Government has castigated Patriotic Front (PF) leader Michael Sata for suggesting that the recent 15 percent fuel hike is aimed at subsiding thieves that are involved in oil procurement.

Chief government Spokesperson Lt. Gen. Ronnie Shikapwasha says the statement by the PF leader is untrue, highly irresponsible and provocative.

Lt. Gen Shikapwasha adds that the Mr. Sata’s Statement is only meant to mislead Zambians and promote hatred against President Banda.

In a statement issued to ZANIS in Lusaka last evening, Lieutenant General Shikapwasha explained that the increase in fuel prices has not vindicated Mr. Sata from anything because he still remains an insensitive, hypocritical and manipulative politician who can say anything to gain political mileage.

Lt Gen Shikapwasha said as a government, the regulation of fuel is solely managed by the Energy Regulation Board (ERB) and not as insinuated by Mr. Sata.

He said having been a member of Cabinet in 1998 when ERB Act Cap 436 was enacted, Mr. Sata is aware that ERB is responsible for regulating fuel prices.

He explained that the nation should know that the last fuel prices were reviewed on 22nd December 2008 when petroleum products pump prices were reduced by an average of 24 percent.

Gen Shikapwasha added that this was on account of the dramatic decline in international oil prices and favourable exchange rate of the kwacha against the US dollar.

He noted that since December 2008 both the average international oil prices and cost of feedstock cargoes have gone up significantly as much as 72% while the average international oil prices have increased by an average of 110% over the period February 2009-January 2010.

“Going by the above stated figures, price increases would have averaged 32% as opposed to 15% as announced by ERB on 12th January 2010,” explained Gen Shikapwasha.

Gen Shikapwasha who is also Information and Broadcasting Minister stated that to cushion the economy, the government subsidised the high costs of fuel so as to make it affordable, especially in the context of the global economic recession that characterized the global economy in 2009.

He pointed out that as the global economy is slowly moving out of the recession, the demand for petroleum products is beginning to increase, the international prices of oil have also began to rise.

He disclosed that this is why government cannot continue to subsidise the pump prices hence the 15% average increase instead of the 32% increase that is warranted by the economic fundamentals.

Lt. Gen. Shikapwasha has since expressed sadness at Mr. Sata’s remarks adding that they do not add value to raising a well-informed society.

On 12th January 2010 the Energy Regulation Board announced an increase in fuel pump prices a move that has attracted attention from various sectors of the economy in the country.

Mr. Sata is quoted in yesterday’s edition of the Post Newspaper a having said that he has been vindicated over recent revelations that President Banda would hike fuel prices and that Zambians will now subsidise the President’s corruption.

ZANIS

Unlike other countries in Africa including Kenya, where the cost of Internet connectivity is falling sharply, Zambia’s connection fees have remained high and are impacting the country’s economy, despite competition among ISPs and efforts to promote local content.

Google products manager for sub-Saharan Africa, Divon Lan, recently told local media that the country has the highest Internet connectivity costs in the world, and that they are embedded in the high cost of bandwidth for end users. Recent studies have also shown that Zambian Internet connectivity can cost as high as US$6,000 per megabyte — double the cost in other African countries.

Google is planning to introduce Zambian languages, including Bemba and Nyanja, on the Internet, claiming the Web is a force for societal change as it provides access to information without barriers. Lan, who is based in Israel, said Google wants to promote ICT in Zambia.

Due to the high cost of Internet connectivity, Lan said access has been restricted to the capital, Lusaka, and other urban areas. Other than mobile commerce services being provided cheaply by mobile service providers, very few Zambians are able to do online transactions because of the high cost of access.

Last year, Google released map information for Zambia for the first time on Google.com and is now trying to find ways of making the search engine more relevant to local consumers by integrating Zambia’s local languages.

Milner Makuni, the past president of the Computer Society of Zambia, said that despite Zambia having 14 ISPs competing for business, the connectivity costs have not declined significantly. This is mainly because Zambia has been relying on satellite for Internet connectivity, Makuni said. Secondly, the cost of bandwidth from the undersea cables running under the India Ocean is still very high.

“But I think very soon we will see a reduction in Internet connectivity because Zamnet, Zesco and Zamtel have now connected to the international undersea cables,” Makuni said in an interview.

Zambia also has an agreement with the East Africa Submarine Cable System to get cheaper bandwidth from the cable once it becomes operational in June this year.

[infoworld]

President Rupiah Banda today attended the Inauguration ceremony of Mozambican President Armando Guebuza who was sworn in for a second and final five year term of office in Maputo.

President Banda who arrived at Maputo international airport at 09:00 hours this morning joined several other SADC Heads of State and government in witnessing President Guebuza’ s inauguration.

Mr. Banda joined President Robert Mugabe of Zimbabwe, Jacob Zuma of South Africa, Hefekapunya Pohamba of Namibia, Jakaya Kikwete of Tanzania, SADC Chairperson Joseph Kabila of Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) and Bingu Wa Mutharika of Malawi.

The ceremony which was held at Maputo civic centre which is also the Independence square was characterized by performances from the military and traditional dancers.

