By Sean Tembo – PeP President
1. The cost of living was very high prior to last years’ general elections, and that’s one of the reasons why Zambians decided to usher in a new administration. The hope among many Zambians was that the new administration will reduce the cost of living to affordable levels.
2. Ever since Bally and his new dawn came into office, the cost of living as measured by the JCTR basic foods basket, has gone up by approximately 37%. This is causing untold misery and anxiety among the Zambian people.
3. What makes many citizens even more worried is the fact that Bally and his administration do not currently have any economic turnaround plan which they are implementing to try and reduce the cost of living. Further, they have not spoken about formulating any such plan. The Government is currently not driving our economy in any direction. The economy is driving itself haphazardly all over the place. It is on autopilot while facing a storm. If left on its current trajectory, the economy will soon crash.
4. We appreciate those who argue that we need to give Bally and his administration enough time. That he has only been in office for 5 months. But our contention is that as a minimum, the new Dawn administration should have conceived an economic turnaround plan by now, and should have been implementing it. Their failure to even conceive a turnaround plan is what is disappointing more than the failure of any such possible plan to achieve its intended objective. The PF had the Zambia-Plus Economic Recovery Plan which they unveiled in 2017. It wasn’t a great turnaround plan, but at least it was a plan. The UPND has nothing.
5. Remember that lives are being lost due to the increasing poverty and squalor, our hospitals still do not have medicines and poor people are being given prescriptions to buy their own medicine. The youths still do not have jobs, and despite some of them completing grade 12, they are not able to go to college or university due to a lack of funds. Some of the more fortunate youths who managed to complete their tertiary education are still unable to get jobs and are still languishing at their parents’ homes.
6. Surely, this is an urgent economic crisis that requires urgent intervention by the Government to try and turn around our economy onto a path of job creation and reduced cost of living. But 5 months along the way, Bally and his team still do not have a plan. Of course even when such a turnaround plan has been conceived, there is no guarantee that it will work, but at least we shall be pursuing some kind of a plan. The lack of a plan has brought hopelessness among the people of this nation. When there is a plan, there is hope.
7. Our sincere advice to the President is that he should consider firing the Minister of Finance and appoint someone who is more vibrant and energetic. Someone who can develop an economic turnaround plan for the country. Or if the President does not want to fire the Minister of Finance due to their long-standing business ties, he should consider transferring him to a less-consequential ministry. For me, l have been opposed to the appointment of Musokotwane as Minister of Finance since day one. He is simply not the right guy for the job.
8. Sooner rather than later, the President will have to choose between his friendship and long-standing business ties to Musokotwane or turning around the Zambian economy so as to create jobs and reduce the cost of living. If he chooses the former, then he needs to be ready to face the wrath of the Zambian people. Indeed, Bally may soon realize the truest meaning of the phrase; “a hungry man is an angry man”.
Ever since Bally and his new dawn came into office, the cost of living as measured by the JCTR basic foods basket, has gone up by approximately 37 percent. THESE ARE ORGANIZATIONS THAT MISLEAD PEOPLE TO VOTE FOR WRONG PEOPLE.
Whatchu talkina ’bout sean?
With IMF, you don’t have national economic sovereignty. Baal lied that he is a fixer. His idea of fixing was to allow the IMF to rule. When employees like those at INDENI lose jobs, when he satifies none of his promises to the Zambian people his talk of strengthening the economy without sovereignty is a nonentities illusion. In Zambian perspective, with IMF, a better economy negates all citizens’ economic feel good situation. Even worse the more a Government dances to IMF conditions, the more the economy takes the route of being only interpreted as being good on paper. Economic phrases like low inflation rates etc chip in. Suffer beautifully because of the choice you…
These are malicious uninformed aspersions laced with tribally bigoted poison one has come to associate with one Emmanuel ‘stranguler’ Mwamba ambassador Fino Fino! Anyone schooled in basic economics will realise a combination of PF hidden debt and the cash they offloaded into circulation for the 2021 election would create untold inflationary exuberance in the economy thus fueling a rise in the general cost of things. This was to be expected.
I usually don’t agree with Tembo but in this case he is right. The finance minister has not achieved anything in the six months in power. I don’t expect him to completely fix everything in that time, but so far he has done NOTHING. The Kwacha CONTINUES to depreciate and the REAL inflation is INCREASING to 20.4%. While he has all the powers. Bally, time to intervene!
Jctr and their food basket analysis are informative for policy strategy. Dejavu know this! If upnd ignored the pronouncements by jctr, they will one day regret. Jctr should be commended they too helped upnd form government. The difference is that just like caritus and many genuine non tribal inclined ngos or chapter 1 organizations, jctr will never be praise singers. They get involved in advocacy for change and revert to monitoring
I think Sean Tembo means well but what is letting him down is ignorance. He might think the standard of living has declined by 37% after the new dawn government took over, the reality is that the numbers we were getting under PF were not true figures, figures like inflation were artificially masked because of the impending August 12 elections for a long time. The inflation which was officially at 22% under PF was well over 35% in reality. So now that honest people have come in and showing things as there are, you might think there is a decline in living standards and yet the reality is just being laid bare.
SEAN TEMBO, this is the first time you have criticized with respect and I don’t think the UPND will go after you. This then puts the attention to argue based on facts. It appears Kabwata by-elections taught you a lesson, that your aggressive rantings were NOT winning you supporters but instead deflected them. In this article you show a sense of maturity, and that is how things should be. ….Well done and continue this path !!!
