FINANCE Minister Alexander Chikwanda has reiterated that it would be unwise for the Patriotic Front (PF) Government to reintroduce the windfall tax when metal prices on the international market are unstable and visibly trending downwards.

And Parliament last evening approved the K48 billion allocated in this year’s Budget to the Electoral Commission of Zambia (ECZ) with Kalomo Member of Parliament (MP) Request Muntanga (UPND) urging the House to increase the K2 billion reserved for by-elections.

Concluding the policy debate on the estimates of expenditure for 2012 in Parliament on Tuesday evening, Mr Chikwanda expressed disappointment that former MMD ministers that abolished the windfall tax were now championing its re-introduction.

He told the House that the PF Government was very responsible, dignified and had the full mandate of the people of Zambia and as such would not play to the gallery and act impulsively just because someone was advocating the re- introduction of windfall tax.

The minister said it was extremely important to understand that the measures he had announced in the 2012 Budget address would ensure that the Government got some revenues while the “cow that produces the milk” was left to survive. “It would, therefore, be unwise for the Government to introduce windfall tax when metal prices are unstable and are now visibly trending downwards.

“It is for this reason that I am disappointed by our colleagues who were in Government yesterday and abolished the windfall tax; but are now calling for its re-introduction. Are they really being genuine, constructive and patriotic?,” he wondered. He said the former MMD leaders were not being objective in their debates on windfall tax and were being unpatriotic because their debates were not bordering on stability of investment, ensuring workers security of tenure and facilitating sustainable mobilisation of resources.

“Mr Speaker, allow me to talk about our extremely limited fiscal space or the resource envelop. Against overwhelming legitimate demands by our people all over the country, a Budget of K27 trillion or US $5.5 billion is just a tiny drop in the ocean.

“In the developed countries, our National Budget cannot even cover the annual expenditures of single big universities. Our economy was left by the previous Government at an exceedingly low ebb. The shanty compounds in which the majority of our citizens in urban habitats live have inadequate necessities such as water, sanitation and electricity,” he stressed.

He told the House that Zambian villages in far flung areas had barely seen any development and were even condemned to perpetual neglect and abandonment with rural poverty at over 77%.

“In the midst of all this, the previous Government maintained a budget that was largely targeting consumption in the public service at the expense of poverty reduction and infrastructure development nationwide. This sums up the immensity of the challenge we face collectively as leaders,” he said.

Mr Chikwanda however, hailed the support the Budget received but regretted that most brilliant ideas could not be embodied in the 2012 estimates. The Government would, however, consider the ideas in subsequent fiscal years.

On concerns raised on PAYE, the minister noted that the figure of about 80,000 which he discussed in his speech related to workers who earn between K12 million and K24 million per year and would, therefore, not be liable to PAYE.

“This figure is also in addition to about 112,000 workers who are already not paying PAYE because they earn K12 million per year or less. This means that if you add 80, 000 employees to the already existing 112, 000 employees who are off the PAYE tax roll, then more than 192, 000 workers who are in formal employment will be off the PAYE tax roll,” he said.

He explained that the balance of 500,000 formal sector employees who are in higher income brackets would also benefit because they would actually not be subjected to PAYE for up to the first K24 million of their total annual earnings.

“The way the tax bands have been realigned will entail more benefit for tax payers. This is true empowerment and more money in the pocket of our citizens.

Mr Speaker, the explanation above has demonstrated how our tax package concessions will yield K1 trillion extra disposable income for all workers that earn taxable incomes,” he noted. The minister noted that he would see how he could address concerns on calls to increase Constituency Development Fund (CDF).

Mr Muntanga in supporting the Budget allocation for the ECZ told the House that the K2 billion reserved for possible by-elections was not enough owing to the more than 50 petitions before the courts of law which could result into a mini-general elections if nullifications occurred.
[Times of Zambia]

A seventy-nine-year-old man of Lusaka, Robert Banda, is faced with the agony of losing his only source of income, a house, which has been grabbed from him by his son.

Mr. Banda narrates how his 41-year-old, Son, James Banda grabbed the house and has been subsequently threatening to kill him.

He disclosed that his son, who had asked him for assistance after he was robbed to stay in the respective house for only three months, has now changed his mind.

Mr.Banda complained of unbearable misery ever-since his son refused to move out of the house.
[Muvi TV]

President Sata, met 26 pentecostal pastors from various congregations at State House yesterday.

The pastors who were led by Healing Word Ministries International Senior Pastor Moses Chiluba appreciated the President’s gesture to grant them an opportunity to engage him.

They submitted that as Church leaders, they believed that God raises his anointed in various seasons and assured the President that they will continue praying to God to guide and give him wisdom as he leads the country.

The pastors also expressed regret at some derogatory statements that came from some sections of the clergy within the Pentecostal movement against President Sata when he was an opposition leader.

The clergymen further stated that it was sad that certain pastors who wanted political recognition from the MMD regime went out of the way to utter embarrassing remarks against President Sata.

In response the President advised the pastors to forget about the past and make a new beginning.

The President said with the involvement of the Church governance becomes much easier as the Church is closer to the grassroots.

[MUVI TV]

The government has resurrected Dr Kenneth Kaunda’s 1971 Zambianisation program that aims to put locals in management positions.

