By Wesley Ngwenya

Several years ago I was privileged to meet former president Levy Mwanawasa in Washington DC when he attended the annual United Nations Security Council Meeting. This was the year that Mwanawasa had just ascended to the highest office in the land. During the semi-formal meeting at the Zambian embassy in Washington DC, the President encouraged the many Zambians present to come back home to contribute to the rebuilding of the economy.

At the time I was doing my last year at one of the universities in the area. With the passion I have for my country, I took the president’s appeal very serious. A few years later I packed my belongings and came straight home to help in the rebuilding of my country. I had been gone to the United States for nine years and during that time had never come back home. I experienced reverse “culture shock” from the dilapidated infrastructure around the city to the many people standing around street corners with nothing to do. It was then it really hit home in my mind on how real and high unemployment rate was in my country.

The next day after arriving I went straight to work—applying for a job to various businesses, government, and non-governmental organizations where I thought my education and experience would be taken advantage of. I have never been offered a job to this day although I was able to attend a few interviews. I must mention here that at my last count I had applied to roughly 260 places over the period of a year and half.

I guess the big question is; Should Zambians Abroad Come Back Home? Or to rephrase the question; Are we ready for Zambians Abroad to come back home? During my stay abroad, I attended meetings of various African politicians and Zambians politicians who continue preaching about creating jobs and appealing for the Diaspora to come back home. Unfortunately, little is being done on the ground to prepare it for these people when they come. I find it frustrating to struggle like this in my home country. In the United States the employers rushed to offer me a position when they looked at my qualifications. On the other hand, employers here don’t seem to appreciate the education and experience I have. Not to mention that I graduated on the top tier of my class in Business Administration and Marketing. My experiences have included working as a manager for one of the largest financial institutions in the world. Not to mention that in all my marketing position I have won awards for best performance. Not to mention that I went to one of the best private universities in the United States. Not to mention that I also got another degree in communication from an elite private school.

If I was an employer here in Zambia and a CV that looked like this came to my desk I would be wanting to talk to this person. Businesses in Zambia must realize that Zambians educated abroad are not a threat to their teams but an asset that they must take advantage of. The world in becoming more and more integrated into one marketplace. Businesses with personnel who have a worldview approach and a global touch to business will stand the chance to benefit. Employees with a global view bring a wealth of experience including the ability to work well with different people from other cultures as well as people of different ages.

Government has absolutely failed in changing the unbelievably high unemployment rate in this country. They have failed the Zambian people in having poor labor laws that disadvantage many Zambians. For example, why hire a South African to be a cook at a hotel, or an American to work as a marketing manager, or a Chinese (who can hardly speak English) to work as a secretary? Needless to say that companies go to great lengths in acquiring work permits and other immigration papers for these people. Moreover these people are often paid three times or more what a more qualified Zambians is willing to take home. Is there any business sense in this other than the fact that these business owners have identified our weak labor laws and will relentlessly take advantage of them?

If government will attract the Zambian Diaspora to return home they need to even the playing field for everyone. As a matter of fact, the playing field should advantage the Zambians. Foreigners come to Zambia with little or no capital but within years they get wealthy. Of course they get wealthy since they get the huge government contracts, don’t have to queue for anything, and easily get business loans to start their businesses. Why advantage foreigners over your own citizenry? Do you think this would happen in Canada, Germany, Botswana or India? Of course not. The government, therefore, has an obligation to create an environment suitable for a poor woman in Solwezi to establish her business favorably the way an Australian will. It has an obligation to contract a Zambian owned business in Maamba over a Chinese owned business. It has an obligation to employ a returning Zambian student from the United Kingdom over an unqualified South African.

Sometimes, there is a stereotype that Zambian who come back have money—actually they don’t. Many of them worked hard in their host countries to acquire the little they had. Thank God at least many times they were recognized and appreciated for their hard work. Saving money was not so easy because of the demands that come with living in a foreign country. Therefore, when they come home they equally need to be empowered by giving them opportunities to get loans and establish businesses if they are to be self-employed. The Citizens Economic Empowerment Fund is a great initiative, however many Zambians don’t even know there is such a fund let alone how to access it. The application papers are unavailable and have to be bought at high prices. The application paper itself is complex with financial jargon for a graduate even. How will this help empower Zambians?

As I sit on my computer and put these thoughts to paper, I wonder of how things will be different for me a year from now. Will I find a job—just any job? Will my business pick after accessing that loan? I wonder about the blind lady on the fly over bridge on Church Road or the crippled lady across from Central Park. How will their lives change a year from now? Will their luck to have a meal continue to be in the hands of passer-bys in these tough times? Or should it be in the hands of the government? I wonder.

