By Philos Zambianos ([email protected])

Corruption: Noun

– Lack of integrity or honesty (especially susceptibility to bribery); use of a position of trust for dishonest gain

– Inducement (as of a public official) by improper means (as bribery) to violate duty (as by committing a felony)

I must admit that I did not quite expect the controversy that erupted from my earlier article here on corruption and morality. As I read the comments on it, I was amused, intrigued and irritated. The people that irritated me are the ones who did not bother to fully read and understand my article in context. In this group are those who claim (among other things) that I am corrupt, I encourage corruption or have succumbed to it, not to mention the censorship freaks.

All the people who argued against the thesis of the article did not address its central argument of morality application in the context of force. It is important to be fully conscious of this foundational issue if you are to argue intelligently. I would like the naysayers to state what is logically wrong with the principle that when another person uses force against you, the obligation to follow the normal rules of morality is no longer applicable with respect to that specific situation. In other words, how can you talk about morality when the conditions for “normal morality” (i.e. absence of force) no longer exist?

If Angola sends troops to invade Zambia, would it make sense for us to sit and be butchered because it is supposedly immoral to send our fighter planes to bomb our neighbour (with the loss of innocent lives)? Imagine if that was the logic used during the time of Hitler, Mussolini and the Japanese. In times of peace, it would obviously be immoral and wrong to bomb Angola. So the idea that corruption is wrong, no matter what the circumstances, is obviously senseless (and rather silly) when you understand it from the angle of force.

Just south of our border, we have a tinpot despot called Robert Gabriel Mugabe who has turned Zimbabwe into a personal chiefdom where he rules supreme. The SADC and African Union leadership has failed miserably to sort him out but they keep claiming that “African problems need African solutions”. What stupidity! The situation there no longer falls under the normal rules of morality because Mugabe does not respect human rights and is using force against his own people.

So I find it ludicrous that Morgan Tsvangirai, Thabo Mbeki and other hopeless African leaders keep advocating going back to the negotiation table to talk endlessly while people are starving and dying everyday. What nonsense! Mugabe needs to be overthrown by all means necessary including (but not limited to) nationwide street protests, full-blown economic sanctions, expulsion from SADC and AU, invasion by other countries or covert assassination plot funded by the American CIA and British MI6.

I know a certain person that bought a piece of land for farming but could not obtain title deeds to the land for over ten years (this is not an exaggeration). More than half of that period was during Levy Mwanawasa’s tenure by the way. Their file kept getting lost or the person who was signing the papers was attending a workshop or there was a funeral for some director, etc. This person steadfastly refused to pay any bribes and they paid dearly for it because during that period, they could not develop the land for fear that it could get repossessed anytime since it was legally not theirs. They suffered many economic hardships as the money they had earmarked for their farming projects ended up being used for living expenses. They even ended up selling some of their property just to get by.

The idea that I am succumbing to corruption when I am being held to ransom just does not make sense. I reiterate that when force is used against you, it no longer makes sense to talk about morality. I had a Nigerian Christian friend who had to bribe people in his country just to get a visa to go study in England. He would not have got it any other way no matter what he did.

I am amused at how naïve people can get when they talk about how we can easily eradicate corruption in Zambia. They fail to realise that the whole corruption thing is an “ecosystem” to borrow a word from one of the comments on my earlier article. Firstly, the police are corrupt so how do they even arrest offenders? The courts are full of underpaid overworked people. The Anti-Corruption Commission (ACC) is also staffed by people that can be bought. As we learnt from the era of former president Frederick Chiluba, Ministers and even presidents can be totally corrupt. How do you kill an entire ecosystem like that? By praying and confessing to God? Give me a massive fat break!

One question I wish everyone to ponder is whether paying someone at the passport office to get a passport in one day is wrong. Think about it. How long should it take to produce a passport? There is nothing complicated about it. It is just a bunch of papers, ink and plastic put together by a machine. So why should it take a week or a month to get a passport? Did you know that it takes less time to produce a brand new Mercedes Benz S-Class car with thousands of complex parts than it takes to produce a Zambian passport?

The truth is that the officers at the passport office (registration card office, road traffic, lands department, etc.) deliberately slow down things so that people get frustrated and offer to pay them to fast forward the process. Even if there is an express service, it is still useless if it takes days. So if I pay some clerk K300,000 and get my new passport in one day (which is actually the “normal” time it should have taken in the first place), is that really corruption?

Federation for Free Trade Union of Zambia (FFTUZ) President, Joyce Nonde has challenged the youths in the country to stand up and be proactive if they are to take up positions in politics.

Mrs. Nonde said the youths in the country are not given leadership position because they are dormant and luck understanding on issues.

She said young people need to be proactive and change there attitudes and face the challenge in order to be leaders.

Mrs. Nonde said politicians need maturity but that most youths in the country lack that and are therefore used by politicians for violence purposes.

And the Global Justice Zambia has implored politicians in the country to learn from America and groom the youths if Zambia was to develop politically, economically and socially.

Global Justice Zambia Executive Director John Phiri also said Zambia risks being in a leadership crisis if youths were not groomed to take up political leadership in the country.

