Over 22,000 peasant farmers across the country will benefit from the K 10 billion fertilizer loan facility to be administered by the Zambia National Commercial Bank (ZANACO).

National Association for Peasant and Small Scale Farmers President, Rodger Phiri disclosed this to ZANIS soon after launching the new Munda Livestock Restocking Programme in Mazabuka’s Dumba area today.

Mr Phiri said last farming season, his organisation gave out fertilizer loans to only 3,300 farmers.

He said the loan facility has received overwhelming response from farmers because of the attractive and flexible conditions being offered by the association.

Mr Phiri said the input loan facility will supplement government efforts by providing fertilizer loan to farmers who may not be able to access fertilizer under the government sponsored fertilizer support programme.

He said among the conditions, beneficiary farmers are required to pay half the amount for the inputs required through ZANACO.

He also revealed that the European Union has shown interest to support the organisation for initiating programmes that are tailored at reducing poverty by providing good income and food among small-scale farmers.

He said the cattle restocking programme whose objective is to revive the cattle industry which has been decimated by the notorious corridor disease has now been extended to 35 districts

And Mazabuka District Commissioner, Tyson Hamaamba has commended the association for supplementing government efforts in reviving the livestock industry which has been affected due to livestock diseases.

Mr Hamaamba said the restocking programme will help improve farming as farmers will now use cattle for draft power instead of using hands to cultivate their fields.

He however urged the association to relax the conditions attached for beneficiary farmers to obtain cattle.

Five farmers benefited from the cattle restocking programme yesterday.
ENDS/HC/AM/ZANIS

An Electoral Officer in Siavonga District in Southern Province has cautioned people in the area that have been engaged by Electoral Commission of Zambia (ECZ) to help conduct elections on its behalf to carry out their duties diligently and in a non-partisan manner.

Siavonga District Elections Officer Ackson Habanji warned that he will not take kindly to anyone that will be found siding with any political party before, during and after the  30th October 2008 elections.

Mr. Habanji issued the warning when he addressed hundreds of people that had applied to ECZ for employment as presiding officers and polling assistants during the forthcoming presidential elections.

The briefing that was held at Lake Safari Lodge saw many government workers, the majority being teachers from around the district, coming to register in order to be taken on as election officers.

Mr. Habanji stated that he expects all those that would be taken on as polling assistants and presiding officers upon passing the examinations to be exemplary in their behaviour.

‘’ I want to request all those with partisan interests to leave this room because once we discover that you are have partisan interest with either the opposition or ruling MMD we shall not hesitate to firstly embarrass you before taking you to task. Your job as election officers is to act as referees so you must be neutral, ‘’ he said.

Mr. Habanji emphasised that he would not want the district to be dented by disgruntled party cadres that would fail to carry out their duties diligently because of being aligned with certain political parties.

Meanwhile, government workers, the majority being teachers that travelled long distances from around the district in order to attend the election briefing in Siavonga Township, complained against the decision taken by ECZ not to pay them money for their accommodation.

The disappointed workers said they did not know where they would sleep because the K75, 000 paid to them as lunch allowance was not enough to enable them find any accommodation.

“Some of us have come from as far as Chirundu and the only money that has been paid to us is this K75, 000 which we cannot even use to get ourselves the cheapest rooms. We have been reduced to destitutes,” they lamented.

Some of the workers have been accommodated by their friends and relatives while has less fortunate workers have ended up spending sleepless nights at Siavonga main market.

ENDS/LL/AM/ZANIS

The printing of Zambia’s presidential ballot papers has begun in South Africa’s port city, Durban ahead of the election slated for this month (October 30 , 2008).

The Printing kicked off this afternoon after verification of the ballot paper dummies and appending of signatures earlier in the day by the Zambian delegation which is here to witness the printing process expected to be completed on Friday next week.

This afternoon (Friday) the 21 man Zambian delegation led by Electoral Commission of Zambia Chairperson Florence Mumba had an opportunity to tour South Africa’s Universal Printing factory where printing of the presidential ballot papers is being undertaken.

During the conducted tour of the factory, Company Special Projects Consultant Vik Vaid went through the whole process of printing in an effort to establish the firm’s credibility in the printing industry to the section where the Zambian presidential ballot papers are being printed.

While in the section where the presidential ballot papers are being printed, the Zambian delegation was given a chance to scrutinise sample ballot papers that have already been done.

The firm’s Special Projects Consultant told the delegation that printing will go on throughout the weekend while the other process of sticking and packaging would be done on Monday next week.

At the end of the tour, Universal Printing Company Managing Director, Bharat Mehta, assured the Zambian delegation that there would be no external influence over the printing of the presidential ballot papers.

Mr Mehta underscored that security and integrity was paramount to his firm hence it would ensure that no external forces interfered in the printing process.

“If anything happened our credibility will be affected hence integrity and ethics are important for us. We are conscious of the fact that we are responsible for what happens in Zambia and other African countries,” he said.

His remarks came in the wake of concerns from the opposition parties among them the PF on how secure the printing was at the printing firm.

The Zambian delegation comprises political parties and Civil Society representatives include ECZ Commissioner Jalasi, MMD’s Assistant Secretary for Research Felix Mwansa, Heritage Party Trustee Lorraine Miyanda, UPND’s Chairperson for Defence and Security and Patriotic Front General Secretary Edward Mumbi.

