Foreign Affairs Permanent Secretary, George Zulu, has warned diplomats working in Zambian missions against tribalism, disloyalty and insubordination.

Mr Zulu said all Zambians were one and as such, did not need to engage in tribalism while serving in missions abroad.

“As Heads of Missions, you were sent to your respective countries by the President and your juniors were not sent by the President and hence there should be no tribalism and insubordination in the missions abroad,” he said.

He said this in Livingstone during the official closing of the 11 day-Heads of Missions conference held at Protea hotel.

Mr Zulu urged the diplomats to work hard and remain disciplined as this would enable them attain the vision and goals that the Patriotic Front government stands for.

The Permanent Secretary further said he would not relent in his demands for diplomats to be totally loyal to President Michael Sata and the PF government.

“I will demand total loyalty to President Sata and the PF Government.If you are not loyal, the best you can do is to resign,” he said.

And Secretary to the Cabinet, Roland Msiska, observed the need to re-align the missions abroad in a manner that would attract more tourists to Zambia.

Dr Msiska said it was imperative for missions abroad to have separate desks on economic diplomacy besides the usual political ones, as this would attract more investment to Zambia and create jobs locally.

In a vote of thanks, Dean of Zambian Diplomatic Corps, Muyeba Chikonde,said the meeting had renewed the determinations of Zambian diplomats to achieve their mission.

Mr Chikonde, who is also Zambia’s High Commissioner to South Africa,called for a new mind-set in missions abroad to uplift Zambia’s image abroad.

The Vice-President also condemned United Party for National Development (UPND) president Hakainde Hichilema for telling his supporters to prepare for a presidential by election before 2016.

During a rally in Mandevu at the weekend, Mr Hichilema said President Michael Sata was too sick to continue running the country and asked his supporters to prepare themselves for a presidential by election before 2016.

“Just the other day at their rally in Mandevu Mr HH was telling his supporters to prepare for a presidential by election before 2016. Surely is that the kind of politics we want to see in this country?” he said.

Dr Scott was speaking during a special edition of National Watch programme on Zambia National Broadcasting Corporation (ZNB) Television on Tuesday night to give an insight on various national issues.

Commenting on the performance of the Kwacha after its recent all time slump, Dr Scott said Government through the Bank of Zambia (BoZ) was doing everything possible to stabilise the currency on a long term basis.

He defended the interventions by the central bank to stabilise the Kwacha saying they were timely but that the volatility was caused by external forces such as the pricing of copper on the international market which Zambia has no control of.

Dr Scott also blamed the opposition for delaying the constitution making process by disrupting parliamentary debate adding that their conduct was not only unparliamentary but also a disservice to the electorates who sent the Members of Parliament to represent them in the House.

SCORES of Patriotic Front (PF) members on Tuesday night verbally abused the party’s Eastern Province chairperson Lameck Mangani and threatened to beat him for allegedly being treacherous and working against President Sata.

And PF secretary-general Wynter Kabimba has warned that undisciplined cadres in the party could bring down a government.

The members, who brought business to a standstill for about 30 minutes at Chipata’s Protea Hotel chanted slogans and denounced Mr Mangani.

“Why are you today following Wynter Kabimba when you were among those calling for his removal? Go, we don’t want you. This party belongs to [President] Sata,” shouted one elderly woman.

The cadres also accused Mr Mangani of sidelining founders and party structures in preference for former members of the MMD, the former ruling party he once belonged to.

The PF’s security detail led by Judge Ngoma had a tough time controlling the cadres, who were determined to beat up Mr Mangani.

The cadres broke a cordon that was set up to prevent them from getting to where Mr Mangani was but some cadres stood up in defence of the provincial leader.
Punches and insults were traded before the situation was controlled by the party’s security team.

Mr Mangani’s youths, who were donned in berets, were outnumbered and retreated to safety.
Efforts by Mr Kabimba to calm down the situation failed until Mr Mangani was whisked away by the party’s security team.

Mr Kabimba told the slogan chanting members that he would meet them today (Thursday) to discuss the matter but they kept passing running commentaries against Mr Mangani.

“Ayende Mangani ! (Mr Mangani must go) ! We don’t want him,” they shouted.

Mr Kabimba is today expected to address PF members. No injuries were recorded in the punch up.

And Mr Kabimba said PF cadres must exhibit the highest levels of discipline to inspire the confidence of citizens.

Mr Kabimba, who is also Minister of Justice, was speaking when he met PF officials and supporters at the Katete District Council chamber on Tuesday

“Be exemplary as members of the ruling party. Don’t engage in criminality using the name of the party because we are watching and will judge you harshly in 2016,” he said.

Mr Kabimba said President Sata, whom he described as a very humble man, does not tolerate indiscipline in the party because allowing that would be reducing the prospects of the PF winning the 2016 elections.

He said that in 1991 Zambians kicked UNIP out of power because of the violence that was being exhibited and did a similar thing in 2011 when the MMD embraced violence.

