President Edgar Lungu has directed the UNZA administration to do an inventory on people residing in the university accommodation and determine whether they are students and also investigate whether all monies paid by students for accommodation reach the university accounts.
Speaking during the official commissioning of the teaching and learning complex at UNZA yesterday, the President said this stems from disturbing reports indicating that while genuine students, especially those in the first year, are grappling with accommodation issues and many of them living in private homes, some former students still occupy UNZA hostels.
“I have received reports that some students and even former students are renting out accommodation to students who have nowhere to stay. This cannot be allowed to continue. It must be stopped because it borders on criminality,” he said.
He said students are at the university to learn and not to become landlords and therefore hostels belong to the institution hence the administration should be responsible for allocating rooms to students and receive fees.
The Head of State explained that the government has not slackened in completing the construction of student accommodation at UNZA and other public universities which he said were facing inadequate accommodation facilities.
President Edgar Lungu has commended the University of Zambia (UNZA) for generating internal revenue which has been used to fund the construction of the teaching and learning complex.
The construction of the teaching and learning complex gobbled K27 million which was generated through the public-private partnership (PPP) between the University of Zambia and Graduare Properties Limited.
President Lungu said this achievement was an example of what could be realized if government worked together with the private sector to develop the country.
He said it is the desire of government to ensure that all public universities continue operating in a financially sustainable manner and pledged that government will continue supporting all efforts by public institutions of higher learning to ensure that they achieve financial sustainability.
President Lungu revealed that through the Lusaka de-congestion project, government has provided K11 million to fence off and secure the University of Zambia.
The Head of State said it is the desire of the government that UNZA becomes a safe and secure tertiary education institution.
Speaking at the same event, Acting Minister of Higher Education Dennis Wanchinga explained that the two newly build lecture theatres will increase the amount of learning programmes as well as help in effective social distancing to reduce chances of the spread of Covid-19.
Dr. Wanchinga added that the infrastructure will impact positively on the enrollment of students at the university.
And UNZA Vice Chancellor Luke Mumba revealed that the teaching and learning complex has been constructed from funds amounting to K27 million realised from UNZA’s partnership with Graduare properties limited at East Park mall.
Prof. Mumba said in 2013, UNZA entered into a public-private partnership with Graduare Property Development Company limited which saw the development of East Park mall on UNZA land. The mall became operational in 2015.
He said the initiative generates an average revenue of K6 million per annum.
Prof. Mumba further said the teaching and learning complex houses two ultra-modern lecture theatres with a combined sitting capacity of 700 students.
In addition to the two new lecture theatres, the teaching and learning complex houses a board room, two computer laboratories, two tutorial rooms and 28 offices.
Destiny can only be delayed and not stopped
Well my president the landlord / squatiee issue is traditional
Yes my president transparency and accountability must be at the top of all transactions
These students should help each other and not exploit each other
Mwati walibapi my ZIT nangu UNZ
You are right my president
Micromanagement!! Please that administrative function to the university!!
If irrelevant was a person
The monies paid by students should be used for maintaining the rooms
Bakateka may God bless you in all you do
Well said your excellency
Imagine becoming a landlord sure
Very true
Thats a good instruction his excelency. The issue is real and prevalent in many other govt learning institutions with boarding facilties. The rot is deep..same at zesco, to connect power they hv to be bribed. Its a well known practice
Look at this clueless moron directing UNZA Admin yet his civil service and parastatals are full to the rafters with ghost workers and cadres
You are very right your excellency
Is there no office responsible for student accommodation ????
With this morroon lungu , there is no accountability for dereliction of duty….
Thats why the civil service is a hive of criminality, corruption and laziness , without fear of consequences
This is very disappointing for this kind of insults for cildren who were impropery brought upby either a single mother who did not know the father of her child or just outright badly brought up child. I wish these chaps can once be traced and brought to book. In most cases these are people who live in developed countries with no abode address or just in factory houses. I know some of the se people in the US.
@ Tarino
BOZ has printed money under lungus command hence he got his drunkard mate at the helm.
