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Shiwang’andu Member of Parliament Hon. Stephen Kampyongo says the uncoordinated approach in handling national affairs clearly shows that the UPND and President Hakainde Hichilema were not ready to form the government.
Speaking when he addressed residents of Chibamba village in Shiwang’andu, Hon. Kampyongo said President Hichilema is doing the exact opposite of what he promised while in opposition.
He said upto now farmers that supplied maize to the Food Reserve Agency FRA have not been paid while others had their maize destroyed by rains.
The former Home Affairs Minister said Zambians will soon know that the Patriotic Government meant for the country.
“Zambians will soon know that the PF meant well for the country. Upto now farmers have not been paid for the maize they supplied to FRA. While social cash transfer beneficiaries have equally not been paid,” Hon. Kampyongo said.
Hon. Kampyongo adds that the UPND ascended into office using lies which are now haunting them.
“They lied to you that they will increase bags of fertilizer under FISP but hey have failed. We will not relent and will ensure that they fulfill the campaign promises” He said.
And Hon. Kampyongo said the PF is intact and remobilizing on the ground to ensure it bounces back into office in 2026.
He advised genuine members not to be swayed into joining the UPND and other political parties.
“PF is still intact, we are mobilizing on the ground so that we are ready for the 2026 general elections, So stay in the boat and don’t defect to other parties. When government officials come here tell them to talk to you about policies and not politics,” Hon.Kampyongo said.
Agriculture Minister, Reuben Mtolo has said that the government has never paid ALPHA Commodities $50 million to procure fertilizer.
Mr. Mtolo said that it is unfortunate that lies have continued to be peddled, adding that the standing orders indicate that whatever is brought to the floor of the National Assembly is factual and empirical.
Mr. Mtolo was responding to Kabushi Member of Parliament Bowman Lusambo who wanted to know whether it is true that the Government paid ALPHA Commodities instead of giving the resources to the Food Reserve Agency to pay farmers.
Of late ALPHA Commodities has been in the spotlight on social media with reports alleging that a fertilizer tender was awarded to Alpha Commodities whose major shareholder is Minister of information Chushi Kasanda’s husband Morris Jangulo and that she did not declare any conflict of interest.
Further allegations are that an advance payment of $50m has been paid?
All these allegations have been dismissed by both Government and UPND party officials.
The indication by the Central Bank Governor to raise the fuel and electricity tariffs is and was expected. It was expected because for a long time we knew that these were subsidized costs. The real cost is and was not what we the people pay for. Removing these subsidies was the song that the PF preached from inception and whenever the ERB was approving upward adjustments to the costs of fuel and electricity tariffs, they reminded us that it was because the costs were not reflecting the reality at the market level.
Increasing the costs of electricity or fuel is not really the problem. I do not think that the problem is the actual cost of electricity or fuel. To assume that the problem is the cost is a huge misunderstanding and may not be helpful for those charged with the responsibility to find solutions to our problems. WHAT then is our problem?
Our problem is the fact that the majority of our people cannot afford it. We still have a huge number of unemployed youths, who are not sure of what to do next for them to land a coin. We have a huge population who are struggling to afford basic commodities even with the subsidies still in place. The rationale for introducing subsidies was that even the lowest-paid citizen should be able to afford some decent life. The removal of subsidies and the subsequent rise of the cost of electricity and fuel prices will impact ordinary people worse compared to others who bask in enormous wealth. Those who can’t afford basic needs now will be dropped further down the poverty line. Those who could afford just the basics will equally fall a step below in their poverty.
My advice to the President and the government is, DO NOT REMOVE the subsidies before FIXING the economy. The people need to have the power to buy first. We cannot continue raising the cost of living before raising the power of the people. The subsidies do make life bearable even for those without jobs. DO NOT INCREASE THE TARIFFS before increasing the capacity of the people to afford it.
The price is not the problem, the buying power is the problem. Before fixing the price, fix the pockets.