The Youth Movement for Inter-party Reconciliation has proposed that only two presidential candidates should contest the 2011 elections.

Organisation Executive Director Patrick Samwimbila said this is to prevent vote-splitting and election of a minority president.

Mr. Samwimbila said the organization also desire that the 50 plus one majority votes be be implemented  in 2011 even in the absence of a clause in the republican constitution

Addressing the press in Lusaka today, Mr. Samwimbila has since urged the opposition political parties to start working towards an electoral pact.

Mr. Samwimbila further said the move would go a long way in encouraging people to vote.

Meanwhile, Mr. Samwimbila has said political differences can only be resolved through dialogue.

He said violence would only bring about chaos and instability in the country.

PARLIAMENT has scrapped the responsibility allowance for constitutional office holders and drastically reduced the special and utility allowances in the revised emolument bills that were approved yesterday.

This was when the House passed the three amended emolument bills that seek to increase salaries and allowances for the president, ministers, deputy ministers, members of Parliament and other constitutional office holders.

The amended bills, which were subjected to a vote electronically, saw a significant reduction of the utility allowance while the salary still stood at 15 per cent increment.

The three bills, which had earlier passed through the House, were sent back after President Banda wrote a letter to the Speaker on November 7, asking Parliament to reconsider the bills, as they were costly to the Government in their old form.

Presenting the amended bills, Vice-President George Kunda said the treasury had insufficient funds to implement the earlier proposed allowances, hence the need to amend the bills.

Mr Kunda said the Government had spent huge sums of money to conduct the October 30 presidential election and expenses towards the State funeral of late president Mwanawasa.

According to the amended Presidential Emolument Bill number 18 of 2008, the President’s special annual allowance of K157,210,523 had been reduced to K59,194,734 while the annual responsibility allowance of K150 million was scrapped.

The salary of the president has been increased by 15 per cent and would now annually be pegged at K164, 120, 016.

The vice-president’s annual salary would be K99,227,544 while the special allowance had been reduced to K33, 886,567 from K 94, 119, 870. The responsibility allowance of K90 million has been scrapped and the utility allowance was now K26, 680,000 from K66,400,000.

The deputy speaker, Cabinet minister, the chief whip, leaders of opposition would get an annual salary of K75, 117, 124, special allowance of K26, 382, 673 instead of K64, 412, 182. The utility allowance for the same category of officers is now K26, 680,000 from K66, 400,000.

Back benchers would get an annual salary of K70,161,239, special allowance at K19, 165,615 instead of K66 million. The utility allowance annually was pegged at K26, 680,000 instead of K66, 400,000.

Deputy ministers would get an annual salary increment of K70, 953,196, the special allowance of K24, 107,904 instead of K61, 448, 092 and utility allowance of K26, 680,000 other than earlier proposed K66, 400,000.

The constitutional office amendment Bill now states that the secretary to the Cabinet would get an annual salary increment of K159, 340, 959 and a responsibility allowance of K48, 300,000 annually instead of K80 million.

The Attorney General would get annual salary increment of K135, 485,950 and responsibility allowance of K41, 400,000 annually instead K80 million.

And the Speaker of the National Assembly told the House the three bills were passed with more than two thirds of the majority votes which was done electronically.

[Times of Zambia]

A Ndola Clergyman has urged the NCC to consider the inclusion of funding political parties with national character to safeguard the nation from political parties forming alliances with foreign organisations threattening national security.

Rabbi Bornface Chisala told ZANIS in Ndola Tuesday morning that for a political parties to qualify for state funding there was need to ensure that they had sufficient paid up members to sponsor a member of parliament in at least five provinces.

He said  the mechanism could help in avoiding opposition political parties going on their knees to foreign organisations to solicit for financial help and making pledges of paying back the funds once elected into government.

He said such alliances could keep the nation to ransom by  sponsoring organisations and cause the government to work under pressure once elected into office.

The clergyman said once such a mechanism was put in place, it was would enable government to keep in check what the opposition political parties were doing as they would be required to disclose their monies or materials given to them by any interested organisation locally or abroad.

He added that democracy must be supported not just by word of mouth but by deeds that were in agreement with the promotion of good democratic ideals.

Rabbi Chisala said the financial support should be restricted to only those political parties that were duly registered with the Registrar of societies with the government.

He said presidential candidates should be allowed to access State security during campaigns.

Rabbi Chisala said there was also need to factor in the airtime units which should be realistically estimated to cover the communication challenge during the whole campaign period.

He proposed a K1 million per day for contigency so that there was no excuse of the political playing field being uneven.

He was categorical tha the facility should not be extended to members of parliament and ward counmcilors sponsoring politicval parties should take care of such positions.
ZANIS/CN/CMM/ENDS/MM.