The police have reported that the brothers and sisters who were found dead in a Bristol flat on Sunday were all stabbed to death.
Fares Bash, aged seven, Joury Bash, aged three, and nine-month-old Mohammed Bash were found in the Sea Mills area of the city.
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Following a possible homicide, a 42-year-old woman has been arrested and is currently hospitalized with non-life-threatening injuries.
Chief Inspector Vicks Hayward-Melen said: “It’s really sad that these young children, who had their whole lives ahead of them, are gone. Our thoughts are with their family and anyone else affected by this tragedy. ”
“Our specialist liaison officers will keep helping and supporting the family members of the people they work with. ”
In the last few days, doctors have checked the bodies of the children to find out how they died. We now know that each child died from being stabbed with a knife.
She said the road barriers in Blaise Walk were removed and a police station on wheels will open in Sea Mills this weekend.
Ms Hayward-Melen said before that this is a rare event and it won’t affect the general public.
She said: “We can only keep someone in custody after they are brought to a police station, not while they are in the hospital. ”
“Our team is working quickly to find out what happened and why someone lost their life. We are asking a lot of questions to get to the bottom of this. ”
We removed the main barriers in Blaise Walk and want to thank the local residents for being patient and supportive while we investigated the area.
The investigation into the incident is moving forward quickly.
The police were called to check on someone’s safety at Blaise Walk in Sea Mills around 12. 40am
The three children could not be saved and a vigil will be held later today to remember them.
Avon and Somerset Police asked an independent group to review their past actions.
A report from Russia’s doctors on Alexei Navalny‘s death says he died from ‘natural causes’.
Navalny’s associates and relatives accused Vladimir Putin of being responsible for his death, while the Kremlin vehemently denied any involvement. The news came out after they said this. Kira Yarmysh, who works for Navalny, posted on X that Navalny’s mother received the findings.
Navalny often spoke out against Vladimir Putin and was someone that the Russian president was most afraid of.
His mother Lyudmila told her story of being questioned by Russian investigators for over 24 hours without having a lawyer with her.
She also said the people looking into it were getting ready for a hidden funeral for Navalny. They want it to be done quietly, with no chance to say goodbye.
“They want to take me to a cemetery and show me a new grave and say: your son is buried here. ” I don’t think this is a good idea.
Lyudmila said that the investigators took her to see Navalny’s body at the morgue and then threatened her.
She said: “I saw them get instructions from the Kremlin or the main office of the Investigative Committee. “Can you simplify this text please.
Navalny’s mother wants a public funeral so that people who cared about Alexei can say goodbye to him.
Lyudmila said: ‘I’m making this video because someone is threatening me. They looked into my eyes and said that if I don’t agree to a secret funeral, they will do something to my son’s body. ‘
A person told Lyudmila that time is not on her side. The dead body is rotting.
He made the leader really angry by speaking out against corruption. He called the leader and his party names and showed documents of their crimes.
However, his death has caused more confusion than clarity– his body had bruises on it and people suspect that there were spies at the prison when he died.
And Putin had tried to hurt Navalny before –making him very sick and have to go to another country to get better.
Navalny’s family has promised to keep fighting, even though they are grieving less than a week after his death.
Worries are mounting over the possibility of Vladimir Putin, the president of Russia, making moves to claim more land in Europe, especially after the invasion of Ukraine in the past.
Many people are guessing that the pro-Russian area of Transnistria in eastern Moldova might ask to become a part of Russia.
It is thought that he might use a speech to the Russian government on February 29 to give approval for the annexation.
Gennady Chorba, an opponent in Moldova, said that lawmakers will meet in Tiraspol, the capital of Transnistria, to ask Russia to take the territory into the Russian Federation.
He said that this would let Putin attack Moldova, including Transnistria, ‘for any reason’, and could use it as a base for attacks on the Ukrainian port Odesa, which is seen as a much more important target.
Moldovan officials said Russia is spreading lies to cause trouble in the area.
The Institute for the Study of War (ISW) said that a vote to join Russia would help Russia’s plans to take over the country, which wants to become part of the EU and NATO.
The ISW warned that the pro-Russian area of Transnistria might decide to have a vote or plan to join Russia at a meeting on February 28.
The reason for making this call would be to say that Russia needs to protect its citizens and people who are similar to them in Transnistria from dangers from Moldova or NATO, or both.
The Russian president, Vladimir Putin, might say that Russia is taking over Transnistria when he speaks to the Russian government on February 29, but it probably won’t happen.
Putin will probably support whatever the Transnistrian Congress of Deputies does and give his thoughts on the situation.
With help from Russia, a piece of land between the Dniester River and the Ukrainian border separated from Moldova in 1990.
In September 2006, there was a vote for independence that Moldova and other countries didn’t agree with. It didn’t change anything, but it showed how Russia kept supporting the government.
Transnistria is all set to join Russia and Putin has 2,000 soldiers there to keep peace.
Sergei Lavrov, the Russian foreign minister, said that Russia will not abandon its citizens in Transnistria if they are in trouble.
Last year, Moldova’s President Maia Sandu said that she believed Russia was plotting to overthrow the government in her country.
Even before Nato started giving military help to Ukraine, there were stories of bravery in the first weeks of Russia’s big war. This shows that Vladimir Putin won’t win quickly like he wanted to.
No one was as impressive as a grandmother in Kyiv who reportedly took down a drone by throwing a jar of pickles at it, causing it to crash to the ground. It’s not clear if this really happened.
In Ukraine, regular people used Molotov cocktails as a way to fight back when their cities were attacked.
Two years later, the Russian army, which is still powerful despite being damaged, just had a big win in the city of Avdiivka. Ukraine now needs more help from the West.
The Russian warship, the Caesar Kunikov, sank after sea drones attacked it near occupied Crimea. At least 89 enemy soldiers were killed in Makiivka when a building they were in was hit by HIMARS rockets.
Ivan Stupak, a person who helps keep Ukraine safe, said to the media that weapons from the West have helped Ukraine in fighting, but having a lot of them is important.
The specialist explained which weapons have really helped in the conflict.
First Person View Drones
Russia and Ukraine make many FPV drones every year.
In the beginning of the year, Volodymyr Zelensky said that a new part of the military called the Unmanned Systems Forces will be created just for drones.
Mr Stupak has talked media many times about what his country needs to stop Putin’s aggression, and he always says the same thing: FPV drones.
He says it is one of Ukraine’s best weapons, often used in the Kherson region, because it is cheap and easy to make, costing up to $800.
They have different jobs, like spying and watching, but Mr Stupak said they are usually used together, which Russians don’t like.
“It’s a terrible noise in the sky, Russians are not happy about the buzzing,” he said.
