Tuesday, March 19, 2024

Mukanga urges mining investors to adequately plough back to the communities

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MINISTRY of Transport, Works, Supply and Communications Yamfwa Mukanga (right) with his Permanent Secretary Agnes Musunga during the sports festival at Barclays Sports Complex in Lusaka
MINISTRY of Transport, Works, Supply and Communications Yamfwa Mukanga (right) with his Permanent Secretary Agnes Musunga during the sports festival at Barclays Sports Complex in Lusaka

INVESTORS in the mining industry of Zambia have been urged to adequately plough back to the community by heavily investing in projects which are aimed at improving the lives of surrounding residents.

Transport, Works, Supply and Communication Minister Yamfwa Mukanga said mining investors were making a lot of money and hence they needed to start investing heavily in projects which would make a difference among the local people.

Mr Mukanga urged mining investors to consider supplementing Government efforts in constructing better roads in residential areas and other surrounding places where they were operating from.

Speaking in an interview in Livingstone, Mr Mukanga noted that mining companies were making huge and noticeable investments to improve the lives of people in other countries.

“We want mining investors to plough back adequately into the community. Some of them are taking the people of Zambia for a ride and we don’t want that investors who take people for granted.

“I want to see better roads in the residential areas upgraded by mining firms and I also want to see these firms sponsoring our children to go to school and even think of constructing a university in their area,” he said.

And Mr Mukanga, who is Patriotic Front (PF) Member of Parliament (MP) for Kantashi Constituency in Mufulira, has urged Mopani Copper Mines to do more to improve the lives of people in Mufulira.

“Mopani Copper Mines cannot be writing notices to residents in Kankoyo to say vacate while we are starting up a smelter. That is wrong and unacceptable.

“I am not very happy, I am not an MP for Kankoyo but I am an MP for Kantashi in Mufulira so I am concerned as a resident of Mufulira,” Mr Mukanga said.

He claimed that investors at Mopani Copper Mines had not heavily ploughed back into the community ever since they took over the facility.

“The ploughing back they are talking about is repairing the Shinde Stadium and the rest. Is that the ploughing back we want?

“As an MP, I don’t think that is a correct thing and I think the mining company is taking us for a ride. I want the people of Mufulira to get jobs and I need to see a difference,” he said.

Mr Mukanga said every investor operating in Zambia, apart from those investing in the mining industry, should think big by ploughing back heavily to the communities where they were operating from.

“I need projects that can change the lives of people. Those clinics in Mufulira were constructed a long time ago when I was working for Zambia Consolidated Copper Mines (ZCCM).

“I want to see a different set of programmes. Even drilling boreholes is not acceptable from bigger firm,” he said.

14 COMMENTS

  1. Hon. Mukanga talks as if he never worked in Zambia Consolidated Copper Mines (ZCCM). No wonder president Sata was saying his ministers are dull. Mr. Mukanga is just exposing his dullness. He has no teeth to bite Mopani. Is trying to impress the people in Mufulira that is concerned with cheap talk which is not achievable. It is a duty of the government to provide. Mopan pays the taxes and the government is suppose to take care of the roads of the township. Corruption and stealing of money is so high in government and he wants the mining company to be doing the government work. The mines will plough back when they want not when Yamfwa wants. Dullness of our ministers has cost this country.

  2. the second commentator is right. Mukanga behaves as if he is pleasing someone ,he worked for zccm,mcm and now he want to behave as if he hasn’t leaved in copperbelt and muf,dull minister, yesterday i was reading the article on tumfweko where the mines (mcm) declared that they have paid about 850 000 000 dollas in taxes since 2007 to lusaka not mufulira and where that money has gone i think he knows well than me. today mukanga can even open the mouth to even ask not command but asking the mines when he knows too well that they have have paid his government $850 million dollas. I m not surprised that even malawi which just produces tea is ranked 4 th of the poorest countries than zambia at 5 th position which produces the second best copper in the WORLD not in AFRICA but THE WORLD OVER.

  3. Collect maximum profits from your investors, and develop communities yourselves.

    Zambians voted for you to develop the country, they never voted for the investors.

  4. The only way to get something back from the mines is by implementing windfall tax and not by pleading with them to plough back.

  5. You are a usless Mp, those mines pay taxes, it is Grzs duty to use those taxes to develop the area. He wants investors to do governments responsibilities so Pf can concentrate on stealing and emptying government coffers.

  6. Mukanga Chipuba, people of Mufulira is this all you have as your representative? Please find someone more reasonable to represent you.

  7. It seems this is the only other BUFFOON Mukanga who is overworked in this ministry given the *****ic utterances he is churning out on a daily basis…these type of statements go well with illiterates; the fact is these mines are private companies in it for a profit not for charity; that is the reason they pay tax..you charge them fair tax and you should plough that back into the community not go buying GRZ cars, minister’s loans, minister’s fuel etc.

    The likes of Mukanga are nosier than ever as they know that there is no leadership in his government; old man Sata would have put him in his place. Meanwhile Lazy Bum Lungu is more interested in his hideous hat collection than anything else.

  8. He’s actually right but not just saying it properly. It is called “Social Corporate Responsibility” where corporations give back to communities they are working to improve living standards. Many organisations will donate 2-5% of their revenue towards building better infrastructure or investing in community schools. We learn this in “Ethics” and can be Goggled to see how other organisations do this. Some companies are providing eye glasses for people in rural areas, for each one purchased they donate a pair to Africa. Some big corporations who sell certain brand shoes also donate a free pair to Africa for one that is purchased. It’s surprising how these big firms are sucking the life out of Zambia by making billions and not making communities better and enriching Zambian’s…

  9. Social Corporate Responsibility: Even though I am not a supporter of PF and support HH, here is an example of what Transport, Works, Supply and Communication Minister Yamfwa Mukanga was trying to tell us. The video gives us a look at how corporations are giving back.

  10. Well, to begin with there are bylaws that designate areas. Those mines will be able to “plough” back if you repeal that law that disbanded all social attachments to investing corporates. In the past they were duty-bound because they owned a residential zone where they could build other amenities such as the recreation clubs, hospitals and schools. Now you have reclaimed those things and told them to concentrate on their core business. What now? The same thing happened with Catholic schools; KK took over then started lamenting at the dilapidation of those excellent facilities. They have since reverted and are back to some reasonable form… THINK LAWMAKERS – THINKKKKK!!!!!!

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