Others are Zambia National Women’s Lobby Vice Chairperson Helen Kauta Kalikeka, Forum for Democratic Process (FODEP) President Stanely M’hango and Kwezekani Banda from the Zambia Police.

Those who arrived later in the day include Drug Enforcement Commission (DEC)’s Ronnet Chanda, Daniel Maimbo of Transparency International Zambia and Anti Corruption Commission’s Royd Katongo.

Zambia goes to the presidential election on October 30 this year following the death of Dr Levy Patrick Mwanawasa who passed on in France’s Percy Military Hospital in August.

ZANIS/ENDS/CLM/SJK

National Revolutionary Party President, Cozmo Mumba, has appeared before the Anti-Corruption Commission (ACC) for interrogation on corruption allegations.

Dr. Mumba arrived at the ACC office around 10 hours on Friday.

He later told Journalist that he is not guilty of the corruption allegation.

He however said he will corporate with the investigation until his name is cleared.

And ACC Public Relations Manager, Timothy Moono confirmed that Dr Mumba has been questioned by the ACC.

Mr. Mono could not however reveal the details of the interrogation as this would jeopardise investigations.

Dr. Mumba has been accused of receiving a bribe of 15 million kwacha in order to support Acting Presidential, Rupiah Banda.

[ZNBC]

THE Lusaka High Court has ruled that acting president RUPIAH BANDA should continue to enjoy presidential privileges and benefits.

ZNBC reports that this is in a case in which the Anti-Rigging Zambia Limited sued Mr BANDA saying he ceased to be vice president from the time he filed in his nomination papers for the presidential elections.

It said Mr BANDA was not entitled to perform presidential functions or the benefits of that office and that he should not enjoy or use public resources to fund his campaign.

But Lusaka High Court judge PHILIP MUSONDA ruled that article 43 (1) gave the acting president absolute immunity from having proceedings instituted against him in any court of law in respect of anything done or omitted to be done in his private capacity.

The judge ordered that Mr BANDA will continue to act as president and enjoy the privileges and benefits attached to that office until the democratic process resolves the issue of the presidency.

Judge MUSONDA noted that the case was a constitutional matter that had raised a novel issue and that there would be no order for costs.

He said during hearing attorney general MUMBA MALILA said that article 43 (1) of the constitution, a person holding the office of the president was not amenable to criminal or civil proceedings in respect of anything done during his tenure of office.

Mr MALILA said that the article was categorical and operated to prevent the institution of any court process against the acting president or as a person performing the functions of the president.

But lawyer for Anti-Rigging Zambia Limited KELVIN BWALYA argued that the article referred to when such a person was taking administrative action or an executive decision in consultation with cabinet.

Mr BWALYA argued that the filing of nomination papers as presidential candidate was not an executive function or that of a president because even any other person could have filed in the papers.

ZANIS/ZNBC/ENDS

Zambia has agreed financing deals totalling $170 million with European and African lenders and selected Chinese firms to build houses in key mining towns and a famed tourist city, a senior industry official said on Thursday.

Zik Zekko, the chief executive officer of the National Housing Bond Trust (NHBT), said 1,211 houses would be constructed in the new copper mining town of Solwezi in northwestern Zambia, the ancient copperbelt city of Kitwe and tourist resort city of Livingstone.

A surge in copper production has created critical housing shortages in the mining areas.

Zekko said Pan-African bank, the PTA Bank, Shelter Afrique, the Development Bank of Southern Africa (DBSA) and International Housing Solutions, an associate of the World Bank’s International Finance Corporation (IFC) would be the principle financiers for the projects.

He also told journalists that Standard Chartered Bank would place a bond with Zambian pension funds and insurance firms on the Lusaka Stock Exchange to raise $34 million of the $170 million for the housing projects.

“In all the three pilot projects, a total of $170 million is required to build houses (and) hence we have had to consider going outside our market to source funding,” Zekko said.

Zekko said contracts had been awarded to Chinese firms, Yangtsi Jiang, China Jiangxi and Sichuan International Technical Corp., to construct the houses.

The houses would be sold to Zambians, enabling the NHBT to repay loans from foreign lenders, while foreigners would only be considered if there was not enough demand from locals.

The NHBT had also applied for tax exemptions on imported building materials to enable it to price the houses cheaply.

The NHBT was also in talks with the German-based Africa Development Corporation to fund more houses.

He said financiers were also watching closely the political climate ahead of the presidential elections due on October 30.

“As long as we don’t throw stones (during presidential elections) in October, everything should be fine,” Zekko said.

Reuters

It’s not every day you see a wild elephant standing next to you at the reception of a hotel.

But in the Mfuwe Lodge in the 9,500 sq km South Luangwa National Park in Zambia, the sight of elephants strolling around the lobby is a regular occurrence.
It was unwittingly built on the route to the herd’s favourite mango trees and the pachyderms have seen no reason to change the path trodden by generations before them.

Andy Hogg, 44, director at Mfuwe Lodge, said the herd appears every November as the mangoes ripen: ‘This is a totally natural phenomenon, the elephants come here of their own accord and it is certainly a rare but magnificent sight.’

The herd is led to the lodge each day by the matriarch, Wonky Tusk.

‘There is ten in that herd and it is only that herd that comes through. It is a strange thing,’ said Andy.

Guests are not allowed to get too close to the beasts and there have been no incidents yet.

Associated Newspaper limited