Ukraine’s plan is to use two drones together – one to wait for the enemy’s bus and the other to film what happens.
If the first doesn’t work, the second one will do it.
Mr Stupak said we want to make a lot of drones, up to a million by 2024. Regular people can also build them at home with YouTube videos.
FPV drones from different brands and models can fly up to a mile away. This lets pilots see and gather information, and also launch attacks.
The speed usually goes from 19 to 50 miles per hour, and they fly from a few hundred meters to a mile above the ground. Most of the time, about two out of every three soldiers are killed by the enemy’s gunfire.
HIMARS HIMARS stands for High Mobility Artillery Rocket System. It is a mobile rocket launcher that can launch missiles from a vehicle.
Made by an American company called Lockheed Martin, HIMARS is short for High Mobility Artillery Rocket System.
The White House gave 39 rocket-launchers with wheels, and Russian forces have not destroyed any of them yet.
We don’t know the exact cost of the rocket system now, but back in 2014, one unit of HIMARS cost about $5. 1
This is a problem that has been causing trouble for Russians in Ukraine.
A few days ago, a Ukrainian attack near the village of Trudovske in occupied Donetsk killed 63 Russian soldiers who were waiting to meet their commander.
HIMARS can shoot rockets and missiles that can travel up to 186 miles. It is put on a very movable M142 Transporter Erector Launcher (TEL) vehicle.
This helps the military move quickly and change position easily, making it more likely to survive and be able to adapt in battle.
Mr Stupak said that unlike old Soviet equipment, HIMARS almost always hits its target on the first try.
Cluster munitions
Ukraine used cluster munitions from the US to continue their summer offensive, even though they are banned by over 100 countries because of human rights issues.
In August 2023, Ukraine used cluster bombs to free the village of Urozhaine in Donetsk.
Video from a drone showed Russian soldiers leaving while there were at least 12 explosions nearby.
Cluster munitions are big weapons that release lots of smaller bombs.
Mr Stupak said they are usually used against enemy soldiers coming towards them and the small bombs can spread out over an area as big as a football field.
One big problem with cluster bombs is that they can hurt or kill many people without being careful about who they hit.
Submunitions may not explode when they hit the ground, and they can stay there as a danger to people even after a war is over.
Drones that can move in the ocean.
Ukraine’s Sea Baby drones were used for the first time to attack the Russian-built Kerch Bridge in 2022.
Sea drones are different from flying drones. They work in or under the water and have been getting better since the start of the war.
Mr Stupak said they were very advanced but also cost a lot of money.
Some reports say that just the communication system costs around $300,000.
But he said that Ukraine is at an advantage because a sea drone attacked the $300 million Caesar Kunikov in the Black Sea.
OPEN LETTER TO IG OF POLICE MUSAMBA From William Harrington.
Likute Bo Masumba.
Firstly, I am a son of the soil of Barotseland having been born in the Protectorate many years before the failed “marriage” between Barotseland and North-Eastern Rhodesia in 1964 and therefore please note my interest.
I am also Trustee of the Barotse National Freedom Alliance (BNFA) an organisation that stands for PEACE.
I have said it before and will repeat by way of EMPHASIS.
The issue of Barotseland is a legal matter. It will not and indeed cannot be resolved through threats and strong arm tactics from the State. It is an open secret that the Barotseland Agreement of 1964 is an International Treaty which was unilaterally abrogated in 1969 by the Government of the day. This development has been challenged since that time. The Barotse National Freedom Alliance (BNFA) one of the organizations formed and tasked to implement the Barotse National Council Resolutions of 2012, did present 6th Republican President Edgar Chagwa Lungu with the Permanent Court of Arbitration Submission Document to agree to take the matter of Barotseland for arbitration by that neutral and impartial body aforementioned. President Lungu neglected, ignored or simply refused to sign. Soon after current President Hakainde Hichilema assumed office in 2022, fresh documents were presented to him. I delivered the documents personally to State House. BNFA sincerely believed that President HH would keep his campaign promise and that of his party that he, HH, would WILLINGLY, AMICABLY and PEACEFULLY resolve the issue of the Barotseland. Alas, President HH has acted likewise. There is deafening silence from him.
At a recent press conference, President HH in an answer to a question, assured the nation that during his tenure of office he would not allow blood to be spilt on the plains of Barotseland. The BNFA welcomed that assurance as progressive. So Bo IG Musamba, I am PLEADING that you should be the last person to express yourself in the manner you are doing. Let us learn lessons that threats and strong-arm tactics have never worked in the past, will not work now and can never work in the future. We can draw lessons from the so-called Mongu disturbances of 2010 when Barotse nationals were arrested, imprisoned, tortured and even killed but that sad occurrence has not changed the people’s resolve. Nelson Mandela (MHSRP) suffered many years of incarceration under the Apartheid regime but eventually the will of the people prevailed. The rest is history. I am pleading to you to be sensitive to the fact that the people of Barotseland are still grieving at the loss of relatives and friends who suffered injury and loss of life following the Mongu disturbances. PLEASE DO NOT ADD SALT TO THE INJURY.
The solution to the Barotseland – Zambia impasse lies in President HH appending his signature to the Permanent Court of Arbitration Submission Document. We also believe that you as IG of Police is well positioned to use your professional acumen to convince the President of the importance of the arbitration process as is being proposed by the BNFA on behalf of the BNC and the people of Barotseland generally.
Just a polite reminder. You may wish to recall that General Christon Tembo (MHSRP) fell – out with First Republican President Dr. Kenneth David Kaunda for allegedly “refusing” to send the Zambian Army to quell riots on the Copperbelt. Gen. Tembo, as a matter of principle, refused to use the peaple’s army against its own people!!!
……..as Hon Brian Mundubile says Dr Musokotwane has no solutions to revamp the Economy.
Lusaka……Saturday, February 24, 2023 [Smart Eagles].
Calls for the resignation of Dr Situmbeko Musokotwane as Minister of Finance and National Planning have increased.
This comes at the backlog of poor performance of the economy and escalating Cost of Living due to bad policies favoring the Private multinationals in the time the UPND have been in office.
Leader of Opposition Hon Brian Mundubile said the Zambian people have lost confidence in the Minister of Finance.
Hon Mundubile said this is because Dr Musokotwane is incapable of collecting the appropriate taxes from the Mining sector.
He said the country is tired of being blackmailed by the Mining Companies who threaten to leave whenever Government want to collect appropriate taxes.
“DR Musokotwane will do everything possible to ensure that he protects the private capital of these Mining houses. A good investor is one who is ready to pay appropriate taxes and enter into a win win agreement. Comrade Musokotwane has delivered a speech constantly stating that the Mining houses were ready to leave. We call upon Zambians to get ready to run these mining houses. I Have confidence that the University of Zambia has trained quality Mining engineers capable of running mining houses,” he said.
