ECONOMIC CHALLENGES PERSIST IN THE COPPERBELT MAINLY DUE TO CONTINUED DELAYS IN KCM HANDOVER TO VEDANTA
By Miles Bwalya Sampa, MP (25.03.2023)
Two days ago drove into the Copperbelt province to watch the Zambia vs Lesotho football match in Ndola. Arrived straight at the stadium barely in time for the match. As was walking towards the stadium, could notice that gone are the days when car convoys would have classy motor vehicles like Hummers, Range Rovers, Mercedes Benz, BWM etc etc sounding loud kopala music 🎶 with passengers all joyful and essentially reaping fruits of their sweat supplying to the Mines and paid huge sums.
All I could notice this time around was ama Vits and Corolla Yango types. Chalyuma (no cash flow) as both Mopani and KCM mines have been in idling for a while and now almost as good as shut down.
The government has indicated in not so many words that they have decided to give back KCM to the legal owners Vedanta Plc to short circuit the prolonged legal battles in preference for cash flow boost into Chingola, Chililabombwe and the entire Copperbelt province residents.
As a pragmatist I was thrilled with that position though some amongst us still want the impasse that is costing Zambia $2M on a daily basis to continue. They worry more about their egos than the suffering masses in the Copperbelt that need money back in their pockets today and not tomorrow or next year.
It’s worrying however that despite various government statements that they had decided to hand back the mine to Vedanta, it’s several months later and no action on that score. I gather now there is thousands of lawyers hired from England by my good uncle the Finance Minister Dr Situmbeko Musokotwane and my good brother the Mines Minister Hon Paul Kabuswe just to come negotiate the hand over process with Vedanta.
To earn more fees or is sitting allowances, the foreign lawyers will prolong talks as much as they can and more lives will continue to be lost from poverty in the Copperbelt while the lawyers argue of where to cross the T and dot the I.
On daily basis jobs continue to be lost and revenue almost to a halt at KCM. A lot of wrong things still happening there like debt payable to renown international rogue copper scammers Trafigura. They capable of suppling air and find themselves in the KCM debtors books for millions of US dollars.
Vedanta has undertaken to pay all Zambian suppliers owed money by KCM on day one of their arrival in Chingola. They have also stated to give each KCM employee a K2500 arrival handshake before embarking on the $3bn recapitalization direct investment into KCM. This is commendable anywhere in the World.
It 2 years down the line since the UPND formed government and may they uplift lives in the Copperbelt province by injecting money into circulation. Vedanta has that money and may you actualize your KCM undertaking to them. Just ensure you lock them to a performance based MOU with strict timelines and walk away clauses for Zambia incase they don’t deliver.
Together We Can
MBS25.03.2023