Thursday, March 28, 2024

NAPSA free to acquire more land

Share

Labour Minister Austin Liato

MINISTER of Labour and Social Security Austin Liato says the National Pensions Scheme Authority (NAPSA) is at liberty to acquire more land from Meanwood Development Properties Limited.

Mr Liato said yesterday that President Banda’s administration has nothing to do with siphoning money from parastatals.

Mr Liato said before touring the US$50 million NAPSA Kalulushi housing project in Kalulushi that President Banda’s Government is not interested in getting money from parastatals.

“Those who are criticising the President will not tell you how President Banda has siphoned money out of parastatals,” Mr Liato said.

He said it is unfortunate that some armchair critics have reduced the land transaction between NAPSA and Meanwood Development Properties Limited to tribal politics.

Mr Liato said Meanwood Development Properties Limited proprietor Robinson Zulu is a Zambian who is free to engage in business.

“If there is another business transaction to do with Mr Zulu, he should feel free to take it because he is a citizen,” Mr Liato said

H said NAPSA bought 1,500 acres of land from Meanwood Development Properties Limited at a cost of K50 million per acre which translates into about US$10,000 per acre.

[pullquote]“Land in Lusaka is very difficult to find, especially to the tune of 1,500 acres which councils do not have. Most of these councillors are busy apportioning land among themselves and think NAPSA can invest in these small pieces of land,” Mr Liato said.[/pullquote]

“In the same area, you will not find land at that price, each person selling land there will not sell it for less than K100 million per acre, so NAPSA negotiated a good deal,” Mr Liato said.

Mr Liato said it is unfortunate that Patriotic Front (PF) Kabwata member of Parliament Given Lubinda is alleging that he has never seen land applications by NAPSA at Lusaka City Council (LCC) when his fellow councillors are allegedly involved in illegal land transactions.

“Land in Lusaka is very difficult to find, especially to the tune of 1,500 acres which councils do not have. Most of these councillors are busy apportioning land among themselves and think NAPSA can invest in these small pieces of land,” Mr Liato said.

He said NAPSA should not be distracted by armchair critics but continue with its investment programme.

Mr Liato said NAPSA’s investment will not only safeguard pensioners’ funds but also help to reduce the housing deficit in the country.

He also commended NAPSA for heeding his directive to invest pension funds instead of keeping the money in bank accounts.

Mr Liato said President Banda’s administration is in a hurry to develop the country and will not be disturbed by unnecessary criticism.

NAPSA board chairman Dominic Mbangu said putting money in bank accounts is not profitable because of the reduced interest rates, hence the decision by NAPSA to invest in housing.

“The best is to invest in building houses which will be sold or rented out. This is why NAPSA is buying land just as we did in Kalulushi to put up houses,” Mr Mbangu said.

He said land in Kalulushi is cheaper than in Lusaka because there is low demand for it.

Mr Mbangu said it is unfortunate that some people have politicised the investment by NAPSA.

Kalulushi housing project manager Bernard Chimata said NAPSA is building 438 housing units on a 40.5 hectare piece of land.

He said the contractor Yangts Jiang is expected to complete construction works in May 2012.

[Zambia Daily Mail]

53 COMMENTS

  1. Liato, Liato, Liato. Tell the nation why you were kicked out as ZEAWU president. This is why you can’t see anything wrong with this deal.

  2. It is surprising to learn that,NAPSA is using people’s money without consulting the owners.Is it because,money at NAPSA has be used up,now desperate to replace it,let NAPSA be audited.If NAPSA is audited you will know the truth.

  3. Napsa is a quasi government institution, and thus see this statement by liato of the Company BUYING Land from an Individual at exorbitant prices as a big Joke. These thieves will not go scot free this year, that I can truely assure you as we’re sick and tired of them monkeys.. This year KUYA BEBELE……MMD ZYA….

