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Govt seriously addressing matters contributing to delayed payments by FRA

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President Rupiah Banda
President Rupiah Banda says Government is seriously addressing matters that contribute to delayed payments by the Food Reserve Agency (FRA), to encourage farmers to grow more crops and ensure food security in the nation.

The President was speaking today when he graced this year’s Ukusefya Pang’wena traditional ceremony of the Bemba speaking people which took place at Mungwi, east of the Boma of Kasama.

The President however commended the farming community in Northern Province for making progress in maize production, resulting in the province selling K100 billion worth of maize to the Food Reserve Agency, as compared to K72 billion sold last year, representing an increase of close to K30 billion.

President Banda further said that, in the 2010 budget, Northern Province was given the second largest allocation in the entire nation, for use in priority areas, such as the construction of the Kasama/Mbala/Mpulungu Road on which government put aside K123 billion.

The President said government released another K192 billion for use in the upgrading of the Kasama/Luwingu Road which was nearing completion, adding that government was also working on the Mbala/Nakonde Road and building a bridge at Mbesuma across the Chambeshi River.

The President further told the gathering that government would expand the runway at Kasaba Bay airport at a cost of K102 million, with a view to attract more tourists to the area and create more jobs for the local people.

President Banda said, government spent more than K40 billion in constructing health facilities nearer to people’s homes within the last three years in Northern Province, where he said 51 Doctors have been posted, including more nurses and clinical officers.
He added that government had furthermore spent a mammoth K168 billion on the construction and rehabilitation of schools in Northern Province to create more classroom space.

The President described this year’s Kusefya Pang’wena as better organized than last year’s. He wished continued good health to Paramount Chief Chitimukulu and all their royal highnesses present.

Meanwhile President Banda pledged to donate K5 million to Malole Brass Band, who he said impressed him so much with their performance.

And speaking earlier on behalf of Paramount Chief Chitimukulu, Chairman of the Kusefya Pang’wena National Committee, Bwalya Chiti thanked President Banda and his administration for their continued support towards his medical treatment, which he described as a sign of mutual love and friendship between them.

The traditional leader hailed President Banda for his mature leadership, describing him as a true pan Africanist who had contributed to conflict resolution on the continent. He thanked President Banda and his administration for the many developmental projects implemented and being implemented in Northern Province.

The traditional leader however, appealed to government to rehabilitate the hospital in Mungwi and speed up mineral exploration and the eventual actual mining activities in the region to create more jobs for the local people.

Present during the celebration of this year’s Kusefya Pang’wena ceremony were Northern Province Minister John Chinyanta, Luapula Province Minister Boniface Kawimbe, Local Government Minister Dr Eustacio Kazongo, Science and Technology Minister Dr. Brian Chituwo and Home Affairs Deputy Minister Guston Sichilima, and other senior government officials.

ZANIS

Forget What Lies Behind

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TODAY’S SCRIPTURE

“…But one thing I do: Forgetting what is behind straining toward what is ahead”
(Philippians 3:13, NIV)

TODAY’S WORD from Joel and Victoria

Are you determined to forget what lies behind? I know many people don’t fully understand what it means to forget the past. They wonder, “How can I forget something that’s happened to me?” But one definition of the word forget is to disregard intentionally or to overlook. See, you have to intentionally disregard your past so that it doesn’t keep you from moving forward. That means the good and the bad. Sometimes our past victories keep us from rising higher as much as past failures. If we don’t let go of the old, we’ll never be able to embrace the new.

Remember, it doesn’t matter what’s happened in your history, it’s time to forget what lies behind. Make the choice today to press forward. Trust that God has a better future in store for you. Trust that He’s working behind the scenes on your behalf. As you intentionally disregard what lies behind and press forward, I believe God will pour out His favor, grace and blessing upon you and lead you into the abundance He has prepared for you.

A PRAYER FOR TODAY

Father in heaven, I choose to forget the past today. I don’t want anything to hold me back from the future You have prepared for me. I choose forgiveness and ask that You help me, by Your Spirit, to press forward in every area of my life. In Jesus’ Name. Amen.

– Joel & Victoria Osteen

The Moral Decay of our Leaders

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Some people of Milanzi wait for politicians to address them at a public meeting

By Daimone Siulapwa

IT seems in Zambia, politicians are almost law unto themselves. And if you happen to belong to the ruling party, then you are immune to prosecution until such a time that you leave them or differ.