He said there is need for old politicians in the country to groom the new generation that could push the country forward.

He said for a long time now, youths have been used by older politicians only as agents of violence and political hooliganism.

Mr. Phiri said this in an interview with ZANIS at the American centre after giving a presentation of his observation of last year’s United States historical election where he represented Zambia as an international election observer.

He said there was need for politicians to invest in the youths, who are future leaders, adding they should only involve them in issue based politics.

He said politicians should put in place a deliberate policy that will ensure that the youths were prepared for leadership transition.

Mr. Phiri added that politicians should not look at the youths as threats but as partners in the development of the country.

He said the United States has shown the world, including Zambia, that investing in young people will result in social, political and economic development.

ZANIS/GP/KSH/ENDS.

The National Pensions Scheme Authority, NAPSA, has recorded a 45 per cent increase in contributions collected exclusive of penalties and an overall increase in net assets of 20 percent.

Labour and Social Security Minister Austin Liato, who confirmed the development in a ministerial statement made in parliament today on the 2007 Financial Statements, said the scheme recorded an overall increase in net assets of 4 percent as a result of revaluation gains.

Mr Liato explained that the Pension Scheme recorded an increase of about K1.7 billion while Provident Fund recorded an increase of about K288.3 billion.

He further explained that the National Pension Scheme which had a total number of 18,563 registered employers and a cumulative membership of 985,747 as in 2007, the scheme’s monthly average collection stood at K35.1 billion.

He disclosed that NAPSA paid-out K24.8 billion as lumpsum benefits to its retired members, while a total of K3.7 billion was paid in form of pensions adding that another K20.1 billion was paid to beneficiaries under the repealed Zambia National Provident Fund.

Mr Liato further disclosed that NAPSA’s investment portfolios as at 2007 for the pension scheme recorded K510.4 billion in treasury bills, while K884.9 billion was recorded in government bonds, adding that another K102 billion was recorded in term deposits.

He added that K77.9 billion was recorded in equities and a K32 billion was further recorded as fixed interest securities.

Mr Liato also disclosed that NAPSA’s investment portfolios for the provident fund as at 2007 stood at K35.5 billion in treasury bills, while K37.9 billion was recorded in government bond and a K7.7 billion was recorded in term deposits and a further K118.3 billion was recorded in equities.

He added that K108.3 billion was recorded in fixed interest securities.

He said NAPSA has diversified its investment portfolios from the traditional Bank deposits to investment in real estate development and participation in the equity market.

Mr Liato said the move was done in line with government’s policy of safeguarding members’ funds and promoting projects that contribute to social and national development.

He has since reaffirmed government’s continued commitment to the prudent management and utilization of NAPSA funds with a view to creating efficiency and transparency in the sector.

ZANIS/TK/ENDS/SJK

President Rupiah Banda has appealed to the republic of Korea to consider investing in the troubled Nitrogen Chemicals of Zambia (NCZ).

Mr. Banda says he is aware that Korea has the appropriate advanced technology to rehabilitate the fertiliser plant.

He says agriculture is critical to the economic development of Zambia and a recapitalized NCZ can provide cheaper fertiliser for peasant farmers.

The President was speaking at state House on Thursday, when he received letters of credence from Korea’s Ambasador designate to Zambia, Oh Jae-Hack.

And Mr. Banda said he is happy, the Korean resources Corporation- KORES has begun to partner with Zambian Miners.

The President called for more partnerships to enhance mining activity in the country.

He also commended the Korean government for its continued assistance to Zambia in mitigating the effects of floods in some parts of the country.

And Presenting his letters of credence, Ambassador OH said Zambia stands out as one of Africa’s most successful examples of political stability and sound economic development.

He said his government is looking forward to working closely with the Zambian government in its efforts to further achieve economic development by sharing development experiences of the two countries.

Ambassodor Jae-Hack said it is gratifying to note that the bilateral relations between the two countries have continued to grow, since the establishment of diplomatic ties in 1990.

Meanwhile, President Banda has appointed and sworn in Simon Kachimba, a former miner, as new Labor and Social Security Deputy Minister.

He urged Mr. Kachimba to help resolve the challenges of job losses, especially in the mining sector, where some companies are threatened with closures, following reductions in copper prices on the world market.

President Banda expressed confidence in the newly appointed deputy minister, adding that he is qualified and well placed for job to deal with the challenges the country is faced with in the labor sector.

ENDS/CM/PK/ZANIS/

Government says it will continue inviting both local and foreign investors with the capacity to invest in the country including Indian and Chinese investors.

And Government has described as an act of sabotage the statements by Patriotic Front leader Michael Sata against Indian and Chinese investors.

Chief Government spokesperson, Ronnie Shikapwasha, says Government will continue looking to the two counties as their fast growing economies requires a lot of materials which Zambia has.

Lieutenant General Shikapwasha said even developed countries are looking to China and India as the two emerging giants for business and investment.

He said the two countries as President Rupiah Banda recently observed are among the few countries with the financial muscle under the current global financial crisis who can invest in the country.