And Hon Mundubile said it is a shame that a person of Dr Musokotwane’s calibre would be content with misleading the nation regarding the health of the Economy.
He said the next Finance Minister must set up milestones to be achieved by Mining houses before they access these incentives.
He said that is the only sure way thay will either protect the revenue or make Zambia benefit from production in the Mining sector.
He said Zambia does not need leaders who are cowards and scared of the Mining houses who threaten to leave.
He Said this is why he has been giving the Mining Houses Favourable incentives at the expense of the starving Zambians.
“………..He went on to Make Mineral royalty tax deductible…We warned Hon Musokotwane that as a result of these measures he was putting in place, we were going to have a shortage of foreign exchange and lose revenue. We have completely lost confidence in comrade Musokotwane…. As the UPND leave Office in 2026, we need a Minister who will be able to stabilise the economy. The 3 million Metric Tonnes per annum remains a pipeline dream,” Hon Mundubile said.
Meanwhile, Feira lawmaker Hon Emmanuel Tembo also called for the resignation of the Finance Minister.
Hon Tembo said when the Minister of Finance speaks, he gives a state of hopelessness to the people.
He said the statement presented in Parliament was empty and not giving confidence to the Zambian people on how the economy will improve.
PRESIDENT HAKAINDE’S GOVERNMENT HAS COMPROMISED ZAMBIA’S FOOD SECURITY…….
CONTRARY TO NALUMANGO’S VIEWS, CONSUMING STOLEN IMPORTED GMO MEALIE MEAL IS HARMFUL, SAYS KALABA
It is disheartening to note comments by the Vice President Mutale Nalumango that GMO Mealie meal is safe for consumption.
Her comments come in the wake of a Press Release by the Chief Marketing and Public Relations Officer in the Zambia National Service (ZNS) dated February 20 which has been circulating on the social media regarding stolen imported GMO mealie meal.
It is worrisome that the stolen imported eagle mealie meal, is part of the Genetically Modified Organism (GMO) commodities that are prohibited for consumption in Zambia.
CF finds the comments by Mrs. Nalumango to be an attempt to water down and cover up a grave scandal of the stolen GMO Mealie meal which is potentially being consumed by starving citizens somewhere..
As a matter of concern, the government has indicated in the Press Release, that ZNS will now intensify security measures at all the depots to prevent any further occurrences.
We wonder why there was laxity on the part of the government in the first place to safeguard the GMO commodity amidst the scarcity of non GMO mealie meal, the staple food in the country.
It’s also sad to see Kazungula having some GMO mealie meal purportedly destroyed by the National Biosafety Agency (NBA). How much has not been destroyed and has been consumed by our people. The calculated carelessness of the UPND government is putting Zambia at risk for increased behavioral disorders in children and cancers.
Citizens must understand that South Africa has been buying maize from Zambia because of the policies around non-GMOs. They started buying maize for cereal from Zambia after parents and health workers saw an increase of behavioral disorders in children.
Equally, the World Food Agency has been buying Zambia’s maize despite it being more expensive than the GMO maize because the UN agency does not want to compromise the health of refugees.
But for Zambia, Hakainde and his government are in the forefront of compromising the health of its people.
The UPND Government is now talking of food insecurity with the current drought. Yet when they came into power they found sufficient strategic reserves for 2019, 2020, and 2021 which they decided to offload and sell.
Even this year, they have sold Zambia’s strategic reserves to neighboring countries and decided to import GMO for citizens.
President Hakainde has compromised Zambia’s position in terms of the GMO policies which has seen countries and global institutions preferring to buy our maize.
Hakainde must stop buying GMO maize from South Africa on the pretext that its going to Congo. Congo has its own legitimately elected leaders who can equally procure the maize from South Africa to improve food security in that country.
Hakainde must realize that he is not a regional President to be compromising the health of Zambians so that Congo can have food security.
Zambians voted for him. His allegiance is to Zambia first, respect the constitution of Zambia on biosafety and not to abrogate it in the careless manner he is doing.
Harry Kalaba President Citizens First-A member of UKA
When perennial critics like Emmanuel Mwamba praise President Hakainde Hichilema’s for doing something right, it’s time to pause and think hard.
“Finally he has taken them for orientation and training, a thing that he should have been done at the beginning!,” remarked Mwamba on his Facebook page in reaction to the government’s move to hold a session on Economic Governance Training for Cabinet Ministers administered by the National Institute of Public Administration.
At this workshop, President Hichilema challenged cabinet ministers to be proactive in amending legislation which hinders the country’s economic expansion agenda.
He said ministers should be in the forefront of changing laws that will facilitate economic expansion which will in turn create jobs, increase business opportunities and extend support to the social sectors.
Mr Hichilema emphasized the need for such training to attain efficient public service delivery.
My view is that the timing of the workshop is not so much an issue but the mere fact that it’s been held, shows concern or admittance from the government for the importance of training ministers in this area.
Our economy is in shambles and the government sits at the top in ensuring that whatever little benefit there may be, trickles down to the common man on the street.
Equally important for this government though is the communication aspect of governing – hence the need for the government to consider training ministers and permanent secretaries on the art and science unified, effective, and efficient communication.
Let’s be honest, there are a lot of positive things this government is doing but their communication has mostly been at sixs and sevens. Horrible, if you like.
So bad that sometimes, you feel that the whole government apparatus suffers from the Tower of Babel curse.
Take for instance the issue of the looming hunger.
Some government officials are saying despite the poor rain, the only thing we won’t have is a bumper harvest but they assure us that the country will be food secure.
Yet, videos and pictures, some even carried by the national broadcaster, suggest a looming crisis. So, who is telling the truth?
Remember when President Hakainde Hichilema last year said the government had resolved the energy problems in the country – only for Zesco to start load shedding two weeks later!
This year, the energy minister has again assured there won’t be load shedding but visuals from the Kariba Dam suggest we may as well be preparing for dark hours in our homes.
Then you have blabber mouths like Thabo Kawana and Cornelius Mweetwa who seem to be in competition to undo each other and do the opposite of their government communication job descriptions.
With only a year in between before Zambia goes to the polls, President Hichilema will do well to organize a workshop on communication for his ministers and permanent secretaries.
You cannot achieve a buy-in from people when you have problems of poor communication.
He simply cannot not have a bunch of people singing from different hymn sheets while working together.
The seeming Tower of Babel syndrome must be stopped – put to an end like yesterday!