Otherwise, our politicians are a big let down. They are always in the news for the wrong reasons. If you are looking for role model, please stay clear of politicians. You will hardly find any among our local politicians, academic, yes no doubt about that.

If our politicians are not bouncing cheques or shooting at unarmed citizens, then they are beating their wives, or they are grabbing other people’s wives, impregnating our 18-year old sisters and children or turning National Assembly Motel into a brothel.

Oh, and that is not all.

They are also driving under the influence of alcohol, they are conning possible foreign investors, they organize thugs to beat innocent people and remove their eyes and ears during campaigns or they are involved in money laundering.

It is a complete mess.

We also have the chief justice showing his political inclination by refusing to shake hands with the leader of the largest opposition political party at a funeral for that matter, Church Fathers are throwing away their robs in favour of war with the government through the Red card Campaign propaganda and so on and so forth? What happened to “forgive them father for they do not know what they are doing”

Each of these cases listed above has a name tagged alongside it. That, I can assure you.

But one wonders whether the police are professionally doing their work or are they compromised by an upper hand. And if they are being shielded, the question is why. And which upper hand is this anyway?

If by any chance, the Patriotic Front (PF) was to win next year’s general elections and form government, I can guarantee you that they will spend the first term of their five-year mandate settling political scores.

All those that have bounced cheques and have not been brought to book, will be brought to book, all those that shoot people and are still walking free, they will be jailed, all those that have companies that have benefited from government tenders and have political connections, they will be brought to book. Such is the simple mentality of our politicians.

Meanwhile, they would have conveniently forgotten about their campaign promises of putting more money in people’s pockets and reducing taxes.

Even Levy Mwnanwasa was not immune. It was part of his legacy.

How many of our generals did he send to jail for speculated crimes? Why didn’t he just strip them of their properties and retire them? That to me would have been the best punishment; so that we could see them live poor like us and probably die from frustrations like most of our honest hard working fathers and mothers who were not involved in corruption and served their country respectively? Where are they now? Most of them are dead, those that are living have nothing to show for having lived on this earth for more than 70 year or so and having worked for over 50 years of their lives?

Still, it is only in this country where we put the security of the nation at such a greater risk by jailing security chiefs including the spy chief. Do you have an idea how much some countries would pay for the information these people have?

What we really need in this country is a flexible leadership code not necessarily on the lines of the one we had during the UNIP times. If we were to retain that in its entirety, the results may be disastrous.

We may either kill the entrepreneurship skills of our leaders resulting in a situation where after retirement, they become destitute. We saw this with many former UNIP leaders after they lost the 1991 elections.

Or we may start using the leadership code to sort out our perceived enemies as was the case with former home affairs minister Aaron Milner during the Kaunda era where he lost his properties and ended-up a destitute in Zimbabwe. One of our great Independence struggle heroes if I may state..

Anyhow, the bottom is line is that we deserve better than we are currently getting from our politicians. That is the challenge our politicians have.

What are we going to leave for our children? The choice is ours and we must decide now.

Ghana U17 Knockout Zambia

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Ghana Under-17 have eliminated their Zambian counterparts from the 2011 CAF Africa Under-17 Cup qualifiers.

Ghana beat Zambia 2-0 at the Ohene Djan stadium in Accra on Saturday to advance to the final qualifying phase 3-2 on aggregate.

The Black Starlets had lost 2-1 in eth first leg played in Lusaka a fortnight ago.

John Nyamkeye and Nasiru Mohamed scored the goals for Ghana who only needed a 1-0 win to advance against 10-man Zambia who had captain and defender Chishimba Changala sent off for a second yellow card just before halftime.

Nyamkeye scored Ghana’s first goal in the 4th minute while Mohamed stretched the hosts lead from a penalty in the 42nd minute after Changala had fouled Samuel Asamoah before the Zambian player was sent off.

Zambia’s elimination ends their brief return to the qualifiers for the Rwanda finals after Uganda, who ejected them in the preliminary stage qualifiers, were disqualified for fielding overage players.

President Banda expected at the Chisemwa Cha Lunda ceremony

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President Rupiah Banda is tomorrow expected in Mwinilunga district North Western Province to grace this years Chisemwa Cha Lunda traditional ceremony of the Lunda people.

According to a programme from the District Commissioners office made available to ZANIS today, President Banda while there is expected to pay a courtesy call on Senior Chief Kanongesha of the Lunda people before gracing the traditional ceremony.

President Banda will become the first Head of State to attend and officiate at the Chisemwa Cha Lunda traditional ceremony.

