GOVERNMENT will constitute a team of experts to conduct a forensic audit on the mines to ascertain the impact of low copper prices on the international market and power deficit on their operations.
Minister of Mines and Minerals Development Christopher Yaluma said in an interview yesterday that a forensic audit of the mines is necessary to enable Government to establish the impact of low copper prices and the power deficit.
Mr Yaluma said Government is sympathetic to the citizens, who have lost jobs in the mines and that it is doing everything possible to keep the miners in employment.
“We are putting up a team to conduct a forensic audit on all the mines to assess the impact of low copper prices and power deficit on their operations. We know that they are facing those challenges, but we need to do our own audit,” Mr Yaluma said.
The minister said low copper prices on the international market should not be used as an excuse by mining companies to downsize their workforce because it is something Government has no control over.
Mr Yaluma said the problem is global in nature and that using it to retrench workers will not be in line with Government’s policy of creating jobs for the Zambian people.
Meanwhile, ActionAid Country Director Pamela Chisanga has said that the decision by government to conduct a forensic audit on mining companies to ascertain the impact of low copper prices and power deficit on their operations is ill-timed.
Ms Chisanga has told QFM News via telephone that her organization had some time back advised government to conduct a forensic audit on mining firms to establish how much they were making in terms of profits, but that the advice fell on deaf ears.
Ms Chisanga said that it is too late now to conduct such an exercise considering that the country is already in a crisis.
She said that carrying out such an undertaking now will not yield any positive results, adding that the outcome of the audit at this point will only indicate the real position in the mining sector.
She said that government should have conducted the audit at the time her organisation called for such an undertaking and not wait when things have turned sour resulting in thousands of miners losing jobs.
Ms Chisanga said that conducting a forensic audit of the mines now will be a mere academic exercise given the situation in the mining sector.
foresic audit for what?pay these mines their VAT refunds and they will retain a good number of the workforce for atleast 6 months.But your ECL is preoccupied with 2016 elections instead of sorting out the mines issues.anyway ecl said he doesnt have vision of his own.
Global blah blah global….
Another time & money wasting exercise.
These PF ministers if you brought such audit in a bar, even Edgar kuti akupononona. Ba Yaluma, bushe tekutumpa fye uku?
why main reasons why any political administration resist passing freedom of information bill is bcz these politicians will be exposed of their corruption and lies.The bill requires a judge to issue a information disclosure from media houses to govt or private agencies inorder to ascertain the truth,in its logical sense it is transfering power to the people,which we call democracy.
sorry it should read THE MAIN REASON..
The forensic exercise will cost Govt lots of money and gain nothing. All base metal mines in the world are affected by the low prices on the LME. In Zambia, electricity deficit, low copper prices and failure to pay the mines their VAT refunds has made the situation worse. The Chamber of Mines, and many other concerned citizens continously raised an alarm on the problems the mines were facing, but Govt did not react.
This statemwnt implies that the global issues should not be be used as an excuse by the mines negatively unless by PF
For sure,them they are busy attributing their failures to global problems,but when it comes to the mines ati they should not cite global problems,it does not make sense at all.
Ba yama Bayaluma you are too reactive as opposed to being proactive,too much inertia,you have really put us in a total mess.
How do you conduct a research about problems in your marriage after the court has officially granted you divorce?
Who doesn’t know the impact of low copper prices and loadshedding? This is not hidden information requiring a scientist!
Use that money to resettle the affected families as it is clear u ve no control over the mines
Foools
An extremely difficult decision to comprehend from the Hon Minister……….what value will this exercise yield? We are crying over spilt milk, the train left the station early this year, the bridge to cross this river is now washed away……I think let us just have elections and start all over again as a country. If PF is re-elected, so be it; but is just seems so clear that our colleagues are running out of ideas, and very fast at that! The President’s tour in the CB, the national day of prayer, and now the National House of Prayer…..eish!
“Government to conduct a forensic audit on the mines” Kwena You guys!It would seem you don’t get tired with talking. If I may ask, “When will you walk the talk?”
