As MMD youths, we wish to encourage the Zambian Parliament to emulate their counterparts in Tanzania and enact a landmark law that will ban foreigners getting jobs that could ordinarily be done by local Tanzanians.
The Non-Citizens Employment Regulation Bill which is expected to come into effect on 1 July after President Jakaya Kikwete assents to it is a piece of legislation the Zambian Parliament would do well to emulate.
We are further prompted to request the Government of H.E Edgar Chagwa Lungu to treat the youth unemployment situation in Zambia as a crisis requiring serious practical steps to reverse.
We are further shocked to learn through Home Affairs Minister Davies Mwila in Parliament that the PF Government had at February 2015 issued over 13,000 work permits to Chinese nationals, 7,000 Indians and 4,000 South Africa.
[pullquote]Chinese, Indians and Lebanese labourers coming into Zambia to push wheelbarrows, cook Nshima in open air restaurants and work in Car wash outlets do not pose any special skills different from what the Zambians have.[/pullquote]
As concerned youths, we appeal to Government to quickly enact a law that will protect Zambian jobs from foreigners.
It is despicable that a small country such as ours with a very small economy could allow over 25,000 foreigners to work when over 80 percent of its citizens who are employable cannot find jobs.
We question the criteria used by our Immigration Department in issuing these job permits. Chinese, Indians and Lebanese labourers coming into Zambia to push wheelbarrows, cook Nshima in open air restaurants and work in Car wash outlets do not pose any special skills different from what the Zambians have.
We can only conclude that there is rampant corruption at the Immigration Department which allows for these high number of job permits to be issued.
We therefore call on the Anti Corruption Commission to take a keen interest in the happenings at Kent Building (Immigration Department Headquarters) and screen all the work permits issued in the last six months.
We believe there is nothing xenophobic about our demands as our position is firmly informed by the need to see our young people in employment.
From the research we have done, almost all the developed countries including some our neighbouring countries have stringent work permit procedures making it practically impossible for low skilled people to work in those regions.
Our call therefore is for the Zambian Parliament to do what the Tanzanian Parliament has just done. Enact the Zambian Jobs Protection Act.
For the first time I have read something sensible from Mr. Bowman Lusambo, keep it up!!
If the same law is reciprocated,expect people like mushota to come back,more swahilis at comesa market to leave zambia,more zadians to leave botswana and joberg.etc
Reckless gvt overlooking its own people.corruption in PF has reached alarming proportions
Mr Bowman Lusambo when people talk about corruption this is part of it.ECL was Minister of Home Affairs at one time,the boss of Immigration Department .Do you mean he was NOT aware of this?
Ba Lungu namumfwa…..!!!! Since you have no vision of your own, you can act on this and we will support you.
What will you do when a dual-citizen wants a job as a Zambian? We are moving forward, we need to do away with draconian laws. The fact that Jakaya wants to push his country in a certain direction has taken into account the demographics and skills’ set of his country. Yes, pushing a wheelbarrow might sound like a minor detail but it is the knowledge a person has to push a wheelbarrow that matters. Just about everything now is about doing things efficiently. It is not about the job per se. If I can cut my delivery time by six months by importing South African or Chinese labor I will. If you don’t want to help me achieve my targets within a reasonable time as my employee I will not employ you. Lusambo, it is as simple and yet as involved as that.
Most Zambians are lazy and want to sit in an office, they would not push a wheelbarrow ati niba boss.
You are spot on my friend.
Lusambo is from Tanzania he knows the system there.
THE LAW ON ISSUANCE OF IMMIGRATION PERMITS CLEARLY STATES THAT NO JOBS FOR FOREIGNERS THAT CAN ORDINARILY BE DONE BY ZAMBIANS IN SHORT ONLY SKILLED EXPERTISE LABOUR CAN BE CONTRACTED FOR FOREIGNERS,I SIMPLY DONT KNOW WHAT ELSE PARLIAMENT CAN DO LESS THAN OVERSIGHT POWERS ON ISSUANCE OF SUCH PERMITS,THE ACC IS INVOLVED SO ARE ALL OTHER GOVT DEPTS IN THE SELECTION PROCESS BEFORE ANY PERMIT CAN BE ISSUED SO IT SIMPLY BOILS DOWN TO CORRUPTION AND THE WILL TO DO THE RIGHT THING FOR ZAMBIA WHICH IS LACKING AT ALL LEVELS AT IMMIGRATION.
Yes we do need job protection for Zambians.
…apparently, laws patterning to what Lusambo is crying about are already there….it is just that there is no political will to enforce…
…. KCM as an entity would not bring in and employ labourers, what happens is that when KCM engages a foreign company…say to construct smelter plant…hiding in the name of quality assurance, the contractor insists of employing what they term as ‘experience labour’…so a clause is included in the agreement to bring in his own labour hence the wheelbarrow pushers we see…same when the govt engages road contractors…if the govt try to insist or direct the contractor to employ the locals, the contractor insists to remove the ‘works guarantee’ clause… as for car wash, restaurant, barbers it is the authority who choose to look the other way..
Government does not deliberately enforce these laws because it would reduce the chance of getting back handers.
The laws are there. Which department is supposed to oversee them?
Lusambo just take over the MMD Presidency….So that you can die with it?
Once again excellent piece of work Mr Bowman. Why don’t you take over MMD presidency ?
If these people are so good why do they not create their own business and run them rather than wanting jobs from Chinese etc?
robin i agree – most Zambians are bone lazy – all mouth no action.
Create your own industries, your own small businesses. Where is your imagination?
Right now in Zambia we have almost all the qualified personel in Zambia. Let there be a law that prohibits this emigrates from entering Zambia any how. Go to companies like Dura Soletanche Kitwe, KCM Chingola , Mopani Kitwe Lumwana Mine we have a lot foreigners there. Scrutinise their permits you will discover something on it
It amuses me to find Zambian Government issuing resident permits to Indians with dubious degrees which are worse off than Matero University qualifications. People from neighbouring countries masquerade as Zambians especially from Malawi and Zimbabwe and have taken employment meant for local Zambians. The Zambian mentality dates from KK time who could import the likes of KALEDOU. KK deliberately put foreigners in very influential positions so that he could then cling to power and as such most companies in Zambia have top positions taken up by black foreigners. The foreigners you are allowing in our country ask Zambians how long will be their stay during job attachments at the airport entry to those Asian countries. They emphases that you are not required in that Country just on arrival.