Join our community of SUBSCRIBERS and be part of the conversation.
To subscribe, simply enter your email address on our website or click the subscribe button below. Don't worry, we respect your privacy and won't spam your inbox. Your information is safe with us.
MMD Chisamba Member of Parliament Moses Muteteka (in glasses)
Opposition Movement for Multi Party Democracy (MMD) youth Chairman Moses Muteteka says he is not intimidated by people planning to bar him from attending this weekend’s party card renewal exercise.
The opposition MMD is slated to hold its party card renewal exercise on Saturday 25th February 2012 in Lusaka.
Mr Muteteka told Zambia News and Information Services (ZANIS) in an interview that the people calling for him to barred from attending the party card renewal exercise were not serious.
Mr Muteteka who is also Chisamba Member of Parliament revealed that his party card membership falls under central province and not Lusaka province.
He wondered how he would be barred from attending the party card renewal exercise when his membership is not with Lusaka province.
Mr Muteteka said people calling for his barring from attending the MMD party card renewal exercise were ignorant as they did not know that his party membership was in central province and not Lusaka province.
Meanwhile Mr Muteteka says construction works at Chisamba high school have slowed down.
He explained to ZANIS in an interview that works have slowed down due to lack of funding to run the project.
Mr Muteteka said the contractor had not yet been paid by government resulting in the contractor laying off some workers.
He however disclosed that he has since reported to government adding that 75 percent of constructional works have been done.
THE Movement for Multi-party Democracy (MMD) faces deregistration in under a month if it fails to pay an outstanding statutory debt of almost K400 million it owes the Office of the Registrar of Societies.
Chief Registrar of Societies Clement Andeleki said in Lusaka yesterday that the money – K390, 980,000 – must be paid within seven days.
“If the MMD does not pay this money which has been outstanding for the past 20 years, I have the power to de-register them by law, as soon as possible,” Mr Andeleki said.
Mr Andeleki, however, said in the interest of democracy and respecting opposition as a crucial ingredient to democracy and checks and balances, he had given the former ruling party seven days to make the payment.
The warning comes barely 48 hours before the former ruling party holds its card renewal exercise scheduled for Mulungushi International Conference Centre in Lusaka.
“This money has been outstanding for years despite numerous reminders,” Mr Andeleki said. “Instead of taking any drastic action, we, as a society, want them to pay up and if they fail to pay, the law will take its course,” he said.
The news of the two-decade debt, however, has been received with shock by MMD deputy national secretary Chembe Nyangu who expressed ignorance and surprise.
“We have heard about this debt today (yesterday) and all I can tell you is that I am shocked, surprised and disturbed by this news.”
“As far as I am concerned, we are up to date with all our bills, including this year’s bills,” Mr Nyangu said. Mr Nyangu added: “If there is anything we owe the society, then it is a hidden fee of some kind which they never informed us about.”
But Mr Andeleki said the society had no reason to hide anything from the MMD or any other party or society, hence the reminders.
“If you check the letter of final reminder we sent them, Mr Andeleki said, “you will find that there’s a part where we say that they had ‘failed or neglected to pay statutory fees despite several reminders’, so clearly this is not calculated.”
If the MMD does not pay the outstanding fees even after a court order, the consequences could mean a de-registration and effectively the loss of parliamentary seats.
The law states that one can only be a legislator in Zambia through a party or as an independent, hence de-registration would spell doom for many MMD members of Parliament.
Asked whether the ruling PF also was in debt having existed for more than a decade, Mr Andeleki said: “The PF has no debt. Their books are clean because they asked for an exemption which every party with more than 10 branches can ask for.”
Mr Andeleki said the letter of final warning to the MMD is but one of the many he intends to write to other defaulting organisations withholding money that could be spent on service delivery.
Opposition members of parliament walked out of parliament Wednesday, accusing President Michael Sata and his government of violating the constitution. “As members of parliament, we pledged to uphold the constitution of the Republic of Zambia and we feel that this government has been breaching the constitution,” parliamentary opposition leader Felix Mutati told journalists.
