This is the second sample off the upcoming album ‘‘When God Says Yes’‘ This song looks at the goodness of God and the only reasonable response we can have to His goodness.
“Forever yours” features Rachael Steadman  , Grant Moore – Guitarist; and Darren Garrod – Piano. Produced by Urban Studios, Perth, Western Australia

BY KAPA187

Opposition UPND leader Hakainde Hichilema has charged that Zambia is facing one of its greatest economic challenges because President Edgar Lungu has allegedly failed to provide leadership.

Addressing a news conference at the party’s Secretariat on this morning, Mr Hichilema said President Lungu has absconded from his responsibilities.

Mr Hichilema accused PF of killing poor Zambians by failing to provide leadership and sinking a once prosperous economy.

When PF took over in 2011, the Kwacha was 5.40 to a dollar, four years down the line, the Kwacha is now at K 10.4 to a dollar, that is over 100 percent depreciation
”

“When PF took over in 2011, the Kwacha was 5.40 to a dollar, four years down the line, the Kwacha is now at K 10.4 to a dollar, that is over 100 percent depreciation,” he said.
He warned that more Zambians will face untold suffering by December tis year as Maize prices are expected to be hiked.

Mr Hichilema also revealed that more mining companies will place their operations on care and maintenance following reduced production as a result of increased load shedding.

“What we are seeing at Baluba mine where the treatment plant had to be closed and 1,600 jobs put on hold is just the beginning, more is mines will be put on what is called care and maintenance,” Mr Hichilema said.

“What Zambia needs is a leadership with a clear vision. A leadership that won’t blame external variables such as China for its failure to provide basics amenities for its people.”

Mr.Hichilema said President Lungu should cut down on is international trips in order to focus on addressing issues at home.He said, “We want to tell Lungu to have self restraint. Even if there is a lot of beer in State House, don’t drink all of it, leave some of it.”

Sort out the Kariba North bank issue, those are management issues, we are demanding that Mr Lungu stops travelling. He should not travel to his upcoming trip to Kenya, go and tell him that HH says don’t travel

Mr Hichilema added, “Sort out the Kariba North bank issue, those are management issues, we are demanding that Mr Lungu stops travelling. He should not travel to his upcoming trip to Kenya, go and tell him that HH says don’t travel.”

The UPND leader said, “When you have a serious person in State House, that presidential jet is packed most of the time so that you can concentrate on domestic issues.”

Mr Hichilema also stated that President Lungu has no capacity to address the increased load shedding.

“Our friends in Kenya are investing in solar, what are we doing? We are exporting power, we demand that Lungu renegotiates those power export agreements forthwith.”

[pullquote]Stop the Maize exports because the price of mealie meal will be high by December, let FRA buy the Maize and pay cash to the farmer[/pullquote]

“I am advising Lungu to address the electricity issue. So factories, saloons and the window frame maker can be productive. Stop the Maize exports because the price of mealie meal will be high by December, let FRA buy the Maize and pay cash to the farmer.”

He said at the rate the crop marketing season is going, the FRA will fail to meet its targeted 500, 000 metric tonnes of Maize purchases.Mr Hichilema also advised President Lungu to focus on the production side of the economy and not on the expenditure side.

“Miteno za misonko zadula, (fees for various licences have one up), we are saying as UPND, you will only renew your licences every three years so we help you survive during these difficult time.

UPND candidate in the Lubansenshi parliamentary by-election Patrick Mucheleka has gone into hiding.

Mr Mucheleka is being sought by Police for allegedly inciting UPND cadres who beat up newly appointed Luwingu district Commissioner Patrick Chanda for allegedly mobilizing voters for the ruling party candidate George Mwamba.

He has told QFM News in a telephone interview from his hideout that he is awaiting instructions from his lawyers before he can avail himself to the police.

Mr. Mucheleka has denied inciting UPND cadres to beat up the newly appointed Luwingu district commissioner.

He says what the PF through the Police are doing is trying to intimidate the opposition after realizing that they do not have the support of the people of Lubansenshi.

Mr. Mucheleka states that the ruling is aware that they have a terrible candidate who has been rejected by the people as the people are overwhelmingly supporting him and the UPND.

And FODEP Executive Director MacDonald Chipenze says reports from FODEP monitors in Lubansenshi indicate that Police last night raided and tear-gassed Luena Parish in Lubansenshi in search of Mr Mucheleka.

Mr Chipenzi says five suspected UPND cadres and one person found in possession of eight voters’ cards have been arrested by the police leaving the District Commissioner scot-free.

He says it will be unfair and unprofessional on the part of the police to leave the District Commissioner who caused the electoral mayhem in Lubansenshi and only pursue those who tried to remind the DC to respect his role as a civil servant and also adhere to the Presidential directive.

Mr Chipenzi adds that Police should also restrain themselves from raiding places of worship as it is against international practice to raid such places which are considered sacred.

He furthers states that Police should immediately stop pursuing Mr. Mucheleka who is candidate in this by-election before they are blamed for aiding other candidates to rob him of electoral victory.

Mr Chipenzi says FODEP calls on the Police to instead arrest the District Commissioner who engaged in active political campaigns disregarding the Presidential and Vice-Presidential direction instructing civil servants including DCs not to engage in partisan politics.

He states that FODEP condemns the use of District Commissioners and police to win bye-elections as witnessed in Livingstone, Mulobezi, Mangango and now Lubansenshi as it denigrate the principles of a fair playing field in the electoral process.

Special Assistant to the President for Press Amos Chanda stated that President Edgar Lungu will not allow the Kwacha to collapse because of what he called a false belief in a free market economy.

Mr Chanda blamed the rapid deterioration of the Kwacha to speculative behaviour by some market players.