1. The problem of living in an information age is that you can easily monitor and compare the caliber and quality of leadership that we have here at home, to what other countries in the region or across the globe have. And so it was that a few days ago, l happened to watch the South African Minister of Foreign Affairs and International Cooperation; Naledi Pandor as she was ambushed by a journalist when she was walking out of a conference, and asked what her comments are to allegations that her Government is a mouth piece of the Hamas terrorist organization. The Minister handled the question so calmly and competently, despite not having any prior preparation or written submission. Then again the following day, l happened to watch the Kenyan Minister of Sports; Ababu Namwamba as he attended the funeral of marathon gold-medalist and record holder; Kelvin Kiptum who had passed away a week earlier in a road traffic accident. The journalist asked the Minister why his Government was only honoring the marathon gold-medalist in his death when they did not even host a welcome party for him after winning his marathon gold-medal? Again, the Minister handled the question very calmly and competently that l was left admiring.
2. The two incidents above left me wondering why we do not have such a caliber of Cabinet Ministers here in Zambia? Why is it that our Ministers, even when they don’t speak off-the-cuff but read a prepared speech, it is often unsound? In fact, most of our Ward Councillors speak more coherently and with better clarity and soundness of the mind than most Cabinet Ministers that l know. For some Cabinet Ministers whom l personally knew before being part of Cabinet, l actually feel that their competence and intellectual standing has significantly deteriorated over the past two years or so. Then l began to ask myself why? What is it in the UPND Government Cabinet that is making otherwise intelligent people to gradually become dull and grossly incompetent? And why is it that the quality of cabinet policy decisions have been steadily deteriorating over time?
3. One minute, Cabinet approves the granting of tax holidays for mine owners, most of whom are extremely rich and are non-Zambians, while the next minute the same Cabinet approves the introduction of new taxes for poor and vulnerable Zambians, such as tax on rental income, tax on mobile money transactions, turnover tax etcetera. Surely, isn’t there a single Minister in Cabinet who would argue that before we introduce additional taxes on the poor and vulnerable masses, let us first abolish the tax holidays extended to the mines. Or better still, isn’t there anyone in Cabinet who would advise the rest of Cabinet that increasing electricity new connection fees by more than 400 percent would make this clean energy unaffordable to the majority of Zambians who will subsequently resort to alternative sources of energy such as charcoal, which will lead to massive cutting down of trees and increase the risk of a major drought?
4. The bottom line is that the quality of policy decisions coming from Cabinet are so substandard that am quite sure that if we substituted the current Cabinet with randomly selected Grade 7 pupils, they would make much more sound policy decisions. Upon much thought and analysis, l came to the conclusion that one of the main reasons why we have such an inadequate and lame Cabinet is because of the management style of the President.
5. Mr Hakainde Hichilema’s leadership style is that he imposes his decisions on everyone, and everyone is expected to endorse those decisions without any question or debate. Such a leadership style would have been acceptable if the President’s decisions were often correct, but they’re not. Take for instance the President’s decision to contract an IMF loan and put the country on an IMF programme. This is a major policy decision that would have far-reaching consequences on each and every Zambian, and one would expect that the President would first widely consult before making such a decision, so that he would be fully appraised of the advantages and disadvantages of taking such a route. But in the case of President Hichilema, he made this decision before he appointed a single Minister to his Cabinet or a single advisor. In fact he made this decision while conducting an interview with BBC’s Lukwesa Burak merely 3 days after being declared winner of the 2021 general elections.
6. If President Hakainde Hichilema wanted to consider putting the country on an IMF programme, the right order of events should have been to allow for the complete appointment of the civil service technocrats and Cabinet Ministers, after which the civil servants at MoF would have undertaken a Feasibility Study of this proposed route by ensuring wide consultation of all key stakeholders including professional associations, industry associations, civil society, academic associations etcetera. Based on these consultations, the technocrats at MoF are then supposed to submit a Position Paper to the Minister of Finance. Depending on the recommendations of the Position Paper, the Minister would then make a decision on whether to take to Cabinet the proposal for Zambia to be put on an IMF programme or to simply trash the idea.
7. When the President is the one that introduces a proposed policy to Cabinet for deliberation, there is no real debate and discussion that can take place, because every Cabinet Minister will be afraid of being seen to be challenging the President, who is his boss and appointing authority. So no debate ever takes place and proposed policy decisions are merely rubber-stamped in their raw form, with serious adverse implications on the rest of the economy once implemented.
8. However, when a proposed policy is introduced by a Cabinet Minister, his fellow Cabinet Ministers view him as a peer and will not by shy or afraid to healthily debate the proposed policy to it’s logical conclusion, provided the President does not show whether he is in support or against the proposed policy prematurely before exhaustive debate has taken place. In order for Government to make the most competent policy decisions, the role of the President in Cabinet meetings is supposed to be facilitating robust and healthy debate among his Ministers. But that is not the case under the current administration where decisions are made single-handedly by the President and then taken to Cabinet for rubber-stamping, as an afterthought.
9. Take for instance the decision to export most of our maize reserve stocks to DRC, taken by Government in 2022. If this policy proposal was taken to Cabinet by the Minister of Finance, say because he wanted to raise some forex for the Treasury, in a properly functioning Cabinet, the proposed policy was supposed to meet stiff resistance from the Minister of Agriculture and the Minister of Green Economy who were supposed to argue that exporting our little maize stocks to DRC would undermine our food security and the Minister of Green Economy is expected to have buttressed that point by emphasizing that due to climate change, the rains are more unpredictable now compared to past years hence instead of depleting the 1 million metric tonnes of maize grain that FRA had at the time, the country should instead consider investing in more long-term grain storage facilities so that we can increase the amount of maize grain in reserve from about 1 million to say 5 million. Given the fact that the country’s total annual consumption for both humans and animals is around 800,000 metric tonnes, a reserve storage capacity of 5 million metric tonnes would be enough to ensure that no Zambian sleeps hungry and that the prices of animal feed remain stable for at least 6 years, even if we don’t have a single drop of rain during that period.
