Sunday, October 6, 2024

How Zambia Loses Billions of Dollars in illicit Outflows, Fueling Excessive Debt and Low Foreign Reserves

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Mine workers in one of the Zambian Mines on the Copper belt
Mine workers in one of the Zambian Mines on the Copper belt

….Mines’ threat of mass layoffs upsets government and Zambians……

By Kalima Nkonde

Story Highlights

  • The bottom line is that illicit financial flows leads to a loss of resources on the part of the government, and the resources are actually lost into foreign hands. Our call as civil society has always been ,can we ensure that we tackle the issue of illicit financial flows because even the debt burden that we are now suffering from is just as a result of that.(Patrick Nshindano Executive director, Civil Society for Poverty Reduction (CSPR), 2017)
  •  We will not allow situations where mining houses start dictating what type of taxes we should have! What government would like to do in these tax measures is to ensure that we seal transfer pricing, tax avoidance, which been perpetuated by these multinationals companies (Mines Minister, Richard Musukwa, December, 2018)
  • What we have been highlighting is the paradox with African countries. We see a continent that has the largest shortage of finance but also at the same time we are seeing a massive amount of money fleeing the continent. We’re talking about money that’s being stolen or embezzled out of the continent. So the paradox is you have a continent that needs money but it’s a continent that is also financing the rest of the world, in countries that don’t need the money. Money is being lost which could have been used to finance investments (Professor Léonce Ndikumana from the University of Massachusetts Amherst.)
  • The House may wish to note further that the contribution of the mining sector revenue as percentage of GDP remains low at 4%. Further, provisions on capital allowances and carry forward of losses eliminated potential taxable profits. Mar. Speaker, the tax structure was simply illusory as only two mining companies were paying company income tax.(Former Zambia Finance Minister, Alexander Chikwanda,2015 )
  • I am convinced that today there is more money leaving a continent like Africa due to money laundering and tax evasion and illicit financial flows than the money that goes in through official development aid, and this is a common responsibility of the international community (UN Secretary-General António Guterres, 2017 )
  • Our heads of State and government are aware that the problem of illicit financial flows is exacerbated by corrupt tendencies, lack of or weak African institutions both at national and continental levels in all sectors, governance challenges, weak tax administration, and lack of capacity to monitor and curb such criminal activities (Former President Thabo Mbeki, Chairman, AU High level Panel on IFFS)
  • Illicit financial flows (IFFs) out of the developing world are a key impediment to tackling poverty and inequality. They rob the African continent of an estimated $70-billion each year – funds that could be used for development. IFFs are “the ugliest chapter in international affairs since slavery”. An estimated $70-billion, and increasing, leaves Africa each year through illicit outflows. (Global Financial Integrity President Raymond Baker)

The untold story of Zambia’s excessive debt and low foreign reserves is the negative impact that illicit financial flows have had and continue to have on the country. Zambians need to be made aware that the debt that the country has accumulated, is in a large measure, due to the fact that billions of US dollars disappear each year without a trace and end up in tax havens and/or absorbed into Western economies and now China, forcing government to accumulate excessive debt to fill the gap created in order to carry out development projects.

In the light of the mining houses, threats of massive layoffs of over 21,000 Zambians, following 2019 budget tax reforms affecting them which are meant to ensure Zambians benefit more from their resources, rather than continue accumulating debt while shareholders of mining houses are getting richer, it is appropriate that the debate should be extended to illicit financial flows which mines are alleged to be among the major culprits.

According to research by Global Financial Integrity and other renowned economists like Professor Dikumana of Massachusetts University, Zambia and other African countries are net creditors, which mean far more money flowed out of Zambia than into them thus exposing the hypocrisy of the benefits of foreign direct investment and donor funding. Recent research shows that the total sum that leaves developing countries each year as unreported financial outflows, referred to as illicit capital flight, amounts to as much as ten times the annual global aid flows, and twice the amount of debt developing countries repay each year.

It is important to have a full picture of the extent of illicit financial flows problem, by taking a holistic and helicopter view, with regard to the conduits or channels used to siphon funds out of Zambia. There are three broad channels that billions of dollars are lost. These are: through multinational enterprises, smuggling of natural resources and through corruption and money laundering activities.