In his speech President Guebuza called on the people of Mozambique to put aside their political differences and together concentrate of fighting poverty and other challenges facing the country.

Mr. Guebuza said although his country made tremendous economic, social and political developments during the first five years in office, there was need for the citizenry to continue working hard in order to register more development.

President Banda is accompanied to Maputo by Foreign Affairs Minister Kabinga Pande and former president Dr. Kenneth Kaunda.

Later in the day President Banda and other heads of state attended a luncheon at State House in Maputo.

This evening the President attended a closed door double troika SADC summit at Joachim Chisano International conference centre.

And Dr. Kaunda is among some former heads of state and government in the SADC region who have been invited by the Mozambican government to attend the ceremony.

Among the former heads of state that attended the ceremony are former South African president Thabo Mbeki and his counterpart from Botswana Festus Mugea.

President Guebuza won at least two-thirds (77 percent) of valid votes in Mozambique’s October 28, 2009 general elections after garnering 2.3 million votes.

He beat Alfonso Dhlakama of the opposition Mozambique National Resistance party (Renamo) and Daviz Simango of the newly formed Mozambique Democratic Movement (MDM), who polled 420,000 votes and 280,000 votes respectively.

Out of a total of 250 parliamentary seats, Frelimo got 192, Renamo fell in the second position with 48 constituencies while MDM trailed behind with eight seats.

In his election for the first term of office in 2004, President Guebuza’s Frelimo party had 160 seats while Renamo had 90 seats in the National Assembly. The recent election means that Frelimo increased its representation in parliament while Renamo reduced from 90 seats to 48.

In their pre-October 2009 campaign messages, President Guebuza pledged to continue addressing many issues among them poverty and unemployment while Mr. Dhlakama promised among other things, to abolish party branches in state institutions and to promote peace and stability in the country.

MDM’s Simango campaigned on the promise of modernizing agriculture, promoting rural trade and reducing unemployment.

Mozambique uses an electoral system of Proportional Representation.

ZANIS

THE executive committee of the United Party for National Development (UPND) is scouting for a female vice-president, preferably from the Northern Province to enhance its chances of winning the 2011 presidential polls now that it is clear that the pact with the Patriotic Front (PF) is crumbling, sources have revealed.

At its extra-ordinary executive meeting held on January 6, 2010 chaired by President Hakainde Hichilema, serious concerns were raised about the manner the PF was conducting its campaigns in the private media and it was resolved that Nkandu Luo be courted for the position of third vice-president.

This, in the view of the UPND, would attempt to give the party a more national outlook and possibly lure some Northern Province votes and the women’s vote in the light of the impending split with the PF.

UPND spokesperson Charles Kakoma confirmed that the meeting took place and that among other issues discussed was the issue of the third vice-president.

He, however, said the choice of the candidate for the position was still under intense debate and consideration. When asked if she had received overtures for the position, Professor Luo could neither confirm nor deny. “Kindly allow me to remain silent over this matter, I would not like to begin to discuss politics, please leave me out of it for now,” she said.

Mr Kakoma said the ideals of the pact were still alive but that the individual parties had agreed to go on an intensive membership drive to build capacity and strengthen their bases. He warned party members not to bank on riding on the backs of other pact members in apparent reference to the PF adding that they as UPND members must concentrate on building their own strengths.[quote]

The sources revealed that some executive members who attended the meeting complained that the private media was giving undue coverage to Mr Sata as opposed to Mr Hichilema, who was being systematically relegated to second position. It was however agreed that the “divorce” be kept under wraps while the party heightened its campaigns and new membership drives until the very end, to forestall any counter moves that the PF or MMD would engage in.

According to the sources, the UPND leader had come under increasing pressure from traditional leaders in the province to dissolve the party’s marriage of convenience with the PF because it was apparently clear that Mr Hichilema had already been relegated to the position of vice-president of the pact.

This has settled very badly with die-hard UPND members and traditionalists who felt that their president was giving in too much.
Mr Hichilema was, in the light of the impending cracks in the pact, advised to review all the disciplinary cases and instead speak the language of reconciliation to woo influential members who had left, to rebuild confidence.

Mr Hichilema is reportedly in the Western and North- Western provinces where he had travelled to garner support in readiness for the polls. “Hakainde is ready for the 2011 elections not as vice-president under the pact with the PF but as president of the UPND, it looks like the man has finally started seeing sense over this pact and realises that he is only being used by Mr Sata, even leaders like Chief Nalubamba has held meetings with him to advise him,” the source said.

PF spokesperson Given Lubinda said he took the UPND to be equal partners as prescribed in the memorandum of understanding and as far as he was concerned, everything was running smoothly. He said the UPND and the PF were alive to the fact that at no point did they agree to dissolve their respective parties to form one and as such both were at liberty to campaign in the manner they wanted.
“We are in the pact out of sincerity and good faith, we therefore would not like a third hand to dampen our resolve not on any propaganda allegations,” he said.

He added that the pact had learnt to take such insinuations in their stride and would treat such information as statements coming from detractors.

[Times of Zambia]