10. But due to the leadership approach of President Hakainde Hichilema, whereby instead of allowing adequate consultation and healthy debate on key policy decisions, he makes a one-man decision and then imposes it on everyone else. Unfortunately, most of the President’s decisions turnout to be total disaster, adding to the suffering of the Zambian people. The decision to export more than 1 million metric tonnes of reserve maize to DRC during the 2021/2022 farming season will prove to be fatal to most citizens this year because the 2022/2023 farming season had a very poor yield, not due to any drought, but due to Government’s failure to properly distribute farming inputs on time and in adequate quantities. As we can all see now, the 2023/2024 farming season has turned out to be tragic due to widespread drought across the country. About 6 months ago, the FRA Board Chairperson was saying that there was less than 300,000 metric tonnes of maize grain in stock, and only God knows how much is now remaining. Already, we have heard Vice President Mutale Nalumango trying to convince Zambians that GMO mealie meal is safe. Well, if it is safe, then why do our laws prohibit GMO food? Evidently, just because of the self-centered leadership approach of President Hakainde Hichilema, the Zambian people have now found themselves in a situation whereby we exported most of our safe Non-GMO maize to Angola, only to start importing and consuming the unsafe GMO maize from South Africa. This is not only incompetence on the part of the President, it is dereliction of duty. The nation is in urgent need of a visionary leader who has the humility to consult others and the foresight to drive our national fortunes to greater heights. The two years remaining for Mr. Hakainde Hichilema feels like an eternity, going by the way things are going wrongly everyday. The only question that remains is whether the Zambian people are willing and ready to retire Mr. Hichilema in the national interest in 2026, so that he can go and practice his self-centered leadership style at his farm? Are you ready for a revolution? Are you ready to SET Zambia Free? Anyway, the Future is SET
HH IS NOT STRAIGHT…he’s not real, ministers tell us is the stumbling block – Kalaba
By Fanny Kalonda
CITIZENS First leader Harry Kalaba says damage the UPND government have done is huge.
He also says he sympathises with Vice-President Mutale Nalumango.
“I sympathise with her because she is not part of the inner circle. She’s not part of them. Even from the answers she was giving there (Diamond TV interview on Sunday), you could tell that she knows very little about what is happening in government,” Kalaba charges.
He accuses President Hakainde Hichilema of being the biggest problem and that even the West have lost confidence in him.
“President Hakainde Hichilema is the biggest problem that we have in this country. He is a stumbling block in many things even the things his own ministers would want to do because they tell us, we talk to them. I have talked to at least four of his ministers whom am close to and they have told me that that man, they use the same language, he’s a one-man lone ranger. I don’t know how his minsters are operating, that’s why things have gone bad. Everything has just gone weird. It’s like the book by Chinua Achebe, ‘Things Fall Apart’,” he said. “The damage they have done is huge. Don’t tell me that the fuel price is going to come down to K20. Don’t tell me that the mealie meal prices are going to come down to K50. Don’t you ever tell me that we are going to have fuel costing K6 per litre. It’s not going to work. Fertiliser will not come down to K200. It’s not going to work. The cost of living continues going high because first of all, he’s not even taken time to understand how subsidies can be used. How they can be applied, in what areas and what measure you can apply these subsidies. He has not taken time to do that.”
Kalaba said it is a pity that after coming in with 63 per cent of the votes, President Hichilema will be “booted out in 2026”.
“So they think governance is cheap and people don’t know? So we don’t see anything coming out of the UPND in the last two years? We don’t see that? Because everything, even the international community, the West especially, they have lost confidence in him. You have seen the statements being released by the American Embassy, you have seen that they are saying…Then he told them, you should be talking to us [not through the media]. He has got that behaviour… So that is him and that is where he has failed. And it’s a pity that he came in with 63 per cent of the vote and he will be booted out in 2026,” Kalaba said. “We can’t give him time. They have finished three years these people and they are telling you that story of saying that give us more time. We are not going to give them more time. So Zambians, smell the coffee. The UPND is not taking us anywhere. The best we can do is to kick them out and bring in a new leadership in this country. And we are praying that it should not just be a Citizens First leadership they will bring. They will bring a UKA government in place which will be all inclusive.”
Kalaba wondered how the country could be in the champions league with austerity measures.
“He is living in utopia, he is an enclave. Mr Hakainde Hichilema is a not a straightforward person and no wonder most of the things that he promised have not come to fruition. He is not real. He is not real because what he gives you is not what he intends to. A picture he creates even when he knows that Zambia is in a crisis, he knows that Zambia has got debt before other community of nations he still tells you [that] you are in the champions league. How can you be in a champions league with austerity measures? Because when you have got debt it means there will be austerity measures. That’s how it goes. But he tells you we are in a champions league. He speaks superfluous, fabulous things, sweet nothings and then people begin believing, no, hes going to do it. He is still in the old school of thought where he thinks politics is just to say anything as long as it is sweet people will like it and go ahead. He went ahead to tell you and I that when I become president, you will see the kind of cabinet I will create, just wait. He was not even ashamed to tell us what kind of cabinet he will create. He has the cabinet there, what is there for us to be telling us just wait, see what I will bring, there nothing,” he explained. “Almost everything he spoke about never saw the day of light. The economy the way it is, the country the way it is moving, if we allow it to go on again after 2026 like this, Zambia will be in doldrums.”
And Kalaba said Vice-President Mutale Nalumango is not part of the inner circle hence knowing very little about what is happening in government.
“She was waffling, I saw her also. First of all, I have to tell Madam Mutale Nalumango, I sympathise with her. I sympathise with her because she is not part of the inner circle. She’s not part of them. Even from the answers she was giving there, you could tell that she knows very little about what is happening in government. And you know, she’s a reverend. She’s a woman that loves God to be treated the way she’s being treated by President Hakainde Hichilema is very sad,” he added.
Kalaba also urged President Hichilema to take time and understand the importance of foreign policy.
“President Hakainde Hichilema has never really taken time to understand the importance of foreign policy. He does not understand, unless he is going to declare himself as foreign affairs minister. That is also fine because he can be foreign minister and then we will understand. But to leave it vacant the way he has done and he has continued to perform roles of a foreign affairs minister is just not on,” he said. “[Mulambo] Haimbe won’t commit Zambia. It’s so critical, but he has not understood how important that office is. Remember that for any minister going for any meetings outside the boundaries of Zambia they need the foreign minister to agree. So now President Hakainde Hichilema is now himself signing that because the Vienna Convention only recognises the foreign minister and the President to do those roles. Why has he left the office vacant for such a long time. There are MPs like is it Edgar Sing’ombe who has been in UPND for a very long time, I don’t understand why that guy cannot be a minister with his experience. He has been in that parliament, I found him in parliament. [I] spent almost 10 years in that parliament and I left him there and he is still there. And he still does not merit the attention of the republican President! This is just showing that he does not have confidence in his colleagues. He doesn’t believe in them because it cannot take two weeks. But this man, you can even tell from the policies, the inconsistencies.”
Meanwhile, Kalaba said the United Kwacha Alliance is not a PF project.
“This is not about the PF. We are not dumb.
If it was a PF agenda, I would not even be part of it. If it was an Edgar Lungu agenda, I would not be part of it. This is a national agenda,” he said. “But this man he has come to the presidency with a very narrow agenda. It’s an agenda to pursue, he’s arresting people even before they investigate them. He’s seizing property from people even before he does his homework. He’s doing this before he does that just to show that he is in charge. You don’t do that. He has created a very bad culture for our country and is giving us problems, those of us who are coming after him to clean the mess that he has created.”
