The Young African Leaders Initiative has demanded that Secretary to the Cabinet explains the source of the funds used to charter the plane for President Edgar Lungu and his delegation to New York, USA for the UN General Assembly.
YALI Governance Advisor Isaac Mwanza has also called on Government to provide an accounting on how much the Presidential trip to New York for the UN General Assembly has cost the taxpayers’ money.
Mr Mwanza says this is considering that Zambia is failing to fully raise its own local revenue to meet the budget lines and is surviving on borrowed money.
He said YALI is saddened by reports that President Lungu chartered a private jet at a colossal sum of US$300, 000 to carry him, his party functionaries and Zambian musical artists when the people contributing to paying these taxes are failing to make ends meet.
Mr Mwanza has appealed to President Lungu to be conscious and reflect on the suffering of the Zambian people and avoid this lack of priorities especially that he had assured the nation that he was following late President Michael Sata’s footsteps.
Ni ndeke ya nyoko??
Nindalama za nyoko?
Mwenzefuna ayende namendo blali basket!
Did you want the president to go to Newyork pa ngombe shakwa HH?
Ubipina bubi … sometimes the price of chartering a plane are cheaper than using your own. That’s why it is cheaper to lease a Mercedes-Benz SLR McLaren 999 than it is to pay for $12,000,000 just to own one. Ala bwafya!!!
It’s believed there has been a purchase of a new aircraft to replace the old challenger which was purchased in the Kaunda era. The word is that’s the aircraft that wad used for the very first time..
On a progressive note. Zambia was announced yesterday on the CNN Africa Market Program as number 4 African country with prospects, being Africa’s leading economy Nigeria into fifth place and lvory Coast coming first. So YALI and the like chill stop behaving like Moody Investors scoundrels. Zambia is on top a good thing. Also remember progress is a process and not an event.
HH uses his own money not the tax payers money or borrowed money.
A ‘process’ is an event, iwe. Whose contused reasoning are you borrowing?
What is US$300,000? Ask HH how much he spent to hire that plane he used during his campigns
What is $300,000? Hmmmm….. let’s see.
Enough to buy maybe 25 first class tickets to USA on Emirates.
Enough to pay 2,000 good monthly salaries for many working Zambians.
Enough to build a school or a clinic and pay teacher/nurse salaries for maybe a year.
Enough to buy lunch for maybe 400,000 school children.
Enough to buy 47,000 poor households a bag of mealie meal or 11,000 bags of fertilizer.
So what’s your point, that $300,000 is peanuts?
Or maybe you think his excellency couldn’t possibly have traveled in a more cost-effective way? Besides, maybe you should ask HH if used taxpayer money for his travel like Lungu.
You are under five follower, hence you fail to understand that the man you compared in your statement used his resource while Lungu used public monies. Those unhappy with this want that money to be used in developmental projects. Remember that the money mention inhere is for chartering a plane add to parking fee and accommodation for his intourage.. how much in total??
What is the role of the musicians and dancers which he took with him? Businessmen would be a better choice as they could lobe new investors.
Indeed it is a noble and polite question worth an honest answer from secretary to the treasury
I’m still not clear on those musicians in ka Lungu’s entourage. Are they praise singers? Fine, I’m OK if ka Lungu needs praise singers to give him a boost in morale. As long as they don’t mention the word ‘Zambia’ and embarrass us all.
I sure hope they paid the $300,000 in advance. With today’s depreciation, prices just went up by 17% in Kwacha terms.
At this rate, the President may not be able to afford to come home!
Kwacha yapena guys.Bank of Zambia can u limit the amount of dolla you can sell in a day.That will help you stabilize the kwacha.
Please Kalyalya think.U have bin a useless BOZ governer in history of Zambia.jst resign to save yo image.
That will only make it worse.
Kalyalya may seem qualified for the job but am NOT at all sure if his heart is there. Have always said some appointments need review.
That’s what happens when you have a President who doesn’t listen to technocrats. Sata messed up the economy, Edgar is going the same direction. Recently the BOZ chief advised GRZ to cut down on expenses. Have they heeded to the advice? NO
Oh! Now it is Kalyalya’s fault?
BOZ is not an autonomous body. It reports to the ministry of finance. Do you see the conflict? Many of such are what is preventing Zambia from moving many of our people out of poverty. We know the chinks, but we have no will power to straighten them. Instead, we look for blame everywhere. There is an executive office at which all bucks stop. Look there!
@ Moscow
You have come with “GREAT” idea based on absolute ZERO thinking.
