CHIEF government spokesperson Kennedy Sakeni says Attorney General Mumba Malila was not served the court order allowing the United Party for National Development (UPND) to hold a rally on time, hence the decision by police to cancel the public meeting set for last Sunday.

Mr Sakeni said police were not party to the court action and service on them was irregular.

“As a government, we fully support the impartial manner in which the police handled this matter,” Mr Sakeni said.

Mr Sakeni, who is also Minister of Information and Broadcasting Services, said the order in question was not served on the Attorney General Mumba Malila as the respondent on September 7, 2012 when it was made but instead it was served on the Zambia Police Service on Saturday September 8, 2012.

“As matters stand, the police were not party to the court action and service on them was irregular. The Attorney General was likewise not properly served in time for him to advise the police.

The whole service process was fraught with irregularities which made the observance of the order difficult,” Mr Sakeni said.

The minister said the UPND should have served the order on Mr Malila on a working day.

[pullquote]The order reads: “The court further directs that all decisions, proceedings now being challenged, including the decision to cancel the rally of the 9th September, 2012, be stayed until after hearing of the motion for judicial review herein or until further order and that the said rally go ahead.”[/pullquote]

Mr Sakeni said under the rules, service cannot be done on Sunday, Good Friday and Christmas day only, but also leaving a copy at the office of the Attorney-General on a Saturday afternoon or delivering a copy to the Attorney-General’s house after 21:00 hours on Saturday, is technically irregular.

“I wish to state that both the Attorney-General’s office and the Zambia Police respect any court order which is regular on the face of it, irrespective of whether they agree with the order or not. Such order must, however, be properly served on the right party and in the right manner,” Mr Sakeni said.

The minister also said since the matter is a judicial review, the police “should have been made party to the action because they made the decision and the order was directed at staying their decision.”

But LAZ president James Banda described the police action as a breach of law.
Mr Banda said LAZ is deeply concerned with police action which he described as intolerant.

“LAZ wishes to remind all stakeholders in the governance of our country, including the executive, that the right to freedom of assembly and freedom of association are inalienable and sacrosanct and that the same are guaranteed in the Bill of Rights as by the constitution,” Mr Banda said

He said every citizen has the legal duty to respect and implement the decisions of the courts, adding that the route taken by the police was wrong.

Police notified the UPND that they were unable to be at their rally due to a shortage of manpower.
The UPND went to court and obtained an ex parte order for leave to apply for judicial review on Friday.
The order reads: “The court further directs that all decisions, proceedings now being challenged, including the decision to cancel the rally of the 9th September, 2012, be stayed until after hearing of the motion for judicial review herein or until further order and that the said rally go ahead.”

[Daily Mail]

MMD President Dr. Nevers Mumba has condemned the decision by the PF government to nationalize the Railway Systems of Zambia.

Addressing Journalists in Lusaka, Dr. Mumba said the policy of grabbing private enterprises will hurt the Zambian economy.

He said the decision to target some private businesses by the state will also erode investor confidence.

Dr. Mumba also observed that some of the decisions being reversed today were initiated during the time that President Michael Sata served in the MMD government.

He said reduced investor confidence will negate government’s efforts to create jobs and reduce employment.

This morning, in a national address on ZNBC TV and Radio, Finance Minister Alexander Chikwanda said cancellation of the RSZ concession agreement with immediate effect.

Government terminated the freight and passenger Concession Agreement with the Railway Systems of Zambia, and reaffirmed commitment to making Zambia, a destination conducive for genuine investment…

Finance Minister Alexander Chikwanda announced the Zambian Governments’ decision to compulsorily acquire the Concession Rights that were granted to the Railway Systems of Zambia in 2003.

He said the acquisition has been necessitated by mismanagement of Zambia Railways infrastructure and rolling stock, leading to deterioration of assets and resultant loss to the nation as a whole.

In a statement read on national television, Mr. Chikwanda affirmed that Government would ensure that it complied with the labour laws of Zambia in relation to the welfare of RSZ employees and will meet the obligations in relation to suppliers, customers, and other stakeholders.

“I would like to assure the nation and our partners in development that the Government remains committed to ensuring that Zambia remained a destination which is conducive for genuine investment whilst ensuring that the interests of the nation are not undermined by impropriety,” said Mr. Chikwanda.

The Minister listed the following shortcomings by RSZ;

a) Abandonment of the inter-mine railway network resulting in heavy inter-mine cargo moving by road;

b) High railway transportation costs resulting in excessive road usage for heavy cargo, and minimal or non-utilization of railway transportation;

c) Failure to meet minimum service levels for passenger freight despite being a beneficiary of a substantial Government subsidy;

d) Unacceptably high levels of derailments, loss of life and property leading to enormous cost to Government; and

e) Blatant disregard of the provisions of the concession agreement and unsatisfactory performance, resulting in great risks to the sustainability of railway transport in Zambia.

“The measure is necessary because any additional delays would result in further destruction of the railway assets, therefore making it more expensive for the planned upgrade of the railway necessary for it to meet regional and international standards,” said the Minister.

