Time Machine Zambia is a Collectibles Business that started operating at the beginning of 2016. It is a business dealing in Comic Books, Graphic Novels, Vinyl, Action Figures and a lot more. They saw that there was a demand for nostalgic items and felt that they could meet that demand. The Time Machine Team is currently made up of Duncan Sodala ,the founder, as well as Nkole Malauni and Muhongo Chenda who are Sales Consultants/Comic Book Experts.

KAPA187:  You are mostly known as being the manager of Zone Fam, a Hip-hop artist and music promoter. What made you decide to start a non-music related business?

DUNCAN SODALA: I am passionate about a lot of things and Memorabilia happens to be one of them. I am a recovering Hoarder so it made perfect sense to go into this Business. Music will still be a part of this Business especially that we are dealing with Vinyl which is slowly making a comeback in the retail space.

KAPA187: Is there a huge demand for comic books, anime and the like in Zambia?

DUNCAN SODALA:  There actually is a huge demand but we need to make the people more aware of our presence. So many people are into the Fan Boy/Fan Girl Culture – The Gaming, Art and Design communities in Zambia are HUGE!

KAPA187: Tell us about your experience at the recently held Lusaka Comic con (Lscon).

DUNCAN SODALA:  Lscon our Local Comic Con was great! A lot of people came through, it was our first big outing as Time Machine and we had a great time. A number of people were happy that we brought something new to the market and most of our customers have been with us since that day.

KAPA187: Do we have many local produced comic books?

DUNCAN SODALA:  Yes we do! The most recent Locally produced Comic Book is “Bantu Clan” from Zed Comics – It is a great concept that embodies Zambia Culture by Muma Seketa, London Kamwendo and Bwanga Kapumpa. We also have the Sweeper by Mwelwa Musonko and Tawonga Bedding, Chimwasu Njapawu is also working on something called Zambian Superheroes so we have these and a lot more to look forward to.

KAPA187: Where can people find you if they are interested in purchasing comics books, Vinyl’s, Action Figures and other Collectibles that you sell?

DUNCAN SODALA:  We have no fixed location at the moment; we frequent a lot of events, food markets, shopping malls and the like. People can reach us on various platforms including Facebook, Twitter and Instagram. We do free deliveries within Lusaka and Partnered with www.Truzed.com to deliver outside Lusaka.

Facebook : time machine zambia

Twitter: @TimeMachineZed

Instagram: time machine zambia

KAPA187: Do you plan on opening a physical store in the near future?

DUNCAN SODALA:  Not in the near future but we are definitely planning on having a physical store once our Business grows.  We have alot planned for the Business as we venture into different aspects of Nostalgia.

KAPA187: What challenges have you faced in your business and how have you overcome them?

DUNCAN SODALA:  Dry spells…we have to constantly update on social media and lookout for what events are happening and at the right time.

KAPA187: The Time machine Zambia recently started a podcast. What do you discuss on it and where can people can to listen to it?

DUNCAN SODALA:  We discuss mostly about stuff we sell; movies, music, latest trends and randomness – People can preview and download the show on Soundcloud or Hulkshare.

Sound Cloud: time machine podcast

Hulkshare: time machine podcast

KAPA187: There are many entrepreneurship opportunities out there, why do you think many youths are hesitant to start something new and mostly opt for something that is done more commonly.

DUNCAN SODALA:  I think it’s a fear of failure of course a lot of Startups in Zambia struggle to find Startup capital – I started this Business from money I saved up. There are a number of options people can look at to jump start their Business. As for doing something everyone else is doing, it is attractive if it gives immediate returns but eventually it becomes saturated. If you build a unique Business slowly, you could build something that will last and bring you good returns in the long run.

KAPA187: Where do you see the time machine in the next 10 years?

DUNCAN SODALA:  We see ourselves as a fully established Collectibles/Nostalgia Business meeting the needs of every Zambian from young and old. Our establishment will be a meeting place for different personalities and tastes.

KAPA187: Any last words…

DUNCAN SODALA:  Dream and reach inside yourself, don’t be limited by your environment.

BY KAPA187

UPND President has said there are various complaints in various parts of the country, particularly Eastern, Muchinga, Northern, Luapula and parts of Central Provinces regarding the unprecedented powercuts since last week Friday. He said this is not a matter that needs to be politicised as people’s lives are in danger as water utility companies in these areas have now been severely affected and are unable to pump water.

Mr.Hichilema said this is a national crisis and disaster that needs urgent attention as it may lead to water borne diseases such cholera and dysentery. He wondered how hospitals and clinics in these areas are coping. He hoped that resources have been channeled to these affected areas to alleviate the problems, especially the provision of safe and clean drinking water, standby generators and fuel so that lives are not lost in the affected areas.

Mr.Hichilema said he is fully aware of the need to seriously overhaul the operations of our power utility company, (ZESCO)which has been heavily politicised leading to sheer incompetence.

“It is on record that ZESCO received the biggest share of the borrowed Euro Bond money that was meant to upgrade it’s operations through procurement of quality equipment, but to date, they cannot account for the money,”he said.