“They have been creating ministries and transferring some responsibilities from other ministries to another.” Last week, President Michael Sata created a new ministry of defence in charge of rural development and national service, and appointed the new elected Mansazala MP as deputy minister.
And President Michael Sata has, with immediate effect, reversed the appointment of Mr. Alexander Museba as Deputy Director-General of the Anti-Corruption Commission (ACC). Mr Museba was sworn-in yesterday by the President as ACC Deputy Director General
Special Assistant to the President for Press and Public Relations George Chellah in a statement released to media explaining that President Sata has instead appointed Mr. Museba as Chairperson of the Police and Prisons Service Commission replacing Mr. Keli Walubita.
Earlier, Transparency International Zambia President Reuben Lifuka released a statement questioning the legality of the appointment of Mr. Alexander Museba as Deputy Director-General of the Anti-Corruption Commission.
According to the statement, the Anti Corruption Act No. 38 of 2010. Section 12 (3) was categorical on the qualifications of the Deputy Director of the ACC and it stated that “A person shall not qualify for appointment as Deputy Director-General unless the person is qualified to be appointed Judge of the High Court.” The import of this provision is simple, for Mr. Museba to qualify to be appointed as Deputy Director-General; he must satisfy the constitutional requirement as provided for in Article 97 of the Republican Constitution which outlines the “Qualifications for Appointment as Supreme Court Judge, Puisne Judge, Chairman and Deputy Chairman of the Industrial Relations Court.”
The statement noted that Mr. Museba, was first and foremost supposed to be a Lawyer, should have served as Advocate of the High Court for at least 10 years and qualified to be considered for appointment as a Judge.
[pullquote]“We have seen how the President has ridiculed public servants at different events- this surely is not acceptable and simply breeds a culture of fear. However, for Cabinet Office staff and in particular the Secretary to the Cabinet, we want to advise that as professionals, it is their duty to tell the President the truth, whether this hurts him or not. It is not right for any public servant to keep quiet in the face of such elementary errors and we do not accept that professionals in public service should seek to save their jobs instead of serving the people, and thus allow wrong things to be done in the name of political expediency“[/pullquote]
The statement also questioned why the Secretary to the Cabinet, Mr. Evans Chibiliti failed to in conduct the necessary due diligence on matters of presidential appointments. TIZ said that they found it hard to believe that the Secretary to the Cabinet failed to notice such a glaring error in the choice made by the President for the position of Deputy Director-General of ACC.
“We find it even more shocking that the swearing in ceremony did go ahead and no one raised this matter with the President. We also find President Sata culpable because, as Head of State, he has at his disposal- different government agencies including the Intelligence Service which should clear some of his proposed appointees before he proceeds to announce their names publicly,” the statement read.
TIZ also advised the president to adhere to the provisions of the law at all times and where in doubt, to seek advice, saying that the President should make himself accessible so that he can be advised as it was becoming apparent that the President has not created the right environment where he can be advised by Public officials.
“We have seen how the President has ridiculed public servants at different events- this surely is not acceptable and simply breeds a culture of fear. However, for Cabinet Office staff and in particular the Secretary to the Cabinet, we want to advise that as professionals, it is their duty to tell the President the truth, whether this hurts him or not. It is not right for any public servant to keep quiet in the face of such elementary errors and we do not accept that professionals in public service should seek to save their jobs instead of serving the people, and thus allow wrong things to be done in the name of political expediency, ” the statement read
The statement concluded by strongly condemning the continuation of the ‘jobs-for-the boys’ syndrome, saying that it was is a pity that the PF Government which campaigned on a platform of professionalizing the public service and the diplomatic service, continues to appoint party functionaries to position of authority.
Zambian Hip hop artist C.R.I.S.I.S was recently invited to ,and attended the 54th annual Grammy awards.
Attending the Grammy ‘s was a good thing not only for C.R.I.S.I.S ,but for Zambian music in general , because it exposes the international community to Zambian music.