This year’s ceremony has attracted more than 40 chiefs from Zambia, Democratic Republic of Congo and Angola.

[[ ZANIS ]

Zanaco Beat Sfaxien To Record First Group B Win

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Zanaco Wedson Nyirenda has said his sides Group B victory over CS Sfaxien at Nkoloma stadium in Lusaka today has kept his sides dreeams of alive of reaching the Confederation Cup semifinals in October.

A 31st minute goal from Zanaco striker and captain Winstone Kalengo handed the Zambian club its first three points to go level on points with the 2007 and 2008 Confederations Cup champions.

“Beating Sfaxien has sharpened our destiny in  our quest to qualify to the next  level,” Nyirenda said.

Zanaco dominated for most of the first half with Allen Mukuka hitting near upright on 18 minutes while Kalengo failed to converted at point blank range shortly there after before making no mistake a minute after the half hour mark.

Sfaxien dominated play in the second half with midfielder Ibrahima Toure and captain Bargawi Chaker coming close with fantastic chances in the 47th and 83rd minutes respectively.

The two  teams meet in teh return leg in a fortnights time in Sfax on September 17.

Konga dismisses fuel shortage alarms

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People waiting for fuel during the 2009 fuel shortage in Lusaka

Energy and water development Minister Kenneth Konga has dismissed reports that the country might experience a fuel shortage beginning this month end.

Mr. Konga told radio QFM in an interview that the country has adequate stocks of fuel at Indeni oil refinery in Ndola to last the country three months.

He says during the 40 days period Indeni oil refinery will be shut down for routine maintenance, the country will not be affected because there are enough stocks of fuel.

Mr. Konga has since assured the general public not to panic by what he terms as misleading reports of a looming fuel shortage in the country.

Zambia’s sole oil refinery, Indeni, is scheduled to close this month for routine maintenance.

The four-week closure will enable the replacement of old machinery at the state-owned refinery to make it more reliable.

The 23,750 barrels-a-day refinery is the main supplier of fuel to Zambia’s copper and cobalt mines on the Copperbelt and North Western provinces.

Esther Phiri: Zambia’s ‘Million Dollar Baby’

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Esther Phiri (l) and Duda Yankovich squaring each other during the WIBA fight in Lusaka

Esther Phiri grew up helping her grandmother sell vegetables in a poor township in the Zambian capital Lusaka.

Today she is a world boxing champion and a household name in Zambia. She lives in a house given to her by her country’s former president Levy Mwanawasa and owns a small property empire bought with her prize money.

It is a rags-to-riches tale reminiscent of the Hollywood film Million Dollar Baby, but transported to a country where the average life expectancy is 38 — the second lowest in the world, according to the CIA World Factbook.

Phiri, 23, began her boxing career seven years ago and still trains at the gym where she started.

A biography of Phiri on the Women’s Boxing Archive Network describes how she dropped out of school and became a single mother at the age of 16 after her family fell on hard times.

It said she took up boxing as part of an HIV-awareness sport program run by an international NGO. She was the only girl on the program.

Phiri’s trainer Anthony Mwamba told CNN that when he first met Phiri, she was renting a one-room house, sleeping on the bare floor with her daughter.

“I wanted to cry. There was no food and I had no money either,” he said.

But Mwamba continued to invest in the fledgling boxer, even though his motives came under suspicion in a country where female boxers are not the norm.

Mwamba said: “At first when Esther came onto the scene everyone was saying, ‘No, no, he’s just spoiling her or maybe he’s sleeping with Esther.’ That’s what people were saying including the officials. But to me, I always had the vision, they didn’t know it, but I saw a champion the first time I saw Esther.”

Despite the rumors, the pair continued to train together and soon they were vindicated when Phiri won the Women’s International Boxing Federation’s Intercontinental Junior Lightweight title in 2006.

“Wow, I was so happy, I can’t even explain. It was a turning point for my life,” she said, showing off her title belts,” she said.

“I even promised my late president, he said ‘Esther, you’re not supposed to lose, you need to bring more belts’, and I’ve done it, I’ve done it.”

Today, despite having all the wealth and trappings of an international sports star, Phiri still lives in the community where she grew up and remains friends with the people she knew when she was selling vegetables in the market.

“This is my home township, it’s very close. I’ve got so many friends,” Phiri told CNN as passers-by call out to her in the street.

Phiri is currently Women’s International Boxing Association Light Welterweight World Champion. Her next fight is in January.

