Former Ambassador and Permanent Representative of Zambia to Africa Union (AU) has challenged Dr.Situmbeko Musokotwane, the Finance Minister to fully disclose to Zambians the “bold and ambitious” plans they have promised the IMF in order to qualify for concessional debt.
Mr.Mwamba said thus far Zambians are deeply disenchanted about the secrecy that surrounds the Staff Agreement Musokotwane has committed Zambians to, without their knowledge.
“UPND has a five-year mandate so they cannot be entrusted with the responsibility of tying Zambians to lufe long debt decisions they don’t know. We challenge Mr Musokotwane to fully disclose what is contained in the IMF deal that affects all Zambians across the board with what could be negative economic consequences including job losses,” said Mr Mwamba.
The former diplomat turned politician was speaking live on KBNTV during an interview on Thursday Night on the “State of the Nation” programme.
“Let Zambians know what you (Musokotwane) signed,” said Mr Mwamba, “ we need full disclosure because Zambians will eventually have to pay the debt in future.”
Ostensibly, Mr Mwamba said he is aware that the harsh removal of subsidies on fuel and soon to be removal of subsidies of electricity including plans to “unbundle” and or sell of the power utility company ZESCO are part of the deal Musokotwane has shaken hands with the IMF.
The former senior diplomat cautioned Zambians to brace for even worse economic hurdles ahead under the government of President Hakainde Hichilema that has deep neo-liberal economic affiliations compared to the social responsibility affiliations of the past administration of the Patriotic Front.
Mr Mwamba has thus far emerged as one of the most credible critics of the Hichilema government that often takes on the government on issues and not personalities.
He has vowed to continue making the Hichilema government accountable to the Zambian people on the broken promises it made to assume office last August.
Mr Mwamba has been joined by others such as former Lusaka province Minister Bowman Lusambo in calling Musokotwane and the IMF to book.
State secrets are only known when another party takes over. Remember chiluba and the tunnels. PF and the Chinese and now its UPND and IMf
Musokotwane and his boss should be ashamed of themselves. In a democracy people ought to be enlightened. Dictatorial tendencies are not welcome.
There is more they have put on the table to sampwisha (cheaply auction) in addition to INDENI and ZESCO. But why the secrets? Why not being bold enough and face Zambians with truth.
You want to fool Zambians with free education and strip them out of their own livelihood, jobs? Is this what h² promised in the name of fixing?
I am happy that we have Patriots with balls to stand up to these Imperialists biased unpatriotic cimbwis.
The economy of doing away with all your assets in the name of economic emancipation is cocky.
Thanks Patriots Mwamba, Lusambo, Haabazoka et al.
I saw a BBC report which blamed China for reckless lending money to poor countries. The response by(Europeans) more than ninety percent to the report blamed the World Bank and the IMF for these countries predicament. Then I realized we caught in an endless web spinned by rich foreign countries. How to get out of it is the problem.
“UPND has a five-year mandate so they cannot be entrusted with the responsibility of tying Zambians to lufe long debt decisions they don’t know. LT you need proof readers..
Musokotwane and his boss should be as.hamed of themselves. In a democracy people ought to be enlightened. Dictatorial tendencies are not welcome.
There is more they have put on the table to sa.mp.wisha (cheaply auction) in addition to INDENI and ZESCO. But why the secrets? Why not being bold enough and face Zambians with truth.
You want to f00l Zambians with free education and strip them out of their own livelihood, jobs? Is this what h² promised in the name of fixing?
I am happy that we have Patriots with b.alls to stand up to these Imperial.ists biased unpatriotic cimb.wis.
The economy of doing away with all your assets in the name of economic emancipation is coc.ky.
Thanks Patriots Mwamba, Lusambo, Haabazoka et al.
Zambians be very alert. Musokotwane, Milupi and Hh are on a path to make themselves billioniers by taking advantage of their positions. They will own Zambia, even after leaving the Government. He went to see Mwanawasa and said I am a businessman. He did not say I love Zambians. They have no time for the Zambians but their businesses. This time, we do not allow them to undervalue and sell the Govt assets to themselves. If they were not honest during privatasation, they won’t be honest today.
Kudos to Emmanuel Mwamba! You have raised pertinent issues and Musokotwane should do well to provide answers.
Anyway tukaba bwino kunuma pantu kuntanshi there’s too much congestion.
This is a government by businessmen and for businessmen.