Mr.Hichilema said the UPND has always emphasised on the need to channel resources towards the improvement of power generation equipment and investment in other sources of energy to reduce the current increased loadshedding in the country which has affected production and doing business at all levels, especially the small scale.

Mr.Hichilema challenged those who are clinging onto power to immediately dispatch teams of experts to the affected areas and channel resources to help Zambians other than globe trotting and earning huge allowances when the masses are suffering.

Allocation from the USD 750 Million Bond to ZESCO as at 31st March, 2014;

1) Kafue Gorge Lower Power Project [ZESCO]: US$186 Million was allocated for this programme.

2) Power Distribution Project [ZESCO]: US$69 Million was allocated for this programme.

Zambian Breweries is so concerned with the effects of beer drinking among youths that it is rolling out a campaign to discourage underage drinking in schools.
The company continued its drive at Kabulonga Boys Secondary School in Lusaka last week, when  Zambian Breweries representative  Allan Bwalya indicated that secondary schools were being particularly targeted for the information programme.
“We are rolling out our campaign against underage drinking in secondary schools because this is the age at which young people start engaging in beer drinking,” he said. “We want to remind pupils that beer is for adults and there is an age limit to it. We are also educating the pupils on the effects of underage drinking, and pointing out that they should wait until they complete school.”
Zambian Breweries is working with the Road Transport Safety Agency (RTSA) which has donated 100 copies of the Highway Code to the school.
Kabulonga Boys School headmaster Lloyd Yamboto welcomed the Zambian Breweries campaign and said that underage drinking is a countrywide problem.
“The problem contributes to the huge number of disciplinary cases we handle. Some pupils start drinking alcohol from their homes and then come to school. On average, in a month we handle about ten cases in school but there could be others outside school. In such cases, we call their parents and counsel them. The parents are quite supportive through the PTA (parent teachers association) and share ideas on how to address such issues.”
He said the Zambian Breweries campaign is coming at just the right time and would help the school a great deal in educating the pupils on the dangers of underage drinking.
He thanked the company for the programme, describing it as beneficial and a good way to keep the pupils away from beer drinking. The company has targeted to speak to  5,000 pupils ,for the whole year, and managed to reach 1,100 during the Kabulonga Boys campaign..
At the same event, Zambian Breweries distributed non-alcoholic Maheu drinks.

The Livingstone High Court has upheld the parliamentary election of Mwandi Constituency.

The Livingstone High Court has dismissed the electoral petition filed by former Higher Education Minister Michael Kaingu.Dr Kaingu petitioned the election victory of Sililo Mutaba.

The Court ruled that Sililo Mutaba was validly elected as Member of parliament of Mwandi Constituency in Western Province.
Mutaba stood on the United Party for National Development (UPND) ticket in 11th August 2016 elections.

Leading expert in the constitution making process has said Zambia’s Constitution is incomplete. Mr.Kabanda, who is author of the book “Know Your Constitution” published in 2008 and who was a member of the Technical Committee on Drafting the Zambian Constitution from 2011-2013 said there are certain facts surrounding the issue of constitution that Zambians need to be cognisant of namely:

1) The constitution making process, which was started 23 years ago in 1993, has up to now not been concluded;
2) The amended constitution, which was assented to on 5 January 2016 is not a complete document;
3) The Constitution and its making process are not a partisan issue.

Mr.Kabanda said these three facts ought to be our guiding principles if we want to have a successful and acceptable conclusion of the constitution-making process. In offering direction on what steps Zambia should take towards attaining a COMPLETE document called Our Republican Constitution, Mr. Kabanda reiterated that constitution making is not a partisan issue and various stakeholders should take up different tasks which should help the nation to move together towards concluding the constitution making process.

[pullquote]Members of Parliament should not to start making amendments to a document that is not yet complete. [/pullquote]

Question
Why is the document we have as our Republican Constitution is incomplete?

Answer
It is because the Bill of Rights and the constitution amendment provisions have not been finalised. These can only be finalised through a successful National Referendum. This therefore means that the immediate task that we have as a nation is to hold a National Referendum to amend the Bill of Rights and the Amendment Provisions. This task is a MUST. It is NON-NEGOTIABLE. In this regard, Mr Kabanda made the earnest appeal to our Members of Parliament not to start making amendments to a document that is not yet complete.

Question
What needs to be done in order for us to have a successful National Referendum?

Answer
All stakeholders need to come together as one. These stakeholders include the Government, political parties, non-governmental organisations, faith based organisations and the Church as a whole.