The effect of your INTELLECTUAL BRILLIANCE, if implemented, will have EXACTLY OPPOSITE EFFECT.
In a “Market driven economy” the price is established by the “OFFER” and “DEMAND”. Your proposition is centered on controlling quantity of “OFFER” to lover levels. What about “DEMAND”? If you are offering USD 10 Million and demand is for 5 Million the price of offered currency (USD) will be lower. On the other hand, if instead of 10 Million, you are offering 5 Million and demand is for 10 Million, the price will be higher.
Did you get it?
I am against president taking commercial flights. What if there is a hijack? What if there is an emergency in Zambia, where the president is expected to come back soon?
We must agree to buy a new plane say with a 20 year old lifespan, it will be a property of Zambia. For example Namibia has a Falcon, which is about 20 seats and flies long distance. The former Malawi president Joyce Banda sold a plane and started asking for lifts from others how embarrassing.
1. Lets buy a reasonable priced plane, like a Falco,, which is small but Trans-Continental. Lets not politice this issue because if HH won today, do you think, he will be flying commercial?
There IS an EMERGENCY in Zambia! The country economy is COLLAPSING! What is this clueless lazy bum of a Jamesoni Lungu doing about it? Going on another expensive holiday to New York! The best thing for Zambia that Lungu can do is NEVER COME BACK!
Forget about buying a new plane. With what money? This useless A55HOLE does not even deserve a bicycle!
Who told you that President Lungu chartered a private jet? We should learn to report properly. The Presidency is an institution and there are guys within the institution who deal with Procurement issues. It suits those who hate H.E. Lungu when it is reported that “President Lungu chartered a private jet”.
Let us learn to be factual.
They obviously deprived some other more important sector of the nation. Kabili banali kufuna kumvela manone yu booking ndeke. Manje sibanazibe ati silimonga cab. Pali kamutengo.
If ECL is really our ‘servant’, he needs to account for that money. $300,000 is too much just to go to USA for a talking shop!
*****s!!!! It seems u will never get things straight!!! If someone puts shit on a plate u say its ok!!! NO!! That wrong what am trying to say is that,lungu and his party are money spenders ok,he does nt care weather u ve no power,kwacha is not stable!! To him as long as tu bena mumbi and alike are with him when spending he has no problem! Bt I can assure u 2016 is just by the corner! U think u will steal votes this time? U must be joking coz zambians ve known what Pfools has done to our mother zambia within a short period of time turning tables heading a wrong direction!!!!!
so u wanted the president to go with PROFLIGHT to new york or the ZAF presidential helicopter?u sound so boring man.
Sata went to the UN using Emirates. What’s so special about this clueless clown leading our country?
There we go!Clueless & mismanagement at top priority since 2011,then one calls for patience to rule for more years-ati continuity-continuity!Zambians very weird people.Enjoy your PF regime guys for its bringing in unprecedented developments since 2011!
This is what happens when you take someone from Chawama to lead a nation. You supported in fit uni Lungu. Now the infitu you were talking about.
Wasn’t worth the long and expensive trip to NY given the grave economic situation at home. Harry (foreign affairs minister) or better still Permanent representative at the UN should have been delegated for this simple task!
If Lungu cannot even give the Nation a simple PRESS CONFERENCE here at home in Zambia is he really the right person so spend US$300,000 going to New York to just give a speech?
This is abuse of office, pure and simple! This IDlOT needs to be kicked out NOW! 2016 is much too long to wait.
If it is true Lungu’s government hired a plane for the New York trip, then it is indeed sad. Presidents Levy Mwanawasa and Michael Sata used British Airways and Emirates for their trips at a time when things were not this bad economically. I remember Mr. Sata travelling with a small delegation, sometimes with only State House aide Chella and his wife. That showed great frugality on the part of these two. But when you see Lungu travelling with musicians and Pf functionaries and former ministers in MMD, you get worried. Of what use was it for the President to travel with among others JK, Mampi, Sunday Chanda, Peter Daka, Mumbi Phiri and five full cabinet ministers plus government officials from foreign affairs? The man is beginning to live dangerously and taking our support for granted!
What would you expect from a vision less leader?
parliament is in session and an mp can presented a written question which can be adequately answered with facts.
1.00usd = 13.26ZMW in bueaurau de change and 12.48ZMW on boz website
YOU NEED TO DO BETTER IN WEB MAINTENANCE
Why not ask about all other President’s travels, both local and foreign?
