By Hon. Bowman Chilosha Lusambo
At a time I served as Copperbelt Minister, all Unions representing mine workers always frequented my office seeking interventions. One of their key complaints was around Vedanta Resources and KCM. As their resentment towards Vedanta grew, it became apparent that the company had lost its social licence to continue operating. I was transferred to Lusaka Province and the inevitable happened, President Edgar Chagwa Lungu used the law to cause ZCCM-IH to liquidate KCM in public interest. A common feature in the entire process was the mine workers unions. They vehemently advocated for Vedanta to leave Zambia and as a listening leader that President Lungu is, he heeded their calls and KCM was liquidated.
Now watching these Union leaders turn around and take a 360 turn on a position with grave consequences is not only disappointing but frightening. To watch the way President Hichilema is pussyfooting around the KCM issues speaks to his failure to understand the Copperbelt economy.
The Unions are hypocrites. They called Vedanta a bad investor but today, they are telling President Hichilema that they want Vedanta back. What has changed?
The Union leaders have started behaving like dogs around its vomits. They are ready to sacrifice their members at the altar of political expediency. The other thing that has changed is that both Vedanta and the Union have seen in President Hichilema, a willing partner in the process of bringing back Vedanta. All the promises of reinvestment, improved CSR, KDMP development and production ramp up have been made before and never actualised. Vedanta reduced a thriving business like KCM to a mere trader as no mining was done. Vedanta only survived on processing copper concentrate from the DRC.
Vedanta killed people and polluted our rivers. Bringing them back will therefore be shortchanging ourselves and our future generations.
Listening to President Hichilema discuss the issue of KCM shows that his administration has already settle for Vedanta. Watching President Hichilema with those union leaders completes the puzzle, President Hichilema is bringing Vedanta and it’s just a matter of when and not a matter of if.
It is shocking that Mines Minister Hon. Kabuswe who was a PF District official in Chililabombwe only a few months before elections and heavily supported the removal of Vedanta could sit here now and call for its return. The same for Copperbelt Minister Hon. Elisha Matambo who was UPND Copperbelt Chairman and called for the removal of Vedanta. The way the two officials are behaving today is not different from the way dogs behave around vomits.
Our call is to the members of these spineless Unions, your subscription fees are only making these leaders fat. When they sit on the negotiation table with Vedanta, UPND Ministers have ifitumbuwa (fritters) in their mouth and therefore cannot defend any bad deals presented to them. You have the right to withhold your subscription.
Pix: Pictures taken in 2021 when Mine Workers Unions protested against Vedanta and demanded that they be removed from KCM.
LUSAMBO, THE PROBLEM WITH YOU, IS THAT YOU DON’T UNDERSTAND ISSUES EASLY , WHY DOES PF WANT TO GO BACK INTO LEADERSHIP? WHY ARE SOME ADVOCATING THE COMING BACK OF PF? DOES IT MEAN THAT PF IS A VOMIT?IF PF IS A VOMIT AND THAT ALL PF LEADERS ARE VOMITS THEN PF SHOULD REMAIN QUIET AND STOP THEIDEA OF COMING BACK
I didn’t know that Chilosha was such a prolific author. What can one add? Mine worker’s unions have always stood for themselves and the members since the tenure of Mwanza. During the negotiations for the sale of mines, FTJ decreed that each miner be sold the house of his residence as part of the separation package . This is what shortchanged unions leaders to accept miners to be paid for the number of years worked and not the whole contract sum. As a result, miners were underpaid and their leaders ended up with at least 5 houses each in every ZCCM Division.
Union leaders have always stood for themselves and not their members
Ayatollah – Dont be foooooled by Bowman he may be a tool but he knows his limitations..really laughable…anyone can hire ghost writers especially those CBU Graduates fresh from the Union to write for you whilst you dictate in Bemba with a whiskey in hand to your author.
Plus remember that Bowman is a school leaver…there is nothing in this article even a G10 can write what is on his mind!!