Mr Kabimba said some new members have been the ones fermenting indiscipline and confusion in the party.

“Indiscipline, especially in Lusaka is creeping in. But this party will not allow it. That is why President Sata expelled Julius Komaki and his friend for gross indiscipline,” Mr Kabimba said.

“The youths who were calling for my resignation were steeped in criminality and realised that I am not corrupt or lazy so they started bringing confusion in the party so that they can grab people’s plots and extort money from citizens in the name of the party,” he said.

Speaking earlier in Sinda, Mr Kabimba advised MMD president Nevers Mumba to go back to his pastoral work because he has allegedly failed to run the MMD.

“God gave Nevers Mumba a gift of preaching the word of God but he defied that and started politics. Each one of us has our gifts,” Mr Kabimba said.

Meanwhile, PF national youth chairperson Chishimba Kambwili has warned party members in North-Western Province to desist from paying allegiance to individuals other than the President and the party itself.

Mr Kambwili said he is disappointed by divisions in the party and the way members are working in the region.

He warned party members with hidden motives of destroying the party to stop or face disciplinary action.

Mr Kambwili said this on Tuesday when he addressed party cadres at Solwezi Lodge.

VICE-PRESIDENT Guy Scott says that local authorities should be humane when repossessing land and should not wait until people have built houses to reclaim illegally obtained plots.

Dr Scott also says the problem of illegal land allocation is difficult to manage.

The Vice-President said this when he featured on Zambia National Broadcasting Corporation’s (ZNBC) special programme National Watch on Tuesday night.

Dr Scott said Government is determined to curb illegal land allocations and that it is putting in place measures that will reduce the vice.

“We are raising standards and we have been very rough on land grabbing in Lusaka and we are behind the police on this.

“We are determined to try and do things correctly and we do not want to cause too much pain to innocent people if we can help it,” he said.

Dr Scott said there is need to find the root cause of illegal land allocation so that culprits can be brought to book because Government does not want to punish innocent people who build but those who sell them land.

He said councils should be proactive and not to wait until people have built houses before they move in to demolish houses.

Dr Scott said city planners in councils should educate people on how to legally acquire land.

He said land grabbing is a huge problem and that Government will not allow anarchy in land administration

And Dr Scott has called for consensus on the constitution-making process to come up with a people-driven constitution.

Dr Scott there is a lot of progress being made.

He said that the Technical Committee on Drafting the Constitution was constituted by Government to produce a report but that the reminder of the work should be done by all the people who should debate what they want included.

Dr Scott said major contentious issues should be taken to parliament and debated and those agreed can be passed but that this can only be done when there is unity of purpose as this is the only way Zambia can manage to have a proper constitution.

And Dr Scott described as disgraceful and rubbish assertions that President Sata is ill and not able to perform Government functions.

He said the lies are being peddled by disgruntled people who want to undermine the President.

Meanwhile, Dr Scott said the Bank of Zambia has worked hard to restore the strength of the Kwacha.

Dr Scott said the depreciation of the Kwacha is an opportunity for the manufacturing industry to produce more and export.

LIVINGSTONE’s Kubu Crafts General Manager Stephen Horligan has allegedly been insulting workers by calling them ‘baboons’ and ‘stupid black Africans’ each time he felt the workers were not working according to expectations.

This has prompted Livingstone District Commissioner Omar Munsanje to institute a team to investigate the alleged insults and racial remarks by Mr Horligan.

Speaking in an interview in Livingstone yesterday, Mr Munsanje said he received the disturbing allegations on Mr Horligan and he had since constituted a team of council officials to investigate the matter.

“I can confirm that I received a report last week in which workers from Kubu Crafts reported to Livingstone City Council that Mr Horligan was calling them baboons and stupid black Africans.

After hearing about this sad development, I tasked Dambwa Central Councillor Likando Liswani and Livingstone City Council Public relations Manager Emmanuel Sikanyika and another official to investigate this matter. I am still waiting for a report from this team,” Mr Munsanje said.

According to impeccable sources, who declined to be named, the team went to Kubu Crafts as assigned by Mr Munsanje last week where they discovered that Mr Horligan had left for external engagements.

Instead, Mr Horligan’s superior Roerf Bosman, who is Kubu Crafts managing director, was met and he requested to explain on reports that his subordinate was calling Zambian workers Baboons and stupid Africans each time he felt the workers were not working according to expectations.

In his response, Mr Bosman admitted that his General Manager’s supervision style was aggressive and at times extreme.

He however expressed ignorance that he had ever used words like Baboons and stupid black Zambians and other racially inclined remarks.

Mr Bosman told the investigating team that he had reprimanded Mr Horligan on a number of occasions telling him to refrain from using words like ‘fuck’ which were considered normal in some societies.

He also promised to carryout investigations and counsel his colleagues further. While at the plant, the investigation interviewed the union leaders who in turn confirmed the reports of harassment, intimidation and insults by Mr Horligan.

