and low IQ are synonymous!
Skull head on this one, I agree with you.
Civil servants want to bring the country to its knees already they are gobbling more than HALF of all revenues collected plus donor funding and yet they want more! My tax bill every month exceeds K35 000 from my wages. I get upset at times like this with what I could do with this money that goes to pay for the upkeep of the civil servants and politicians. I exclude the military and service arms, judiciary who are important to me. Now Mwaba wants me to pay more perhaps have my pay cut into two so that he takes the other half….NOOOOOOO!!!!
Enough is enough, we cannot be taxed anymore. At least for me. I dont want my taxes to go up to fund civil servant. I refuse.
I don’t understand PF on these wage freezes. MP’s get so many allowances why would they think the people who administer their gov’t should not get a fair wage? The unfreezing of wages should have been factored into the budget. You can’t ask too much from others while you lead luxurious lives. Not paying employees must stop in Zambia, it is an unholy practise.
It is a threat to our economy, and it feeds opposition Parties who only have one aim to bring the country to its knees. Of course ordinarily you would castigate these parties for jumping on the bandwagon, but who is to blame? There are just sectors you can not lean on negatively and that goes for arousing angry students! You expect riots and disruption to smooth working gov’t.
I HAVE SAID IT …TIME AND AGAIN,
REVOLUTION, REVOLUTION REVOLUTION….REVOLUTION.
IT IS THE ONLY WAY TO EFFECT CHANGE
what was Sata going to do if he was in the opposition and the wage freeze comes up?
I am sure he was going to do the same by mobilizing people for demos.
It is sad the poor are still poorer and the rich are still getting richer.
Wage freeze is just like Ebola.
It is easier said, but when consequences come unions are no where to be seen for help! Civil servants don’t follow any utterances by anybody sometimes even union leaders are not factual! What happened to nurses is a bitter lesson, but Am not saying the government should continue to dictate anything and follow. My worry is that unions are toothless this time they do not offer much protection to its members! Unlike that time when ZANUT was strong.
@banda. You did not know how Sata was campaigning. Sata could not call for demos he will simply tell the civil servants “VOTE FOR ME SO THAT I CAN CA COME AND LIFT THIS WAGE FREEZE” “THE RULLING PARTY MMD WANTS TO KILL ALL OF ITS CITIZEN SO THAT THEY REMAIN WITH THERIR CHILDREN LET US VOT THEM OUT.” He was quiet systematic.
Of course dialogue is the best option indeed.Yet,when government seems to be deaf to the cry of the people,what option is left?You can’t hijack the people and impound them
…..and this FDD…how many members are in this party, even?
Wage freeze ok but on condition. Demos unacceptable. Only unions with little or no understanding of organization functionaries would advocate that. Note the following effects of wage increases:-
(i) Salaries go up – burden on the employer
(ii) Pay AS You Earn goes up – burden on the employer
(iii) Napsa and other pension contributions go up – burden on the employer
(iv) Union contributions go up – union interest
(v) Prices of goods and services go up – burden on the government
These are unsustainable. Demos can only be valid to press govt about the benefits of wage freeze, – improved economy, Lower fuel prices after such savings and that crude oil prices have fallen on international market? Are there new jobs or reduction in interest rates? These may qualify grievances. Thanks.