“China and India as President Rupiah Banda recently observed are among the few with financial muscle under the current global financial and are willing to invest in the exploitation of materials they need. And since Zambia has what they need, its only proper that we take advantage of their financial capacity to develop our mines and other industries,” he said.

Gen. Shikapwasha, who is also Information and Broadcasting Services minister, said this in statement released to ZANIS in Lusaka today.

Meanwhile, Gen Shikapwasha said, it is sabotage for leaders who should be working with government and local business houses in attracting investment from the two countries to instead use derogatory statements against them.

He said Patriotic Front leader, Michael Sata, who is discouraging and issuing bad statements against Indian and Chinese investors actually welcomed them during the 2008 presidential elections campaigns.

“It is strange that Patriotic Front leader, Michael Sata, who having rejected the Chinese and Indian investors in 2006 presidential but welcomed them during the 2008 campaigns has again rejected their investment without stating what has changed,” he said.

Lt. Gen. Shikapwasha has charged that Mr. Sata is using the Chinese and Indian investment issue by preying on the gullible believing he can gain political mileage out of it.

He said it is ironical that such sentiments are coming from a national leader at a time when the mine workers who are more closely associated with the mines are in full praise of their investments.

He said Mine Union workers of Zambia (MUZ) General Secretary, Oswell Munyenyembe on Monday said Indian and Chinese investment has proven to be dependable in time of crisis.

Lt. Gen. Shikapwasha further said it was for this reason that government is hoping for Chinese and Indian investment to take over the operations of Luanshya Copper Mines (LCM).

He said when other investors are laying off workers due to the effects of the global financial crisis; Chinese and Indian investors are restrained from doing the same.

He however said Zambia will continue inviting investors from all over the world adding that Mr. Sata’s preferred investors are the one who are now threatening to lay off workers.

“What is of interest to Zambia is whether these investors have the financial and technical capacity to run the mines or other undertakings and can obey the laws of Zambia” he said.

Lt. Gen Shikapwasha said government is also attracting local entrepreneurship in mines and other sector adding that this is the reason government is vigorously implementing the Citizen Economic Empowerment Commission (CEEC).

He said old and new mines will be given to Zambians with financial capacity that will come forward.

ZANIS/GP/AM/ENDS.

Government has maintained that it will not commit itself to bailing-out Zambian Airways from operational problems because doing so would set a bad precedent to competitors in the local airline industry.

Communications and Transport Minister, Dora Siliya, said bailing-out the privately owned airline would set a costly precedent because there were other competitors in the aviation industry which were experiencing operational problems.

Presenting a Ministerial Statement in Parliament on the suspension of operations by Mines Air Services Trading as Zambian Airways, Ms Siliya maintained that government would not offer any financial commitments to the airline because it had other serious development programmes to implement.

Ms Siliya, further, said that her ministry in collaborations with its sister ministries of Justice, Finance and Home Affairs were holding serious talks to consider taking legal action against the airline over huge sums of money owed to various government institutions.

She cited the Development Bank of Zambia, DBZ, which is owed US$4 million, Zambia Revenue Authority, ZRA, US$2.5 million, National Pensions Scheme Authority, NAPSA, US$2.5 million and National Airports Corporations, NAC, US$2 million among among government institution owed by the company.

The defunct airliner also owes Investrust Bank US$1.5 million, Finance Bank is owed US$6.3 million  and US$9.5 million to other trade creditors.

Ms Siliya said government has no plans to bail-out the Zambia Airways which she said was both insolvent and illiquid with its internal management accounts standing at about US$29.4 million.

She further warned that her ministry would not hesitate to revoke the aviation airline operations license in order to protect the country’s aviation industry from further imbalances.

She was responding to a question raised by Chifunabuli Member Parliament, Ernest Mwansa, who wanted to know what stringent measures government would take to protect the country’s aviation industry from companies that will be abrogating their operating licenses.

Ms Siliya, further, said government was working out modalities to protect the aviation industry from unnecessary job loses due unjustified suspension of operations.

She cited increased investment in the sector as one such measures of safeguarding employment in the sector.

She also revealed that government through the Ministry of Energy and Water Development under the Energy Regulation Board has reduced the cost of aviation fuel from US$1.58 per litre to 85 cents per litre as another measures aimed at helping the sector grow.

She further disclosed that government will not welcome proposals to defer Zambian Airways debts as it was more political rather than a business strategy.

Ms Siliya, however, said the suspension of the airline industry was a sad development to the country as the aviation industry was key to the country’s economic agenda.

Zambian Airways suspended operations a fortnight ago, citing high operational costs triggered by high cost of jet fuel.

The move left scores of passengers booked on the airline’s local and international flights stranded.

The Mines Air Services Trading as Zambian Airways is a 100 per cent privately-owned airline with JCN Holdings Zambia holding 57.5 percent shares, Post Newspapers 30 per cent and the Seaboard Overseas of United States holding 12.5 per cent shares.

However, the information obtained from the Patent and Company Registration Office by the Ministry of Transport and Communications has reflected a shareholding of 50 per cent each between Mutembo and Nchima Nchito brothers respectively.

ZANIS/TK/ENDS/SJK