She has worked hard to gain her titles and isn’t about to rest on her laurels.

“I’ve got that courage to push myself, to say ‘let’s go Esther,’ because I don’t want to embarrass myself,” Phiri said.

Mwamba added: “Some boxers, you can tell them to wake up early and run for 20 km, and some refuse to do it. But Esther Phiri, she has the heart. She will run those 20 km, even 30 and finish. She has the heart to do it.

“In a fight, women go for two minutes, but I give her three minutes, just like a man. I treat her just like a man. It’s to her advantage.”

She can now drive in her car to the gym, a journey that used to take her four bus rides.

[CNN International]

Crocs maul Sinazongwe man

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A man who was attacked by a crocodile a few months ago nursing wounds in the University Teaching Hospital

A 26 year-old man has been severely mauled by a crocodile in Sinazongwe district in Southern Province.

A Mweezhya ward councilor Bernard Syanyambwe confirmed that Victor Siapaka from Kayisha Village was caught while he was swimming on Lake Kariba .

Mr. Syanyambwe said the reptile broke the victim’s arms in two pieces and one finger was swallowed by the crocodile.

He said Maamba doctors have informed the victim’s family that he would be referred to the University Teaching Hospital (UTH) for specialist medication.

On Thursday Sinazongwe villagers appealed to the Zambia wildlife Authority (ZAWA) to crop the crocodiles that have continued to kill people and leaving many people disabled.

Speaking through their Sinazongwe ward Councilor Abraham Hamoonga the villagers complained that the problem of people being killed and being amputated as a result of having too many crocodiles in Lake Kariba .

On 24 July this year a A 24 year old woman was severely mauled by a crocodile on Lake Kariba resulting in the amputating of both hands.

Juliet Siangombe of Ndolo Village in Senior Chief Mweemba area told ZANIS from her bed in Maamba Hospital that the incident occurred when she went to fetch water for household chores with her sister in law.

“While fighting with it I could feel it breaking my right hand and later it broke my left hand,” Mrs. Siangombe said

Hardly a month passes in Sinazongwe without person being either killed or disabled by a crocodile.

ZANIS

Government hands back BHP Billiton exploration licence

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Mines minister Maxwell Mwale hugs an investor in the mining sector

Zambia has handed back an iron and gold exploration licence it withdrew from mining giant BHP Billiton and Blackthorn Resources to boost mining sector growth, Mines Minister Maxwell Mwale said earlier this week.

The government last week cancelled the exploration licence it awarded BHP Billiton and Blackthorn on grounds that it was in a military security zone but Mines Minister Maxwell Mwale said he overturned the decision after the joint venture appealed.

“BHP Billiton is the largest mining house in the world and to have them invest in Zambia has a lot of benefits for us. We are increasing competition in the local mining sector and competition brings international best practices,” he said.[pullquote]The government last week cancelled the exploration licence it awarded BHP Billiton and Blackthorn on grounds that it was in a military security zone[/pullquote]

Mwale said the government hoped BHP Billiton’s exploration activities in north-western and central Zambia would help diversify mining activities away from traditional mining belts like the Copperbelt.

Zambia is Africa’s largest copper producer and the mines are the country’s economic mainstay.

Foreign mining companies operating in Zambia include Canada’s First Quantum Minerals, London-listed Vedanta Resources Plc, Equinox Minerals, Glencore International AG of Switzerland and Metorex of South Africa.

[Reuters]

Should we charge the Political party that expels its member with the cost of the by-election?

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Elections officers sorting out election materials

By Daimone Siulapwa

WITH the recent expulsion of former finance minister Ng’andu Magande and ex-defence minister George Mpombo, it means the country will be going for by-elections, should the Speaker of the National Assembly Amuusa Mwanamwambwa declare the seats vacant.

The two by-elections in Chilanga and Kafulafuta will be in addition to the one in Mpulungu, which occurred as a result of the death of area member of Parliament Lameck Chibombamilimo. In the likely event of GBM resigning again under pressure, this will mean another by-election in Kasama.

Well, in case you have forgotten, the country has just returned from two by-elections in Luena, triggered by the resignation of the area MP Charles Milupi, who decided he was better being an MP on the alliance for Democracy and Development (ADD) than be an Independent. The other by-election was in Chifubu, which was n unfortunate to lose its MP Jacob Chongo

Before that there were two other by elections in Mufumbwe and Milanzi. Other by-elections in recent times include Solwezi Central, Chitambo and Kasama Central.

