MINISTER of Works and Supply Honourable FELIX MUTATI has asked the Office of the Northern Province Minister Honourable BRIAN MUNDUBILE to help the councils updating their property valuation rolls so that they are able to charge proper rates.
MR MUTATI said this exercise is cardinal as its success will reduce pressure on the national treasury.
He said doing so will enable raise the much needed funds that is lying idle uncollected because they are not able to collect it thereby ending up depending on central government to finance all their requirements.
MR MUTATI was speaking in Kasama this morning when he paid a courtesy call on MR MUNDUBILE ahead of today’s celebrations of the Labour Day where he is guest of honour.
Also present during the courtesy call was Senior Chief Mwamba of the Bemba people of Kasama.
“Assist the Councils with their valuation rolls to try and create capacity for council for revenue collection and update the valuation in order for them to collect proper revenue,” he said.
He said because of the size of the exercise which will be national a few towns and cities will be selected this year to kick start and this will involve the private sector partners who will be able to do the exercise on a structured financing basis.
MR MUTATI said because the limitation of the budget line, Government will work with the private sector who are ready to partner so that we minimise the call on treasury which has so many responsibilities.
He bemoaned the high levels of misuse of public resources but was quick to point out that it will come to an end.
And in responding to a call by MR MUNDUBILE, MR MUTATI has commended the Minister for his untiring efforts to see to it that the university is finally financed and soon to be constructed in the province.
He said MR MUNDUBILE’S efforts to push for the university has finally paid off and the people of Northern Province will soon have their university constructed as the money is ready at 100 percent.
On the roads, MR MUTATI said the province will be catered for from the 200 million sourced from the World Bank.
And on the need to help control the usage and maintenance of vehicles in the province which currently attracts huge sums of taxpayers’ money, MR MUTATI assured MR MUNDUBILE that a policy on transport usage has since been drafted awaiting approval.
He said in addition, there is an aspect of embracing technology as one of the long term solution and believes that once implemented, the exercise will greatly help arrest the abuse.
MR MUTATI further said there is need to revise the charge and penalty to make it stiffer so that eventually it helps to change people’s mindset towards the utilisation of public resources which go beyond motor vehicles.
“So Minister we need to control ruthlessly. Zambia Revenue Authority is doing a lot struggling to raise revenue. The ministries are crying that we are not sending money for them to run and render service. Whatever little is being sent is being consumed or misused, so it a battle we are going to continue until we get the mindset corrected,” he said.
And on MR MUNDUBILE’S request that the Ministry allows the establishment of service centres so as to minimise resources on maintenance of vehicles in the province, MR MUTATI said the call is progressive adding that the matter could ably be handled by ESCO which is earmarked for diversification from pontoons to other sustainable and viable solutions.
He appreciated the fact that there is need to standardise on the brand of vehicles being used in the public service which comes at a greater cost when it comes to maintenance due to various sources.
MR MUTATI said there is need to minimise the type of vehicles being bought for the public service.
“We need to minimise the variety of vehicles, we need to begin to standardise so that we can have proper capacity built around a particular brand or two. Now every brand of vehicle is available in the civil service including dot coms. I think it’s high time that we cleaned up,” he said.
He said like in any operation, maintenance must be down but currently it is even higher than delivering service to the Ministry of Health as well as the Ministry of Education.
you mean you want to hike rates as well. How much more food do you want to take from our children s mouths bwana minister?
Tax, rates, NHI premiums, road tolls, fuel levy, borehole tax, ratsa. Eish
He did say PRIVATE partners would be involved in the collection process. Another outsourced function that should be done by government.
I didn’t know that the Ministry of works and supply is still relevant after the creation of Ministry of Infrastructure. Anyway kudos to Hon Mutati for his continued effort to project the importance of his ministry in the national economic development equation.I bet this man can do the same if moved to Chiefs and traditional affairs.Mutati is just good,truth be told.