Kalaba said a former president is a reservoir of huge knowledge and connections which should be taken advantage of.
“I get surprised why there is tendency in this country of always seeing a former president as a target. Just why? I pray I become president, I will demonstrate to this country that leaders are to be respected including Mr Hakainde Hichilema. I would not be happy to see him going at pains. I think if anything the law provides that there is anything that he did wrong, it would not because I have a hand in it but also those who are pursuing the former president must ask themselves is what they are doing going to benefit the nation much more than the rift they will create? At some point, even President Hakainde Hichilema will have to leave that office and we are praying that it is in 2026. When he leaves that office, he doesn’t want to be treated unfairly or harshly. We would want him to rest peacefully, let him pursue his interests. President Lungu now should be busy, there are issues happening. The man ruled your country for seven years, whether you like him or you don’t like him, he should now be busy even on the issue of Israel and Palestine. Remember it was under his reign that an embassy in Israel, I opened the embassy in Israel, under his authority. So he has got some hand on talking to Isreal. He can go to Isreal and talk to the Isrealites,” said Kalaba. “He has got a very good relationship with China. The Russia-Ukriane thing, he has a good relationship with Russia. The reason why the Americans use former diplomats, have protocol officers at the airports, and they use retired diplomats, they are the ones they use as protocol officers at the airports, it’s because they know the language. They know how to handle the VIP…You cannot just get people and pack them. A former president is a reservoir of huge knowledge, huge connections. Why would you want not to use him? We don’t know how to become big in this country. We don’t know. All we do is we are going to pursue him, he will dance to the music, which music? Shame on you. We should allow former leaders to rest in peace.”-The Mast
16% kwacha appreciation rate in one single day is highly questionable – economist
By Margaret Malenga
FINANCIAL analyst Kelvin Chisanga says the sudden appreciation of the kwacha is worrying as it is not backed with any productive fundamentals.
In an interview, Chisanga said the appreciation is not something that is sustainable and that there is need for a balance on measures affecting both exports and imports.
“16 per cent of appreciation rate just in one single day is highly questionable. Obviously, we need the kwacha to appreciate at all possible costs for us to lower a number of effects that we are able to see in the economy, but going by yesterday’s (Tuesday’s) trend and even by what the Bank of Zambia has actually been able to operate for some time, it is something that leaves less to be desirable in terms of trying to see how we can slowly moderate these things,” he said. “Yes, there is an effect that is actually taking place with the forex market and much more of what we are able to see. A resultant aspect in this case is the acceleration of the inflation. But what we need to do is basically get a gradual attention around key aspect of the currency. Much more to look at how best can we work around the policy in terms of supporting the market system ensuring that we also look at the policy that can work around harvesting of dollar. And much of what we can look at as a short term measure in terms of how we should be able to work around kwacha is to accelerate efforts around mining because last year’s reduction of 20 per cent has really given a strong filter through into the forex market, and that’s what we have been having over time. Even when you look at the market pattern for last year, the whole entire year kwacha was not in any way appreciating. All because there was a strong factor that was underplaying into this.”
Chisanga said this will affect people that harvested in dollar investment.
“What we need is inasmuch as we have the effect around depreciation which was taking towards 30 kwacha to a dollar, we should be able to see that even when it comes to appreciation it should not be an instant reaction because the moment we have such, there are people in the market who have actually harvested so much into dollar investment. And also people that have also taken the currency market also to be monitored in a way, and that has actually also got a strong heartbeat around that,” Chisanga said. “And even when you look at the people who are doing cross border trade, if you receive this appreciation of kwacha in a rapid way like this, it means they will start holding on to the goods. Meaning we will create another problem with supply of essential goods. At some point they will have to have a ‘wait and see’ situation. Meaning that the goods that we basically look for especially those essential goods will not be able to reach into the market quickly. They will have to start waiting to see if the market patterns will be able to be faired.”
He however said there is need for a stable local currency in order to push export market.
“The moment we have this rapid appreciation of kwacha, it means we are costing more on the export market and look at what we have as Zambia, that is the only opportunity with the mining product. Meaning the copper output and eventually the export will become very expensive. You are fighting one end but causing the other end to be tough. It has to be an equal balance. Meaning the model of currency performance should start focusing on an equal balance situation – balancing up the export and balancing up the imports. Not where we only balance the import,” said Chisanga.“Right now as we speak, the rapid appreciation of the kwacha is going to be favourable on the import product. Meaning it is going to be cheaper for us to have anything imported to Zambia. But if we are trying to make a very strong balance in this case now, we are creating a problem. Meaning that we will still go back to the high demand for dollar to drive that import process. When you look at the process of export, also meaning we are making it expensive and this is what actually brings the dollars on the market. When we export that’s when we get dollars in the market so we are creating a different market distortion altogether.”-The Mast
PRESIDENT LUNGU CLEARS AIR. URGES MEDIA PRACTITIONERS TO REPORT FACTUALLY
Am an advocate for quality education. I have nothing against free education.
Smart Eagles. Sat, Feb 24, 2024
Zambia’s 6th President , HE Dr. Edgar Chagwa Lungu has expressed shock at how a statement he made on the quality of free Education in the nation was taken out of context and twisted to imply that he would abolish free education should he form government in years to come.
Speaking to student Union Leaders from Zambia and Denmark who paid a courtesy call on him , Friday, President Lungu stated that he had nothing against free education because he is a product of free education himself . He, however, emphasised that what he would love to see was free education being married with quality education if the nation is to produce high-quality graduates of intergrity and highly professional at their work.
He stated that the quality of reporting by some journalists left a lot to be desired, as evidenced by the way his words had been taken out of context.
“When I talk about quality education, it can include those who train media practitioners because they are supposed to aim for the truth at all times. My statement was, ‘If we form government in coming years, we will review quality of education coming out of free education,’ he said.
” In the two and a half years that I’ve been out of office, there is free education that has been introduced in Zambia. Iam bemoaning the quality of education in the nation because I saw a video of children parked in a classroom like sadines and my concern is the quality of education that is being provided in such an environment, ” he said .
He asked the delegation from Zanasu and DSF, who had embarked on research about access to education and academic freedoms in zambia if they had included the component of quality of education in their research. ” Are you satisfied with the quality of education at primary, secondary, and tertiary levels in the
Speaker of the National Assembly, Nelly Mutti has sparked debate after barring Members of Parliament (MPs) from wearing the Ngoni traditional headgear (Umquele) in the House.
This decision, made ahead of the Ncwala ceremony today, has been met with mixed reactions, with some claiming discrimination.
