Suspected Patriotic Front (PF) cadres are allegedly invading on private land in Lusaka’s west and are terrorizing land owners.

The cadres have allegedly been grabbing titled land from unsuspecting land owners and demarcating plots for sale.

An affected land owner, Simeon Zyambo told ZANIS in an interview in Lusaka today that the cadres have gone on rampage grabbing any piece of land they can lay their hands on.

Mr. Zyambo, who resides in Livingstone where he is working, said four weeks ago, some cadres invaded his farm plot and told his worker that they had come to take over the titled land.

He said the cadres have since started digging foundations on his plot and have also marked some roads.

He said he reported the matter to Kanyama Police Post and also spoke to Lusaka District Commissioner who gave him one ward official from Kanyama to go and ascertain which people were involved in the scam.

Mr. Zyambo said it was established that it was PF cadres from Ward ten in Kanyama that were selling titled land in Lusaka west.

He stated that upon establishing that the cadres belonged to the ruling party, he went to the PF secretariat but was referred to the party’s Lusaka district office where some district officials intervened in the situation.

He said the situation became quiet for a while and he returned to Livingstone.

But to Mr. Zyambo’s surprise, he received a call from his neighbour telling him that the cadres were back on the farm and were removing roofing sheets from his servant quarters.

He said his worker was not around as he had fled for fear of losing his life at the hands of cadres.

Mr. Zyambo said he immediately phoned Kanyama Police who rushed to the scene but found that cadres had finished removing the roofing sheets and ran away and dropped some of the roofing sheets on the way upon seeing the police.

He said the police managed to retrieve 16 roofing sheets which are currently at Kanyama Police Post.

Mr. Zyambo explained that he travelled from Livingstone to Lusaka on Thursday only to receive a report that the cadres had now razed down his house completely.

He appealed to the PF leadership to stop the cadres from terrorizing citizens in the country saying they were tarnishing the image of the ruling party.

And PF Lusaka Province Chairperson Geoffrey Chuumbwe warned that the ruling party will not shield anyone involved in criminal activities.

Mr. Chuumbwe cautioned cadres against engaging in criminal acts.

He called on PF members who may be involved in such illegal acts to stop forthwith adding that the party will not hesitate to hand over to the police anyone found breaking the law.

He also advised victims of land grabbing to report to his office so that necessary measures can be taken to address the situation.

ZANIS

Government will swiftly act towards the realisation of the Freedom of Information bill.

And government has expressed confidence that Zambia will implement the digital migration before the regional and international deadlines.

Minister of Information and Broadcasting Services Kennedy Sakeni, who is also Chief Government Spokesperson, said tremendous progress has already been made towards actualising the Freedom of Information bill.

Mr. Sakeni disclosed that the Attorney General has finished studying the proposed Access to Information bill and that the bill will now be submitted to Cabinet and to members of the public before it is finally submitted to parliament for enactment.

He was speaking at an interactive media cocktail that was organised by the Ministry of Information and Broadcasting Services in Lusaka last night.

Mr. Sakeni said government, under the leadership of President Michael Sata, has decontrolled and deregulated the media so that they operate freely and professionally in carrying out their mandate of informing, educating and entertaining the public.

He said the controls that characterized the media under the previous regime were now a thing of the past.

And on digital migration, Mr. Sakeni said his ministry was confident of migrating in line with both the regional and international deadlines.

A total of K25 billion has been set aside in the 2013 national budget for the implementation of digital migration.

Meanwhile, Mr. Sakeni said considerable progress also has being made towards the establishment of provincial television studios in order to give the rural masses a voice in the governance and development of the country.

He commended the provincial television committee chaired by former Zambia National Broadcasting Corporation (ZNBC) Director General Duncan Mbazima for the speed and seriousness it has employed in implementing the provincial television projects.

Mr. Sakeni noted with happiness that the committee has already visited all the ten provinces of the country to identify land and other facilities for the construction of the television studios.

An initial K22 billion was set aside in the 2013 national budget for the construction of provincial television studios which is set to commence next year.

Mr. Sakeni stressed that under the Patriotic Front (PF) government, press freedom was non-negotiable and non-reversible adding that government will not stop the media from reporting the truth.

He also assured the nation that government remains unflinchingly committed to transforming the country into a prosperous and better place to live in.

He said the landmark successes the country has scored in sports and other sectors were testimony of more and better things to come under the leadership of President Sata.