He talked about his experience in a recent interview ;
” … the thing about such events is that, you get to meet people and, sometimes you re-connect at a later date and, sometimes you don’t ever see each other again. The most random thing happened to me. I was at Heathrow Airport, returning from the BEFFTA Awards where I had just won BEST INTERNATIONAL ACT. While connecting flights, I met a guy called ‘Skrillex.’ We sat next to each other in the departure lounge and we got talking. He happened to be a musician. We exchanged contacts and had a really good vibe. During the Grammy’s, I met him as I was heading to the auditorium and, we both recognized each other. Skrillex was nominated for a Grammy and, he won. My point is that, you get to meet people and, as time goes you start crossing paths and you get familiar with each other and, that’s how you build relations.
I got a chance to meet J. Cole and, he introduced me to his mother. He reminded me of myself because my wife didn’t come with me to the Grammys and, the next best person would have been with would have been my mum. So I was talking to J. Cole and Corey Gunz showed up and joined us in the conversation. Later on J. Cole had to leave so Corey and I got talking about music. He actually told me some personal information which I can’t really share with the public. We spoke about prospects and exchanged contacts.
I told Shaggy that he had a big fan base in Africa. I insisted that, he should consider visiting Zambia. I had a word with his manager regarding that too. It’s the best that I can do for my country. I could have said to Shaggy that I wanted to make a song with him but, in life, it’s not about what you can do for yourself. It’s about what you can do for others.
I spoke to ‘Just Blaze’ and, we had a really good conversation. He has done a lot of production work for Jay-Z, Saigon and recently, he did “AINT NO LOVE” for Eminem Featuring Lil Wayne so, we started speaking about an idea. He has given me his contacts and actually, as I speak, I have just received a message from him. If anything comes up, I’ll let you know. So far, we have established good contact. “
A Delay in the release of the provisional 2012 Faz Super Division fixture has led Zanaco to plan on playing pre-season friendly games against lower division sides.
Zanaco who embark on a four day training camp of the Copperbelt starting on Wednesday have only scheduled matches against Division 1 North teams while in Ndola next week.
“The season is supposed to start on March 24 but we still have not seen the provisional fixtures so we cannot play against any Super Division teams because we don’t know who we will play in our first league game,” Zanaco coach Keagan Mumba said.
The Bankers have cancelled their much anticipated pre-season friendly against Nkana that was scheduled for Kitwe next weekend due to the league fixture delay.
Zanaco will now only play Ndola-based Division 1 North side’s Kalewa and Ndola Lime on March 3 and 4 respectively at venues to be advised in Ndola.
And Lime on Wednesday played Nchanga Rangers in a friendly that ended 2-2.
Meanwhile, Zanaco will travel to Kabwe this Sunday to play demoted Kabwe Warriors in a pre-season warm-up at Railway Grounds at 10:00 Hours.
And in other pre-season friendly games this weekend, Nkana face Kalewa in Ndola on Saturday before facing Mufulira Blackpool in Mufulira on Wednesday.
Power Dynamos and Konkola Blades will renew recent rivalries next month when they clash in the semifinals of the 2012 Samuel “Zoom “Ndholvu Memorial Charity Shield.
The two teams last met on December 3 last year in the Barclays Cup final that Power won 2-1 at Arthur Davies Stadium in Kitwe.
Again, Power and Blades will meet at Arthur Davies in what will be a Charity Shield semifinal doubleheader on March 10 at 13:00.
The other semifinal match at the same venue will be between Nchanga Rangers and Red Arrows at 15:00.
Arrows qualified for the semifinals after finishing runners up last season while Blades and Nchanga finished the season in 3rd and 4th places respectively.
The winners will meet in the final at Nkoloma Stadium in Lusaka on March 15.
Heritage party president has charged that the setting up of commissions of inquiry by the Patriotic Front government is a sheer waste of resources.
And Brigadier General Godfrey Miyanda has observed that the Patriotic Front seems to be lost after winning the general elections.
Gen. Miyanda says the setting up of the commissions of inquiry is not being done in the right way by the government.