Former Defence Minister in the MMD Government George Mpombo has said that President Hakainde Hichilema has appointed what he described as some “Tamanga” business guys as permanent secretaries.
Speaking in an interview after witnessing the court petition judgment for Masaiti PF member of parliament Michael Katambo, Mr. Mpombo said that also described UPND’s 90 days in power as a complete disaster.
“The 90 days of UPND in power is a complete disaster, it’s a shame actually. What is orderly about their performance? You can see, here is a party which in opposition said will do away with district commissioners. Now they assemble a group of political cadres,” he said.
“District commissioners perform critical functions in government. Now, where you take a guy doing tamanga business in Buteko or Lusaka, what are you doing? You are knifing progress in the back.”
He charged that the current Cabinet consists of people with dubious backgrounds.
Ministry of Youth and Sports PS , Kangwa Chileshe
Mpombo wondered what would happen in government if all permanent secretaries were party cadres.
“In this Cabinet you have people with dubious backgrounds, people with no political capacity. Permanent secretaries are the controlling officers in charge of resources. He is in charge of advising the minister, the government. Now, if you’ve got party cadres as PSs, forget about progress. Where is the party going to understand the performance of government?” Mpombo asked.
“If they are not going to change, they will end up like the Tonse Alliance in Malawi. People elect the government, so where the hell do they get some dubious Alliance member Mr [Thabo] Kawana or some other people to address the people of Zambia? Which mandate do they use? These are party cadres with no mandate to speak to the Zambian people. Zambians will be spoken to by the elected people, people that have the legitimacy and not people doing tamanga business and make them PS. It is a setback.”
He said the UPND government is almost at zero in terms of performance.
Mpombo also said President Hichilema should be humble enough and move into State House.
“This government is almost like zero. The state of the nation is moving directionless. The Head of State can’t move into State House, is HH telling us that the other presidents are a bunch of political nitwits?” he asked. “For HH to say State House is inhabitable is an insult. If he is humble enough, he should move in. That is the designated house. UPND by its conduct is launching rockets of disunity in the country.”
Meanwhile, Mpombo said Katambo’s victory is massive and would produce more fire in parliament. He said Zambians needed strong checks and balances in parliament.
“This is a colossal victory because Katambo is a ball of fire and very productive. The verdict by the High Court is a vivid manifestation of the trust people have in his activities. These kinds of decisions by the courts go a long way in deepening the tenants of democracy. It is important that the will of the people is upheld. This victory is far the viral if democracy is to develop,” said Mpombo.
“UPND, this party is a source of great concern. When in opposition, they were at the forefront of calling for democratic practices but having massive petitions all over the country! The intention here is to reduce or dilute the substance of opposition in Zambia, and there is no country that can develop with a weak democracy. You need strong checks and balances in parliament, somebody to rise. So, this idea of mushrooming petitions must be condemned and it is a serious indictment against the dismal performance of the UPND government.”
Vice President Mutale Nalumango has said that the ruling United Party for National Development (UPND) administration will amend the constitution before the next general election in 2026.
Ms. Nalumango said that the country will not go into the 2026 general election with the same lacunas in the constitution and that this is one of the commitments the UPND made during the campaigns and after the party won elections this year.
Mrs. Nalumango said that the UPND will also look at other pieces of legislation among them the Public order Act, adding that the New Dawn Government appreciates the role the previous Government played in the process but her administration will ensure it effectively attends to the lacunas in the constitution.
Mrs. Nalumango said this in the National Assembly during the Vice President’s Question time, in response to a question raised by Bwacha Member of Parliament Sydney Mushanga who wanted to know how soon the government will address the lacunas in the constitution.
She said this is an opportunity for Zambians to work together to come up with a constitution that represents not only a political party’s interests but those of all Zambians.
The Vice President said that UPND will not make laws to punish the opposition as the case was in the previous administration because it understands that being in power is not permanent, and refining the constitution and dealing with the public order act has been the commitment of the UPND from the time the party was in opposition.
