Friday, March 29, 2024

Solwezi -Chingola Road forgotten?

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File:The Mining industry contributes 65 percent to Zambia’s national treasury and the major mining operations are in North-Western Province where, among the mining firms, are world-renowned mines like Kansanshi Ming PLC owned by First Quantum Minerals (FQM) and Barrick Gold’s Lumwana Mining Company. However, the road to Solwezi from the Copperbelt is in a deplorable condition and motorists are having challenges on the highway which is riddled with huge potholes. And in avoiding potholes, some motorists are causing accidents. But children from the villages on the Chingola-Solwezi road have resorted to patching up the road using mud, in exchange for money from the motorists as can be seen above
File:The Mining industry contributes 65 percent to Zambia’s national treasury and the major mining operations are in North-Western Province where, among the mining firms, are world-renowned mines like Kansanshi Ming PLC owned by First Quantum Minerals (FQM) and Barrick Gold’s Lumwana Mining Company. However, the road to Solwezi from the Copperbelt is in a deplorable condition and motorists are having challenges on the highway which is riddled with huge potholes. And in avoiding potholes, some motorists are causing accidents. But children from the villages on the Chingola-Solwezi road have resorted to patching up the road using mud, in exchange for money from the motorists as can be seen above

Traveling through the Solwezi – Chingola Road now has become a terrible option to those that have used the road recently.

With three major mines in Solwezi and Kalumbila Districts, one still wonders why the road still remains unattended to despite having three contractors on the same project.

Road Pave, China Geo and Buildcon are the three contractors trying out their muscles to make the road more useful than it is now. However it is disappointing to note that 4 years down the line after the project started, the developments taking place on the road are at a snails pace.

What is more shocking is that a journey to Solwezi from Chingola that took a maximum of 2hour 30 minutes now takes a maximum of 5 hours using public transport.

[pullquote]What is shocking is that despite Lucky Mulusa hailing from the Province, he has not taken advantage of his position to help speed up the works like he has done in other districts.[/pullquote]

It was under Steven Masumba, Nathaniel Mubukwanu, Dawson Kafwaya and now Danny Chingimbu as provincial Ministers, there is still nothing to write home about.

Despite the claims of the town being the New Copperbelt! There is nothing close to that as the actual Copperbelt that has massively benefited from government’s road projects.

The Mines in the two Districts are the largest Copper Producers in the country but still no one bothers to have the road improved to better standards.

“It is a death trap, driving through the road put me under serious fear as to whether I would be home alive or not, the road is too bumpy” one of the travelers said.

“Its the issue of commitment, the Kitwe-Ndola dual carriage way and Kitwe-Chingola dual carriage way, how long have they taken? You can still see progress within 2 years, but for Solwezi after four years,the only difference is creation of detour roads and drainages and what is that!” He added.

Economic Activities in Solwezi have been delayed due to the slow pace at which the contractors are working on the road.

Politicizing the contraction of the Solwezi-Chingola Road will be the worst thing government would be making as the current situation puts the ruling party at a risk of losing votes.

Lucky Mulusa the former Solwezi Central Member of Parliament protested in 2012 by taking a walk from Chingola to Solwezi accompanied by Former Transport and Communications Minister Sarah Sayifwanda due to the poor state of the road.

However, what is shocking is that despite Mulusa hailing from the Province, he has not taken advantage of his position to help speed up the works like he has done in other districts.

Government needs to urgently wake up and sort the Solwezi Chingola Road to maximize economic benefits to the national treasury.

By Clinton Masumba
Kitwe

26 COMMENTS

  1. We need reforms in the were road contracts are issued/tendered…surely our roads are overpriced and the govt is doing nothing to make the cost of bitumen available in all towns. ..its a sham. Road construction is simple a gravy train for the ruling at the same time we are not embracing modern techincs…in Europe you need only 5 people to contruct an urban road..in Zambia you we see 15.