Pamela 1: 0 Minister Yaluma
Pamela Chisanga has disappointed me once before with her statement last week, but on this one she is absolutely right. Minister Yaluma was sitting on the sidelines when the problems in the mines were brewing over the past few months starting with VAT refunds and he did not do anything, today what is going to achieve by conducting an audit, apart from fat allowances for some unpatriotic or unemployed technocrats?
Look here minister, you do not act after the cat has escaped from the bag. I suggest that you ask the President to give you another portfolio, not a sensitive one like Mines.
Now opposition UPND, do not misunderstand me, let me tell you that I find your pathetic understanding of economic issues affecting the country a danger to Zambia. Up to now…
While we appreciate that the exercise to conduct the forensic audit is late, its still however a necessary activity so that Mr Yaluma and Government can better understand the full impact. Knowledge is power. Application of the knowledge obtained will certainly help in dealing with these kind of issues now and certainly in the future. Metal prices fluctuations ,particularly copper ,including drought effects are cyclical in nature. its late but it is still the best thing to do Madam Chisanga!!!!
Why can’t these guys get X. Looking for X outside the equation? The mines are affected by global impact, high cost of electricity. Low availability of ekectricitu., high cost of producing due to among other factors, blotted workforce. So ba Yaluma, I have found X for you……. no need for triple integration to solve an algebra question.
PF we need forensic audit of your visionless leadership and disjointed focus.
100%
The problem is not with the mines, it is with incompetent clowns called PF in Government!
If an audit is necessary, GOVERNMENT is the one requiring it . They are the ones misusing Taxpayers money for 300, 000 dollar airplane charters!
CAN WE HAVE AN AUDIT OF HOW MUCH SATAS “MEDICAL TOURISM” COST THE COUNTRY?
AND HOW MUCH HIS STATE FUNERAL COST?
PLEASE AUDIT THE RDA CORRUPTION MONEY HE HID IN HIS BEDROOM!
AND TELL US HOW MUCH WAS SPENT ON BY ELECTIONS!
CREATING NEW DISTRICTS AND RENAMING AIRPORTS IS EXPENSIVE. HOW MUCH TAXPAYERS MONEY DID THAT WASTE?
COMMISSIONS OF INQUIRY AND JUDGES FROM MALAWI HAVE EATEN PUBLIC MONEY- AND THE RECCOMENDATIONS WERE IGNORED!
THAT IS WHAT WE NEED AUDITED, NOT THE MINES!
Contd….Up to now UPND does not believe that low water levels in the Kariba dam can result in load shedding, they do not even believe that rainfall has anything to do with filling the dam. Because of that, to me you do not qualify as an alternative even to a bad government. I think that Edgar Chagwa Lungu is a safer pair of hands than the lot currently trying to distort facts in their quest for power. Stand on the platform of truth and you may change your fortunes. The donchi kubeba tricks that some opposition leaders are trying to use cant work now, people are wiser.
Only a ****would believe this empty talk ..you have lamentable failed to conduct “forensic audit in transfer pricing where we are losing billions of dollars and you want to con audit in something that is obvious to see…more lies from empty tins.
Any forensic audit is always good. It can only lead to a clear assessment of the state of one of the greatest assets in the country’s economy. Like all good tools, the audit is as good as the user. In other words, the tools do not in themselves solve problems. Tools need to be well utilized by skilled personnel with clear objectives. Better late than never, certainly. It is wise to deal with leakages at the earliest time possible than to ignore it completely. The audit is not a substitute for economic diversification. Rather, the audit will substantiate the need for economic diversification. Next time, good ideas from civil society must continue to be advocated loudly even when government is not interested. At some point, government will start to hear civil society and progress will be…
We are still waiting for feedback from the contaminated oil scandal import scandal!!
….Bembas say..’wasensela elyokawa’…trying to be active late afternoon…reminds me of a man who had 12 children and he approaches PPAZ Planned Parenthood Association of Zambia for a Family planning…
….there was a forensic audit on KCM some time back…up to now that report has not been released to the public and most importantly, it hasn’t served its purpose…..