“What we have seen is that from the time the Kwacha was around 8.5 to a Dollar, all the movements upwardly have been influenced by speculators who are holding off,” Mr Chanda said.

He was speaking Sunday evening when he featured on ZNBC TVs Sunday Interview programme.

“We are not yet at a point where we could think that the financial markets have broken down irretrievably. We think that speculative behaviour by some players has put the kwacha under pressure,” Mr Chanda said.

He added, “Because for the long time when contractor and other producers were unable to be paid by government there was cash problem in the economy but we don’t think there is cash problem for both for the dollar and the Kwacha.”

Mr Chanda explained that the problem was that in some circles there was sentiment that under no circumstance would government intervene to arrest the free fall of the kwacha.
“But am here to state that the President cannot allow the national currency to collapse because of the false belief in free market economy fixing themselves even when things are clearer that the market won’t fix itself.”

He added, “So the President could intervene through the treasury off course, allowing the central bank to regulate if the markets don’t behave properly, there are exchange controls as a measure.”

He said exchange controls means that restricting key sectors of the economy access to foreign exchange.

“Not to intervene as a matter of currency intervention, it is to restrict very essential productive sectors to have access to the dollar in order to have sufficient liquidity in the market, if that fails, that is why the Bank of Zambia keeps what is called strategic reserves, those strategic reserves are meant to protect the economy in an emergency situation, no options are off the table,” Mr Chanda said.

Asked if the Kwacha would go beyond the K15 to a US dollar mark, Mr Chanda emphatically said the Kwacha will not get any worse.

“The Kwacha will not get any worse than it is and if it does, like I have said, the government is not asleep and it will come in to ensure that there is reasonable equilibrium.”

Helen Zulu of ZNBC’s Zed Connect had to sit down with Nigerian Award Winning Instrumentalist and song writer/singer ‘Femi Kuti‘ – son of the legendary Fela Kuti.

Femi Kuti whose been nominated four times at the Grammy awards in the world music category is now being Managed by Chocolate City Music Group.

BY KAPA187

The Citizens Democratic Party is a party that was principally founded and registered by a politically conscious and youthful group in 2009 on the principle of “Putting People First”. From our conception, it was and has always been our core principle to have this “mantra” as the backdrop of our operation, and thus our guidance as we endeavour to actively participate in the political realm of our country.

We have noted the toxic and hostile politics currently at play, and have thus decided to put our mettle to the test with the intention of refreshing and renewing the current political scene, by joining forces and sharing our ideas with a party that we believe has good intent to take our country forward. This party is the Patriotic Front whose founder President Michael Sata espoused the need to uplift the poor citizenry of our people. Indeed this is a vision which is now being carried by President Edgar Lungu. Our President needs support (even across party and political divide) given the unfair and gross mudslinging that has come his way. There has been extreme character assassination of our President, made with the sole mischievous and insidious intent of diverting the attention of our citizenry from the positive progress we have made as a country in the last 3 years. To his credit, our President has instead “turned the other cheek” [as a man with good Christian principle], remaining unfazed in the face of unprecedented political toxicity and outright insult he is splashed with everyday.

Pressing Issues: Our Economy
Yes it is true that our economy has in the recent past underperformed. However, it is sheer cunning and devilment to place TOTAL blame on one Edgar Chagwa Lungu who has only been in the “driving seat” 7 months, as being personally responsible for this quandary. The key factors of the Zambian economic downturn are:

(1) A global phenomenon- most economies (worldwide) that were thought to be on the upswing have significantly slashed their growth rate. On this point we can do very little as a country.
(2) Pressure that has been exerted on our financial resources by the ambitious infrastructure development agenda that the Patriotic Front government very boldly and rightly engaged in. It is this point that we can explicate and indeed improve on, in order to cushion the effects of this great endeavour that will forever be a flagship of the PF government.

From point 2 above, it is important that we recognize where we are coming from as related to our current economic woes. Let us remember that the late President engaged in numerous capital projects that are on-going. Our current President Mr. Edgar Chagwa Lungu, has again shown great determination and boldness in attempting to keep these capital projects going, given the challenges that he inherited due to the indebtedness already contracted by our ambitious late President Mr. Michael Chilufya Sata. President Sata was a man of great and unmatched character who always tried to find ways and means to get things done. Legend has it that the fly-over bridges in Lusaka were undertaken under great financial distress. Today we are driving over them not knowing the toll it took on our resources. Indeed nothing great is ever achieved by those who do not choose to take risk.

President Edgar Chagwa Lungu has by the stroke of destiny found himself carrying a challenging and bold vision. Our President must be applauded for trying to keep this vision alive rather than be ridiculed by some of our political leaders vying for high office, who are in league with other company [to by all means] necessary ridicule the President as a means to achieve political power. Today the President is a victim of bad press and mordancy as though he created these economic conditions himself PERSONALLY. This practice of diverting pure fact from fiction as a political ploy must be condemned and we urge every right- thinking Zambian to analyze what is at play. What we will hear is a lot of criticism but little to no offer of solutions coming from the opposition. These are not progressive politics meant to uplift our people- they are politricks only meant to divert our people’s attention to isolate the President of our country whom was democratically elected in what is now a challenging period.

We have decided as the Citizen’s Democratic Party to solidly rally behind our President and the party the PF as we believe the party means well for the country and will require support in these seemingly unpopular times, even as they craft their manifesto for 2016- a great idea that has again been demonized by some unfair elements. We are a party founded by youth, on the principle of “Putting People First” and wish every success to the President as this will be success for our country.

The struggle continues. Victory is certain.

Issued by:
The Citizens Democratic Party Secretariat