Multinational Enterprises tax avoidance and evasion

The major culprits of illicit financial flows are Multinational Enterprises (MNEs) through the manipulation of trade transactions. Trade misinvoicing ( under valuing exports and overvaluing imports), transfer pricing, payments between parent companies and their subsidiaries, and profit-shifting mechanisms designed to conceal revenues are all common practices by companies seeking to maximise profits in the process undermining or negating the expected positive effect of foreign direct investment and aid.

According to the World bank, MNEs like the mines have tended to structure their businesses by consolidating high-value functions and related intangible assets in hubs that provide goods and services to their global operations. They locate them in low-tax jurisdictions or in jurisdictions allowing the establishment of preferentially taxed special purpose entities.

According to Stephen Yeboah, a Research Consultant at the African Natural Resources Centre of the African Development Bank (AfDB), Nigeria and Zambia are among the worst affected in terms of not benefiting from their resources in Africa.

“The practices of misinvoicing in Nigeria’s oil and Zambia’s copper exports and imports reflect the challenges that illicit financial flows present to Africa’s extractive sector. Between 1996 and 2014, under invoicing of oil exports from Nigeria to the United States was worth $69.7 billion. In Zambia, over the same period, a record of $28.9 billion of copper exports to Switzerland, which is more than half of all its copper exports, did not reflect in Switzerland’s import statistics,” he wrote in his research paper.

In 2012, the then Deputy Minister of Finance, Miles Sampa reported that Zambia had lost $2 billion dollars in tax evasion by Mining houses. Sampa said that only two mines claimed profits in that year and that “the other mines for one reason or another, some genuine, some not, are always making losses. Most of it is due to transfer pricing or tax avoidance.”

In their 2013 report on illicit financial flows (IFFs) from Africa, Global Financial Integrity and the African Development Bank said Zambia had lost approximately US$8.8 million in IFFs from 2001 to 2010.

The amount of money mining houses make from Zambia which is not apparent to the Government and Zambians was further confirmed in a video four years ago by Vendeta’s majority shareholder Anil Agarwal speaking in March 2014, where he revealed how he bought KCM for just $25 million. Speaking to the Jain International Trade Organisation (6) in Bangalore, India, March 22 – 23 2014, he is quoted as having boasted about his investment in KCM:

“It’s been 9 years [since we’ve owned the company], and since then every year it is giving us a minimum of 500 million dollar, plus 1 billion dollar, every year it has been continuously giving back.”

In July, 2017, the Zambia Financial Intelligence Centre reported that multinational mining companies were robbing Zambia an estimated $3 billion annually through tax evasion and illicit financial flows (IFF).

In its 2019 Budget, the Zambian government has made a number of proposed tax changes mainly affecting the Mining sector. Mining houses have threatened jobs cuts in thousands and to cut in future capital investments. The Government, on the other hand, through the Minister of Mines, Richard Musukwa, has reacted angrily. The Minister was quoted by the News Diggers Newspaper that, it will not tolerate the arm twisting and black mailing tactics of the mines.

“The schemes being postulated by mining houses are arm twisting tactics, something they cannot do in their home countries. But we will not allow situations where mining houses start dictating what type of taxes we should have! Imagine having a country where we have foreigners telling us how we should tax them? When they come here, they come under a guise of investors and enjoy a lot of concessions and tax holidays. In fact, at the time when they start making profits, most of them wind up operations they would have already made huge profits! So, what government would like to do with these tax measures is to ensure that we seek transfer pricing, tax avoidance, which have been perpetuated by these multinational companies,” Musukwa was quoted by News Diggers.

President Lungu, through his Spokesman, Amos Chanda, as reported by News Diggers, said that the threats of mass layoffs by mines have no merit.

“The government does not accept that mining companies that fully comply with Sales Tax in Australia, in the US, Canada would fail to comply with Sales tax in Zambia. The President does not see merit in the opposition to Sales tax as things stand. “Amos Chanda said.

