Acting Republican President Edgar Lungu has revoked the ban on Maize exports.
Last week, Agriculture Minister Bob Sichinga announced that he was banning all Maize exports until the national food security situation is verified.
But Mr. Lungu today announced during a news briefing that he was revoking the ban in order to allow government to work out modalities to facilitate the orderly and regulated exports of Maize and maize products.
He said the reverse of the ban is also in respect of existing contractual obligations between government and other governments.
Mr. Lungu has since directed the Ministry of Agriculture to sit with stakeholders in grain marketing to come up with solution to ensure Zambia has enough stocks and continue local and international trade.
“Government is currently working out modalities to facilitate the orderly and regulated export of maize and maize products.
“We should also respect existing contractual obligations between the Government and other Governments and indeed between the different players such as commercial entities involved in buying and selling of maize and maize products both locally and abroad,” he said.
Mr Lungu directed the Agriculture minister to sit in consultation with all stakeholders in the area of grain marketing such as traders, millers and transporters to come up with lasting solutions which would ensure the country had adequate stocks of maize and maize meal and at the same time continuing to engage commerce and trade both locally and internationally.
He said blacking out exports totally would be a recipe for disaster as countries like Tanzania, Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) and Zimbabwe were looking to Zambia for maize.
He commended law enforcement officers who worked tirelessly day and night to contain smuggling in the border areas of the Copperbelt, and other border areas where smuggling had recently turned into a menace.
What else can I say. I guess it is a government with a red L plate sign on the back looks like we shall have to be patient for the next 3 years
He has a suit on, lol but he still looks drunk. geeeeez
PF is a Tragic Comedy. Do these lumpens ever hold cabinet meetings, I wonder? We definitely need adults in government!
hehehehhehehe, bakesabufumia inchito aba!
Gentlemen sort out the meal m problem
Thanks mr Acting President. I did not realise u had such wisdom. Let us be orderly and let us allow international trade to flow. Zambia should be looking at ways of satisfying the regional demand. Zambia should identify land equal to the demand of these trade parteners and encourage Zambians to particpate in the production of maize to satisfy this IMPORANT demand. Thet is one way we can create employment. Edgar must be getting plenty wisdom from the bloggers on LT.
Well these guys should learn to speak with one mouth. Agriculture minister says this , acting president says something else. Do they really have cabinet meetings to discus national issues or its every man on his own with his office. These U turns will tear us apart
And you voted these F.O.O.Ls into power. Either the Dogs are governing Zambia or Zambia has DOGs being governed
Yaba ! Ba Lungu namukolwa nakambi ?
Thats the best news of the day. Some of these pronoucements made by Ministers are not researched. You cannot just go ahead and ban Maize and meal Meal exports at will, and expect someone not to act.
In your right frame of mind Robert, encourage Zambians to grow more maize, not just on subsistency basis but enough to export as well. What that will mean is more money in peoples pockets.
Clearly a government of bakaonya from Kamwala bus station
Ba Kaponya
Go on Hon Lungu. best acting president so far.
What is even interesting is that a so called “harvard graduate” is being told to shut up by a drunkard
Definately this is another handsome president we have……!!!!!! Hope he is not drunk!!!
CNP… after all HH was right
Lungu Mudala while the cat is away fichinje fyonse to Eastern Power. By the time Sata comes back he should find the constitution does not allow over 70s to be President.
He is all over the place, but then again he is enjoying the limelight
How on earth is he making strategic decisions given the limited
Time he has of warming the seat
I find him obnoxious, xenophobic considering the way he talked of gay
People, and very abhorrent
Either way I hope he lasts in this position as long as he does with his wife when he switches off the lights
A modern day anti-Semite.
Thanks
I thought government – to – government trade was not going to be affected.
MMD BOOTLICKER, I thought you had defected to PF to become their BOOTLICKER that position remains vacant. I thought it was going to be given to MUNKOMBWE. It’s nice to have MMD BOOTLICKER & MUSHOTA back doing what they do best. We missed you guys.
First and foremost do these clowns relies that there is currently a global shortage of grain. The fact of the matter is that its much more lucrative to sale abroad than in price controlled Zambia.
Additionally Bob Schinga stated that the nature of issuing export licenses by his ministry was corrupt and questionable plus nobody knows what is in our silos and depots. You add these facts together and you will be the selfsame situation RSA was in last year depleting national reserves due to exports and having to import the grain again. Watch this space!!
We deserve better effective leadership!!
aaah Imwe ba Mushota Xenophobic because he is anti-gay! Imwe naimwe u chartered accountant na ma Doctorate yanu aya!
If our real president can lend his presidenceship to his excellence AKA acting president Mr Lungu for a year, am telling you we can have a handsome hot one at plot one, that dental formular would be nicely arranged, skin dermatologist would deal with the skin…, personal hair and makeup artist on call 24/7, awe nika HArd aka, beer man ukuluba in a split second! Thats what comfort can do my dear bloggers, power is sweet with all the sweet fruits it offers, i say….,Bba Lungu akatisheni!
He is looking like a President already and after a long time the head of the country has given direction on the things that are directly affecting the people. I bet there are a lot of cabinet ministers that did not like the choice of acting President. But then again it is the prerogative of MCS to choose whoever should act if the constitution bars the VP from doing so.
Mr. President Lungu. He can make a good leader this guy.
While it is true that there are government-to-government contractual agreements that need to be fulfilled it is also a known fact that senior government officials and their kin tend to benefit from these exports. The story was the same during the MMD era, where exports where banned usually after the cadres had shipped their consignments.