  4. PEOPLE PLEASE EDUCATE ME ON THIS SAGA PLEASE!!!
    1. WHO OWNS MEANWOOD PROPERTY IN ZAMBIA? IS IT AN INDIVIDUAL OR IT’S A GOVERNMENT DEPARTMENT?
    2. WHICH INDIVIDUAL FROM GOVERNMENT OWNS A STAKE IN MEANWOOD PROPERTY?
    3 WHY SHOULD THE GOVERNMENT INSTITUTION PREFER TO ACQUIRE LAND FROM AN INDIVIDUAL, WHAT HAPPENED TO THE MINISTRY OF LANDS IS IT DEFUNCT?

  5. ZAMBIANS wake up!! this meanwood thing is another Chani fisheries saga, somebody has merely been fronted here, pew! what happened to transparency? i mean the DEC people together with their colleagues at anti corruption commission are busy arresting people smoking Daga and yet there is this BIG CORRUPTION going on under their noses!!!! come on people let’s wake up, these i d i o t s have taken enough from Zambia and it’s people. should we reach the status of Congo DRC where an individual lends money to the government? please guys this can not be going on.

  6. WHAT HAPPENED TO INDENI OIL? Now there is no more Indeni there is Petroda owned by Rupia and Dora Siliya, Where did Dora Siliya & Rupia get money to invest in both Petroda and Zambezi express air ways?

  7. Liato, encouraging NAPSA to continue dealing with Meanwood in the wake of this brewing scandal is not only being insensitive to the cries of the people but perpetuates the very corrupt practices we want to see eradicated.

    Kwena Liato niwe kabalwe sana

  8. GEORGE Mpombo yesterday challenged President Rupiah Banda to deny his close links with Meanwood Properties Development Limited…

  9. Embarrassing, that a national pensions, fund would engage in such cheap deals. What the hell is wrong with our country?

  10. Land in Lusaka is very difficult to find, especially to the tune of 1,500 acres which councils do not have. Most of these councillors are busy apportioning land among themselves and think NAPSA can invest in these small pieces of land,” Mr Liato said.
    LIATO SO TELL US HOW THE PF COUNCILLORS ARE FINDING IT EASY TO GIVE THEMSELVES TRACTS OF LAND IF THERE IS NO LAND IN LUSAKA. GRAB IT FROM THEM AND GIVE IT TO NAPSA. YOU ARE SPINNING WEBS AROUND YOURSELVES

  11. My Mother is a pensioneer and she is paid K200,000.00 per month for the years she worked in Gov’t, meanwhile NAPSA is using her money to invest in building houses, when She could have been paid a Lump Sum of her pension so that she invests it herself, why do the thinking for pensioners even they have businesses they would want to invest in. What can one do with K200,000.00 per month sure ! It’s a very sad state of affairs pa Zed, change is imperative for the country to move forward…..atase Ba kambwanga imwe !

  12. He said land in Kalulushi is cheaper than in Lusaka because there is low demand for it.

    IT IS A TOTAL LIE. MMD COUNCILLORS INCLUDING THE NEW MAYOR ARE GRABBING LAND THEN SELLING IT TO RICH PEOPLE FROM LUSAKA. TO GET LAND IN KALULUSHI YOU HAVE TO BE CONNECTED. ALL BY THE WAY THE CHINESE AT THIS SITE SHOT SOME ZAMBIAN WORKERS OVER WAGE DISPUTES

  13. #17Chisanga Mfumu – I thought Civil Servants were not members of NAPSA? Please correct me if I am wrong, because even Mopani are not Members as far as I know.

  14. By the way, the country never heard from rupiah on youth day. I thought he would use the opportunity to address youths especially that they represent the largest number of voters.

    Well he chose to ignore them just like he has ignored their plight.

    My message to the youths is simple, show rupiah mambala, who has the real power by giving him the boot

  15. #18 i live in Kalulushi and i agree with you. In my desperate attempt to aquire land in Kalulushi, i ended up losing 8 million kwacha.

  16. GEORGE Mpombo yesterday challenged President Rupiah Banda to deny his close links with Meanwood Properties Development Limited proprietor Robinson Zulu.