He says the setting up of the commissions of inquiry should be done in an event where a national issue is complicated.
He wonders why some commissions are being set up in instances where government has records of companies being investigated.
Gen Miyanda further says that it is a waste of resources especially that money being spent on the commissions of inquiry is not budgeted for.
He says the exercise of appointing commissions of inquiry is proving costly to the country.
Gen. Miyanda adds that all the commissions that have been set up are not necessary as most investigations were going to be done in a less dramatic way.
He says there systems in government that would have been used to investigate the companies in question.
He adds that all the commissioners sitting on the commissions are biased accusing them of being sympathizers of the PF Government.
And Gen.Miyanda has charged that the PF government seems to have lost direction after winning the September elections.
Gen. Miyanda says the promised 90 days of aggressive development by the PF has not yielded any results.
He says it is a pity that the government has failed to explain to the Zambian people why they have failed to live up to the expectations of the people.
General Miyanda was speaking on Livingstone’s ZAMBEZI FM’s The JOURNALIST programme monitored by QFM radio.
New British High Commissioner to Zambia James Thornton says government’s intention to register the London court judgment against former late republican president Frederick Chiluba will be a significant move in the fight against corruption.
Mr.Thornton says the UK will support the Zambian government in prioritizing the corruption fight adding that it is pleased with the anti corruption crusade by the government.
He says corruption affects every Zambian directly or indirectly because public resources are diverted from those who need them the most.
He said this in Lusaka this afternoon during the launch of the Anti-Corruption Commission and civil society organizations’ networking programme.
Mr. Thornton however says corruption can only be tackled if it is reported to the commission.
And ACC Director General Rosewin Wandi says the commission realizes that there is no single player who can eradicate poverty without other players’ participation and contribution.
Mrs. Wandi says it is for this reason that the ACC saw it befitting to continue building coalitions with critical stakeholders such as civil society organizations.
She was however quick to mention that concerted effort in the fight against the vice is not just about making partnerships but also ensuring that the partnerships are continually made stronger and sustainable.
And representative of the civil society, Frederick Chinsala says it is the responsibility of the civil society to highlight to society the mandate of the commission, define and explain the effects of corruption.
Faz has abandoned plans to play any international friendly match on February 29.
Zambia had a planned a friendly against Gabon on February 29 but that match has now been scrapped.
Football House says they want to players focus on their club commitments after a grueling two-and-a-half months of Africa Cup buildup and tournament action.
“We have camped the players for a long time from the time we started our training camp in South Africa way back in November,” Faz communications officer Erick Mwanza said at Wednesdays press briefing.
“So we feel it would be important for the players to settle with their clubs and also have some rest because it may be difficult to get them back on Sunday ahead of the friendly matches.”
The development means Zambia could be inactive until June 1 when they play their next official game against Sudan in a 2014 World cup Group qualifier in Khartoum.
Ban ki-moon Un Scretary general plants a tree at the Newsly Commissioned AU Headquarters in Addis Ababa
The Foundation for Democratic Process (FODEP) says the visit by the United Nations Secretary General Ban Ki Moon presents a great opportunity for the Zambian government to engage the UN system on how it can assist the country propel social and economic development.
FODEP Executive Director MacDonald Chipenzi said government needs to maximize the UN Chief’s visit to the country and bring to the fore the positives the country possesses for the world to know what the country has to offer.
Mr. Chipenzi explained that the UN was the biggest system in the promotion of development and good governance, saying the presence of the UN Secretary General in the country was a great opportunity for the country to push its development agenda.
He told ZANIS in an interview in Lusaka today that the world’s attention will be on Zambia during the UN Chief’s visit to the country and that it was imperative therefore that the country brings out the positives it has to offer to the world.
Mr. Chipenzi urged government to prepare a good package on what the country has in terms of tourism, the crusade against corruption and the stable democratic credential the country has built for itself to solicit foreign direct investment into the country.
The FODEP Executive Director also stated that government also need to bring out the challenges it is facing such as poverty, HIV/AIDS, under-development among others so that the UN system can help the country to address after Mr. Ban’s visit.