According to Lusaka Times of 29th December, 2018, on arrival on the Copperbelt for the PF provincial Conference, President Lungu amplified on the issue by categorically saying government will not allow mine owners lay off workers with impunity.

Lusaka Times reported that, “President Lungu said he will a not allow mine workers lay off workers with impunity. Government will not be intimated by threats from mine owners’ to lay off workers. Investors in the Mining industry are reminded that mines and minerals are assets of the country which Zambians must benefit from through taxes to build roads, health centres, schools.”

It is clear that State House is not amused by Mining house’s tactics. President Lungu should not be taken for granted based on how he gave in to miners’ demands in the past. Although he does appear weak, slow and indecisive to his critics, he has demonstrated in the past that he can take tough and bold decisions as he did with the removal of electricity, farm subsidies and street venders, which affected ordinary Zambians who are his voters.

The indications from government are that the PF administration have reached a tipping point with regard to Multinationals and are throwing the kitchen sink at them. Mining houses are well advised that given all the allegations of tax avoidance, tax evasion, suspected illicit financial flows, their continued extortionary threats, they may just open a Pandora’s box, which will result in a Tanzanian’s Magufuli type mining reforms where they will be worse off. The Zambian government is under tremendous financial pressure of debt servicing and from the Zambian public who are overtaxed and hurting economically. It has its back on the wall.

On the other hand, Zambians on social media and other fora are in uproar about the greed of mining houses and are overwhelmingly in support of government 2019 budget tax measures .The influential Economic Association of Zambia- whose opinion the current administration respects and listens to- led by Dr. Lubinda Haabazoka, has come in support of government tax proposals and even made some draconian suggestions of nationalisation.

Zambians are of the view that they have been bearing the bulk of the country’s tax burden. They feel overtaxed with direct, indirect taxes and levies while at the same time subsidising the mines with power. It’s time the Mines paid their fair share of taxes.

The gripe among Zambians is that the Mining houses are treated like sacred cows in Zambia when their contribution to the ordinary Zambian, has had minimal impact based on a number of metrics including poverty alleviation. Mining Houses retrenched an estimated 15,000 miners when copper prices were low in 2015 but very few were rehired when prices soared to $7,000 and Zambians have been quiet. Mining houses have previously rejected over five different tax and other proposals to benefit Zambia by government such as: windfall tax, revision of VAT rule 18, increase of royalty tax to 8% and 20% for underground and Open pit respectively,7.5% on imports of copper concentrate tax, Statutory instruments 33 and 55(SI33 and 55) to monitor and stem illegal or illicit outflows.

And each time, the government has curved in 100% after threats of closure of mines or retrenchment. This has made government critics to conclude and accuse the Zambian government of being weak and compromised because other governments like Tanzania, DRC, South Africa have resisted the arm twisting and black mail tactics of mining houses in their countries.

Zambians are urging the government to stand its ground and not budge. There are some who are even suggesting the revocation mining licences if they retrench or do not comply; others are suggesting that Zambia should ask Chinese investors to take over as copper and cobalt mining’s future is bright with the car electric revolution on the horizon. Others are asking for nationalisation or increase of government stake in mines through ZCCM – IH so that Zambia benefits more from its resources.

The bottom line, Zambians argue, is that the country’s benefits from foreign direct investments especially the mines, has been minimal in terms of tax revenue, employment creation, foreign exchange earnings, forward and backward linkages, technology and skills transfer and community social benefits through Corporate Social responsibility. It is time that Zambia pressed a reset button regarding FDI by recalibrating its policies, incentives and generally revisits the current development model which is dysfunctional.

Natural resources smuggling

The other channel that Zambia is losing billions of dollars, which is currently being ignored, is the smuggling of the country’s natural resources. There is no doubt that there is illicit exploitation of natural resources such as gold, cobalt, uranium, timber, emeralds, diamonds , manganese and other precious metals and wildlife which is being exported abroad illegally. These activities are being carried out by criminal gangs and some big multinational companies, some who are involved in the exportation of “soil” as the  late President Michael Sata once put it. The question one would ask is: if Canada’s Barrick Gold’s subsidiary in Tanzania, Acacia Mining, was caught red handed with containers containing concentrates more than 10 times the amount they declared at the port of Dar-es- salaam, what could prevent multinationals in Zambia doing the same?

