The Anti-Voter Apathy Project (AVAP) has called on government to speed up the process of disbursing the Youth Empowerment Fund introduced in 2006.

AVAP Executive Director, Bonnie Tembo says his organisation is concerned with the lack of political will on the part of the government to have the funds disbursed despite political pronouncements during the youth day celebrations.

Mr Tembo has however Commended President Levy Mwanawasa for calling on the Citizens Economic Empowerment Commission (CEEC) to ensure that the funds meant for the youths are disbursed according the law.

He claimed that although the youths are majority voters, they are both politically and economically marginalised.

Mr Tembo has pledged to partner with other Youth Organizations in lobbing government over the disbursement of the youth Empowerment Fund saying youth are the majority voters.

The AVAP leader however, advised all the youth organisations in the country to unite and strategise on how best they can play a critical role in ensuring that the youth in the country benefit from the youth Empowerment Fund.

Mr. Tembo said there is need to liberate the youth from the yoke of unemployment and poverty.

He has also called upon Members of Parliament in all the 150 Constituencies to spearhead the disbursement of the Youth Empowerment Fund to the youth by engaging the CEEC.

He noted that the elected representatives who enacted Citizen Economic Empowerment Act should take a lead to ensure the implementation of the CEEC.

Mr. Tembo has further appealed to government through the Ministry of Youth, Sport and Child Development to publish and disseminate youth empowerment Fund guidelines to enable youths have the information on how to access, utilise and account for the Fund.

Vice President Rupiah Banda has assured all donors to the flood situation that government is preparing a report of distribution and expenditure saying all donations need to be accounted for.

The Vice President said this when he received a donation of various medical supplies worth K50 million from the Federal Republic of Brazil in Lusaka today.

Mr. Banda said government’s plan is to make Disaster management a national programme and not a government programme so that people with ideas and goodwill can easily make their contributions through projects of their choice but coordinated by Disaster Management and Mitigation Unit (DMMU).

He thanked the Brazilian government for the donation saying they specifically target the core issues of food and health both of which are very critical in the survival of flood victims.

Mr. Banda said Brazil’s donation of 6.5 tonnes of maize and beans last month and medical supplies donated today are a demonstration of the true spirit of South to South cooperation.

He said Zambia which has established a diplomatic mission in Brazil is looking forward to deepening the relations between the two countries.

Mr. Banda also commended Zambian organizations that have made significant contributions towards managing the impact of this year’s floods saying they will be called upon to participate in planning for mitigation against future disasters.

And Brazilian Ambassador to Zambia Josal Luiz Pellegrino said the medical supplies are a humble donation that was manufactured by the federal government laboratories using federal resources in Brazil.

Mr. Pellegrino said the medical supplies that are also administered in Brazil are meant to cushion the effects of the floods in Zambia.

He said Brazil will continue to render its assistance to Zambia as an indication of its commitment to the south to south cooperation.

The Ndola Magistrate Court has set April 21st, 2008 as the date for the ruling in the case involving suspended MMD Copperbelt Provincial Chairman Terence Findley.

ZANIS reports that Ndola Principal Resident Magistrate Chilombo Phiri adjourned the case to April 21st for ruling and set March 28th, 2008 as the date for the defence to submit its written submissions to the court while the state will submit its submissions on April 11th, 2008.

The matter, which had came up for continued defence today, saw the defence team inform the court that there was a change in their earlier indication that they would bring to court nine witnesses.

Defence Lawyer Paulman Chungu informed the court that the defence would instead only bring two more witnesses to the court in addition to the five that it had previously brought.

And in cross-examination, one of the defence witnesses Martin Mulowa, 20, a school leaver of 26 Lewanika road, said he did not observe any injuries on Isabel Phiri during the period he offered her accommodation at his brother’s house.

When asked by the state prosecution team led by state prosecutor Mulongwa Mutakela whether he had examined Isabel’s entire body, Martin responded that he had only seen the top part of her body from the waist as she was changing her clothes.

He further said he was not there where and when it was alleged that Mr Findlay burnt Isabel with a cigarette lighter and added that he knew nothing about the pornographic DVD known as Bwaski 1.

Another witness Kaponda Mukeya 17, of house number 8 Kopa road, a pupil at St Andrews High School, testified that some time last year in June, he had offered accommodation to Isabel Phiri and her friend at his parents home after he was told that she had been chased from her parents home because she went clubbing the whole night.

Kaponda popularly known as ‘Popo’ testified that he had asked the girls to stay outside the gate and wait for his parents to sleep so that he could let them sneak inside the house.

He explained that after 21:00hours he went out and helped the girls to climb the wall fence, and that after they jumped in, dogs started barking and the girls rushed back and tried to jump but that at that point Isabel hurt herself on the hand and somewhere behind.

When cross examined Popo, who had taken the court to view the wall fence at house number 8 Kopa road, said that he did not see Isabel hurt herself as it was dark but that he saw that she had trouble climbing the wall fence and added that the following morning was when he was told that Isabel had hurt herself.

Defence Lawyer Chungu informed the court that the defence had closed its case and that it wanted to file written submissions to the court.

Mr Findlay,43, whose legal representation includes lawyers Eric Silwamba, Lawrence Matibini and Paulman Chungu, was this morning accompanied to court by Mr Chungu alone.

Mr Findlay is charged with three counts of Rape, Unlawful possession and distribution of obscene matter and Assault occasioning bodily harm.

Facts before the court are that Mr Findlay on unknown dates but between May 1, 2007 and June 2, 2007, allegedly had unlawful canal knowledge of a 16 year old named girl of Ndola.

He is further alleged to have, between the dates of May 28 and June 3 2007, unlawfully distributed obscene matter in form of a disc labelled ‘Bwaski 1’ to the same girl and that he is further on June 2, 2007 alleged to have assaulted her by burning her on the left buttock and hand with a cigarette lighter.

