Opposition United party for National Development (UPND) Namwala Member of Parliament Robbie Chizhyuka has called for the establishment of a Grain Marketing Board (GMB) to over-see maize marketing in the country.
Speaking at a joint press briefing in Lusaka today,Major Chizhyuka said the Food Reserve Agency (FRA) should instead be the over-seer of storage facility for strategic food emergencies for the country
Major Chizhyuka said that the FRA should remain as it is not to be disbanded or restructured.
He cited the GMB has proved to be workable in neigbouring Malawi adding that Zambia could learn from her neighbour.
He accused the FRA of subjecting small scale farmers to untold suffering in delayed payments.
And acute hunger is threatening over 8,500 people in Sichifulo area in Kazungula district in Southern province.
Major Chizhyuka who disclosed this at the same function, said the villagers were feeding on boiled mangoes and other local poisonous wild roots for survival.
He said that this was because the Zambia Wildlife Authority (ZAWA) had allegedly displaced the villagers from the game management area.
Major Chizhyuka said the people are eating indya and caama toxicated wild roots and accused government of neglecting the people in preference to conversing wild animals.
He wondered how the productive settlers who located to the area in 1985 could vacate at the expense of foreign investor who intend to set up a game ranch in the same area.
The MP appealed to government to direct ZAWA to stop ‘vicitimising’ the settlers and allow them to continue their traditional pastoral farming he said contributed to the country’s food basket.
And Monze Central MP Jack Mwiimbu urged government to declare the hunger situation in the country a national disaster to allow the donor community to intervene in the situation.
“Let us think so low and bury our heads in the sand over this hunger situation obtaining in the country. We call on government to declare the hunger situation in the country a national disaster so that donor community can can to our aid as a country,” Captain Mwiimbu said.
Captain Mwiimbu’s sentiments follows the hunger situation experienced in some parts of the country when he had visited.
ZANIS/KC/ENDS/MM
Slow down LT. Topic after topic we also have to read
#2 Yu nuh fe read everyting, just pick your topics of interest, seen?
? 3 mwalala
Major Chizhyuka said the people are eating indya and caama toxicated wild roots and accused government of neglecting the people in preference to conversing wild animals.
he did not accuse them basa, its just the trueth. the govt has failed us period kwamana.
“Let us think so low and bury our heads in the sand over this hunger situation obtaining in the country. We call on government to declare the hunger situation in the country a national disaster so that donor community can can to our aid as a country,” Captain Mwiimbu said.
This is nonsense. This donor dependance syndrome will not take us anywhere. Talk about how we will end hunger in the country not finding ways of attracting donor’s attention. For how long are these donors going to feed us. No wonder we are not respected as a country and a continent as a whole.
Why is it that we have become so comfortable with perpetual begging? Are we incapable of solving our own problems? Are we incapable of feeding ourselves? Why are we so keen to look to the donor community in every circumstance? There is such a thing as donor fatigue. At some point even donors begin to look the other way when they realise that all their charity has done is created a group of beggars for life. Lets have some pride and do things for ourselves. After all, God gave us the same brains, hands, feet, and talents that others, who are self sufficient, have. Mwa lombele. Ala!
Chizyuka musa, now you are talking like a true man of Zambeziland. God has bestowed Motherland with a lot of resources which we have underutilised or left untapped.
Indeed Food security should be a priority. Erection of silos(es) in each district cannot be over emphasised. If anything this could be your target before your term of office expires in 2011.
Mwami amitangilile basa.
what!niggas is tygas.look at all the white people looking at themselves in fear,man i dont even believe that
The opposition UPND is is looking at national issues more objectively than PF. They understand what it means to be in the opposition.
YOU HAD NAMBOARD AND YOU DECIDED TO DO AWAY WITH IT.THE GROUP THAT DID THIS 17 YEARS AGO HAD CERTIFICATES,DIPLOMAS,DEGREES,MSCs,MBAs,PHDs,even professors were invloved!NOW YOU WANT A GRAIN MARKETING BOARD?COMING FROM THE OPPOSITION IT MAKES A LOT OF SENSE.MMD HAS TAKEN US 50YRS BEHIND.I PRAY THAT GOD CAN HEAL OUR LAND.THIS GOVERNMENT IS SHORT SIGHTED AND DOES NOT CARE AT ALL.THAT IS WHY IT CAN EVEN APPROVE SALARY INCREMENTS WHEN LOTS OF RETIREES HAVE NOT BEEN PAID THERE MONEY.GOD PLEASE HEAL OUR LAND…..