The problem with this move can be answered by asking the following question. Why now and not be before? You cannot decide to do such exercise after you have warned the people so concerned.They will destroy the evidence and put in measures to paint an artificial picture. This is a fools game .
DEFINITION of ‘Forensic Audit’ An examination and evaluation of a firm’s or individual’s financial information for use as evidence in court. A forensic audit can be conducted in order to prosecute a party for fraud, embezzlement or other financial claims.
What is the objective of this Forensic Audit? Another conduit for stealing money!
Thanks for the clarification. I was beginning to wonder my sanity. This just goes to show that the Honorable has little, if any clue as to what he is doing.
Perhaps it’s semantics.
I can’t see the point of this exercise other than just make some consultants rich. By definition all businesses, and mining is no exception do go through bad patches. The GRZ need to chill and communicate more maturely what is happening to the people.
MINISTRY OF MINES NEEDS TO BEEF UP ITS MONITORING / MINERAL ECONOMICS DEPARTMENT. RIGHT NOW IF YOU CHECK WITH THE MINISTRY REGARDING THE COUNTRY’S PRODUCTION / MINERALS RESOURCE DATA BASE YOU WILL BE SHOCKED BY THE LACK OF INFORMATION.
UNLIKE THE SOUTH AFRICAN EQUIVALENT, INCLUDING THEIR CHAMBER OF MINES, THERE IS NO WEBSITE TO INDICATE WHAT IS GOING ON IN OUR MINES.
SHAME INDEED.
What about “Forensic Audit” for borrowed 3 billion dollars?
Academic exercise, no more no less….forensic audit should have been when documentaries were being shown of how a mere city in Switzerland could benefit over US$9bn directly from Zambian copper at the peak of the market prices whilst us, the entire country could only get a paltry US$300m from OUR copper. We complained but you said we are lunatics for demanding what is ours.
That’s the dumbest statement or rather idea I have heard this month.
Madam Chisanga, Dr are sometimes requested to conduct postmortems on dead people. Whereas your advice could have been undertaken then it may also have probably created a mistrust between Govt and mines. The Govt. has a strong case and real opportunity to conduct forensic audit in the light of the current situation. This will allow Govt. to respond appropriately to this crisis. Yes forensic Audit must be conducted on all mines and those who will be found to have been cheating must loose their mining license. Investors’ business is to take as much profit as possible from their investments to the extent of jeopardizing national interests. To balance this the Govt must fair but firm. The issues of insider buying of Copper are all strategies by these so called investors to maximize on the…
Yaluma would do well to read Dr Musokotwane’s article on Zambian Watchdog about IMF, then he would see that there is no need to embark on this wasteful venture!
I wish to ask the learned country men to just print the Kcm repot to be published and distributed to the parliament so the country nows how they have raped the the entire system by underinvoicing exports to company in Dubai which is fujehra gold and copper rod plant.And how they have overinvoiced there imports
by there offshore companies claiming they have invested in plant and machinery.This has all been master mineded by anil agarwals son Agnivesh sitting in Dubai.Everyone knows the Devil comes to steal,destroy ,Kill
John10:10 but our lord has come to give life in Abundance and give ous a dubble portion.For once let ous in the name of Jesus confront the devil and his minions and bring the lords light ,so there is no more darkness.Jeremiah 3:3 says call upon my Holy name and I will…
in the name of Jesus print what has been sent
I agree with #LOL advise to this ear less goverment.
Guys…..Guys,
There has been a 6-man European Union-sponsored mining delegation with the Ministry of Mines in Lusaka since November 2014. Their terms of appointment was on checks and balances of the mines. They were supposed to have developed monitoring measures…WHAT HAVE THEY DONE IN A YEAR? JUST ENJOY THE HOSPITALITY OF ZAMBIA!
I’ve always advocated that…ONLY EXPATS CAN RUN THE MINES MINISTRY
When expats were there in the 1970’s and 1980’s, the Zambian Mines Ministry, and the Mines Safety Department were two of the best in the world, competing with countries like Canada, Chile and Australia. With Zambianisation…These have gone to the dogs. Please pardon the pun!