On the looming increase in fuel prices, the vice president says there is no imminent increase in the fuel pump price. Mrs. Nalumango, however, could not clearly state whether fuel prices will not go up.
He was responding to a question by Chama south Member of Parliament Davison Mung’andu who wanted to find out whether increasing fuel prices and electricity tariffs is one of the IMF conditionalities.
Minister of Transport and Logistics Frank Tayali says the government will not be reviewing the Zambia Airways principal shareholders agreement signed with Ethiopian Airlines and that the fundamental principles will not change.
Mr Tayali, however, states that the government through the Industrial Development Corporation (IDC) is reviewing attendant agreements with Ethiopian Airlines to ensure that its terms and conditions are equitable and do not in any way disadvantage the Zambian government.
He says the review process has since commenced and is focusing on the two agreements entered into between Zambia Airways 2014 Limited and Ethiopian Airlines.
The Minister was responding to a question by Kantanshi member of parliament Anthony Mumba who wanted to find out whether the government has any plans to urgently review the contract between Zambia Airways Limited and Ethiopian Airlines, to ensure a win-win situation, before the launch of the national airline scheduled for 1st December 2021.
The Minister notes that his ministry at no time made a statement that the Government will discontinue the Zambia Ethiopia deal.
Mr. Tayali also said his office is aware that the previous Government procured 4 aircraft believed to be in Russia for the establishment of the airline and that the matter is under investigation.
Mr. Tayali said Zambia Airways will focus on domestic routes and said that Government will give the necessary support to the airline to enable it to grow and start taking regional flights.
Chief Government Spokesperson Chusi Kasanda has said that insinuations in some sections of the media that President Hakainde Hichilema has abolished allowances for civil servants are false and malicious.
Ms. Kasanda who is also Information and Media Minister has said that at no point did President Hichilema talk about abolishing civil servants’ allowances during the swearing-in ceremony of some senior Government officials at State House, yesterday.
She says President Hichilema only revealed that he will be having a workshop for Ministers and Permanent Secretaries next week and that there will be no allowance to be paid on that day because all those attending including himself will be working.
According to her Facebook page monitored by ZNBC News in Lusaka today, Ms. Kasanda said the Head of State in his remarks only disapproved of practices in the previous regime where government officials were paid allowances for attending workshops or meetings on normal working days and within the normal working hours.
President Hichilema assured the nation that, under his watch, this will never happen.
And echoing the Minister’s statement, UPND Alliance Media Director Thabo Kawana said that says President Hichilema has not abolished any allowances for civil servants as reported by some sections of the media.
UPND Alliance Media Director Thabo Kawana
Mr. Kawana said that the misrepresentation of facts is a deliberate misconception and distortion and that the media report is aimed at deliberately agitating Civil Servants in the country and bringing the New Dawn Administration into disrepute.
Mr. Kawana has clarified that President Hichilema tasked Cabinet Office to convene a day’s workshop for all Ministers and Permanent Secretaries who will in turn hold meetings with their Directors and other Senior Government Officials on how they are expected to execute their duties in the New Dawn Administration.
He says the head of State was categorical that this one-day workshop will not attract an allowance because as it will be treated as an ordinary day’s work.
Mr. Kawana told ZNBC news that the President was clear, emphatic, and did not mince his words to warrant the unfortunate misrepresentation of what he stated.
He has since urged media houses, reporters and their editors to strive to report correctly and resist the temptation to sensationalize facts in the process.
Vice President WK Mutale Nalumango has said that the new dawn administration is giving amnesty to all those who served in public office to voluntarily return whatever was illegally obtained, by voluntarily coming forward and declaring property they acquired using proceeds of corruption.
The vice president has since advised those who might have acquired property using proceeds of corruption to take advantage of the amnesty and come forward, adding that the amnesty will only apply to those who voluntarily return what was obtained before investigations are carried out.