The Government has prepared resources for the continued operations and rehabilitation of the railway line, assured the Minister.

And Railway Systems of Zambia Managing Director Benjamin Even said his firm is still studying the turn of events and will respond in due course.

Afunica released a video for the song “Single free to mingle”
Song Produced By Sunny Breaks . Video directed By The 4040 Entertainment

By Kapa187

Government has finally announced its compulsory acquisition of the concession rights that were granted to the Railway Systems of Zambia (RSZ) Limited.

Finance Minister, Alexander Chikwanda, made the disclosure when he addressed the nation on the National Broadcaster saying the compulsory acquisition of the concession rights has been necessitated by the consistence of RSZ acting in a manner prejudicial to the interests of the Zambians.

Mr Chikwanda said the compulsory acquisition of the concession rights has been done due to high unacceptable levels of derailments, loss of life and property.

He stated that the decision has been arrived at in accordance with cabinet’s mandate to safeguard the interest of the people of Zambia, adding that to this effect Zambia Railways Limited takes over the operations and management of the railway network which was the subject of the concession Agreement in 2003.

The Finance Minister cited mismanagement of the Zambia Railways infrastructure and the rolling stock which in turn led to the deterioration of the Zambia Railways assets and resultant loss to the country as a whole.

Mr Chikwanda further noted that government observed, among other concerns, that the objectives of the concession had not been met and such as the exorbitant railway transport costs as compared to road transport which had for some time now led to non utilization of rail transportation.

He assured that government remains determined to safeguard the safety and interest in the country%u2019s railway sector and to ensure sustainability for the Zambian people.

The minister explained that government is committed to ensuring that there are sustainable and cost effective measures in place to manage the railway infrastructure.

QFM

The Expendables are back and this time it’s personal… Barney Ross (Sylvester Stallone), Lee Christmas (Jason Statham), Yin Yang (Jet Li), Gunnar Jensen (Dolph Lundgren),Toll Road (Randy Couture) and Hale Caesar (Terry Crews) — with newest members Billy the Kid (Liam Hemsworth) and Maggie (Yu Nan) aboard — are reunited when Mr. Church (Bruce Willis) enlists the Expendables to take on a seemingly simple job. The task looks like an easy paycheck for Barney and his band of old-school mercenaries. But when things go wrong and one of their own is viciously killed, the Expendables are compelled to seek revenge in hostile territory where the odds are stacked against them.

PROS

• It is a spectacular and adrenaline-pumping action-packed extravaganza from start to finish.
• All members of the star studded cast were given time to shine .
• Jean-Claude Van Damme  had arguably the best performance in the movie .

CONS

• Some of dialog between the actors came of as corny

FAVORITE QUOTE

Barney Ross: Why is it the ones who deserve to live, that want to live the most, die – and the ones that don’t deserve to live, keep on going?

Jean Vilain: Six pounds of pure plutonium is powerful enough to change the balance of the world. Imagine what five tons will do.

Church: Barney Ross. You made me a deal. I could’ve put you in the deepest, darkest hole, but I kept you out because I knew that one day would come when you were gonna pay me back – and today’s that day.

CONCLUSION

The Expendables 2 lived up to the hype .Right from the get-go, it is action packed and will have you at the edge of your seat . 66 year old  Sylvester Stallone hasn’t lost a step , looking as tough ,if not more , than he did in the Rambo movies ,proving he is one of the best action heros of all time. Other stand out performances were Jason Statham , especially his scene in the church .The greatest performance in the movie has to be Jean-Claude Van Damme ! His villainous portrayal was excellent .
The Expendables 2 is a testosterone-fueled blockbuster that will leave all action movie fans with a smile on their faces.

RATING

5 out of 5

By Kapa187

INVESTIGATIONS into the planned assassination of President Michael Sata have revealed that two retired army generals have been paid K100 million each by a named opposition political party to implement the plot.

Defence Minister Geoffrey Mwamba disclosed to the Times of Zambia in an interview yesterday that he had information from security investigative wings that two retired generals received K100 million from an opposition political party.

“I have just received an update from our investigative wings and I am talking from facts with an informed point of view that two retired army generals have received K100 million from an opposition party to carry out the assassination plot.

“This is a serious development and I have also directed these investigative wings to go deeper and give more information so that we bring to book these people and the opposition party behind this,’’ Mr Mwamba said

Mr Mwamba said the matter would be probed further to verify the reports and bring culprits to book as this was a grave offence.

Mr Mwamba recently disclosed that an opposition political party was working with some retired army generals to assassinate President Sata.

An unverified alteration on the Wikipedia early this year alleged that President Sata had been assassinated on a Sunday morning in January.

To this effect, Mr Mwamba directed the investigative wings to institute thorough investigations involving the army generals and the political party.

The Minister explained that the two retired army generals had received the monies as part of payments to carry out the intended assassination on the President’s life.

He has warned that Government would not rest but ensure that the culprits working to eliminate the Head of State were apprehended and faced the law.

Mr Mwamba said it was not a threat that Government would deal with the perpetrators squarely because assassinating a Head of State was a serious offence under the laws of Zambia.

[Times of Zambia]