# 9, do you call perpetually begging for handouts from donors an objective way of looking at national issues? Even if they, UPND, assume power, they offer nothing but the same. The country a leadership that will graduate us away from the dependance sysndrome we’ve gotten so used to under the current and previous administrations.
Gentlemen, what is the solution to the mealie meal price?? has Mr Sata suggested any solution before going to the street.The best is to suggest a solution and if govnt refuses to implement then you can protest. Even you guys on the blog dont just ague without suggesting a solution to the problem.
You guys may wish to know that the grain marketing story is not a new phenomenon in Zambias recent past. in 2003 a delegation comprising MPs in the agricultural commitee of the time, 3 doctors from the university of Zambia, members of the Farmers Union including the youngest executive member of the farmers union and people from the ministry travelled to Chicago USA to Learn about how the Chicago grain marketing authority works. they also travelled to SA for the same.
Iam pretyy sure after travelling to USA and RSA they can just remember the sex they had with whores!Typical of Zambians:too many trips abroad,too many trainings,too many workshops and the lowest out put probably in Southern Africa!I work for the Government and I see this nonsense.Thats why when walk around Lusaka most of the big busineses are run by foreigners:say what you like they are serious!Zambians with all the education make life diffulty for them selves and make it so easier for the foreigner.Maizae marketing?Hard luck!!
You Zambians may be most of you you were not born there used to be NAMBOARD which was responsible for procuring all farming inputs.The rewas not asingle day that there was ashortage of these things they are crying these days as if the are children but the want to be ruling without any ideas. You as aparent when you buy kapeta and a bag of roler meal do you shout at the next house that you have bought these things . what agvt
#9 UPND MP’s have no brains,for real even in your own house, you can’t expect your friends or family to be feeding you everytime there’s hunger, that’s laziness, after 44 years of independence i don’t think we deserve to be bergers, as leaders in UPND they have failed southern province, why is that hunger is always in southern? as long as our leaders are greedy expect no change in zambia,because whoever becomes minister he is automatically become rich,good example is G.Mpombo, but how.if you want quick money join politics.
A grain marketing board accompanied with subsidies and cattle re stalking programmes would be a solution to our current maize problems that the country is going through. That’s exactly what is contained in the UPND manifesto and not demonstrations as contained in the PF manifesto.
i meant restocking there.
Atleast this is better than just going on the street protesting,better provide a solution than just making noise on the street when others are busy working.
Gentlemen, what is the solution to the mealie meal price? Has Mr Sata suggested any solution before going to the street.The best is to suggest a solution and if govnt refuses to implement then you can protest. Even you guys on the blog dont just ague without suggesting a solution to the problem. way forward lets have suggestions please. this subsidised fertilizer will not produce results today because the maize has to be planted and haversted next year but the stomarchs need the nsima now. can a PF, UPND or MMD give suggetions and we see who has the best.
#16, i don’t think it is correct to state that the UPND leaders have failed S/province, what meaningful development can an MP in the opposition take to an area when all he has is constituency development fund? your inability to reason like many other PF supporters is what is hindering development. You must consult over issues that you have little or no understanding at all.
The UPND MPs are thinking in retrospect. They are not in touch with reality. I don’t know how they will represent the Southern Province effectively. What with their Toy presdo HH? We can never go back to the likes of NAMBOARD! Govt. is trying to regulate the market for agro products through the FRA. Chituwo just directed the Agency to start releasing 20,000 metric tons of maize on the market every month. The rest will be determined by market forces. If we heed the call by the likes of Chizhyuka, the next we will hear are calls to nationalize National Milling, APG, Jamas, etc. As for Mwiimbu, every he makes appeals for food is constituency. He is an embarrassment to Senior Chief Monze who
is by far a very hard worker. The Senior Chief is to proud to have his chiefdom portrayed as the homestead of hunger, misery, laziness and general poverty as Mwiimbu has done since he became MP. Mwiimbu must go!
ENGINES!1ST SOLUTION LET GOVERNMENT TELL US IF ITS NOT VIABLE TO REVITALIZE NCZ.IF ITS NOT POSSIBLE HOW ARE WE GOING TO PROCURE INPUTS LIKE FERTILIZER?ARE THE DEALERS NOW SUPPLYING GOVERNMENT ,SELLING AT REASONABLE PRICES?OR IS IT TRUE THESE ARE CARTELS AND SOME GRZ OFFICIALS ARE BENEFITTNG?