1] You state that “The PF had the Zambia-Plus Economic Recovery Plan which they unveiled in 2017”, and yet PF got to power in 2016. So it took PF a year to come up with that plan, why then are you insisting UPND have it within 5months? Moreover UPND plan is shared as part of the Budget.
It has nothing to do with the Minister of Finance, the issue is that the PF damage was just too humongous, it will definitely get worse before it gets better, because the economy has to be stabilized first. This country will start seeing some stability may be after 2 years. Zambias debt is multiple times over the GDP threshold, and there can not be any breathing space with such kind of recklessness. And no one should even start blaming the new government whose budget has just kicked in, once CDF starts going down to constituencies, things start happening on the ground, liquidity goes on the ground from the projects, the situation should definitely improve, and inflationary pressures will be eased
Cont
2] What is the source of your JCTR basic foods basket, as I have not seen any published? In any case, You as an Economist, you should be relying on BoZ numbers, who hae reported a decline in inflation and their forecast looks positive for the rest of the year. That is the good news !!!
Thanks Mr Sean Tembo Sir, when do you think you will have a political party with structures and mobilizing on the ground, or you have decided that political commentary will be in perpetuity. Please Note that nobody is going to vote for you based on political commentary as exhibited in the last elections where your performance was very below par that you were even defeated by rejected ballots. Your dismal performance will continue if you continue trying to play to the gallery instead of doing things differently, you must learn from Sata, after loosing elections he was all over the country the next day mobilizing. Free advice, your self destructive mode must be switched off for your fortunes to change
” The cost of living was very high prior to last years’ general elections, and that’s one of the reasons why Zambians decided to usher in a new administration.”
I just read this and stopped…everyone knew things were going to get worse to get better, Sean Tembo as an accountant should this given the debt accrued by reckless PF…now I understand why this man gets lass than 5 votes
Sean should start working or atleast pretend he is working, Zambia with such a huge land mass, you cannot claim to be an opposition leader with no structure anywhere in the country, not even a vice, or section chairman, that is why when elections come he gets zeroes with distinction
Zambias was a society used of free money……….
Hell , even their slogan was……. money in your pockets in 3 months…….
Seeing everything was a mess , there is no gain without pain moving forward………..
MR B0TSWANA, MR ZER0, TEKA UTUM@TAK0 TOBE TWA MABWE PANHSHI.
The Delusions of Grandeur currently afflicting you are collosal.
Do you honestly believe Bally a successful Man in his own right, personal & public, would take advice from a Silly (Inswa) -flying ant like you?
Clown, before that happens, try garnering more votes than Ch1luFy4 T4yaLi.
Why not go back to B0tswana & offer them the silly advice & fake wisdom you seem spout on a daily basis? The answer is you know! Botswana will throw you & jail where you will be able to offer (wife services) to Tswana lags!
MR B0TSW4NA, MR Z3R0, TEKA UTUM@TAK0 T0BE TWA MABWE P4NSHI.
The Delusi0ns of Grandeur curr3ntly afflicting you are c0llosal.
D0 you h0nestly believe Bally a successful Man in his 0wn right, personal & public, w0uld take any advice from a Silly flying ant -(inswa) like you?
Cl0wn, bef0re that happens, try garnering m0re v0tes than Ch1luFy4 T4yaLi.
Why n0t go back to B0tswana & offer them the silly advice & fake wisd0m y0u seem sp0ut on a daily basis? The answer is you know!!
Botswana will throw you & jail where you will be able to offer (wife services) to Tswana lags!
Get a younger and energetic minister. Bashilkul ba Musokotwane balinaka imyaka ba bomba yafula.
well done Sean tell us toumfwe
Sean Tembo, My advise to you is read the contributions @ 2 by one Ngombela and @ 7 by Angels. These two’s contributions may just be the panache you need. You criticize with zeal but offer no workable solutions.
And to think the President and the Finance Minister are both economists and have been in power for over 5 months with no turnaround economic plan is just mind-blogging. They made Zambians believe they were the most educated and were far much better placed to turn around the economy. Despite being in opposition for over 20 years, these economists still have no economic plan for Zambia. It is a requirement in the 21st century for any organization worth the name to have a strategic plan. Yet Zambia Ltd under the rule of economists does not have one 5 months down the line. You just wonder how they are even allocating money.
Time is ion his side Sean. If a week is a very long time in politics, what more 5 years? The Ministe of Finance is a weel known and trusted face in international finance and banking circles. Let him deliver the debt restructuring deals and by the end of the year you may wish that he was your uncle. kikikiki
So far, the ones facing the wrath of the people are Shawn zero Tembo and his allies from the corrupt tribal PF
Indeed small minds discuss people. instead of talking about how many votes Sean Tembo got in the last elections, can we debate the issue he has raised.
The cost of living has gone up all over the world, this has nothing to do with HH or any other individual President in the world over.
Sean is simple mor on who has to pretend he has a brain.
Really,the cost of living has gone up because you could see a Zmm minister of jobs in government employing his wife. So it is pointing to the high cost of living being felt by everyone.
Sean is not as smart as many thought of him. First question: he thinks if PF won cost of living would be lower? Zambia would have collapsed into hyper inflation like Zimbabwe costs would have been 100 times higher. By now he would also been beaten by PF carders like they did last time. Second: the new government has not even finished 1 year and inherited the economic problems. Things take time to make better. No one goes from been in economic problems such as Zambia to the better times. I suggest you focus on getting 1% of the vote. If PF keep paying you to post rubbish articles you best need to go get a real job and stop wasting article space there is more important things we want to read about