It feels as if Mwamba and Lusambo know more about this arrangement? If so, why not disclose so that the Government will be left with the burden of refuting, just in case, they ignore your talks and writings as empty. As ordinary Zambians, we have also not forgotten how PF accumulated large sums of debts without disclosing to us. Whilst l agree with the principle of disclosure, know that you are not clean either on point.
LT why are you not showing my contribution
Mr Mwamba, are you as PF going to pay the debt you have left us in for you to question the very people who are trying to clean up your mess?
PF borrowed $27 bilion and we don’t know what it was used for. Don’t tell me roads, have you seen the road that passes by ABC’s Appolo complex in Lusaka, or Nakonde road, Lusaka-Mongu road?
UPND want to borrow $1.5 Bilion, then its a problem to you.
The problem in my opinion is that you think the way you were stealing from these loan monies, the other *****s are the one who will be eating. I mean you are not part of the gang. ndiye vuto.
Let’s be very clear here. PF is one that went to IMF and started to engage them. If Mwamba wanted transparency let him tell the nation the full disclosure of the Chinese loans they signed and where exactly this money went instead of spending time on questioning the IMF engagement which they through their finance minister started because the country was heavily indebted by China and other creditors. If the PF don’t want IMF let them bring back all the money they borrow and pay back China and others so the Debt goes back to where MMD left it. Then you question UPND. PF recklessly borrowed and spent the funds without any plan to repay. My suggestion is Mwamba go find something more productive to do.
Rubbish………
Did PF disclose all the loans that add up to the $17 billion zambia owes , while the same mwamba was a senior member of PF and GRZ………?????
If you get a bailout package because you are insolvent, you have to undertake reforms of loss making units………..
The bail out is not meant to sink more money into loss making ventures like the PF way…….noooo.
100% , restructuring needs to be done on the likes of ZESCO , INDENI , ZAMTEL , KCM……..
Please read this update dated 6th December. Stop wasting the time of IMF and the Zambian government as the information you want is already in the public domain.
https://www.imf.org/en/News/Articles/2021/12/06/pr21359-zambia-imf-staff-reaches-staff-level-agreement-on-ecf
Updated: IMF Staff Reaches Staff-Level Agreement on an Extended Credit Facility Arrangement with Zambia, 6 December 2021.
HH and UPND have a 5 year mandate until 2026.
ECL and the PF were busy getting expensive Kaloba from the EXIM Bank of China.
They never disclosed the nature of those loans or deals to this day and put Zambians in unsustainable debt.
The PF chaps have no shame.
Next elections should be about voting in competent leaders and also a referendum on sending those who intentionally make bad decisions to jail. If we make the rules harder, we actually make it cheaper and faster to process these cases in court.
Mwamba no job? Try to find something to do to keep your self busy.
The former senior diplomat cautioned Zambians to brace for even worse economic hurdles ahead under the government of President Hakainde Hichilema that has deep neo-liberal economic affiliations compared to the social responsibility affiliations of the past administration of the Patriotic Front.
WHICH SOCIAL RESPONSIBILITY AFFILIATIONS OF THE PAST ADMINISTRATION OF THE PATRIOTIC FRONT. I am sure you are now missing the free money and handouts you used to enjoy alone in the PF when the majority of us were suffering. To hell.
This brings us to the adverts we see in Zambian media on daily basis they advertise about becoming a millionaire instantly and they invite people to quickly join their club, really really being rich instantly that is what we read almost every day.
To let you know Zambians do not be fooled these are bad people who want to take advantage of the poor in our nation, in fact these are witches if someone happens to go to them for money to be instantly rich to tell you the truth these are part of the witch doctors who promise to heal people.
When desperate people go there they taken advantage of and they give more deeper problems than they had.
This version of the government in power must have taken the same route as those witch-hunt doctors, and witches they were on the desperation of Zambian people, because Zambians wanted at all costs to escape the suffering they were because of the down turn of the economy, however they got this witch to advise them to lie as is the custom of Satan and his followers, the devil is a liar he has never told the truth and indeed the desperate people are the most vulnerable in this world.
So Zambians opted to go to a shinganga to give them medicine and the prescription was to tell lies, to desperate citizens now this coming from the honourable presidential candidate they agreed that it will work to their advantage but the devil tells no truth.
Now these are real and will remain lies…
Now Zambians are even in deeper problems everything is just in the negative nothing seems to be working for the common Zambians, Now more poverty than in the defeated government , it will not work out positively but suffering because their adviser is the wicked one who has no love humanity how ever people chose to sell their souls to lies they accepted the lies and loved to hear them in their own ears.
However shame and curse is up on the vessel used to tell lies to innocent Zambian .
It is better not to listen to lies.