    • Ba Masumba, the contractors are waiting for the rain season to end as explained by the government……….why can’t you have the patience to wait before criticising the government? Let’s wait for the rain season to end and if nothing happens we will surely say the government has failed.

    • Ba Sebenza, you say the government is waiting for the rains to stop. So it has been raining for four years non-stop you are telling us? LoL

  2. mulusa is enjoying..do you think he’s thinking of that place now mwata..forget..the govt has no money for you..unless muchinga

    • So yu don’t want Muchinga to receive anything yu moran. Muchinga is receiving like any other Province. Yo comments are to paint Muchinga like its the only province receiving development but everyone knows the truth only the galible like yoself can believe yo cheap propaganda- shame on yu

  3. Comment:mulusa seems to have forgetten he did a walk protest on those roads, is it because he is now in charge of monitoring such things?

    • Learn to research before you display your ignorance in public. Don’t you that Mulusa is in charge of project monitoring for the pf? Wasn’t it Mulusa who shed tears when he was inspecting projects in the newly created districts when he found civil servants living in deplorable conditions?
      Why is there rapid development in Muchinga?It is simply because of the stupid tribal politics and selective development exhibited under this failed party called pf .

  4. If you had devolved your governance system, that area would have lined up their priorities and using their proportionate budget allocation (based on their economic value and contribution to the purse) would have put up reasonably good infrastructure to boot. Unfortunately we all love the UNIP-era behavior of a President decreeing things and we all clap and call him good when we have systems that are supposed to work without encumbering the President’s office with mediocrity and things that are a matter of course!!! Zed cabe awe shuwa!

    • If Govt did not facilitate that mining development, would u lobby for devolution. Don’t talk talk about devolution just because yu find yoself in position of economic advantage. Copperbelt fed the whole Country for so many years and even yu were flocking to the CB for a livelihood but today yu want to eat alone. Yu are so selfish and very short sighted

    • @Hanza
      Nice comment. These people have forgotten that CB upto now is still contributing more to the economy but as usual they want to eat alone. No wonder KK neglected the place

  5. THE QUESTION IS:WHY MR MULUSA HAS DECIDED TO FIX A BLIND EYE ON THIS ROAD PROJECT WHICH HE PROTESTED 3 YEARS AGO WHEN IN CHARGE NOW?

  6. Ba Masumba….try to dig deeper into the delays in the construction of that road. Some of the firms you have mentioned only got the signed contract last year and not part of 4 years mentioned. Other than the rains, there are also technicalities from RDA that have failed the contractors to smoothly kick start the project. There are issues of delayed finances as admitted by Govt to contractors, terrain challenges, poor scoping,detailing of the and specification of technical drawings from our inexperienced Zambia road engineers that has hampered the project and intellegent contractor would not risk to pursue until resolved.

  7. solwezi is seen as strong hold of a named oppositin so lungu wil nothing good in that plac yet muchinga has contributed nothing to de national cake but has two universties and good roads.take a ride go nampundwe mine de road is pathetic but de mine was opened in 1960s so conclusion of de mata pf must go let hh kachema musuma atekeeeeeee.

  8. Ooh men, its politics. Why waste time on characters that can’t change no matter what? Let PF take development to the people that put them in power.

    • Is this what is practiced in developed countries? No wonder you are poor cos’ you are backward in your thinking. If the incoming govt. does the same, guess who will cry out more? yes the same people who are supporting the failed party.

  9. The truth about Lucky mulusa is that he is a Congolese whose parents just happened to settle in Solwezi and he just took advantage of the situation to make a life for himself and his family. As long as he is making money for himself, he is not worried about Solwezi. He has however managed to organize tender for his Congolese uncles.

  10. It is foolishness for those in power to neglect the road leading to the economic hub of the country. The anger for the people of North western is justified the government has alienated them from the rest of the country. The people of north western province are cursing the day the PF came into power.

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