YES , BOMAN DOESN’T UNDERSTAND ISSUES . HE SHOULD GO BACK TO SCHOOL AND BE TAUGHT AGAIN ABOUT THE CONCEPTS OF MISTAKES, WRONG ACTS, CORRECTION , REPENTANCE, GUIANCE , COUNSELLING AN BEING BORN AGAIN . PEOPLE SHOULD LEARN TO FIND WAYS FORWARD BY MAKING CORRECTIONS, HELPING AND FORGING EACH OTHER
ati Lawyer Paul…nimwe ba lawyer ba nkoko ka..
We were neighbors with a union leader. This man was in and out of prison on issues such as demanding change house facilities for African miners. The trend continued during the tenures of people like Chiluba, Walamba, Shimakuni. Not so now.. it’s each man for himself and God for me alone.
The last leader of the union an ordinary miner is now among the affluent Zambians. Vendetta has done their home work and the union leadership will join the rank of wealthy Zambians very soon.
We were neighbors with a union leader. This man was in and out of prison on issues such as demanding change house facilities for African miners. The trend continued during the tenures of people like Chiluba, Walamba, Shimakuni. Not so now.. it’s each man for himself and God for me alone.
So what are you saying…please dont hide behind parables..whats your position on Bowman???
I’m not talking about Bowman, I’m talking about union officials. Unfortunately Lt has censored the rest of my posting.
It’s each man for himself and God for me alone.
The last leader of the union an ordinary miner is now among the affluent Zambians. Vendetta has done their home work and the union leadership will join the rank o
Sellouts!
Ati panono? Very soon they will be driving Toyota Fortuner SUVs
Union leaders should serve on voluntary basis.
The FEAR of Zambians to speculate that rich foreign investors will land on Mother Zambia to GUPTALISE our national economic life lines will soon become a reality. Furthermore, it makes many Zambians feel SICK to see Tony Blair and George Bush making frequent visits to Zambia after engineering the massacre of thousands of Iraqis on false accusations against Sadam Husain. Given a limited human life span, will the selfish rich Zambians accept to know the minimum dietary needs to sustain human beings as they seek for excessive gains of money? MAY GOD HELP AFRICA!
Well said Lusambo. On this issue, I fully supported. This no time for blind loyalty. Our resources are in peril.
My comment??
This lump of cowdung Bowman has a point but what he doesnt tell you that for everything Vedanta did which were terrible…PF govt and Lazy Lungu’s takeover was highly questable and illegal if the followed the proper due process new owners would have moved on…you can not evict tenant on a farm just like that and sell the farm next day when the tenant challenges you in court.
….moved in…
PF messed up on this issue,be careful with the way things movies guys,this issue it was in court because of the way PF criminals handled this matter.
BA LUSAMBO,IS PF ALSO A VOMIT NOW
PATRIOTIC ZAMBBIANS ARE SAFE WITH LAW
The corrupt PF is the vomit. The Lungus conspired to loot KCM but now the miners and UPND have pressed the reset button to ensure KCM adheres to enforceable rules and regulations. UPND respects the rule of law not your PF criminals. That’s the difference.
Parroting someone else’s point doesn’t make it your idea. What about when Bowman (MMD Die Hard Chairman) was threatening to kill Sata in 2005 because he was campaigning on these same issues? Maybe it’s a case of eating vomit all your life as a violent thug’s job
Though I don’t like Indian investors……..
Vendetta has a strong case…………
Zambia will pay a hefty financial penalty, also not many other investors will touch a disputed mine………..
Might as well skin them properly if they want back………
3billion dollar deal. I first heard from president lungu now president hichilema is actualising. Same government nothing sinister pa zed for acc to probe we r a unionists democracy
THAT IS EXACTLY WHAT LUSAMBO MEANS . PF AND ALL THE PF LEADERS ARE VOMITS , LUSAMBO DOESN’T UNDERSTAND ISUES SURROUNDING THE MINING SECTOR .HE SHOULD LET HH AND UNIONS CORRECT THE MESS MADE BY PF, VENDETA IS NOT A VOMIT .IT IS LUSAMBO WHO IS A VOM