As the Zambia National Students’ Union (ZANASU) we are deeply submerged in shock at the revelations in our headlines that government has spent not less than K2Million tax payers money on Former First family. This translates into a daily expenditure of not less than K16,000 on lodging expenses since our late President MCS died MHSRIP.
Really this shows inconsistency in policy-priorities and it represents a lack of expenditure priorities on governments part and it’s worrying seeing how our three public universities are embroiled in continuos financial struggles. The University of Zambia just last week made headlines due to financial challenges, Mulungushi University was also making headlines in a similar situation and now it’s the Copperbelt University which is in limbo over lecturer salaries and students are the worst affected by all this.All these challenges demand government intervention.
K2million is a lot of money that could have been spared for needy areas or channeled to increasing the grants to our public universities to allow for their smooth running without disruptions. We think it’s mediocre to claim that government doesn’t have houses which could be used as transit homes for the outgoing first family, and that amount may just be a tip of the iceberg in terms of this gross financial indiscipline.
Amidst all this government continues to claim we have to raise the debt ceiling by borrowing to manage our expenditure, honestly government expenditure is excessive and highly unnecessary sometimes. Zambians are being subjected to borrow monies yet government fails to demonstrate a sense of fiscal discipline in its spending. Much as we sympathize with Hon. Chikwanda in his address with regard to the fiscal position, the finance minister told the Zambians through parliament that developments in the mining sector (lower projected tax collection), arrears on road sector projects & fuel, costs of the presidential by-election and weaker performance in the kwacha exchange rate (leading to higher external debt service payments) have led to significantly weaker performance in the fiscal account. We must check ourselves, they must conduct a self introspection as government. What we see as ZANASU is weak economic performance, in that global economic growth and commodity prices underpinned initial budgetary assumptions for the 2015 Financial Year and that the resultant weakened external demand and a softer copper price environment, coupled with broader dollar strength, have spilt over to the domestic economy primarily this has culminated in a weaker overall balance of payments and any difficulty to raise the budgeted shortfall may necessitate delays in capital expenditure, and investments in education which will dampen economic growth.
Government must concede it’s failure to prioritize it’s programs, and shows unacceptable behavior and we question its leadership qualities in this regard.
ZANASU expected that being privy to this financial data government must have been more conscious in it’s spending but we continue to stress our national treasury by spending recklessly and carelessly on unsustainable things like that amount of money we spent on the Former First Family.
Now this is why we think there are seemingly no priorities in government because look at our public universities they are seriously looming crises like the saying goes, ‘THE CURE IS WORSE THAN THE DISEASE’ and recent track record of fiscal overshooting, is one of the most salient impediments to Zambia’s developments in the education sector. The recurrent expenditures portion of the budget is quite large, and ranks higher than capital expenditure or education investment on the priority list. We concur with Young African Leaders Initiative that governments spending on that lodge was unnecessarily excessive and could have been avoided provided those in government had foresight.
We ask the President to address the nation on what’s happening in this regard and may the President intervene in our universities by helping resolve the financial inadequacies faced by our public universities.
GOD Bless Zambia
Thank You
By PRINCE J. NDOYI
ZANASU V. PRESIDENT .
WHAT IS EVEN MORE DISTURBING IS THAT OUR FORMER MOTHER OF THE NATION WHO WAS ASPIRING TO BE THE NEXT PRESIDENT COULD EASILY HAVE MOVED IN TO THE HOUSE SHE AND HER LATE HUSBAND OCCUPIED BEFORE THEY MOVED TO STATE HOUSE.
JUST THINK OF THIS. HOW MANY FORMER PRESIDENTS AND THEIR SPOUSES SHALL WE CONTINUE SUPPORTING JUST FOR THE NEXT 50 YEARS? AND AT WHAT COST? ADD THE MEDICAL COSTS ABROAD etc
THIS IS MADNESS!!!
Not even Mr sata could have allowed this. I blame guy scott for this. He took her there. Dr kaseba you have shown us what you are made of, i hereby withdraw my respect from. Boi grow up
That woman is a selfish person. Barely 7 days after burying our beloved president may his soul rest in peace she was in the media(ZWD)of having thrown away the late presidents”s clothes in the refuse bags and rushed to become president of Zambia. Every body in the nation were disgusted except Kabimba, Mmembe, Guy Scot and Mutembo Nchito who were her backers. As if that was not enough she stage managed her eviction. What a selfish woman!!!!
There is enough blame to go around here. First and foremost, the government, but most importantly, the voters. Hope you will vote wisely next time around. You put these people into office that have absolutely no conscious, they are in for themselves. There are no checks and balances, imwe mwebana besukulu need to organize yourselves and demand change. the time for the status quo is over.
I hope you are listening Prince. if all of you university students and graduates would explain these things to you relatives in basic language, limbi abantu balabuka for 2016. you are the ones suffering and not Lungu and company
Then we have this American president, Obama, born of an African father, who is saying we will not give you aid if you don’t embrace homosexuality,” Mugabe said in July 2013. “We ask, was he born out of homosexuality? We need continuity in our race, and that comes from the woman, and no to homosexuality. Winter kabimba and Membe, no; Maria and Maria, no.”
Mama ba kaseba mwilatusebanya twapapata you need to have good morals
Just note how those who want the status quo to stay have become aggressive.
They blame Christine while they are beneficiaries of kickbacks from Reedbuck.
So its upto the rest of us to wise up & defend our country.