The recent revelation by the News diggers Newspaper that China imported 20 times more Mukula timber from Zambia than was declared gives credence to the assertion that there is so much revenue being lost through smuggling.

“High volumes of Mukula continue to be exported as logs despite regulations prohibiting it. Recent Mukula production in Zambia could have amounted to about 110,000  per annum, with revenue losses of about US$3.2 million and bribes paid to state officials of about US$ 1.7 million. While official statistics remain incomplete and unclear, comparing Zambia and Chinese customs data reveals significant differences.” The Centre for International Forest Research (CIFOR) regional scientist and Chief Researcher Dr Davison Gumbo was quoted as saying by the paper.

According to the President of The Gemstone and Allied Workers Union of Zambia, Sifuniso Nyumbu as Quoted the MAST newspaper, Zambia lost an estimated $7 billion due to illegal mining and sale of gemstones.

“The illegal activities are dotted around all parts of the country and as of 2017, we are talking of about $7billion which was being lost through illegal mining and exports of gemstones,” He said. “Zambia has the best emeralds and amethyst in the world but there is very little being done to realize revenue by government.”

External borrowing and Money laundering fueled Capital flight

Although the writer has not come across evidence suggesting that Zambia is losing money through the third channel of illicit financial flow, according to James K. Boyce of the Department of Economics & Political Economy Research Institute University of Massachusetts Amherst in the USA, extensive research has found out that most of the highly indebted African countries lose money through external debt fuelled Capital flight.

“External borrowing can lead to capital flight, and capital flight can lead to external borrowing. Understanding these linkages is important for the formulation of appropriate policy responses. In debt-fuelled capital flight, external borrowing finances private wealth accumulation outside the borrowing country. The borrowing government contracts loans in the name of the public. Officials and other politically connected individuals then siphon part or all of the money into their own pockets – via kickbacks, padded procurements contracts and diversion of funds – and stash part or all of the proceeds abroad for safekeeping,” he said when addressing the United Nations on Illicit Financial Flows in Africa.

According to James K. Boyce, some of the borrowings by most African governments are odious borrowings which are defined as loans contracted by government without the consent of the people and from which the people will not benefit and the lenders are also aware of this but still they lend the countries.

Suggested solutions

There is no argument whatsoever that Zambia is losing billions through sophisticated multinational machinations, smuggling, corruption and money laundering. The African Union, the Africa Development Bank, the G20, the World Bank and the United Nations have all agreed and confirmed this. Although the challenge of fighting illicit financial flows is a mammoth one and no one country can fight it alone, there are still some measures that can minimise the scourge, as the evidence of international studies have shown that countries like Botswana have the lowest illicit financial outflows in Africa whereas Zambia and Nigeria have the highest.There is, therefore, something that Zambia can do. The fight against corruption is a starting point as there appears a positive correlation between corruption and illicit financial flows.

The Zambian government can also seriously look at building and strengthening the capacity of Zambia Revenue Authority (ZRA) as it is currently not well resourced with technology and specialized staff with sufficient qualifications and experience to handle the sophisticated machinations of Mines and MNEs. There is also need to research the structures, value chain characteristics and processes of the mining industry in their home countries.

In order to fight and limit smuggling of resources, simple security measures can be a deterrent. There is need to put in measures of monitoring small aerodromes in rural Zambia especially North Western Province and inspections of light aircraft and drones bound for foreign countries. The army and Air force could be useful in the enforcement of Zambia’s economic security by limiting smuggling.

Conclusion

Zambia has no problem with finance for development; it has a problem with finance mobilisation and enforcement of laws and regulations. We are endowed with resources and if domestic resources were mobilised so that we benefit from our natural resources like Botswana has done, we would not borrow so much.

The Zambian government’s current business development model in practice is based on two pillars. One, the lope sided promotion of foreign investment without joint venture arrangements while paying lip service to indigenous high value entrepreneurs. Two, the raising of development finance through excessive borrowing rather than mobilization of domestic revenue. This is a flawed business model and will not bring development as it only promotes billions of dollars flowing out of the country with little retained in the country for multiplier effects.