LET YOUR BODY DO THE TALKING

We all hunt for the perfect chat-up line, but in reality, our body gives away a great deal before we open our mouth. It is estimated that when you meet a stranger, their impression of you is based 55 per cent on your appearance and body language, 38 per cent on your style of speaking and a mere 7 per cent on what you actually say.

So what can we learn from the experts? There are a number of actions that signal “I like you” to another person. Adopting an open posture (no folded arms), and mirroring another’s posture help create a feeling of affinity. Most people are not conscious of being mirrored, but evaluate those who do it more favorably. And it is worth adopting stances that enhance your masculinity or femininity, such as placing hands in pockets with elbows out to enlarge the chest.

You could also indulge in a “gestural dance”, synchronising your gestures and body movements with those of the object of your desire, such as taking a sip of your drinks at the same time.

EXPERIENCE FEAR TOGETHER

A dramatic setting can kick-start your love life. Meeting a stranger when physiologically aroused increases the chance of having romantic feelings towards them.It’s all because of a strong connection between anxiety, arousal and attraction. In the “shaky bridge study” carried out by psychologists Arthur Aron and Don Dutton in the 1970s, men who met a woman on a high, rickety bridge found the encounter sexier and more romantic than those who met her on a low, stable one. A visit to the funfair works wonders too. Photos of members of the opposite sex were more attractive to people who had just got off a roller coaster, compared with those who were waiting to get on. And couples were more loved-up after watching a suspense-filled thriller than a calmer film. Why? No one is sure, but the adrenaline rush from the danger might be misattributed to the thrill of attraction. But beware: while someone attractive becomes more so in a tense setting, the unattractive appear even less appealing.

SHARE A JOKE

An experience that makes you laugh creates feelings of closeness between strangers. A classic example comes from experiments carried out by US psychologists Arthur Aron and Barbara Fraley, in which strangers cooperated on playful activities such as learning dance steps, but with one partner wearing a blindfold and the other holding a drinking straw in their mouth to distort speech. Sounds stupid, but love and laughter really did go together.

GET THE SOUNDTRACK RIGHT

It is thought that Shakespeare suggested that music is the food of love. Well, rock music, at least. Women evaluating photos of men rated them more attractive while listening to soft-rock music, compared with avant-garde jazz or no music at all.

USE LOVE POTIONS?

Can you short-cut all the hard work of relationship-building by artificial means? People have been trying to crack this one for thousands of years. A nasal spray containing the hormone oxytocin can make people trust you – an important part of any relationship – though there’s no evidence yet to suggest it can make someone fall in love. And while we wouldn’t suggest you try this at home, studies on prairie voles show that injecting the hormone vasopressin into the brain makes males bond strongly to females. Dopamine levels can also be increased legally by exercising. Another neurotransmitter, phenylethylamine (PEA), is tagged the “love molecule” because it induces feelings of excitement and apprehension. PEA is found in chocolate and it, too, is linked to the feel-good effects of exercise. Overall, a swift jog could be more conducive to love than anything you might find in a bottle.

GAZE INTO THEIR EYES

Any flirt knows that making eye contact is an emotionally loaded act. Now psychologists have shown just how powerful it can be. When pairs of strangers were asked to gaze into each other’s eyes, it was perhaps not surprising that their feelings of closeness and attraction rocketed compared with, say, gazing at each other’s hands. More surprising was that a couple in one such experiment ended up getting married. Neuroscientists have shed some light on what’s going on: meeting another person’s gaze lights up brain regions associated with rewards. The bottom line is that eye contact can work wonders, but make sure you get your technique right: if your gaze isn’t reciprocated, you risk coming across as a stalker.

MMD Kitwe District Secretary George Lungu has advised candidates aspiring to take over from President Mwanawasa as party president, to weigh themselves.

Mr Lungu told ZANIS in an interview that whoever aspires to step in President Mwanawasa’s shoes when his term of office comes to an end should a person of high integrity.

He said the country’s economy under President Mwanawasa had performed extremely well and the successor should be someone who can build on the current economic successes.

Commenting on Dr Lufwig Sondashi’s announcement that he was best suited to succeed President Mwanawasa, Mr Lungu said delegates will decide who will take over from Dr Mwanawasa at the convention.

He appealed to delegates at the convention to carefully scrutinise the candidates who will offer themselves for election at the convention.

Meanwhile, Mr Lungu has cautioned members of the party to concentrate on organising the party to ensure the grassroot is intact.

Dr Sondashi yesterday declared his interest in contesting as the ruling MMD Presidential candidate at the party’s next convention.

Parliament heard today that most youths did not access the K40 million Constituency Youth Empowerment Development Fund (CYEDF) because of their alleged political affiliations.

Youth, Sport and Child Development Minister Gabriel Namulambe told parliament today that the CYEDF has now moved to Citizens Economic Empowerment Commission.

The Minister condemned the move to politicize the fund saying government will now provide guidelines to churches, NGOs, political parties and the civil society on how best to access the funds.

Mr. Namulambe, who is also Mpongwe Member of Parliament said government through his ministry will introduce the Child Bill in parliament this year that seeks to protect the interests of youths.

But Sinda Member of Parliament Levy Ngoma accused government of U-turning from its earlier position to decentralize the accessing of the funds from districts to the Ministry of Youth, Sport and Child Development in Lusaka.

The MP complained of high levels of unemployment in the country saying youths are frustrated thereby engaging themselves in illicit activities such as excessive beer drinking, drug intake and prostitution.

Mr. Ngoma was contributing to debate of estimates and revenue expenditure for the Ministry of Youth, Sport and Child Development.