Does this young man know what he is doing?! He does not seem to have learnt any lessons in humility and patience from the debacle of deporting the Priest.
At least no George Chellah’s unprofessional emotional press statements and Sata’s monotonous swearing-in ceremonies for a change. When has Sata ever issued a news briefing?
Well this is the first sensible thing I’ve heard from our political leaders(in power). In causes such as this, you are not PF, MMD or UPND you are a Zambian. I know the bembas say akakulya taka cepa or something like that. The exports that are being banned are not just for market, it is food we are denying our neighbours, you might give them shelter in times of war, but when you deny them food..You are the reason we believe there is evil in this world. So yes let us ensure that we have sufficient reserves and work things out like we went to school and have king and compassionate hearts of Christians.
Hope Sata stays in China forever!! This guy has talked sense, this is what we expect from Ukwa – providing direction and correcting his ministers. With this kind of reasoning from PF, one can be tempted to start supporting pf.
Mr. Lungu keep off the bottle while ‘in plot’, this good reasoning will keep flowing to your head. God bless Zambia 🙂
Is the revocation of the Ban aimed at helping Govt. Officials who are in the forefront smuggling maize and maize products to neighboring Countries? of which Bob Sichinga might have not known?
eeeh!! Am confused. I thought the Maize minister should have been aware of this?
where are the PF thugs they have gone into hiding,come and see confusion from that man called sichinga he was even proud when he banned but what can he say?PF is misleading this nation
Pliz learn to consult each other
Bob has already done his home work please, he is on the ground with all stakeholders ,iwe ka Lungu you are drunk with power apapene ai?
HE SHOULD LIFT THE BAN ON IMMIGRATION CONSULTANCY AS WELL. MOST CONSULTING COMPANIES HAVE CONTRACTS TO HONOR SUCH AS WITH THE MINES AND OTHER INTERNATIONAL TRAVELERS. SUCH DECISIONS ARE VERY MUCH WELCOME. BUT BE CAREFUL ON THE GAY RIGHTS IT MIGHT BE A TRAP FROM DONORS REMEMBER MBINGU WAMUTALIKA!
Guys don’t advise Lungu to keep his hands off the bottle maybe that’s where his courage and wisdom comes from.. Drunk on duty…MCS is a smart man
Owe balabatamfya inchito aba! I hope Ba Lungu, you are not doing another Nevers Mumba
Ban export of Maize and encourage export of Mill meal.(Value addition )
Corcus everyday with pf
Iwe Lungu bakesa kuponona ba President Sata, you are trying to make a statement by exercising executive orders as acting president, becareful Sata ni one wire akesakutamfya inchito.
This is the best move but it is not at the right time. If Zambia was selling this maize to neighbors a lot of Zambians could have been involved in farming
And when HH called them ba Chimbwi no Plan (CNP), they cried foul! This is a very bad circus, when we run out of maize, that is when they will learn what propelled Kaunda out of power. Only time will tell but from precedent, Sichinga will have the last laugh.
Iwe THE ENGINEER you should learn to be respectiful.I think the home you come from is full of ”imbwa” behaviuor.Learn to respect elderly pipo and the citizens of this country.I dont think you are sane and i suspect HH is your relative .Go edger and PF -So far so good.
This is a big mistake, maize was being exported and there was serious shortage in the country.
Who matters the citizens that gave you power or the Congolese, the businessmen and the so called stakeholders.
Wait a minute, tonnes of maize will go and there will be serious shortage of the commodity (mealimeal) in the country and whoever and you already know that you can do anything to zambians but just do not touch a bag of mealimeal.
So it is true that they do not have cabinet meetings? My boss (bus owner where I work) will wait for someone to reverse the order of painting the buses orange. We know it is not a serious directive.
Why is Lungu acting? We know Guy Scott can not because of nationality issues. The next in line should be Wynter/GBM. Or the president decided to maintain an equiliser between the fighting two?
I wish he can just refuse to hand back the Instrunment of Power to Sata,He is showing good Leadership.
Zambia is a Free Market,Let those who wish to sell maize meal across the borders and those who can afford maize meal locally do as it purely business. Let the principle of Supply and Demand effect prevail.
PF is full of f.ools. The same bloggers who were praising Sichinga’s ban are surprisingly now praising Lungu’s reversal of Sichinga’s decision. Honestly, PF cadres are dimwits!
Everything done without consultation the manifestations are bad indeed; lack of cabinet meetings among othershas disastrous results like wat is happening now. Lungu has instruction to protect the senior govt pf cadres given contracts in maize deals, these are the pipo banned by Sichinga. He didnt ban govt to govt maize deals. On gay; these dogs have the tenacity to do evil becoz of the pre campagin pronouncements that a law exists in support of gays/homosex by sata himself and now we see the result.
I thought the former Agri Minister said there was a bumber harvest last year that why they could not pay most of the farmers on time.So why impose a ban on export of maize?and in two months FRA will start buying grain from farmers again this willbe an additional stock to the current which is still in silos/warehouses and depots will govt wait untill it starts rotting?if Drc needs our maize and are ready to buy in dollars export to them..So to avoid these conflict of statements Govt should have a GMB(Grain Marketing Board)which can oversee the export of maize to other countries.
Clowns, Clowns, Clowns!!! . This guy believes he is Prez. Where did PF get this character!!. No wonder Captain Lungu wanted to be president. The bar has been dropped to such low levels , can’t wait for the next elections.
Jay Jay@21 I kind of agree with you. As a country we had poor rains and poor farming inputs distribution as a result we need to make sure we have enough in stock before exporting.
Bob was right.