Now look at the cadres and MP’s handing out cash to the public. How much money is been dished out, where has this come from when MOH is struggling for medicine and other medical equipment.
Not to forget bond coupon payments are missed. All of sudden elections are around the corner money is dished out without scrutiny
Weak Administrators
My proactive president this has been an issue at unza for decades. I agree with your approach and that it is time to clean up the mess. Another issue is the politicization of learning institutions by the opposition. We need to sort out that disease too. I will see to it that these things become priority
The problem with upnd dogs is that balitumpa and will always talika even when they know that pf is right and doing well. To that effect let us prove who is more popular between pf and upnd.
If you are going to vote PF in the next elections please upvote this comment. If you are tribal and will vote upnd please down vote it. We will see who is popular on a pro upnd website like this one
Who writes these speeches? Shambolic.
That’s for sure…and those are the people that make students especially first years to start renting from them..
How long will it take to release that no one listens to your instructions? Can a man be this D.ULL
Accountability is cardinal in this case. But build hostels first and talk about squatting later. Mwanawasa built hostels and never spoke about auditing who stays in campus.
Lungu is a landlord he has an illegal mansion in eSwatini ….just sayin.
Its laughable he has the guts to talk about landlords when his ministers have become property developers and landlords overnight like his former MOH minister whilst the ministry has lamentably failed to deliver services …patients have to bring their own water and medication in most cases.
The current MOH minister is begging from donors to fund its ministry.
What a farce. Chilufya had bankrupt the ministry and his walking free.
The degenerates like KZ and PF followers don’t understand the implications and turmoil that lungu has put Zambia into.
Don’t forget there’s $ 27 billion debt outstanding. It’s been mortgaged. Lungu won’t be around to pay that debt. Our grandchildren will be paying this.
Lungu 2021
Those that have completed should leave hostels for new students…
Ndeloleshafye
My advise to all LT bloggers except Kaizer Zulu. Please take a break from all this writing on LT for a month and let’s see what KZ and LT are going to benefit from our non involvement.
Vote HH Vote UPND chapwa. Let’s move our country forward guys. Please I beg you. You see us in the diaspora can talk all we want but it’s the people on the ground that matters. The voters.
Former students turn into landlords and the incoming students are forced to rent
You are right Mr president something should be done
True this issue should be looked into
Management is well aware of this but they have been sleeping
this shows someone somewhere is not doing there job in the administration changes should be made
Muntu sana president lungu
Really does it require a presidential directive to fish out ex-students masquerading as students in govt owned boarding facilities. Someone is just not doing their job. This is non-performance of unza admin staff or they are the one getting these,rentals for their pockets.
You took away BC and how did you expect students to survive?
You thought MMD and UNIP were $tupid to maintain it? How were you expecting students to pay back the loans you have enslaved them with? Your government is responsible for this scenario and stop passing the blame to UNZA!
What are you doing about the unfinished hostels near Kalingalinga which are now White Elephants? LPM started and finished hostels. You started but failed to finish even one and here you are wasting time talking about Landlords at UNZA instead of addressing the root cause! Shame on you!
Surely do we need The Head of state to control such nonsense.? The leadership at UNZA must sort out this mess period.
Deep rooted corruption everywhere and ECL can’t do anything about it. He just talks about it as if it is a praise. If at all he felt concerned he could have just done something about it NOT small talk. Just do it! Talk only is NOT enough.
The University of Zambia is being reaped off the K6million being remitted is not good enough for a complex such as East Park unless come top management at UNZA are benefiting in their individual capacity given wubomba mwi imbala syndrome. Govt should not only urge investigation on some students being landlords but also UNZA management. Some time back we had some top officials benefiting from ZAMNET COMMUNICATIONS at the expense of UNZA as whole. So the same syndrome has a possibility of repeating itself. Say if EAST Park is to operate for 10 years its contribution will be a paltry K60million. That is far below the value being realised from its activities. Its another broad day robbery of public resources by some clever local investor. Mark my words anything in Zambia is possible.