Because even if he uses ZAF, there will always be some expense of a kind like on fuel and subsistence allowances for pilots! Who pays?
Comment: you are truly a tubulu c color ice
We were thinking commercial, the way Sata & Mwanawasa used to travel to the UN?
YALI if you want to get facts do not just shout the loudest, Government cannot fail to secure transport for the President of Zambia on national duty. It’s not always that the President of the country will use commercial flights therefore, you cannot compromise the security of the Republican President because security changes any minute and hence not every Jim and Jack have a right to yap or condemn everything. Even HH for instance,if he becomes Republican President at the appointed time, he will be protected and won’t be required to use his personal money when on national duty and his security will be a must… But as usual you can pose a question to Mr Speaker for clarity…
Zakeyo, the problem here is not the right of the President to travel on official duty, it is the COST of such travel when Zambia is BANKRUPTED by this same person. And his huge entourage, all getting allowances that we, THE ZAMBIAN TAXPAYER, will ultimately have to pay for.
As the top Manager of Zambias finances, we expect him to use our resources sensibly and prudently, not spending BORROWED MONEY like water on things that are not solving our problems!
Bali YALI naba stupi d bloggers, please use your common sense if you have some.
Our president flew directly into New York for the UN. Then
he had to connect to Washington DC where our Embassy is located to engage the Zambian community.
Do you expect him to use public transport or British passenger planes to move between places?
These chaps have no idea of what they are talking about, but as usual they have to comment to be relevant to their funders.
Yes we expected him to use public transport on the long haul from Zambia to UN. Charter within USA would not have come to that colossal amount. Sata & Mwanawasa used Emirates & British Airways commercial. Even Kaunda used commercial (Zambian Airways). Who is Lungu?
Bali YALI naba blogger, please use your common sense if you have some.
Our president flew directly into New York for the UN. Then
he had to connect to Washington DC where our Embassy is located to engage the Zambian community.
Do you expect him to use public transport or British passenger planes to move between places?
So you are telling us accommodation was paid for by tax payers for those musicians and other usless officials while stopped over in NY, since they used the same plane???
@ Patrick
Why are you trying to explain obvious to somebody with the intellect of a dead snail?
As much as you try, you will never manage to lower your intellect to the level of 1mbecility of “Luapula Premier”.
Commen.better he don’t come back
Pity ka Lungu. The poor chap is trying to compete with heads of state from Angola, Namibia and Kenya. Except for the fact that unlike the countries of those playmates of his, ka Lungu’s country is broke.
If you are old enough you will remember that KK at one time sent Frank Mutubila to read his speech at the United Nations to saves funds any normal Zambian can not support this chartering of a plane full of cadres and musicans this is very irresponsible. Lungu has to go now or you will lead to regret.
May Ask Do We Hv Any Provition In Our Laws To Recall A Failing Presdent Like They Recalle Mbeki If A Presdent Is Under Perfoming /miss Using His Postion We Must Hv A Way To Ask Him To Stepdown The Legal Brains We Hv Must Guide The Nation ( Prs Ndulo/nchito /mvunga/ Kabimba/ Hansungule . So Many Of U Guide Us
Truly laughable this utterly lazy bum Edgar just last week stated that he feels the pain of SMEs struggling out there and then does this..this why I always say this bum barely understands those speeches he reads out in public!!
Comment: but calungula icalo kwena eeh! Bakaponya mwalevotela baonaula icalo. Cicakolwa!!! Where is Senior Citizen and MMD Chief Bootliker ?
Can we also have chattered politicians and bureaucrats to run Zambia? The recycled lot we have is failing us badly.
Tumbuka Pride,
When you fail, it is bad. There is no good failing.
Think reasonably
We used the money from Euro Bond. So what is the problem with using money from Euro bond to fly abena JK, Macky2, and our beloved President. Ifintu ni Lungu bakamba. YALI should just help us provide solutions for the dollar problem.
@Spud
Your analysis of $300,000 is wishful thinking, its like a dog dreaming about a bone each time it sees a human leg, or to put it more crudely if you see a woman in a skirt you fantasize sex, that is what you are doing here.
Who paid accomodation nills for Mampi, JK, Moneky2, Malembe and other PF hooligans? We are slowing going back to the old days pf the PIG (Party a.d Its Government) under UNIP. Party activities must be seperated. Now they want to lie that PF paid for the jet. They still lie.SATA is well and working, so they told us until he was brought back home in a box looking like a 2000 year old Egyptian mummy. I will never believe these thugs again.