Mr. Ban is expected in the country on Friday February 24.
Whilst in the country Mr. Ban will meet President Michael Sata and other senior government officials and address a special session of the country’s National Assembly, where he is also due to interact with the leaders of several parliamentary bodies.
He will also visit a United Nations-supported initiative that uses life skills and sports to reach out to and inspire vulnerable children, including those who live in the streets.
The UN Secretary General will be accompanied by, the President of the International Olympic Committee (IOC)Jacques Rogge, and will also visit the Olympic Youth Development Centre, a pilot project of the IOC ‘Sports for Hope Programme.
Mr. Ban will also have discussions with Zambian human rights clubs hosted by schools in Livingstone, before participating in a ‘tourism for development’ event in Victoria Falls national park.
From Zambia, Mr. Ban will go to Angola, where he will meet with President José Eduardo dos Santos, the President of the National Assembly, Antonio Paulo Kassoma, and Foreign Minister Georges Rebelo Chikoti, among other top officials.
Chief Chisunka of the Ushi people in mansa district of Luapula Province has bemoaned the work cuture in the public service which he says is responsible for underdevelopment in the country.
Chief Chisunka said it was saddening that the work culture in the public service has made it made it difficult to carryout various development programmes in his chiefdom because everyone’s attention is to go out and look for money instead of carrying out duties government has engaged them for.
He said certain works like clearing the blocked roads or fixing a blown off roof from some public property was being done at no compelling costs from community members but the culture has now changed where everyone was demanding payments for anything done to benefit the community which has made it difficult for even small projects to be done.
The traditional ruler was saying this when Luapula Province Minister Rodgers Mwewa visited his palace recently.
And Luapula Province minister Rodgers Mwewa assured the chief that the PF government was determined to improve the welfare of the people.
“People need to drink clean water and boreholes can be sunk using the Constituency Development Fund,” he said.
He added that the shortage of nurses and medical staff was a countrywide problem but the medical staff at health centers should not all go for workshops and seminars leaving the people unattended to because they were employed to serve the people and not to attend workshops and seminars.
“We want to train more health personnel so that we could retain majority of them in Luapula province to attend to our people,” he said.
Hugo is the astonishing adventure of a wily and resourceful boy whose quest to unlock a secret left to him by his father will transform Hugo and all those around him, and reveal a safe and loving place he can call home.
PROS
Great visual effects
Chloe Grace Moretz is so optimistic and eager for a chance at an adventure. You can’t help but adore the Isabelle character.
Asa Butterfield did a great job in the lead role as Hugo showing a lot of passion and emotion .
CONS
The movie takes long to really get started.
FAVORITE QUOTES
Mama Jeanne: Georges, you’ve tried to forget the past for so long, but it has caused you nothing but unhappiness. Maybe it’s time you tried to remember.
Hugo Cabret: I’d imagine the whole world was one big machine. Machines never come with any extra parts, you know. They always come with the exact amount they need. So I figured if the entire world was one big machine, I couldn’t be an extra part. I had to be here for some reason. And that means you have to be here for some reason too.
CONCLUSION
Hugo is an amazing mystery ,family adventure . It takes a while to get going , but once it starts you will bare witness to some superb story telling. The best movies are the ones that leave you with something to think about. This is no exception , it makes you think about your true purpose in life and not giving up on what you truly love.
This movie has been nominated for an astounding 11 academy awards.
“If you’ve ever wondered where your dreams come from, you look around… this is where they’re made.”
The London Judgment involving former President Frederick Chiluba is waiting cabinet approver to be registered in the High court of Zambia.
Justice Minister Sebastian Zulu told parliament on Tuesday that the Attorney General has already made necessary documentation in readiness to have the judgment registered in Zambia.
Mr. Zulu says what is delaying the Attorney General is cabinet approval
He was responding to a supplementary question raised by Monze Central MP Jack Mwiimbu who wanted to know if all foreign judgments will have to be approved by cabinet before they can be registered in Zambia.
