Luapula Province Permanent Secretary, Jazzman Chikwakwa, has called on government departments and other spending agencies to use public finances prudently.

He warned that imprudent use of public funds would be tantamount to corruption, a vice which government is seriously fighting.

Mr Chikwakwa said yesterday that heads of government departments should ensure that monthly allocations were spent on development related activities that would benefit the people in the province.

He said whoever would be found spending public funds to gain personal wealth would be disciplined. He warned that civil servants should learn a lesson from incarcerated public workers.

He was speaking when he announced that the Ministry of Finance has released funding to government departments in the province.

The Permanent Secretary said Luapula province has been given a total of K1.9 billion for Recurrent Departmental Charges (RDCs) for the month of January.This amount will be shared among 26 spending agencies in the province.

He further said the funds must be properly utilised on developmental activities that benefit the people and not be spent on officers’ allowances.

And Mr Chikwakwa explained that his decision to announce the monthly allocations to various spending agencies in the province in an open meeting was meant to ensure transparency in his administration.

He said although some provincial heads of departments were against the idea of announcing their allocations in an open meeting, this was important for the sake of ensuring checks and balances.

Meanwhile the Ministry of Commerce has summoned Mr. Chikwakwa and District Commissioners for a meeting to discuss the failure by the province to utilise the K10 billion released to the province by the Citizens Economic Empowerment Commission (CEEC) last year.

Mr. Chikwakwa disclosed yesterday during a meeting that the province has only used K1 billion out of the K10 billion allocated to the province.

He said Luapula province had the lowest utilisation of the CEE funds compared to other provinces.

He expressed fear that the province might risk not being considered in future for equal disbursement of developmental funds if such funding was not utilised within the time frame.

ZANIS

A 30 year-old man has been killed by a Hippo in Sinazongwe district in Southern Province.

Nangombe ward Councilor Robson Sialukowa confirmed the development to ZANIS that Thomas Siamajele was killed at night while he was allegedly going to steal people’s nets on Lake Kariba.

Mr Sialukowa said the Hippo hit into the canoe he was in together with his two friends and broke it into two pieces.

He explained that the Hippo bruised the head of the deceased, ripped off his chest, and had a dip cut on his leg while his two friends managed to swim to the shore.

In another development some fishermen were also attacked within the same area by the hippos but escaped unhurt.

Mr Sialukowa said the Zambia Wild Life Authority (ZAWA) from Sinazongwe visited the area to scare away the Hippos from attacking people.

In January this year and December last year a 42 year- old man, a 12 year-old boy, and a 13 year- old boy were killed by the crocodile within the same area in separate incidents.

The ward Councilor also disclosed that people’s animals were also being killed by crocodiles in Nangombe area.

Choma District Commissioner Laiven Apuleni has criticitised government departments receive government funding but fail to settle electricity and water bills to utility companies that provide services. Mr. Apuleni said some government departments were deliberately neglecting their responsibilities of paying water bills, warning that his office would not protect defaulting departments from being disconnected.

He was speaking in Choma today when the National Water Supply and Sanitation Council (NWASCO) handed over a K361 million cheque to Southern Water and Sewerage Company (SWASCO) under NWASCO’s Regulation By Incentive (RBI) scheme. He urged SWASCO not to hesitate to disconnect water supply to government departments that neglect paying their water bills.

Mr. Apuleni said government will continue supporting commercial water utility companies through a number of ways such as paying for its water bills. He said the development of infrastructure in water and sanitation services remains a government priority.

He said the Regulation By Incentive scheme, which was adopted by NWASCO, is another window through which commercial water utility companies in the country can access funds for investment. Mr. Apuleni appealed to SWASCO to use the initiative to seriously look at areas that will help turn around the commercial utility’s operations in the shortest possible time.[quote]

He thanked the Devolution Trust Fund, through NWASCO, for providing support in addressing problems of sanitation in the country. This is the second time NWASCO is awarding SWASCO. Last year, the company was awarded K464 million for improved performance.

And NWASCO board chairperson, Cosmas Musumali urged commercial water utilities in the country to reduce on unaccounted water losses. Dr Musumali said the current average for unaccounted water is 45 per cent countrywide.

He said this percentage was very high and therefore hindered the ability of the institutions to accelerate the provision of the quality services to the people. “Dilapidated infrastructure is a major contributor to this, followed by uncontrolled usage by customers due to low metering,” he said.

Dr Musumali said NWASCO will continue to monitor the performance of service providers and ensure that services are extended to more people particularly in the peri-urban areas.

ZANIS

CIVIC leaders in Nakonde district in Northern Province have given ZESCO management a 48 -hour ultimatum in which to replace the damaged transformer at the local sub-station as power black out enters sixth day today.

The visibly annoyed councilors lead by their council chairman Luka Simusamba who visited ZESCO offices yesterday afternoon said they were not happy with the pace at which ZESCO was moving at in rectifying the problem.

Councilor Simusamba said the security of the border town was being compromised because of the power black out adding that people’s lives and property was at high risk because of the continued power black out.

He said that water supply in the district has also been affected forcing people to be drawing water from unprotected wells and scoops along the river banks the sources he said were highly contaminated especially during the rain season.

Councilor Simusamba who is also Mulalo MMD ward councilor further said the mortuary can no longer keep dead bodies in the fridges forcing friends and relatives of the dead to burry the same day one dies or take the dead to Isoka district hospital mortuary situated about 118 km from the border..

And old Fife MMD ward councilor Julius Chisasa has said that the ZESCO power black out has halted operations in almost all the departments in the border town including parastatal and Non-Governmental Organisations [NGO’s].

Councilor Chisasa added that business in town has also grounded to a halt with most of the traders having recorded huge loses as a result of the power black out.

Meanwhile, people with generators have taken advantage of the power black out to make money through charging cell phones at an exorbitant price..

They are charging between K3000 and K4000 for charging a phone for only two to three hours while long queue have been formed at grinding mills which uses diesel.

A grinding mill operator in old Nakonde told Zambia News and Information Services [ZANIS] that business has been boosted greatly adding that they have since come up with two shifts, one in the day and one running through out the night so as to serve people who have been making long queue ever since the district was plunged into total darkness six days ago.

Nakonde district has been plunged into total darkness following a serious fault at the ZESCO sub station last week on Friday.

Efforts to get in touch with ZESCO marketing and public relation officer failed.
However, sources said power is likely to be restored in Nakonde by Wednesday next week after the arrival of another transformer from the Copper belt.

ZANIS

Senior chief Bright Nalubamba of Namwala district has appealed to Namwala district council to consider building a mortuary at Chitongo health centre.

Chief Nalubamba suggested that the council should use part of the Constituency Development Funds (CDF) to construct a mortuary at the clinic. He said building a mortuary at the clinic would reduce bereaved families’ burden of transporting their deceased relatives’ bodies to Namwala district hospital mortuary.

He told ZANIS that bereaved families resort to burying their loved ones immediately they pass on without waiting for other relatives to arrive because of lack of a mortuary in the area.

“ I wish to appeal to the council as they sit to debate on how they are going to utilize the CDF, let them think of constructing a mortuary here so that people can bury their deceased relatives with dignity,” he said.

And chief Nalubamba said people in Chibote village have shown commitment to continuing the stalled community school building project which is funded by Community Response to HIV/AIDS (CRAIDS).

Addressing scores of villagers during a meeting to find the way forward on the stalled school project, Chief Nalubamba said each village would raise K100, 000 towards the purchase of some building materials such as cement that went to waste.

ZANIS