1) In order to adequately prepare for the referendum and prepare the people, we should hold the Referendum on the second Thursday of August 2018. In this regard the preparations ought to begin in January 2017;

2) Government should constitute a team of not more than three people, which should come up with, and execute, a programme of preparing the people for the National Referendum. This team should work under the office of the Secretary to Cabinet, and it should be in place by January 2017;

3) Political parties should begin to prepare their members for the National Referendum. In this regard the Zambia Centre for Inter-party Dialogue (ZCID) should coordinate a process of political parties coming up with sensitization programmes for their members, and that such programmes should be ready for execution by March 2017;

4) All non-governmental organizations should mainstream the issue of the National Referendum in their plans and activities. As they prepare their budgets for the 2017, they should include a percentage that should go towards preparing people for the Referendum;

5) The churches, deaneries, parishes and lay groups that organized programmes to prepare people for the Referendum, when it was announced that there would be a National Referendum alongside the 2016 elections should upscale what they did prior to the 2016 Referendum, and such programmes should be ready for execution by March 2017;
6) The media should:

• Ensure that debates on the Referendum do not die, until the time it will be held, possibly in August 2018;
• Those media houses that have weekly topical discussions, ensure that one out of four weeks every month is used for debates on the Referendum;
• Radio stations,can make use of the information in the music album Know Your Constitution Volume 1 to sensitise the people on the Referendum. Out of the 12 songs in the album, 9 of them are about issues in the Bill of Rights, and the titles of the 9 songs include: Know Your Constitution, Umulekelesha, Bill of Rights, Ninani Wasunga Ulupiya, Ubuyantanshi no Lupapulo, Press Freedom, Insambu Sha Babomfi, and indicators of Poverty. Mr.Kababnda said he was going to donate this music album to every radio station, and I implore you that every day you play at least one song until the time we shall hold the National Referendum;
• The print media,can make use of the book, Know Your Constitution to write features and generate debate on the Referendum. The book comprises 6 Parts, out of which Parts 2 and 3 discuss contents of the Bill of Rights.

The first ever Museum of Women’s Living History has been successfully launched in Zambia. The museum will be dedicated to researching, interpreting, preserving, restoring, displaying, validating and disseminating African indigenous knowledge and living histories focused on women.

The Museum of Women’s History was born out of the ‘Narratives of Silenced Voices’ project that Samba Yonga presented in cooperation with  the Women’s History Museum in Umea, Sweden and playwright and cultural activist Mulenga Kapwepwe.

 “Taking into account the histories of women radically changes the perspectives of society. Therefore if we root ourselves in this history, we can draw from it a vision of bold possibilities that can help us deliver on the promise of an equitable future for all”, says co-founder Ms Kapwepwe.

Together they have joined with eight other women from cultural, creative, educational and the arts backgrounds to form the museum under a co-operative model. Realising that a gap exists in documenting historical narratives, the museum intends to create a space where these histories can be explored, documented and shared.

 “Over the decades we have slowly lost the ability to learn from our indigenous and contemporary historical knowledge. This museum creates the space to gather, document and share this information so we can preserve it but more importantly learn from it,” says Ms Yonga, co-founder of the Women’s Museum in Zambia.

Ms Kapwepwe, who has documented a rich portfolio of indigenous stories of women in Zambia’s social, political and cultural history has communicated through out her work the importance of learning from our history and culture. The work of Kapwepwe will also feature in the Women’s Museum.

The Museum of Women’s Living History will first start with a virtual presence online, which will serve as a source of information for people interested in learning more about the museum and then eventually as the development takes place, it will take physical form. The virtual space will publish information on the narratives that will be explored and projects that will be started. There will also be information on artefacts and collections that are already being donated to the museum. The public is encouraged to submit stories and images related to the mission of the museum. The museum also encourages anyone with any leads on information to be in touch with members of the Museum.

The page can be accessed via facebook.com/MuseumofWomensHistoryZambia.

A physical launch of the museum will take place in early 2017, as well as a reveal of exhibitions and programming.

 About the Museum of Women’s Living History

The Museum of Women’s Living History is an institution dedicated to the research, interpret, preserve, restore, display, validate and disseminate African indigenous knowledge and living histories focused on women. These are histories that have been excised out of the mainstream socio-economic and cultural historical narrative as a result of the continent’s colonial legacy.

The museum aims to introduce new cultural and historical knowledge through demystifying, popularising and functionalising indigenous knowledge.

Ruff Kid released the video for his latest single “Mwaiseni”

BY KAPA187

The Lusaka High Court has dismissed the petition brought by UPND Kabwata constituency parliamentary candidate Mulenga Sata against PF’s Given Lubinda for failure to prove allegation of corruption and malpractices.

Mr Sata was challenging the election of Mr Lubinda as Kabwata Constituency Member of Parliament in the 2016 general elections.

Lusaka High Court Judge Betty Mung’omba in her judgement said she found the election petition lacking in merit.

Judge Mung’omba further said the petitioner admitting that he did not have evidence of Mr Lubinda using government resources was clearer evidence that the election was free and fair.

And the High Court has upheld the election of independent Mwembeshi MP Machila Jamba.UPND’s Austin Milambo challenged the election of Mr Jamba alleging electoral malpractice.

Meanwhile, UPND winning candidate for Mongu Central Mwilola Imakando and Independent candidate for Nangoma Brian Hamusonde have had their election victories upheld as the petitioners failed to prove their allegations.