    In an interview, Mpombo, who is Kafulafuta MMD member of parliament, said State House had a hand in the Meanwood/NAPSA land transaction.

    “All of us in MMD know that State House has very strong connections with Mr Zulu. Mr Zulu is a friend of State House and there is no way he can deny that. We know that Mr Zulu has been frequenting State House,” Mpombo said. “Mr Zulu has unfettered access to State House and to Mr Rupiah Banda in particular. I challenge Mr Rupiah Banda or even Mr Zulu himself to deny these close links between them.”

    Mpombo insisted that President Banda should come out clean over the NAPSA land deal.

    “Mr Rupiah…

  17. “Mr Rupiah Banda and Mr Zulu must come out and speak the truth over this matter. Otherwise, these concoctions which they are wasting rolls of newsprint on in the state media will not yield anything,” he said.

    Mpombo said Zulu’s activities at the recent Nc’wala traditional ceremony of the Ngoni people of Eastern Province were well known.

    “We know what happened at Nc’wala and how Mr Zulu displayed major proportions of generosity to the extent that his ‘kind gesture’ raised a lot of eyebrows amongst the people who were around,” Mpombo said. “Mr Zulu’s generosity at Nc’wala left a lot of people wondering what exactly that amounted to or what that meant.”

    Mpombo said the NAPSA transaction smells of corruption.

    “Even the failure by NAPSA to follow procedure confirms the suspicions…

  18. “Even the failure by NAPSA to follow procedure confirms the suspicions. But everybody within the MMD knows that Mr Rupiah Banda is trying to prop up the political aspirations of Mr Zulu at the expense of Lameck Mangani,” Mpombo said. “It’s very clear that Mr Rupiah Banda is determined to throw Mangani into political wilderness or some sort of political eclipse.”

    He said President Banda’s government was overbearing on parastatals.

    “The Meanwood/NAPSA land deal is a one that is deeply besmirched in deep irregularity which clearly demonstrates the deep-rooted corrupt practices in government and with the government’s full knowledge,” Mpombo said. “And this is the reason why Mr Rupiah Banda has put his own people in most of these parastatal institutions to enable them facilitate such…

  19. “And this is the reason why Mr Rupiah Banda has put his own people in most of these parastatal institutions to enable them facilitate such kind of transactions. They are pretending that they are fundraising for the party ahead of the forthcoming general elections when in actual fact the money is just going into their pockets.”

    Mpombo urged President Banda to humble himself and listen to the constructive views from the general public on the matter.

    “Mr Rupiah Banda and his government must listen. Otherwise, Zambia will be plunged into a very serious political and economic crisis,” he said.

    Mpombo was commenting on the move by NAPSA to purchase 1,500 acres of land at an exorbitant price of US $15 million (about K75 billion) from Meanwood Properties Development Limited without…

  20. following tender procedures.

    MMD members recently expressed concern over what they termed “scandalous” transactions at NAPSA, which President Banda wanted to use to raise campaign funds.

    The sources said President Banda was using his friends to mobilise funds from parastatals for campaigns, but the money was not being paid to the party.

  21. Liato is sick to the core! He can’t see that NAPSA is a public institution where Zed people’s benefits are tied
    GOVT isn’t siphoning money from Parastatals, but MMD characters are doing it through private companies.
    The transaxn is a scum! Liato is telling zambia that NAPSA wud find it difficulty to buy land just like an individual wud. Shame!

  22. I would imagine if Liato would still support this deal if he was hounded out of Govt..Liato, you should realise that you are dealing with intelligent people, this careless statement will haunt you in future.

  23. Lubinda
    GIVEN Lubinda has disputed NAPSA’s claims that it had made futile efforts to acquire land from Lusaka City Council (LCC).

    And Lubinda, who is Kabwata member of parliament, demanded that NAPSA release the valuation report that was undertaken and presented by the independent valuers referred to in the parastatal’s advertisement.