The Vice President said that once investigations are conducted, and one is found wanting, the law will take its course.
Responding to a question from Kalabo Central Member of Parliament Chinga Miyutu during the vice president’s question time who wanted to find out whether the new dawn administration has intentions to give amnesty to those that might have acquired property corruptly in exchange for non-prosecution, Mrs. Nalumango says for those found wanting after investigation it will be discretionary.
In another response to a question raised by the Kabushi Member of Parliament Bowman Lusambo, Mrs. Nalumango said there is nothing alarming about the statement made by President Hakainde Hichilema that someone has hidden illegally acquired money in a foreign country, but said that investigations into the matter are still ongoing.
Mrs. Nalumango said the UPND is a government of the rule of law and will not victimize anyone further saying that President Hichilema has given all those that might have illegally obtained the country’s resources ample time to return whatever is not lawfully theirs.
Mr. Lusambo wanted to know who the President is citing to have taken money to a foreign country and how much is involved.
The South African government says the UK’s decision to place South Africa back on its Red List, is rushed.
The decision followed the detection of a new COVID-19 variant in South Africa with a high number of mutations which has raised concerns among scientists and triggered travel restrictions by a number of countries amid fears of coronavirus transmissions.
UK Health Secretary, Sajid Javid, said South Africa and 5 of its neighbours will be on the list from Sunday.Until then all flights from South Africa, Namibia, Zimbabwe, Botswana, Lesotho, and Eswatini are suspended. Travellers from these countries will have to be quarantined. Several countries in Europe and Asia have now also imposed restrictions.
The South African National Institute for Communicable Diseases (NICD) said 22 positive cases of the new variant have been recorded in the country following genomic sequencing. News of the announcement broke on Thursday.
The new COVID-19 variant, called B.1.1.529, has a very unusual constellation of mutations, which are worrying because they could help it evade the body’s immune response and make it more transmissible, scientists have said.
South African scientists have detected more than 30 mutations to the spike protein, the part of the virus that helps to create an entry point for the coronavirus to infect human cells.
Tulio de Oliveira, director of the KwaZulu-Natal Research and Innovation Sequencing Platform, said the variant has baffled experts. “It has a big jump in evolution, many more mutations than we expected,” de Oliveira said.Some of the mutations look similar to mutations that have been found on other variants of concern that enhance those variants transmissibility
“The one piece of good news is that it can be detected by a PCR test”, de Oliveira added
The World Health Organisation (WHO) said it is “closely monitoring” the reported variant and is expected to meet on Friday to determine if it should be designated a variant of “interest” or of “concern”.
South Africa loses approximately R26 million for everyday it spends on the UK’s red list according to the World Travel & Tourism Council. This latest travel ban has caused widespread disbelief and disappointment amongst the hospitality industry as the peak festive season approaches.
Lusaka Province health director Consty Mwale says the country recorded 2.9 million cases of malaria by April this year compared to 7.6 million cases recorded in 2020.
Dr. Mwale says despite recording significant reduction this year, four people die from the disease everyday which translates to over 1,500 malaria deaths per year.
“ The situation is unacceptable because malaria is preventable and curable. There is need for accelerated efforts by all stakeholders in the country to completely curb the disease, “ he said.
He said this during the launch of the Southern African Development Community (SADC) malaria week yesterday at Chainda primary school grounds in Chongwe.
Dr. Mwale revealed that ministry of health will continue taking all malaria elimination interventions to communities and facilitate participation of all stakeholders in the fight against the disease.
The health director stated that increased domestic funding for malaria and enhanced localised interventions by government and its cooperating partners are among the innovative localised interventions in place to eliminate malaria.
“The country has established the End malaria fund is a local initiative to raise local resources so as to ensure that malaria interventions are implemented in a timely manner,” Dr. Mwale said.
He reaffirmed government’s commitment to eliminating malaria in the country and the SADC region.