Speaking earlier, Information and Broadcasting Permanent Secretary Amos Malupenga urged the media to work closely with government in promoting a professional media fraternity in the country.

Mr. Malupenga also stressed that his ministry has scored major milestones in the development of the media industry in the country.

ZANIS

Vice President Guy Scott has said no chiefdom boundaries have been affected by the creation of new districts in Zambia.

Dr. Scott said a number of people have been asking if new chiefs will be appointed for the new districts.

He said the creation of new districts means setting up an administrative office, District Commissioner and some government departments closer to the people.

The Vice President said this yesterday when he launched the celebrations of Luampa district which is 67 kilometres from Kaoma district in Western Province.

Recently, President Michael Sata created Kayeme, Limulunga and Luampa as new districts in Western province.

Dr. Scott noted that Luampa has great opportunities for development and thanked the area Member of Parliament Josephine Limata for having worked well with the Patriotic Front government and for persuading relevant authorities to turn it into a district.

He however noted that the newly created district faces a number of challenges which government was committed to address.

Among the challenges he outlined were those of health, education, road network and electricity.

Dr. Scott said Luampa Mission Hospital alone was not adequate to provide health care hence the need for government to put up more health facilities.

“Health is wealth and without good health even the rich man will be poor,” he noted.

He further observed that access to education in the area needs attention.

He said government will ensure that schools are built and urged parents to allow their children to go to school once the infrastructure is in place.

Dr. Scott added that government also has plans to work on the road network in Luampa district.

He said the M9 to M10 road from Namapombwe to Namachila will be tarred for easy movement of people and transportation of goods.

Dr. Scott also noted that government was still dedicated to ensuring that Luampa is connected to the national electricity grid as promised last year.

“Last year through Energy Deputy Minister, government promised that you will be connected to the national grid. It still stands,” he said.

And Dr. Scott said government has a responsibility to ensure timely allocation of funds to the district for all the projects.

He meanwhile reiterated the call of peace and unity among the people in the area.

Western Province Minister Obvious Mwaliteta thanked President Sata for fulfilling his promises to the people in the area.

Mr. Mwaliteta said the creation of more districts by the President will remain history as the promise of developing the nation has become a reality.

He noted that more districts in the country translate into more jobs and more money in people’s pockets.

Mr. Mwaliteta pledged his full support to develop the new district.

And Luampa MMD Member of Parliament Josephine Limata, who could not hide her excitement, said the people in her constituency were equally excited for having Luampa as a district.

Ms. Limata said she would love to see the District Commissioner start executing his duties as soon as possible especially that accommodation and office space were already in place.

Mangango MMD Member of Parliament Robert Taundi Chiseke, who was overwhelmed with the occasion, appealed to government to consider turning his constituency into a district also.

Mr. Chiseke said the creation of Luampa as a district has come at a right time when leaders need to work together to develop the nation.

Meanwhile, Bishop Paul Mususu, who spoke on behalf of Evangelical Church of Zambia (ECZ), said his organisation was happy with the declaration of Luampa as a district.

Bishop Mususu said the Church does not affiliate itself to any political party and promised not to be involved in partisan politics.

He however noted that the Church will support government in its efforts to develop the area.

Bishop Mususu said the Church will work hard to ensure that there is positive operation of the district.

ZANIS

The Lusaka City Council (LCC) has said plans are underway to construct a market in Chalala to address the challenges being faced by residents in the area.This comes in the wake of calls from Chilenje residents on the council to construct a market for the people of Chalala.

The people of Chilenje argued that it was inconveniencing for them to buy from Chilenje market which they said was far away.

LCC Public Relations Officer Henry Kapata said the council was mandated to construct markets in the city and had earmarked Chalala for a modern market next year.

Mr. Kapata said government had shown a lot of interest to fund the exercise and the council had already identified two pieces of land in the area which would soon be decided on.

He however expressed concern over Chalala residents’ reluctance to submit street names to the council through their councillor.He said the council had instructed the people of Chalala to submit street names to the council through their ward councillor and show why they should be considered for a market but they have allegedly not done so.

Mr. Kapata has since reminded the residents to heed to the council’s instructions because naming of streets in Chalala would promote convenience and security.

And Mr. Kapata has said the council was not in charge of rebasing sensitization in markets even though it has the facilities to do so.

He revealed that most marketeers were approaching the council complaining of lack of sensitization on rebasing the local currency, a development he said the LCC was looking into and would pass on to the Bank of Zambia team which is in charge of rebasing.

[ZANIS]