THE MMD on the Copperbelt has alleged that the Zambia Railways Limited (ZRL) management is frustrating President Banda’s home empowerment programme by issuing eviction letters to some sitting tenants occupying institutional houses.
MMD Copperbelt Province chairman Joseph Chilambwe said in an interview in Kitwe yesterday that it is unfortunate that ZRL is indirectly defying President Banda’s directive that the houses be immediately offered for sale to sitting tenants and outstanding balances be written off.
“ZRL has written letters to sitting tenants that they want to repossess the houses. These people are indirectly challenging President Banda and this is what we don’t want,” Mr Chilambwe said
According to one of the letters dated May 9, 2011 authored by NM Mulikita and Partners Legal Practitioners, acting on behalf of ZRL and addressed to Mr Francis Mwansa of house number 11, Kalewa Road, Northrise in Ndola, the company wants to repossess the house.
The letter is headed ‘Vacation of Zambia Railways Limited property known as house number 11, Northrise, Ndola’.
The letter reads: “Caption matter refers, please note that we act on and on behalf of Zambia Railways Limited. We have instructions from our client to take possession of the premises that you are currently occupying. We, therefore, demand that you vacate the said premises within seven (7) days of receipt hereof, failure to which we shall commence legal proceedings to procure our client’s instruction without further recourse to you. Please acknowledge receipt hereof by duly filling in the space provided of the copy of this letter.”
But Mr Chilambwe said President Banda’s executive order to offer the houses to sitting tenants is final and cannot be challenged.
“These people are tarnishing President Banda’s image, let them resign. But we are contesting this as a party and we will not tolerate it,” Mr Chilambwe said.
He advised ZRL not to take the law for granted by challenging Mr Banda’s directive and wondered why the company failed to evict the tenants from the houses when they were retrenched.
“We don’t know why they are now issuing eviction letters to sitting tenants because they failed to remove them from the houses when they were retrenched.
President Banda’s pronouncement has superseded all action by these people and we want to warn Zambia Railways management not to ‘take the law in their own hands’ by challenging the Presidential directive,” Mr Chilambwe said.
On April 16, President Banda said during a press conference at Hotel Edinburgh in Kitwe that he has received petitions from sitting tenants occupying Zambia Railways houses.
Mr Banda said he has directed the board of Zambia Railways to reduce the prices.
“I am happy to inform the sitting tenants that the board has responded to my directive and they will soon be reverting to you with offers at lower prices. This is in respect to all Zambia Railways houses spread out throughout the country,” Mr Banda said.
[Zambia Daily Mail]
Are these houses owned by RB or MMD? Who has the right to the said houses? ZRL bought the assets, not RB or MMD. They choose what to do with them. Is RB becoming another Idi Amin?
RB must prepare to run and must ensure his knee is fit to take is collosal mound of a body. Some people are daft to the bone, you can vividily see mubarak being zwaaaaaaed and you are busy stepping on zedian peoples toes. oh unomwaka wachibe
lets be sincere!!! Zambians whether or not the houses belong to MMD or to Gov’t, as sitting tenants we would all be happy to be given a chance to buy the houses we have been living in and maintaining for such a long time!!
We should all come out and support the tenants, our fellow zambians to have permanent houses of their own no matter who is pushing for such a thing, the fact that it is the president makes it easier for them. A president who has thought and heard of his peoples plight is what we need!!!
let Zambia railways not be selfish, working conditions have really gone down for employees there and it is being filled by expatriates, let zambian sitting tenants also benefit please!!@!!!!!
but certainly not dubiously.just because its an election year? and this is CLEARLY abuse of office. What authority does he have to instruct ZRL. How will the debt be recovered. This is exactly how Chiluba messed up the Councils in Zambia and as a result people went for years without salaries. I wonder if people in the councils are getting paid today. So, at what expense..to please a few while the same people from ZRL will run their institution in the ground and have no where to earn an income from.
It is not the responsibility of ZRL. If government cannot put safety networks for the people, well, tough luck. The people must do what is best for them, put new government in office. What RB is doing is exactly what Mugabe and Idi Amin did. Soon the so called investors will realize that their assets are in danger. ZRL bought those assets. Whether we support for empowerment of our fellow Zambians, it should not be at the expense of other people’s investment. Zambia sold those assets, it is over. You cannot go around as President grabbing other people’s assets or investments with no justification just because your position as President is in danger. Build, devil. This is like wife grabbing Chiluba did. What is wrong with Presidency in Africa kanshi?