And of course the biggest of them all was the presidential by-election, which involved more whose total cost is estimated to have been around K250 billion ( USD 50 Million, equivalent to the loan we received from China to buy Mobil Clinics). A staggering amount if you ask me.

While I do not know the cost of one Parliamentary by-election, I believe the cost is still astronomical. My poor calculation tells me, the cost of every by-election costs our people one complete school or a small clinic somewhere. Do not forget that there are also local government by-elections.

And before you forget, should Major Robbie Chizyuka and Jonas Shakafuswa lose their cases in court, then two further by-elections are supposed to be held. That is in addition to those 20-something PF rebel MPs, If Mr.Sata gets his way and gets rid of them, its trouble for mother Zambia.

And that is where my major concern is.

If indeed this country is in hurry to develop, why are we wasting these precious resources on these meaningless by-elections. Imagine how many clinics or schools K250 billion that was used for the presidential by-election would have been able to build in some needy areas of this country.

Announcing the expulsion of Mpombo and Magande from the ruling party, the Movement for Multi-Party Democracy (MMD), Dora Siliya’s the party’s spokesperson, justified the move, and in effect the by-election.

She said something to the effect that although the party is aware of the costs of having a by-election, it had no choice but to expel the duo because of showing gross indiscipline to the party leadership.

In other words, these by-elections have been caused solely because some members of a club have differed among themselves.

And this has been the major cause of by-elections in Zambia. A few cases have been a result of death, but mostly its expulsions and defections. Surely, our politicians and our politics can do better than this. Why do they transfer the cost of their differences to the taxpayer? Are these the people interested in moving the nation forward.

Does it mean that if you differ with someone, then they have to be expelled? In fact, most of those expelled are a result of expressing their constitutional rights, which have to do with airing their views without fear or favour. When you look at the cases involving all the expulsions witnessed in recent times that is the case.

So, what is the solution to all this. Internal democracy within parties. And please underline the words internal democracy. Most of our political parties are deficient when it comes to that area. We have seen cases where, in the United States, some Republicans have voted with the Democrats without any repercussions whatsoever. Also in Britain, we saw some Labour MP’s openly differing with Gordon Brown prior to the elections there. But they never faced any recriminations whatsoever. After all, it is their right to disagree where they do not agree.

But beyond that, we need to have a robust electoral system, which can deal with these unnecessary by-elections that our selfish politicians have been deliberately creating. And that is the job one hopes the National Constitutional Conference (NCC) should have been able to deal with. Did they deal with it effectively?

We should not give the excuse of democracy being expensive, and that by-elections are some of the costs we have to incur for having chosen democracy as a system. For these are really foolish costs, and they have no place in this poor country’s books.

Mwamba rescindes his decision to resign as MP

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Patriotic Front (PF) Kasama Central Member of Parliament (MP) Geoffrey Mwamba
[pullquote]
Kasama Central Member of Parliament (MP) Geoffrey Mwamba who resigned his parliamentary seat yesterday has dramatically rescinded his decision.

The MP announced his resignation in a letter addressed to Patriotic Front (PF) leader Michael Sata following his suspension from the party’s central committee after the battering of his wife.

Mr Mwamba said he resigned so that he could concentrate on his businesses which had been affected because of his active involvement in politics.

The MP said he would reconsider his decision to resign as MP if the electorates in Kasama ask him to do when he visits them during the Kusefya Pa N’gwena traditional ceremony of the Bemba speaking people tomorrow.

He said he had received a lot of calls from Kasama electorates informing him to reconsider his decision to resign as MP.

Zambia National Broadcasting Corporation also reports that National Assembly Liason officer Chikomeni Banda said he had not received a letter from Mr Mwamba for resigning his parliamentary seat.

Earlier, Mr Sata temporarily relieved Mr Mwamba of his position as Party Chairperson for the Elections portofolio.

This followed the assault and wife battering charges levelled against him.
PF Secretary General Winter Kabimba confirmed the development.

Mr Mwamba popularly known as GBM is accused of having battered his wife Chama, on Sunday following a marital dispute.
Police yesterday recorded a warn a warn and caution statement from Mr Mwamba
There has been widespread condemnation of Mr Mwamba from a cross-section of society following the incident which left his wife with a cut on her forehead.

The Human Rights Commission who has called on the Zambia Police and the Inspector General in particular,to show that the behavior exhibited by the Kasama central Member of Parliament is not to be condoned and that penal consequences follow.