No country has ever developed from excessive borrowings and foreign direct investments alone. Ask China , South Korea, Vietnam and others South East Asia countries. Domestic revenue mobilisation and aggressive promotion of indigenous and local investors and providing incentives to Joint venture with foreigners is the key and only way for Zambia to develop. Foreigners never developed any country but merely complemented locals. There are thousands of Zambians, including the writer, with multi-million dollar viable projects in mining, banking, transport, manufacturing, tourism, which are rotting because government, through ZDA, have no such database and have not aggressively tried to find them and matched them with foreigners with cash, like the Chinese, but  just allow 100% owned foreign investors to set up shop. China does not do that; learn from them.

The writer is a Chartered Accountant by profession and a Private Sector Development expert and an Entrepreneur. He is an independent finance and economic commentator/analyst and a Patriot.

36 COMMENTS

  1. I have been saying these same things for almost two decades now. I am glad everyone is now catching up.

    Let’s roll

    • Same feeling over here bro. Slowly, the broader masses are beginning to realise the fraud. We must find a lasting solution to this problem. Africa must rise or Africans shall perish.

    • @Nine Chale … you got that right! We need to really strengthen our capacity to control our own resource mobilization. It is sad that for the longest part, these white collar criminals have used unpatriotic Zambians in the Chamber of Mines to do their bidding for them.

      Finally, everyone’s eyes are now being opened. As for the control of the air space, the first time I talked about this no one ever believed me. Rumor now has it that some of the reasons the Commander was retired in national interest has to do with similar sentiments.

      We run this country and we know what we are talking about and the smart people of the Zambian Enterprise deserve better so that we can develop the country from within our own resources. Heads off to Kalima here … that’s a 100

    • Overborrowing has made the PF00Ls open their eyes. We’ve been singing this song for man years.

      The root cause is we don’t have competent personnel at ZRA to enforce tax on the mines who have expert accountants experienced in tax avoidance.

      – Watch “Stealing Africa” on youtube.
      – Watch Santiago on youtube to see how their copper is working for them & then compare our Lusaka.

      We have good examples nearby in RSA, Bostwana, Namibia but we choose to copy DRC in everything including dollarization of our country, removing 3-zeros from currency, abrogating constitution to extend stay in power.

    • I have always failed to understand why most African Govts feel that if they put their foot down and demand a fair share from the exploitation of natural resources within their Countries’ borders is asking TOO MUCH from these multinationals. Maybe the reason is one of Africa’s greatest ills…..corruption!

      In dealing with multinational congramolates, African Govts have to always understand one thing very clearly; multinationals will always lookout for their Investors and are out to make naxui profits by HOOK or CROOK. They have no problem or esitation to milk a poor country like Zambia dry….and after resources are exhausted, they will abandon Zambia leaving gapping holes in the ground and environment catastrophies that entails without an ounce of guilt whatsoever. They will then…

    • Continue….

      move on to areas like the Amazon and other unexploited areas…..and that is money and greed at work for you!

      Sometimes it is important to call these multinationals’ bluff and if they don’t fall in line, Govt has the sovereign right and power to find someone else willing to do honest business with the host Country. It is about time these 28-year old or so secretive agreements Chiluba and Mwanawasa made with these international mine congramolates were revisited, revised, or ended all together.

      The reason why these multinationals have stayed in places like Africa, despite their bogus claims of making losses year after year is because they are lying and can get away with it. No multinational, being nagged by investors every financial quarter would stay in a LOSS…

    • Continue….

      MAKING VENTURE for even five years, let alone 20+ years, if the losses were real and not fictitious.

      Please Africa, and Zambia in particular, realize that these multinationals have very few options in terms of places they can go and make the kind of profits they make in their African investment portiforlios…. believe you me! If it wasn’t true, they would have left that continent a long time ago. After all, these same people consider Africa a place not worth anything other than its natural resources. And no place on Earth still has the kind of minerals, exotic timber, animal and oil resources like Africa does. So multinationals will always flock to Africa for these resources, come war, peace, disease, underdevelopment, ‘ebola’ or not. In essence giving African…

    • In additions the Mines cherry pick what they want to pay. Zambia’s ERB raised tariffs for mines by almost 30% in April 2014 and again in January, 2016. Zambia emerged from its worst-ever power shortage, which started when hydropower dam levels dropped in 2015, leading to rolling outages that lasted as long as 12 hours a day forcing the country to import power from some ship off Mozambique’s coast. Eventually these costs were passed to the consumers but the Mines refused to pay them. What cheek!