Earlier Justice Deputy Minister Ngosa Simbiyakula has told parliament that his Ministry has already done a Cabinet memo and that cabinet is yet to decide whether or not to have the judgment registered in the High Court.
This was in response to a oral question raised by Kabompo West MP Ambrose Lufuma who wanted to know whether the government is considering to have the London judgment involving former President Chiluba and others registered in the High Court.
A police officer escorts Former Finance and National Planning Minister Situmbeko Musokotwane from the former Taskforce on Corruption offices in Lusaka
FORMER Finance and National Planning minister Situmbeko Musokotwane was yesterday interrogated for more than two hours by law enforcement officers.
This is in connection with the 1,230 bicycles that were recovered from his residence in Lusaka in October last year.
Dr Musokotwane said he was ready to appear before the security wings should they need him again because he did not have anything to hide.
He arrived at the offices previously used by the disbanded task force on corruption at about 14:00 hours and only left after 16:00 hours.
“The last time I appeared was in connection with the Varum Beverages issues but this time it was something to do with the bicycles which were recovered from my farm,” Dr Musokotwane said.
The former Minister, who is Liuwa Member of Parliament (MP) was served with a call-out last week but asked the investigating team to allow him a few days to organise his lawyer and other relevant details.
He is being investigated in connection with the bicycles and his decision to award Varun Beverages a tax deferment in disregard of the Zambia Development Agency (ZDA) Act.
Dr Musokotwane’s firm, Zambuild Investments Limited, supplied building materials to Varun a few months after the firm was awarded the tax holiday.
Spokesperson of the combined team of security officers, Charity Chanda said Dr Mr Musokotwane would be called when need arises and that he cooperated with officers during interrogation.
Meanwhile, MMD national secretary Major Richard Kachingwe and chairperson for elections Gabriel Namulambe have been summoned to appear before the team at 09:00 hours this morning.
Maj Kachingwe has been summoned in connection with MMD campaign vehicles police seized from the party last year.
Mr Namulambe has been summoned in connection with 20 bicycles police recovered from him during the on-going investigations.
The team, composing officers from the Zambia police service, the Drug Enforcement Commission (DEC), the Zambia Revenue Authority (ZRA) and prosecutors from the office of the Director of Public Prosecutions (DPP) are investigating reports of corruption in the previous administration.
Anti-Corruption Commission (ACC) officers are also in the team.
File:A youth in business -cashing in on Tujilijili (brandy or gin packed in small sachets)
Zambia Association of Consumers (ZACA) has called on government to stiffen the law on the sale and production of alcohol in smaller sachets.
Association Executive Director Muyunda Ililonga says there is need for government to put in place stringent measures that will ensure that the production and sale of the beer is properly and effectively regulated.
Mr. Ililonga expressed concern on the increasing number of people dying after consuming the alcohol in small sachets commonly referred to as tujilijili.
He told ZANIS in an interview in Lusaka today, that it was sad to continue losing lives of people that are productive and can make significant contributions to the country’s economic development.
He said government should work closely with the relevant authority such as the manufactures of beer and discourage them from producing smaller quantities of alcohol that are cheaper and accessible to everyone including children.
Mr. Ililonga noted that government through the local authorities in different places countrywide must also make sure that it intensifies its inspections on bars to find out if they are adhering to the law and have licenses to sale liquor.
He explained that with the current situation where people sale beer in places like markets and without proper licenses, it is difficult to tighten the regulations.
The ZACA Chief noted that it was for this reason that the liquor licensing board and the local authority should be carrying out inspections before granting licenses to people to operate bars and sale beer.
And Mr. Ililonga said government’s plan to start caring out community inspections throughout the country should be supported as it is aimed at addressing various public nuisances.
He added that through such programmes it will be easy for the local authorities to effect the Public Health Act that is currently inactive.
He has since appealed to consumers to also refrain from engaging themselves in illicit beer drinking that can impact negatively on their lives.
On Monday a 32 year old male nurse of Kitwe Central Hospital died after he allegedly consumed 63 sachets of tujilijili.