    In his letter dated March 9, 2011 to National Pensions Scheme Authority (NAPSA) director general, Lubinda stated that in the past 10 years that he had been a councillor in Lusaka, he had not come across an application from NAPSA for a piece of land for housing development.

    “To the best of my knowledge even at the time when Lusaka City Council advertised plots at the prestigious Baobab land along Kafue Road, NAPSA did not make an application,”…

  24. Lubinda stated. “May you kindly furnish me with dates when you made such applications and what responses you got from the Lusaka City Council to justify your statement that you have made futile efforts to acquire land through the local authority.”

    Lubinda stated that NAPSA’s efforts to ‘set the record straight’ on NAPSA-Meanwood land transaction had failed because the parastatal company’s statement through advertisement had raised more questions than it had answered.

    He stated that the matter was not whether or not NAPSA was approached by The Post to seek clarification.

    “What is undeniable is that there is a transaction between NAPSA and Meanwood on the purchase of 1, 500 acres of land at an exorbitant price of US $15 million. There is certainly no contention on this matter,”…

  25. #15 yes some civil servants pay NAPSA while others subscribe to the Pensions Board.I remember Robison Zulu way back at UNZA. For your information Mr. Zulu does not own any of that land, he is just a conduit of Galaun holdings a farmer who acquired that land for FREE in the colonial days.since the original owner died,the son to Galaun who is not interested in farming went into partnership with Meanwood to sell “excess” land to the public.The orinal plan for Meanwood was to build a set of uniform houseson the same premise like NHA, but along the way they found it more profitable to just sell land.And this is the most big exploitation i have ever seen -albeit market forces at play.the question perhaps we should ask: whats NAPSA’s use of that land?

  26. Lubinda stated that in the past 10 years that he had been a councillor in Lusaka, he had not come across an application from NAPSA for a piece of land for housing development.

    “To the best of my knowledge even at the time when Lusaka City Council advertised plots at the prestigious Baobab land along Kafue Road, NAPSA did not make an application,” Lubinda stated. “May you kindly furnish me with dates when you made such applications and what responses you got from the Lusaka City Council to justify your statement that you have made futile efforts to acquire land through the local authority.”

    Lubinda stated that NAPSA’s efforts to ‘set the record straight’ on NAPSA-Meanwood land transaction had failed because the parastatal company’s statement through advertisement had raised more…

  27. ere is a transaction between NAPSA and Meanwood on the purchase of 1, 500 acres of land at an exorbitant price of US $15 million. There is certainly no contention on this matter,” Lubinda stated. “Killing the messenger will not kill the message. The transaction shall exist whether The Post verifies with you or not. What is required is an explanation as to why this transaction was sanctioned and by whom not whether or not The Post newspapers sought clarifications before publishing it.”

    Lubinda observed that in its advertisement, NAPSA stated that the management procurement committee was mandated to bear on such matters until the release of circular on January 24, 2011, which introduced a committee to take over the functions of the Central Tender Committee.

    Lubinda demanded that NAPSA…

  28. t NAPSA produces documentation to show the mandate from the Zambia Public Procurement Authority (ZPPA).

    “In addition, please indicate the legal framework under which the ZPPA introduced an adhoc committee to take over the functions of the Central Tender Committee which is a creation of an Act of Parliament. Note that the Public Procurement Act (PPA) No. 12 of 2008 does not have such a provision,” he stated. “You argue that NAPSA has made investments in other places including Levy Business Park, Nyumba Yanga Housing Project, Kalulushi Housing Project, MKP Estates and Northgate Gardens and that in all these transactions the President did not influence your decision.”

    Lubinda demanded that to enable members of the public to make informed conclusions, NAPSA would have to state how much…

  29. and to whom the firm paid per unit of the said pieces of land.

    He stated that a comparison of the unit costs of the stated pieces of land would provide some explanations and might show whether or not there was an external influence on the Ibex Hill transaction.

    He stated that the fact that NAPSA ought to make prudent investment decisions to grow the people’s pension funds was undisputable.