    • The medicine to cure PF cadres is yet to be discovered.

      “Our heads of State and government are aware that the problem of illicit financial flows is exacerbated by corrupt tendencies, lack of or weak African institutions both at national and continental levels in all sectors, governance challenges, weak tax administration, and lack of capacity to monitor and curb such criminal activities…”

      its corrupt leaders starting from state house that allow this to continue. For example, ZCCM was due to recover more than $2.3 billion from FQM in 2017. What happened?

      You deliberately weaken all state institutions by ensuring all heads of departments are yes bwana’s and you expect to stop illicit flows?

    • It is pointless debating these matters.

      It all comes down to leadership. And you think Lungu is the man to sort out the mess (that he has created himself)?

      Stop electing thieves.

  2. Our leaders in Africa have been blind folded in the name of borrowing but it is totally swindling our resources and we are poor why big money is coming Out of this country lets Wake up as a nation

    • We are our own worst enemy. Can you call it patriotism for one to celebrate the impending retrenchments of our miners. We assist foreigners to syphon our wealth. Zambians working for foreign companies such mines know the exact figures of production but will side with their employers by declaring less.

    • Is this the moment we lost it, when Sata U-turned on China “they are also going to sort me out and so we are going to use them to develop,” he said.
      He U-turned on his pre-election anti-China stance “when we were campaigning people were complaining about the Chinese and I promised that I will sort the Chinese out,” said Sata who hosted a luncheon for Beijing investors at the State House.
      Sata, who was known for his tough stand against the influx of Chinese investment into the country, particularly in the mining sector, which he said did not benefit locals.
      “The Chinese can do with one meal a day; use them properly and if you find there are more Chinese on one job, don’t blame the Chinese, blame the immigration officer who gave them work permits. Do they deserve those work permits?”, he…

  3. I totally agree with you but I am also of the opinion that the argument in the mail article is about how the mining sector is reaping Zambia off. But in the summary then you hit the nail on the head that it’s us as Zambians, who are basically failing to do our home work.
    For example, Zambia holds 24% in KCM and 10% in Mopani. Significant shares to be part of decision making. So why is the blame on the business people when we also sit on the board? Participate in decision making?

    Mining is a physical asset on a physical location and no export happens without zra permit. Seriously one may not talk of smuggling then. The controls are within us, from the gate and within!

    In Botswana and Tanzania corruption is not as bad and they have basically put government people to monitor…

  4. THIS ARTICLE IS PURELY MEANT TO TAKE THE FOCUS OFF THE REAL ISSUES OF THE ABUSE AND THEFT OF PUBLIC RESOURCES……………… WHY IS THERE NO MENTION ON LUSAKA TIMES OF THE FIRING OF THE 2 ARMY GENERALS ????????????????

  5. We the Zambian citizens with knowledge and opportunities need to continue knocking. We need to continue working hard to create wealth for our country. Indeed the Govt needs to seal loopholes through which our natural resources are lost.

  6. The train wreck will continue. For as long as we think we can only bring actors here while paying them where they are coming from we are sunk. Also, for as long as we have individuals amongst us who only think of themselves we will continue to read wonderful articles like this while the bleed continues (some do not even help their relatives by the way – do not be fooled). It is only when a thirsty cow falls to the ground and dies do the ticks flee. People be warned. Let’s take up 2019 in earnest as a year when we say ‘enough is enough’. Employees in exploited companies please bear with the threats and even with the consequences. Government also needs to strengthen the social security net so that these hard landings can be mitigated somewhat.