And World Health Organization (WHO) Country representative Nathan Bakyaita states that the organization recognises the efforts and achievements made by Ministry of health through the National malaria elimination program to implement the malaria elimination strategic plan for 2017-2021 despite the negative impacts presented by the covid-19 pandemic on the country.
Mr. Bakyaita said WHO also continued to ensured that guidelines on routine management of malaria were availed and made modifications to interventions in light of the COVID-19 pandemic.
He reaffirmed WHO and the UN’s commitment to support the final implementation of the current malaria elimination strategic plan and facilitate the ongoing process of formulating the next 2022-2026 plan.
Mr. Bakyaita commended Zambia and all SADC member States for the commitment they have shown to participate in the SADC malaria week.
Meanwhile, Chongwe District Commissioner Evans Lupiya advised residents to follow other malaria prevention interventions put in place by government to avoid the spread of the killer disease.
Mr. Lupiya stated that government will continue to implement evidence based malaria prevention measures for the country to achieve a malaria free status by the year 2030.
The United States government through its Scaling Up Nutrition Technical Assistance (SUN-TA) project has established demonstration sites to provide chicken rearing management skills to communities so as to promote improved production and consumption of poultry products in Kapiri Mposhi District.
The demonstration sites to be constructed in all the nine livestock camps in the district are also aimed at promoting poultry as a business among households and small holder livestock farmers in the area.
Stating that the move is to help reduce stunting levels in the area, SUN-TA District Programs Manager, Leah Phiri poultry products such as eggs are a source of high biological value proteins essential for child growth and expectant mothers.
Due to low access to basic nutrition foods for children, expectant and lactating mothers, 30.5 percent and 14 percent of children below the age of two years are stunted and underweight, respectively in Kapiri Mposhi.
Ms Phiri said for this reason there is need to encourage production and consumption of these products at community and household level to reduce stunting in the area.
Speaking during the handover of poultry construction materials and accessories valued at over K 765, 000 to lead livestock farmers from all the nine agriculture camps in the district, Ms Phiri stated that the activity to be implemented by the Department of Livestock and Fisheries is aimed at supporting interventions to reduce stunting by 2.5 percent annually through the 1000 Most Critical Days II ( MCDP II) program.
” This intervention among others is aimed at reducing malnutrition in children under two years especially from conception up to the time the child is two years our desire is that these lead farmers will teach households in their respective camps to rear chickens for the success of this intervention,” Ms Phiri said.
Ms. Phiri indicated that farmers in the area will be further provided with startup in form of day old chicks, stock feed and vaccines.
Meanwhile, District Administrative Officer (DAO) Kaunda Mulenga has commended SUN-TA for supporting various nutritional interventions through the MCDP II program to reduce stunting in the area.
Mr. Mulenga has since implored the beneficiary lead farmers to use the poultry construction materials and startup products for the intended purpose.
” You should take this activity very serious because it is directly addressing government’s concern on the high prevalence of stunting in the district as district administration we will be monitoring you to ensure that you are doing the right thing,” Mr Kaunda said.
And District Livestock and Fisheries Coordinator, Ngosa Chipinda says apart from promoting nutrition the poultry demonstration sites will also enhance household income for nutritional diversification.
Kazungula Town Council Chairperson Tatila Mbozi says decentralization is essential to sustainable development in the country.
Ms Mbozi says it is important for the citizens to note that the primary objective of the decentralization policy is aimed at accelerating this country’s development.
This is in order to reform the public service with the view to improve its overall efficiency, thereby enhancing its ability to attend to its core functions of supporting good democratic governance and service provision to the citizens in the country.
Ms. Mbozi said this yesterday during the commemoration of Africa Day of Decentralization and Local government week launch held at Kazungula border.
“A major part of this reform process involves empowering officials and citizens in provinces and districts with additional decision making responsibilities and resources which have been administered centrally for many years,” Ms. Mbozi said.