The Zambianisation Committee is lead by Deputy Minister of Labour Rayford Mbulu, who this morning visited Airtel, the biggest telecommunications company in the country, to inquire on the number of expatriates it has employed.

Mr Mbulu told the Airtel Managing Director Fayaz King that the Patriotic Front Government wanted to see Zambians in “decent employment” adding that it was going to focus on citizen’s empowerment and was not going to accept cheap expatriate labour.

“We are only going to accept expatriates with very rare skills that cannot be locally obtained,” Mr. Mbulu said. “Even then, they should be understudies to transfer those rare skills to locals so that those people can quickly handover to locals. That skills transfer will build capacity and will make Zambians excel.”

He then asked Airtel to submit how many employees it had, what skills existed at the company that were not locally possessed, the number of expatriates and the expected length of stay and at what point they were going to hand over their positions to Zambians.

In response, King disclosed that Airtel currently employed 393 locals with just four expatriate managers.

Mr King said Zambia was among the top four important investments in Africa which called for the best skills locally and across the continent.

He said it was the policy of Airtel to let its African operations run by Africans but not necessarily Zambians.

Mr King disclosed that a couple of Zambians were working in other parts of Africa and that it was important that the country also accepted staff from those countries.

He also disclosed that the biggest challenge the telecom had was staff retention as rival companies tended to poach skilled labour after the company trained them and sent them abroad for work experience.

“When our staff comes back from training or from working in our international operations, they attract a premium and the opposition gets them,” he said. “We are trying to fill all available positions with locals, that is in line with our policies. Our brand is unique and requires a lot of training, they are no short cuts. Unfortunately, after that training, we begin to compete with the international job market. In some instances, where you pay an engineer US$3000, they are offered US$12, 000 which makes it difficult to retain them.”

THE Zambia Revenue Authority (ZRA) is exploring ways through which it could tax the K2.1 billion investigative wings say they discovered at former Labour Minister, Austin Liato’s farm, last week.

ZRA Commissioner-General, Berlin Msiska, said in a statement yesterday that taxation did not consider whether income was from a legitimate source, such as a business, or not, but focused on the fact that
income had been received by a person.

Mr. Msiska said that ZRA was, in this regard, interested in the various cases being investigated by the security wings such as “the case where money to the sum of K2.1 billion was discovered by investigative authorities.”

Mr Msiska said what was material was the fact that the income had been paid to, given or accrued to the person. He said this also applied to income that was, in any way, disposed of in accordance with a person’s order or in a person’s favour.

“We are mindful that tax avoidance and tax evasion culminate in several hindrances. Tax equity is not attained and invariably complying taxpayers have to pay taxes for those who are non-compliant. The Government is also deprived of the much needed resources that are required for developmental programmes,” he said.

Mr Msiska said ZRA would therefore work, at all times, within its mandate, with the security wings of the Government to ensure accountability regarding the payment of the correct taxes.

And Police say we have warned and cautioned him over K2.1bn. “We have enough reasons to arrest him, we will but for now we have warned and cautioned Mr Liato,” said Elizabeth Kanjela, police assistant commissioner after Austin Liato ended a more than 48 hour hide and seek game and handed himself to authorities. Mr Liato will remain in state custody until he appears in court.

Mr Liato arrived at the former task force offices at 15:00 hours yesterday in a white Land Cruiser VX registration No. ABX 5232 (tinted glasses) driven by his younger brother Steven with others who include former Western Province deputy minister Joseph Mulyata. He was dressed in a short sleeved blue and white shirt and looked calm. It was business as usual.

About 17:00 hours, he was driven in a police Nissan Hard Body van to his other house in Kalundu – not the location of the K2.1 billion – where another search was conducted from 17:40 hours up to 19:40 hours.
Mr Liato was then driven to Woodlands police station where he must have spent the night according to detention orders.

When asked to comment and Mr Liato said “I have no comment” in the presence of his lawyers from Mutemwa Chamber and Nelly Mutti from Lukona Chambers, both up-market firms of high repute and cost.

Investigators did not say what the “procedural” check found at his Kalundu house. Ms Kanjela from police, however, said – in addition to what the Inspector-General Martin Malama said – “police will continue with their investigations.”

Earlier, police questioned a woman from Kaoma, believed to be Mr Liato’s acquaintance but they did not explain the relationship. The woman arrived at the former task force offices around 09:00 hours and left four hours later.

She could have communicated frequently with the ‘K2 billion man’ from the time the money was discovered but police are not speaking.

Former permanent secretary Peter Mumba was also questioned by a combined team of law enforcement officers. Mr Mumba arrived at 11:00 hours and left at 12:40 hours for ‘talks’.

He said he had been requested to come to the former task force offices by law enforcement officers and was happy with the manner the discussions were held.

[Times of Zambia]

Chibo joins forces with Dandy Krazy to make a video for the song “Kamba Naine” .  It is an energetic song that will surely  get you on your feet dancing. Dandy Krazy assists on the chorus and bridge of the song with his unmistakable voice.

This music video will be good for both artists as it will open both of them up to new fan bases , and help them to spread their music world wide.

KAMBA NAINE

BY KAPA187