Mutti has also suspended Lumezi member of parliament for wearing a chitenge (wrapper) in parliament in defiance of the House’s set dress code.
In a statement, the National Assembly clarified that the Speaker’s decision to bar MP’s from wearing the Umquele was based on Standing Order 206(1)(c), which dictates the type of traditional attire permitted within the House.
“I wish to advise that standing Order 206 (1) (c) of the National Assembly of Zambia Standing Orders of 2021 is instructive on the kind of traditional attire that is permissible, the provision allows Members to wear decent traditional attire such as the Siziba,” Mutti said in the August house.
“I therefore, find that the wearing of the Ngoni traditional head gear in the house was inappropriate in accordance with the Standing Orders. Therefore, I will not permit henceforth with any Honourable Member to continue wearing such attire in the house. For the Members who are already in that attire, please withdraw from the House to take your attire outside.
The Speaker’s ruling had been challenged by some, who argue that it unfairly targets a specific cultural expression. They claim it undermines cultural inclusivity and respect for diverse traditions.
The National Assembly maintains that the Speaker’s decision is not discriminatory and simply enforces existing dress code regulations.
Senior media liaison officer at the National Assembly of Zambia, Nshamba Muzungu emphasized that the Speaker’s role is to uphold these rules and ensure decorum.
He stressed that other forms of traditional attire, like the Siziba, are still permitted under the Standing Orders.
“The Assembly urges the public to refrain from making “misleading and alarming statements” about parliamentary proceedings, as this can constitute contempt.
Meanwhile, the speaker suspended Munir Zulu from the house for seven sitting days for grossly disorderly conduct after he wore a chitenge in the national assembly this morning.
Mutti said Zulu deliberately defied the rules of the house by wearing a wrapper (Chitenge) over his suit even after guidance was given yesterday concerning the headgear.
Zulu is not new to suspension as he has passed through similar cases on numerous occasions.
There’ll be food insecurity, water scarcity and high prices for livestock products – Hamukale
By Edwin Mbulo in Livingstone
FORMER Southern Province minister Edify Hamukale says there will be food insecurity, inadequate water and high prices for livestock products.
He fears that electricity supply will be affected due to unavailability of rains.
In an interview with The Mast, Dr Hamukale, an agriculture economist, said the current drought which is being experienced in varying magnitudes and severity is affecting 11 SADC countries namely Malawi, Mozambique, Zimbabwe, South Africa, Lesotho, Eswatini, Madagascar, Namibia, Angola, Botswana and Zambia.
“In Zambia, weather reports show that Central, Eastern, Southern and Western provinces in the southern half of the country were the most affected with up to almost one continuous month without rain or any form of precipitation. In some places crops wilted beyond the permanent wilting point and thus won’t recover their green colour and turgor pressure even if rains returned,” he said. “This therefore implies that in the immediate future there will be a major reduction in crop yields leading to human food insecurity, loss of pasture for livestock, inadequate water for humans, domestic animals and wildlife and projected high prices for livestock products such as beef, chickens, milk, eggs, pork and many more due to anticipated high cost of animal feeds.”
Dr Hamukale said the most scaring of all the effects of El Niño and the current drought is its effect on hydro electricity generation capacity in Zambia because of low water levels in Kariba dam and Itezhi-Tezhi.
“The large scale mining and industrial users of electricity are likely to have inadequate power supply and thus further reduce Zambia’s export revenue and corresponding jobs,” he said.
Dr Hamukale however said the salvation to the problem can be split into short term and long term interventions by government.
“The immediate action that I recommend is to conduct an emergency crop forecast and current water situation surveys to establish the expected grain crop production, area planted, water volumes, consumption figures, current food available and identify short term coping strategies by our citizens as government plans for action,” he said. “In short we need to carry out a vulnerability and quantitative needs assessment to establish which districts and how many people will require food aid or relief support. This is the empirical data and information upon which government can declare such districts as disaster areas. The Disaster Management and Mitigation Unit can then activate its stakeholder response network to prepare for action with accurate planning information.”
Dr Hamukale noted that Zambia was not the only affected country.
“And so we need to move in proactively to approach the United Nations World Food Programme, FAO, bilateral donor countries and charities. There is a chance it will rain as such the farming and community level participation needs to engage in water harvesting by trapping the remnant running rain water into reservoirs for our livestock and small-scale crop irrigation. Those farmers near rivers and dambos can be supported with farming inputs and water pumps to start planting irrigated crops even now,” he said. “I also recommend use of solar energy in the likely event of massive load-shedding. We need to make solar energy affordable for domestic consumers especially. Thirdly, I recommend that government secures funds to sink a lot of boreholes in schools, clinics and communities to enhance water supply since surface water in dams and seasonal streams will dry up faster than average.”
Dr Hamukale also raised the need to adjust Zambia’s over dependence on maize as a major source of carbohydrates “and begin to to produce, consume and commercialise drought resistant crops”.
“We need weekly updates on food availability and prices for selected essential food products to support decision making at a higher level,” said Dr Hamukale.- The Mast
PRESIDENT SAKWIBA SIKOTA AND THE UKA-PRAISE SINGERS A-K-A “THE UKA VOCAL BAND”
So I was wondering the other day..
Suppose one of the parties in the United Kwacha Alliance (UKA) were to win the next elections and one of these Leaders, say my good brother President Sakwiba Sikota, hypothetically became President…
A. Would you expect all the other like minded UKA Presidents to be appointed to the Cabinet of the winning Leader or would you expect that some of them will continue to lead their individual political parties?
B. Would you expect all the rest of the “like minded” and “well meaning” UKA leaders to now start another alliance of parties in heavy opposition to President Sakwiba Sikota and suddenly become buddies with, and start working with HH and the UPND, and perharps even form another alliance and call it the “UNITED NGWEE ALLIANCE” (UNA) for example, in the name of offering checks and balances? or would you instead expect that at the very least, and out of principle, these leaders would have to continue to work with and support President Sakwiba Sikota and his administration with whom they would have stood together and shown like mindedness all this time to actualise the “good plans” they are making on this round table? (See pics).
C. If, on the other hand, they did decide to forge some form of positive working relationship with President Sakwiba Sikota, the winning candidate, what name would you then give to the likes of President Harry Kalaba, His Excellency President Edgar Chagwa Lungu, my dear young brother President Jackson Silavwe, my sister President Chishala Kateka and President Reverend Dr. Danny Pule, and not forgetting Presidents Edith Nawakwi and Saboi Imboela – SI who are today working very well with comrade SAKWIBA SIKOTA? would it be right to say they are PRAISE SINGERS for SAKWIBA SIKOTA each time they step in to support or clarify a policy position which they took tine planning and analyzing with him while in opposition? Perharps we would call them The UKA VOCAL BAND for good measure And if so, do they not qualify to be called Praise Singers for Sakwiba Sikota already?, just like some of us are today called names for attempting to stand on the very same side we have stood on, shoulder to shoulder with our colleagues in the UPND whom Zambians decided to entrust with power, through many years of struggle and persecution in the opposition under the previous regime?