The council chairperson said it is for this reason that government has demonstrated commitment to this policy by increasing the Constituency Development Fund (CDF) from K1.6 million to K25.7 million as a way of having a bottom- up approach in project implementation.
The link between participation and local governance has become an important means of improving the effectiveness of services and empowering the poor to participate in the development processes that affect their lives, she added.
She said that to achieve this, government has taken various measures to accelerate the implementation of the decentralization policy such as commencing the actual transfer of certain functions from central government to the local authorities.
“ Government is also improving accountability of local governance system by affording citizens the opportunity to directly elect their mayors and council chairpersons as well as commencing the establishment of sub- district structures at ward level to facilitate the enhancement participation of citizens in local development among others, ‘explained Ms. Mbozi.
Speaking earlier, District Administrative Officer Mbeha Akabondo said he was happy to note that government is committed to bringing development closer to the people.
The commemoration was held under the theme; ‘the contribution of arts, culture and heritage to the sustainable development of African cities and territories’.
OPPOSITION Patriotic Front (PF) Kamfinsa Member of Parliament Hon Christopher Kang’ombe has said a lot of people have continued expressing interest to contest the party presidency because of the value that it exhibits.
Hon Kang’ombe said there is currently a certain admirable level of competition in the party because of what it still has to offer to Zambian politics.
The Kamfinsa lawmaker was speaking when he featured on a live radio interview on Millenium radio yesterday.
He said people cannot compete for something which has no value to offer to their endeavors.
“People cannot declare interest to take over a political party that has nothing to offer them. The reason why they want to take over the party leadership is that PF has a lot of value that will stand the test of time,” Hon Kang’ombe said.
He highlighted that the number of PF Members of Parliament is meant to give support to anyone who takes over the party leadership.
Hon Kang’ombe adds that the infrastructure development that the party implemented over its ten-year period of being in government is unprecedented and it will stand as testimony to what the PF can do.
He said people should not mistake the competition to contest the party presidency for a leadership crisis in the party.
“It is normal for any democratic party to exhibit a certain level of competition to lead the party but that should never be mistaken for leadership wrangles,” Hon Kang’ombe said.
He further said there is a need to harness the value that the party has even as it goes through the rebranding and rebuilding process.
Hon Kang’ombe has since called for the blending of the experienced politicians with the new crop of politicians with new ideas because the time to practice the old ways of politics is long gone.
Minister of Health, Sylvia Masebo has called for consented efforts in the Southern Africa Region in addressing common health challenges in order to achieve the African Union (AU) agenda 2063.
She said Ministers in the Southern Africa Regional Collaborating center must remain committed to supporting the African Union agenda 2063, that is ‘’the Africa We Want’’.
Ms Masebo was speaking today during the closing ceremony of the two days Inaugural Regional Ministerial Consultative meeting for Southern Africa which was attended by ten countries in the Southern Africa Region at Bonanza Estate in Chongwe.
She indicated that countries in the Southern Africa region must all resolve to translate the recommendations from the meeting into policies, programmes and actions that will deliver lasting results in addressing the common health challenges.
‘’We have a lot of work ahead of us implementing the changes we have made and ensure they work for the betterment of the African Union,’’ said Ms Masebo.
‘’We have all listened, made strategic and meaningful contributions and key recommendations that will support the AU Africa Center Disease Control on behalf of member states to fully operationalize the Southern Africa Regional Collaborating Center(RCC),’’ she explained.
Ms Masebo also added that the government of Zambia will remain committed to honoring the host agreement mandate for Southern Africa RCC and the current path that the region is on.
‘’With support of our disease intelligence agency, the Zambia National Public Health Institute, we shall continue collaborating with all the AU Member States in the Southern Africa region as well as our health partners in building a strong resilient and strengthened region,’’ she assured.
‘’Our aim is to safeguard the individual country and regional public health security including strengthened emergency preparedness and response through data information sharing,’’ added Ms Masebo.