Those houses belong to ZRS fullstop. Let mmd buy those house then giv them to siting tenants
Let companies sustain themselves by not endagering their assets. Goverment can only assist those that have failed to pay with loans and not depriving the companies with their income in the name of campaign.People need Jobs in these companies.
I don’t Rupiah’s directive.Does Rupiah or MMD have power over private companies’ property? Next time Rupiah will just wake up and direct MMD cadres to take ownership of private companies. Rupiah should build people houses and not giving cadres other people’s property.
Yaluka campaign gimmick,uko manje.
some are now exhibiting jealousy!!
just because it is not your company which is giving you the houses you are living in!!
the people in question were retrenched long ago and were never asked to vacate or pay dues, what is wrong with the president asking ZRL to offer them the houses???? RB met with ZRL and they agreed to sell the houses, that is when people complained that as sitting tenants that have been in those houseong, buying them at expensive prices was unreasonable, and so RB spoke to ZRL again and they agreed to reduce the prices!!!
what is so sinister about all that????
if ZRL was not willing they should have said and not using underhand methods of frustrating people
furthermore how do you ask people to find alternative accommodation within 7 days???
even you here aginst RB are showing pure hatred for zambians, they are humans as well.
these people have not been able to pay dues on houses, you expectthem to be able to vacate and find other accommodation within 7 days? they have no jobs…they have been retrenched most of them!!
lets be fair, not all the time being against everything…..it is public knowledge that RB spoke to the ZRL before giving the directive, they agreed and then he made the pronouncements….so to go behind peoples backs and now chase some tenants does not make any sense apart from corporate sabotage or maybe some greedy individuals that want the houses themselves
if you keep thinking on those lines u r simply grouping ur self as one of those who advocate for mediocrity. every organisation must be governed by rules and regulations.. what business sense does it make if every leader instructs it to write of outstanding debts or sell off its assets at non market value? mudala are u thinking before u type????:o:o
Dont take orders from a gumboots president
The problem is policies and politics, RB miscaculated this move. While I support home impowerment I dont support doctatorship of handling important issues just to score politica let points at the expanse of hardworking zambians Take this issue to parliament and let the people speak.
The problem is policies and politics, RB miscaculated this move. While I
support home impowerment I dont support doctatorship of handling important issues just to score political
points at the expanse of hardworking zambians Take this issue to parliament and let the people speak.
Ehh #9 and 10 you where in the US @ 10:55 am and in Japan @ 11:00am on the same day kwaliba? Anyways back to the issue,if rhupia thinks this is good socialism,its not this is dictatorship.The next thing we will see is rhupia or his sons marrying other peoples daughters by false coz they are in charge. Much as i feel for the tenants,my question is,what is ZRL benefiting from this?
RB is behaving as if he never went to school on this issue-what are the consequences of giving out these houses for free on the balance sheets of entities such as ZR and others such as Mukuba pension. If RB wants votes by pleasing sitting tenants, then it would be better for the MMD to pay for these houses instead of abusing his powers-indeed as someone has mentioned above, RB has sitarted behaving exactly like Mugabe and he is setting a very dangerous precedent.
Ehh #9 and 10 you where in the US @ 10:55 am and in Japan @ 11:00am on the same day kwaliba? Anyways back to the issue,if rhupia thinks this is good socialism,its not this is dictatorship.The next thing we will see is rhupia or his sons marrying other peoples daughters by force coz they are in charge. Much as i feel for the tenants,my question is,what is ZRL benefiting from this?
ZR, Mukuba pension and others please play delaying tactics. RB has only a few months to go and after that he will be a village peasant farmer somewhere in eastern province with no authority and then you will be able to recoup some revenue from those houses instead of writing them off as bad debts as RB wants now.
What is a Gumboots Presidency or president?
How can RB direct a privately-run company to give away assets? They paid for those assets and if RB wants them given away, the MMD should buy them from RSZ and give them to the sitting tenants. This is nonsensical.
The MMD must put in place policies to empower its people. They messed up the councils now there is no such thing as a council house. These councils where suppose to be providing cheap alternative accommodation for the masses and over time there was a scheme to sell the houses, then build more….NOW since they messed it up by selling the houses below market value, the councils got crippled and are unable to build houses..for years councils have been struggling to pay their employees. The bottom line is MMD must find resources to build houses and NOT force companies to do their bidding. That is unethical, I thought this man has a degree in Economics…AND I am not against people owning houses – openly abusing office and the party is even backing him up.