    “However, it cannot be acceptable that NAPSA funds – members’ savings – should be exposed to procuring properties including land at prices that are above the average prevailing prices,” Lubinda stated. “A price of US$ 10,000 per acre of unserviced land in Ibex Hill cannot be considered an average price not even in comparison to prices offered by Meanwood to individual developers. May you also…

  30. How Zulu acqiured that wealth is a very interesting story that cannot be shared here.There are a few Zambians who are honest……that explains why we cannot prosper in Zambia.

  31. And Mr. Liato said and as quoted,”And“Land in Lusaka is very difficult to find, especially to the tune of 1,500 acres which councils do not have. Most of these councillors are busy apportioning land among themselves and think NAPSA can invest in these small pieces of land,” end of quote but Mr. Given Lubinda refuted these allegations by saying and iquote” “To the best of my knowledge even at the time when Lusaka City Council advertised plots at the prestigious Baobab land along Kafue Road, NAPSA did not make an application,”

  32. Let us be careful what we say. Some people have be quoted as having said some things many years after.

    Mr. Zulu should also wake up and stay clear of such transactions. They create huge tax liabilities and unless he keeps all the money involved he may fail to meet tax liabilities created as a result of such a transaction.

    When you become very selfish, you loose everything!!!

  33. Our undergraduate students have researched pension schemes overseas and their research has revealed that pension schemes do invest the people’s pension money to make profit. So, nothing wrong with what NAPSA has done. Criticise them if they bought the land at an exorbitant price. If KK’s administration had encouraged such initiatives, we would have had less shanties in our towns.

  34. Mwebantu who appointed Dominic Mbangu to be Chairperson of NAPSA board? This old man failed to run a Total service station on old Mumbwa Road and was saved by KK who asked Total management to put him on management control contract to allow him survive financially. Now, if you appoint such suspect chaps as board chairmen just because they are old UNIP buddies, what kind of critical advise can you get?
    Napsa MANAGEMENT and BOARD will continue defending this scandalous purchase of 1,500 acres at US$15 million! This is ridiculous and insulting to the intelligence of Zambians. How mad do you want this MMD to act before some of you see the sense in removing them from power at all cost.
    MC sata will prosecute most of these crooks hence the venomous attacks! VIVA CHANGE, VIVA SATA, Pabwatooooo!

  35. Land in Ibex Hill is sold for an average US $ 20 000 per acre. So Liato is right. There is a new development just near the new NAPSA land where bare land is being sold for US $ 50 000 per plot! Land in Lusaka has become very expensive. What bloggers should be asking is to request Govt to make more land available not comment on transactions they have no idea about.

  36. Gay people are sick sub-animals.Anyone on the thread ever seen a Pig or Dog stuffing its hardened pipe into the a.s.s. of its fellow male Pig/Dog? Sickos is the best description of gays, infact they should be quarantined so that they dont pollute this earth.

  37. #42, naimwe ba Kennedy ifyo teti fibombe. You are repeating the same mistake that we have warned Chilufya about countless times, that he can only enter State House through politics of truth, integrity and development. Any other way is like trying to pass through the eye of a needle.

  38. It’s because of sich foolishness that we all need to stand up and vote for Sata. Wqe honestly can not allow such mediocrity from government Officials. Sata as President of this land will surely rid the country of this kind of st’upidity and mediocre leadership from this Old Village Peasant.

  39. NAPSA issue has been ably explained. PF cadres are just hanging on to grass to avoid the Tsunami that has engulfed their party. They think that NAPSA will provide the diversion that they badly need to protect Chilufya from further exposure.

  40. galun(sp) needs a mugabe treatment,no wonder land has gotten too expensive,,,,this country with almost no regulation,they want to regulate the media,which is private and refuse to regulate other private entities like cost of rentals and land–stuuuupi gvt

Comments are closed.

Read more

Local News

Discover more from Lusaka Times-Zambia's Leading Online News Site - LusakaTimes.com

Subscribe now to keep reading and get access to the full archive.

Continue reading