Ok good contribution from #22 Drosophilia
can we have a counter gentlemen to the informative contribution on #22
Tizavutika na ma some of us. why are upnd MPs pretending to be good guys and they want to come out smart. Any way thus why Zambia will remain static forever. its high time Zambia rose to support a noble cause.
Ok #24 DELETED
your suggestions are Good and future focused.on the NCZ problem i think the dilema is if Govnt rcapitalize NCZ, Should the produced fertilizer be subsidised or left to the Market forces in terms of price? in other words will it be sheaper to continously fund NCZ and subsidise the fertilizer than to just import?
#1-27
stop sleeping around!!!
atleast UPND are making suggestion unlike PF?who are just making noise in the street
29
Always check the suggestions of UPND, they are and only about southern province. One can understand that southern province is no longer the grain basket of zambia amd thus prone to hunger. Its not just southern province which is ravaged by hunger. PF’s call for demos are based on the fact that, us its supporters on the copperbelt are losing jobs and thus we support calls for the demos. Demos are good. Even the briefing at ZAMCOM lodge by UPND is a demostartion in another form for us PF we want all to participate not only the elite like UPND’s. Viva demo Viva PF.
#15 if you were also there, you must remember the yellow maize as well or was that grown locally?? maybe we still need superken to formulate policies for us?
Who is saying the truth? Yesterday a Choma Market Boss said S/Province was ok foodwise and was not for PF sponsored protests. Today an MP from the same area says people are living on wild tubers.Is this a question of supporting the MMD blindly. One day the party will just say we should all stop wearing shirts and these MMD cadres will say yes since shirts are of foreign origin. And please stop this tribal talk you may take it as a joke but you never know what kind of Frankeinstine you are creating.
Mwiimbu does not think. Where does he think the donors will get money with the current world credit crunch? What Zambia needs to look at is the cost of agricultural inputs. The fertiliser is about K300,000 per 50kg bag. Does Mwiimbu think that this price is affordable by people in his constituency?
As you look at Zimbabwe, never for a second think that its difficult to get to that stage. One wrong policy leads to a cascade of things going wrong all the way. Current agric policy pulled us out of Earlier mistakes on NABOARD assassination followed by promissory notes for peasant farmers’ produce. I believe RB is pursuing and sharpening up these. What the major is calling for can and should be considered if it will improve efficiency in marketing and distribution of both inputs and the produce. Remember, you only need one season of mistake to irreparably destroy small scale folks.
Viva ponyoponyo, viva forskin. abash circumcision abash sex before marriage
I hate SATA and his supporters for being narroww minded. Offer solutions and ideas and keep away from the street. Hurigans are difficult to term and are always dependent on the gOvernment and not world sympathy. If the government had money, Zimbabwe was not going to be the way it is now. PF wake up and embrace proffessinalism in your argument. No wonder you are stack with your Dinosure SATAN. Emarace new ideas and forget about the past. Satan will never rule Zambia but HHH WILL DO SO WITH his intelligent MPS. Abash MEDIOCRE and shallow mindedness. Viva HHH 2011
Woa, I have really mised out on a lot of things…I have been in and out of the system….
Is this how slow things have become around here?
hallo spectator, i actually missed you.
Engine & deleted, the other altanative would be, if NCZ is back to production,the cost of imported fertilizer should be high so farmers buy NCZ,just like chilanga cement should be cheaper than circle cement from Zim.i learned 1thing in DK,its cheaper to do shoping in germany as taxes r low but the german products in DK cost more to force dens not to buy germany products at the expence of the country product,they have educated the people on the importance of promoting their own products,that is why they encounrage the dens themselves to invest in the country,open factories in china run by dens to produce for the danish market and have quality control.its almost imposible for other countries
from #40 run bussiness in DK unless its products DK can not produce which also they try to close the gap,if zambia can learn some of these ideas maybe it will help our economy,im not an economist im just sharing my obervation,i noticed the control they have over their economy and thought if one day we could learn of such a thing we may get somewhere.
UPND MPS are national leaders, they advise government on important issues. In fact they make a difference in their approach to national issues compared to un named oposition party which wants to demostrate in streets instead of looking solution with Govt.