Mr Lubinda told the House that his Government had inherited a public media that had been suffocated under heavy political patronage at the hands of the former ruling party. “As I speak today Mr Speaker, all the three public media organisations, ZNBC, Times of Zambia, Daily Mail are in serious financial difficulties arising from partisan instructions dispensed by the MMD government.
For example, for two to three months before the elections, the MMD government for purely political reasons, instructed the Times of Zambia to increase its circulation from 12,000 copies a day to 20, 000 copies even if there was no market demand to justify the increase. “They further instructed that part of the Times of Zambia be printed in Lusaka using Zambia Daily Mail printing press on the premise that the Ministry of Information would meet the cost of this costly venture.
This decision Mr Speaker cost both the Times of Zambia and Daily Mail hundreds of millions of taxpayers’ money,” he said. He said because of what he had termed unethical and politically motivated instruction from the then government, the Times of Zambia owes more than K400 million. He said as a result of that instruction, the Zambia Daily Mail had also incurred colossal amounts of money. “As though that is not enough, the Zambia Daily Mail under the instruction of those on the left were also instructed to print a paper called Stand Up For Zambia and other MMD propaganda publications, much to the erosion of the Zambia Daily Mail capacity,” he said.
Mr Lubinda said an inquiry into the programmes by “the disgraced journalist Chanda Chimba” clearly showed that the programmes were sponsored by the MMD using Government resources. “And I am sure my friend honourable (Kennedy) Sakeni is listening. Against professional advice the MMD government continued to broadcast the highly libelous, malicious programmes on the national broadcaster and even engaged private legal practitioners to defend Chanda Chimba’s matters in courts.
“These lawyers have since sent a fee note amounting to K500 million, half a billion to ZNBC for the services rendered in the Chanda Chimba matter. ZNBC has in turn forwarded the note to my ministry for payment because the MMD promised that they would use Government resources to pay those lawyers K500 million,” he said.
He said because of MMD’s corrupt instructions, the taxpayers will have to bear the burden. He told the House that the PF Government had a public media that had been suffocated under heavy political patronage at the hands of the former ruling party.
“We inherited a public media Mr Speaker whose only agenda was to sing praises for those in power at the expense of national interest, a media in which the public had completely lost confidence because of its highly partisan, unprofessional and unethical conduct,” he said. Mr Lubinda said the PF Government was committed to Press freedom and independent media. He said Press freedom was key as people would have information to make decisions in their lives.
Earlier in the day, Commerce Trade and Industry Minister Robert Sichinga hailed Zambian youths who braved the MMD propaganda machinery for granting the PF an opportunity to rule the country. Mr Sichinga told the House that the public media in the run-up to the polls was exclusively for former president Rupiah Banda and that if it was not for The Post newspaper, his party could have been overshadowed forever.
He was certain that President Sata would deliver on most of his campaign promises and be able to re-align the economy which he said was mismanaged by the MMD regime. “The PF Government assignments would be to create jobs; wealth, match-making between Zambians and foreign investors in order to create wealth and a win-win situation for all.
“To attract foreign direct investment (FDI) from outside to compliment our own efforts and to absorb the huge number of unemployed or underemployed youths,” Mr Sichinga said. He said the Government was already attracting business partnerships and his Government’s single visit to Perth in Australia had attracted over U$1 billion through such an initiative.
[Times of Zambia]
PLEASE CAN YOU STOP THE BLAMING GAME AND GO TO WORK. YOU GUYS STILL THINK YOU ARE IN THE OPPOSITION. WE ALL THE PROBLEMS THAT THOSE INSTITUTIONS ARE FACING WE EXPECT YOU TO WORK AND YOU TELL US ABOUT MMD. THIS IS WHY MMD IS OPPOSITION BECAUSE IT FAILED. SO PLEASE WE ARE WAITING DO NOT CONFUSE US. 90 DAYS IS COUNTING DOWN
COME ON! THEY CAN NOT GET ON WITH THEIR WORK BECAUSE THEY HAVE TO CLEAN UP OTHER PEOPLE’S MESSES. LET THE MMD FIRST PAY THEIR DEBTS THEN THE GOVERNMENT CAN START WORKING.
Where is our president? Hasn’t been seen on TV of late.
You are an imbecile you think seeing the president on TV is important. This is not RB the tourist who wanted to be seen on TV every time for political mileage. Wake up mbuzi!
Lubinda, you are a half cast. Don’t think that by being quiet us Zambians are stupid. Your days are numbered , it’s only in this thieves led Government that whites or let alone coloreds like yourself can talk nonsense.
Shut your bik.
Jojo please go back to the middle ages. The rest of the world has moved on!
YOU ARE A FOOL, YOU SHOULD BE ASHAMED OF YOUR RACIST REMARKS YOU THRIVE ON RACISM AND TRIBALISM. ISN’T IT TRUE THAT THE PUBLICMEDIA WAS ABUSED BY THE FORMER GVT? HAVE A LIFE!!!!!!!!
rubbish. where is the money in our pockets?