And the Law Association of Zambia has described the conduct of Kasama central Member of Parliament Geoffrey Mwamba who on Sunday battered his wife as unacceptable.

Musosha’s wife dies in road accident

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Education Deputy Minister, Crispin Musosha’s wife and young sister to Energy Minister Kenneth Konga have died in a road accident.

The accident happened last night around 21:00hrs in Kabalika area on the Samfya Mansa road.

Out going Luapula Police Commanding Officer Auxensio Mbewe confirmed the accident and the death of Mrs Musosha and Dorothy Chivunda in an interview with ZANIS in Mansa today.

Mr Mbewe said the accident is suspected to have occurred after the left wheel to the Toyota Prado registration number ABX 9485 they were in burst.

He said the vehicle which was being driven by Mrs Musosha was coming from Lusaka to Mansa.

Mr Mbewe said also on board was a baby, Emmanuel Chongo, aged one year and four months who also died this morning at the Mansa General Hospital.

He named the others on board the accident vehicle as Sombo Chongo 39, of Lusaka’s Sikanze police camp, and Dr Beatrice Amandu 55, also of Lusaka.

Mr Mbewe said Mrs Chongo is admitted to Mansa General Hospital where she is receiving medical attention, while Dr Amandu came out uninjured but is still on medical observation.
[ ZANIS ]

President Banda swears in more judges

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President Rupiah Banda
President Rupiah Banda today swore in five High Court Judges who are part of nine judges that were recently appointed.

Those that have been sworn in today are Justices Justine Chashi, Isaac Kamwendo, Flavia Chishimba, Petronella Ngulube and Mugeni Mulenga as High Court Judges.

Out of the total of nine judges, two are for the Supreme Court while seven are High Court Judges.

The four judges that were sworn in yesterday are Justices Muyinda Wanki and Gregory Phiri as Supreme Court Judges while Gaundentia Salasini and Anessie Bobo were sworn in as High Court judges.

President Banda said at the swearing in ceremony today that government and the judiciary had a deliberate programme to ensure that women that are suitably qualified were appointed to perform such functions.

President Banda said he was well satisfied with the loyalty, integrity and the ability of the people he appointed to the positions of judges.

He urged them to work hard and according to the provisions of the constitution.

The judges swore and affirmed to be faithful and bear true allegiance to the President and to preserve, protect and defend the constitution of Zambia as by law established.

They further swore to deliver justice in accordance with the constitution when discharging their duties.

Chief Justice Ernest Sakala, Lusaka Province Minister, Charles Shawa were among other senior government officials that attended the swearing ceremony at State House today.

Kachimba warns Shoprite on casualisation

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Labour and Social Security Deputy Minister Simon Kachimba

Labour Deputy Minister Simon Kachimba has warned Shoprite Zambia to desist from engaging workers on casual bases on the pretext of studying the country’s labour laws.

Mr. Kachimba said government will not allow the company to continue engaging workers as casuals and ripping from them while alleging to be waiting for guidance from the ministry.

He said government is concerned that the chain store has not implemented the agreement that was made despite assurance to do so.

Mr. Kachimba said this when he meet Shoprite Zambia management to follow up on issues which were agreed upon between the two parties. The issues agreed upon among others last year include casualisation and contracts.

He has since directed officials from his ministry and Shoprite management to quickly start working on the labour agreement and terms of contracts for workers.

“I call upon you (Shoprite management) to take the worker’s contract to my office on Monday and immediately start solving this problem of fixed term contract and casualisation. We need seriousness in the way we handle our issues because this will also avoid protests” he said.

He also asked the management to table the company’s Zambianisation report that was agreed upon to incorporate Zambians in senior management positions.

The Minister also toured Shoprite Manda Hill branch were some employees expressed dissatisfaction with their salaries and other conditions of service.

Ms. Tubesebo Musialela an Account Clerk said workers were made to work for long hours but were receiving little pay.

She said the chain store has ignored government advice to improve the conditions of service for workers despite repeated calls.

And Shoprite Zambia Acting General Manager, Charles Bota said the company has not resolved the issues of casualisation and fixed term contracts because it wanted guidance from the ministry.

He however said that Shoprite has clear laws on the treatment of workers such has discouraging the use of abusive language and any mistreatment of workers.

Mr. Bota who could not respond to many of the minister’s concerns however promised that the company would write to him once the General Manager comes from vacation.

Shoprite Zambia has over 1,000 casual workers countrywide.

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