The union officials told the investigators that Mr Horligan had even gone to an extent of counting and regulating minutes the workers were taking when they went to answer the call of nature.

They explained that though the General Manager had toned down compared to the earlier times, he had continued to threaten workers of dismissal and non-renewal of contracts for no genuine reasons.

“The union leadership further reported that he usually dares them to report to the Managing Director claiming that he would not support blacks when he himself is a white man They said he would even accost workers for going to seek medication from clinics,” the source said.

The investigating team thanked the workers for their submissions and assured workers that they would find time to talk to Mr Horligan and present a report to relevant authorities.

Workers were requested to continue working hard for the company while noting and reporting any forms of bullying and inhuman treatment.

Patriotic Front PF Isoka District chairman Gerald silwamba has warned opposition political parties visiting Isoka district to desist from using the ISO FM radio as a platform to de campaign the ruling party.

The warning comes in awake of opposition UPND official Mutale Nalumango who was quoted in the local media as saying that the ruling PF has not delivered as expected.

Mr. Silwamba .said. In a press statement made available to ZANIS today that his party shall not seat idol while UPND was attacking them.

And Mr silwamba said the journalists did not conduct themselves properly in an interview that meant to be little the ruling PF. Party.

Meanwhile ISO radio FM management have expressed displeasure over the continued threats and interference of the radio station operations by PF political party officials and a named district top official.

The management alleged that they were attacked several times by PF officials stating that the community radio station is now operating under fear.

They explained that a community radio station allows any person to air their views as long as it does not contented slanderous content or any information that world injure some people.

The management emphasizes that disturbing of broadcasting and parading journalists to police is an offence in itself and that journalists were just harassed and not slapped a charge shows clearly the party officials are aimed at closing the station.

They added that Zambia is a Democratic state that allows people to express themselves freely not journalists dictated to interviews in favour of the ruling party.

The management said Disturbing an on air programmers is un developmental meant to kill radio stations purpose of good governance.

On Tuesday PF officials accompanied by seven plain clothed police officers under instruction of a district top official disturbed the broadcasting at ISO FM by dragging journalists to police and confiscated their phones for four hours.

The MMD in Western Province has expelled former Mangango constituency Member of Parliament Taundi Chiseke and Kaoma MMD district youth chairperson Kenny Ndumba for alleged gross misconduct.

Western Province MMD information and publicity chairperson, David Nchengu, says Mr Chiseke and Mr Ndumba have been expelled from the party for bringing the name of the former ruling party into disrepute and destabilizing the MMD in Mangango constituency.

In a statement made available today Mr Nchengu, who is also Shikombwe MMD ward councillor, said the party is still intact in the province, adding that it is currently prospecting for a candidate to field in the Mangango constituency by-election slated for August 19.

When contacted for a comment, MMD president Nevers Mumba could, however, not confirm the expulsion of the former Mangango MP and wondered where the information was coming from.

And Mr Chiseke, whose election was nullified by the Supreme Court recently, said he was not aware of his expulsion and wondered which party organ had ejected him from the MMD because Mr Nchengu alone has no powers to do so.

Mr Chiseke said he is not moved by the alleged expulsion and questioned how he was destabilizing the MMD since he was not working with any of the former ruling party’s organs in the area.

He urged Mr Nchengu to come out in the open and make his interests in contesting the Mangango seat known instead of hiding behind party disciplinary functionaries.

Mr Chiseke said Mr Nchengu should not be jittery but realise that Chiseke is a household name in Mangango constituency as a result of the accomplishment he has made in collaboration with the PF government.

He said Mangango constituency has seen an unprecedented level of development since he assumed the legislative position two and half years ago and the constituents are actually mourning his nullification as area MP.

And Mr Nchengu alleged that Mr Ndumba is a hired gun with selfish motives whose aim is to destabilize the party in Mangango constituency through the support he is rendering to potential parliamentary candidates such as Mr Chiseke and UPND’s Godwin Putu.

Reacting to his expulsion, Mr Ndumba said Mr Nchengu is not the right person to expel him but the party’s district executive committee and this can only be done after he is charged of any misconduct and given an opportunity to be heard.

Mr Ndumba said he has not even received a notice of the said disciplinary action and thus his purported expulsion from the MMD is not backed by any rational thinking and described it as illegal, null and void.

But Mr Nchengu said the party leadership in the province will not condone people with selfish agendas to destroy the party in the area, saying some members who defected to PF and UPND in 2012 in Kaoma district have been replaced and the party is making headways in the region.

Mr Nchengu said the party is strong in Mangango constituency and expressed optimism that any candidate the MMD will field in the by-election will scoop the seat.

And UPND district chairman Andrew Kakumbi said the PF has failed to run the government because Kaoma was experiencing erratic supply of fuel forcing the public to buy the commodity at an inflated price on the black market.

Meanwhile, UPND youth Chairman Joseph Kwanga said the party is geared for the Mangango by-election and urged youths in the area to desist from engaging in violent activities during and after the polls.