  7. Great reflection and facts, I hope government could follow up with writer and open the discussion. The solution to our challenges should be driven by ourselves, it is irresponsible to expect outsiders to drive us forward, they are here to make profit. We should apply brakes, we should pull our resources together. We must stop auctioning our country, Zambia is not for SALE. Our economic development should be based on our deliberate choices

  8. Our first president Kenneth Kaunda never allowed raw ore to leave the country. Hence the setting up of ZAMEFA, the copper was refined and went out with value. Secondly Kaunda never allowed our companies to be held 100 percent by foreigners. Zambia always had 59 percent shares in these companies. Zambia let us wake up now before we find ourselves with nothing.

    • It was 51%. The foreigner has always had an upper hand against the Zambian. There was a time when there was a call for “Equal Job, Equal Pay”. The government obliged and started pay expatriates the same amount ie a Zambian and an expatriate at Grade T6 would both receive monthly salary K650.00. Everyone was happy until it was discovered that foreigners were getting their real salaries paid straight to the banks in their countries. That was during the Unip time.

  9. Please come back later wuth these problems. Roght now we are busy wuth commission enwiiry to find out who sold a hotel, how he sold, and how much he was paid. This will take approximately until 2021 when we shall decide whether to continue or not

    So please give us chance

    Thank you for you usual understanding

  10. Please come back later with these problems. Right now we are busy with a commission of enquiry to find out who sold a certain hotel, how he sold it, why he sold it, when he sold, how much he sold it, whether his relatives or friends bought this hotel, even if we know ALL this information but we want to hear it again. This futile exercise will last until 2021 after which we shall decide whether to continue with this futility or not.

    So please stop complaining about this old and important issue and give us chance to conclude the commission of enquiry

    Thank you for your usual understanding

  11. PF raising of development finance through excessive borrowing rather than mobilization of domestic revenue.

    These borrowed funds about 75% of it is stolen by PF. How can they control private companies when they are failing to management public finances?

  12. Job well done by writer despite being a long article I took time read it because it had touched me these are the documents we want to see a lot on social media this year 2019. Indeed knowledge has more value when shared, let us all well meaning Zambian support the government to stand it’s ground on sales tax regardless of party affiliation you belong to, time has come ladies and gentlemen to love and put mother Zambia above anything else. Am calling upon the government to use our resources prudently, the over pricing of services like I.e. roads should remain in 2018 and embark on vigorous ant corruption campaign, leaders should lead by example and you will see everyone following suite. It’s one thing to collect taxes and it’s another thing to use the taxes prudently.

  13. I think all the above solutions are stereotypical. We need to think beyond that level and some more serious longstanding solutions must be found. I see the minerals depleting without any meaningful benefit to this nation.We need to open a new chapter for this economy to start a new journey. How I wish had enough space and resources to explain this.

  14. @ Kanungwe,articles like this are not meant for empty tins like you.This is analysis and feature article and cannot be summarise.You are just a lazy bum who has never read a 300 page book.This is not meant for semi iliterates like you.Keep your ignorance.

  15. In Zambia there is too thieves in power. We African have this attitude (akayimwe) not being united,for example in Zambia many are corrupt. We don’t support one another. Fyalionaka kale, there just there for on benefit themselves that so.

  16. The main issue is corruption. What can ZRA do if their bosses, politicians, have their fingers in the pot of soup.
    Wat happened when Sata promised to deal with the Chinese? You all know what followed after they paid him a visit. I predict a stream of Indians with brief cases visiting the powers that be and this issue will be dead.
    The mentality for the politicians when they get into power is like, guys how do you work this thing to get rich. Even small time govt officials think in the same way. Policemen, everyone wants to get something out, except the Zambian public who get the full burden of bloated loans and debt repayments.
    God will judge all the thieves. Meanwhile as Zambians, let us use the power of social media to increase the awareness of these issues and learn from other…

  17. God has given us the ingredients for wealthy. We should invest in our nation, our children and our future. Ill gotten wealthy has wings and a tendency to flee. Let us teach ourselves and our children the value of real enterprise and hard work. This will create a future of wealth for our country. If we blow up this opportunity, the remaining opportunities will be harder. Let us not waste our natural resources. We are creating too many billionaires out of foreigners at our own expense. This thing should go both ways.

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