Copperbelt Minister demands fair mining opportunities locally

Copperbelt Minister, Elisha Matambo has charged that Government will ensure that mining companies uplift the livelihoods of local people through job creation and provision of business opportunities to local mine contractors and suppliers. 

Speaking in Chingola during a District Indaba organised to address the rampant riots and other negative vices happening in Chingola, Mr Matambo said Government wants to be proactive in attending to issues affecting citizens instead of being reactive.

He further stated that Government is still actively working on the gassing incidents that engulfed Chingola and the entire country promising that the matter will soon be brought to its conclusion.

“Government is concerned about the economic challenges affecting you and is working tirelessly to address these challenges, one intervention towards that is the enactment of the local content law which will empower local mine suppliers and contractors, our investors must demonstrate serious corporate social responsibility by ploughing back into the community, we cannot have Copper and you just watch it just go outside the country, without benefiting from it,” He charged.

Mr Matambo also stated that Government is closely watching how Konkola Copper Mine (KCM) is uplifting the lives of local people as that is the only way people will benefit from the country’s mineral resources.

Mr Matambo has however, urged Chingola residents against taking the law into their hands but to instead use proper channels to air their grievances whenever they are aggrieved.

He further urged government workers and appointed public officers to be accountable and offer services to the public in order to address the challenges that people are faced with.

Mr Matambo was optimistic that peace and unity will now be restored in Chingola after the Indaba.

He said the government will look at all the submissions that have been made by the public and find ways of addressing them to ensure peace and unity in the district.

Meanwhile, people from various sections of society made submissions on contentious issues that usually lead to riots and other outrageous behavior.

The issues raised included the halting of illegal mining from senseli  mine dump site, indiscriminate pollution of farming areas by Chinese mines, non-payment of terminal dues by some old retirees from Konkola Copper Mines, lack of compensation by farmers whose fields were polluted by Mimbula Mine and rampant abuse of drugs by youths among others. 

Speaking earlier, Chingola Mayor Johnson Kang’ombe called on Chingola residents including youths to desist from negative vices so that the district can develop economically.

“Chingola is home to one of the biggest open pit mines in the world as such it is capable of contributing to national development, but this will not happen if there is no peace and order in the district as no investor would want to invest here,” He stated. 

Chingola peace Indaba lead organizer, Bishop Joseph Kazhila called on the mining companies in the district to ensure that they uplift the local people’s livelihoods by creating employment and offering fair business opportunities to local mine suppliers and contractors. 

Bishop Kazhila also urged the opposition political leaders in the district to conduct civil and progressive politics to avoid creating anarchy in the district.

The Peace Indaba was held under the theme  ‘Chingola, Our Peace, Our Unity’ and was attended by representatives ranging from marketeers, small scale miners, the business community, the clergy, the senior citizens and farmers among others who all made submissions.