1, 2, and 3 you are very dull. Your MMD bleeds the news papers and you are talking rubbish? Please send the bill to MMD offices
# 5 Lady gaga you are an Idi.ot. You need a license to be that ugly. Phew.
#1,2 & 3.Can we discuss the maiden speech to parley by the hon Minister. $1 billion dollars worth of FDI is a good move but wwhen are these Investor’s coming to Zambia? I know the Appointment of Guy Scot as Veep was strategic and the west feel secured
Mr. Tourist Attraction that is what goes in Govt circles. There are always behind the scenes action to fix this and that problem. Look since you took over govt you have been heaping blame on deyfunctional MMD regime. You should start hard pondering how you are going to sort the various problems mother Zambia is facing. For PF to unseat MMD from power they had the capacity to steer this country to better future. So Stop complaining misho its time to work.Things are earsier said than done. If you dont perform MMD is watching and they may make a dramatic come back in 2016. Time flies when one is very busy.
These *****s,when will they go to work. For how long are you going to blame the previous regime you PFs, 90 days is almost over. Rubbish indeed.
half a billion…to hell.No 1 ,2,3 & 7 shallow minded people.Your wivies will pay togther with your children.rubbish.Stop thinking selfish……..stupid.Maybe chanda is your relative and you benefited.
1,2 and 3 its know wander this country is leaping becoz of assholes like you
They did it on purpose Lubinda. The plonkers new they were gone and they had to make it difficult for the PF.
Get down to work and show them how it should be done. I hope people are seeing this. I personally never wanted MMD to be finished but now I hope they do. Heartless morons!
Just keep the broadcast and privatise the 2 newspapers or keep one.you have nothing to lose.Here govt has one paper,radio and TV its enough.
Viva PF, im seeing very good results so far, 43 days to go on the 90 day count down. This is the type of government zambia needed all along, highly educated orators like Hon Lubinda keeping the nation informed on the progress of government business. an elite and powerful defense minister like GBM, a flamboyant and intellectual foreign affairs minister and such a charismatic hard working president who is able to govern and build the country to its rightful state. You have restored confidence in the PF agenda for the nation, we are pleased to know that the country is in safe hands.
#s 1,2,3 ubuwelewele bulemoneka nokumoneka…we the working GRZ ,are busy getting the plundered money back so that tubike mumatumba…You guys you are daft you mean you can fail to follow the well tabullated presentations from Hon.Lubinda and Sichinga,some of these things just give credit where it is due.Mind you PF aleteka mulefwaya nangu tamulefwaya.Wait you have just started experiencing the opposition kukosa no kukosa.
All we are asking Mr. Lubinda is, don’t do the same!
Carry on ka Lubinda we are watching you Power Failures with your sick president,tribalist ,corrupt ,imcompetent ,uneducated man.Kwacha is falling ,copper prices are falling,Munali mines is closed we shall see how you ging to create jobs .The generals you have retired are not a threat to you but those same youths who put you in power ,you sitting on a time bomb ready to explode any time.Watch this space.
Iwe number 1 there is no blame game here. The media was heavily compromised both financially and ethically so we deserve to know the details of how the MMD misappropriated funds and manipulated spineless journalists. If anything the MMD as a party should be made to pay financially and legally. The instructions that they were passing to hapless media were illegal so MMD ministers who were in govt must be charged. That is how democracies in the West operate. So why should we operate differently. The Zambian people are too poor to start paying for the crimes and mistakes of those who held office on their behalf. I hope journalists are learning a lesson from this; stop pandering to authority and do your job!
This is what journalism schools teach all the time but once you get your jobs you want to be cowardly and start saying I have a family to look after. Those who have families to look after are not in journalism. They have taken up easier jobs such as Furniture making. Journalists need to be brave. Their job is for the masses not for their pockets!
plz more money in our pockets,,, waitng for you *****s
Elyo ba ZNBC take advantage of the fact that Sata doesnt want to be the first item on your bulletin. So stop this stupid practice and just present news; not people. Anyone in your newsroom with a bootlicking nature must be shown the door. Wake up! sleepy Zambian journalists! You have a society to protect. The media has a role in a democracy. And this is to check the powers of the Executive, legisllture and Judiciary. So stop pandering to the ruling party! I think PF is trying to teach you journalism since you learnt nothing from Evelyn Hone College
1, 2 & 3 you deserve to be admitted at Bara mental ward. You are so stupid and lack the power to reason! I was in Zambia myself from April to May this year, what i was reading from these two papers was total rubbish of mmd. If you come here in South Africa read the City Press, Mail & Guardian, Sowetan to mention but a feel newspaper doing a good job. Just go online and browse through these papers, no ANC reporting. Wake up you thugs and stop reasoning like old falcons.
By the way, where is Chamba Chimba? what will happen to him if he comes out in the open, im sure he will be bundled like the way his friend willy Banda was manhandled.
What was the comment from Gen. Ronnie the Reverend at this time of the speech from Hon Given.,very shameful indeed ba pastor.,its good you apologized for your blasphemy towards ba Sata- i hope you have learned a lesson.