CONTINUOUS POOR GRADE 12 RESULTS IN NORTHWESTERN PROVINCE WORRY PROTUZ
Professional Teachers Union of Zambia (PROTUZ) Deputy Director in North-Western Province, Gilly Kakunta, has expressed concern that the continuous poor grade 12 examination results in the province has a negative effect on the number of children from the region entering into Universities and colleges in the Country.
Speaking when he featured on the programme dubbed “the Citizen” on ZANIS TV, Mr Kakunta noted that the grade 12 examination results determine how many children would be sent to universities and other higher learning institutions.
Mr Kakunta observed that the poor performance of children at grade 12 in North-Western, means that the province will not be productive as it will lack human resource even to contribute to national development.
” The results for pupils at grade 12 determine how many children we will be sending to tertiary institutions like colleges as well as Universities, so if the province produces very few learners with good results it means we are sending very few again into those higher learning institutions.
“At the end of it all they will be very few graduates from the universities and colleges and in the end, the province as well as the country may not be progressive,” he said.
Meanwhile, Mr Kakunta, however, stated that there has been a slight improvement in this year’s results as compared to last year where the province recorded 45% and was the last province as compared to this year where it has recorded 47.03% and got a 9th position out of the ten provinces.
” This slight improvement is a plus to the province, meaning that if we continue performing this way, come 2024/2025 we may be somewhere number five or four in the country.
“As a Union we noted this poor performance way back in 2022 and something was being done to correct the situation,” he noted.
And Mr Kakunta attributed the poor performance of pupils at grade 12 to few school infrastructure across the province.
He said because of a lack of school infrastructure, many learners are forced to be handled by a few teachers which compromises teaching and learning.
He observed that from 1964 to date, the previous governments had not done much for the province in as far as construction of school infrastructure is concerned.
” Three past Governments didn’t do much for the Province, we have very few secondary schools. These secondary schools you see now were previously primary schools with the number of class rooms without laboratories,” he said.
Mr Kalumbila has since expressed hope that under the United Party for National Development (UPND), school infrastructure in North-Western Province will be improved especially with the increased Constituency Development Fund (CDF).
RUSSIA ANGERS GUINEA’S JUNTA AFTER GOVERNMENT DISSOLVED
(BBC) Guinea’s military junta has protested to Russia’s ambassador after his embassy reportedly warned of possible unrest in the capital, Conakry.
The warning was issued after junta leader Colonel Mamady Doumbouya dissolved the government on Monday, and ordered the closure of all borders.
Ambassador Alexey Popov apologised to the junta for what he called a misunderstanding, Guinean media reported. Col Doumbouya took power in a 2021 coup.
He dissolved his government on Monday without offering any explanation. He also ordered the seizure of the passports of sacked ministers, and the freezing of their bank accounts.
Guinean media reported that Col Doumbouya’s decision led to the Russian embassy in Guinea advising Russian nationals to be vigilant as there could be unrest in the West African state’s capital, Conakry. The junta reacted angrily, with an official in its foreign ministry summoning Mr Popov to a meeting. “I explained that it was a misunderstanding, a false translation of what was published.
The announcement was published only in Russian for Russian citizens,” Mr Popov was quoted as saying by Guinea’s state-owned television and radio. The junta accepted the apology, while Mr Popov said the incident would not affect relations between the two nations.
Guinea is one of several former French colonies in West Africa to be hit by coups in recent years. The juntas, which seized power in Mali, Niger and Burkina Faso have pivoted toward Russia, while being hostile towards France and the West African regional bloc, Ecowas.
However, Col Doumbouya has tried to maintain good relations with all sides. He has promised to hold elections to restore democratic rule by the end of 2024. The junta banned all demonstrations in 2022 and has detained several opposition leaders, and members of civil society groups.
Col Doumbouya overthrew President Alpha Condé in September 2021, saying the army had little choice but to seize power because of rampant corruption, disregard for human rights and economic mismanagement. Mr Condé was Guinea’s first democratically elected president, taking office in 2010 following the end of military rule.
He was re-elected in 2015, but faced protests four years later when he changed the constitution to run for a third term.
ZAMBIA DIASPORA ORGANIZATION STANDS IN SOLIDARITY WITH THE GOVERNMENT AMIDST ANTICIPATED CROP FAILURE DUE TO EL NIÑO – INDUCED LOW RAINFALL.
Following the recent clarion call by our Head of State, President Hakainde Hichilema, who has commended the heroism exhibited by some rural farmers, facing adversity of drought, and who have taken matters into their own hands.
The President acknowledged, “The determination of these farmers to overcome El Niño’s challenges for the sake of their families and the nation’s food security as commendable and warrants recognition.”
President Hakainde further stated, “It emphasizes the necessity of redoubling efforts, in collaboration with our cooperating partners, to make affordable irrigation technology accessible to small-scale farmers in remote areas nationwide,” President Hichilema says
In light of this critical situation, the Zambia Diaspora Organization (ZDO) expresses its unwavering support and solidarity with the Government of the Republic of Zambia as the nation faces the looming challenge of anticipated crop failure, attributed to the adverse effects of El Niño resulting in low rainfall this season.
The ZDO is ready to work with the Government to initiate a national indaba that will bring together experts and stakeholders to devise strategies and measures aimed at mitigating the potential shortage of maize and addressing the broader impact on food security.
Historical Perspective: Reflecting on the resilience of the Zambian people, we draw inspiration from the collective strength exhibited during the challenging period of 2002 when the nation confronted a similar adversity under the leadership of President Levy Mwanawasa. Together, we overcame those challenges, demonstrating our ability to unite and find innovative solutions even in the face of formidable circumstances.
National Indaba for Mitigation Measures: The ZDO firmly believes that by convening a national indaba of experts, we can tap into the wealth of knowledge and experience needed to develop comprehensive and effective strategies. This indaba aims to explore sustainable solutions that go beyond immediate relief, ensuring a resilient and adaptive approach to future climate change challenges.
Call to Action: We urge government to act expeditiously in mobilizing human and other resources, non-governmental organizations, the private sector, and the international community to roll out a programme of action to mitigate the anticipated impact on food security arising from the adverse weather.
Together, we can proactively address the potential impact of crop failure on the nation’s food security and livelihoods. In these challenging times, unity and proactive collaboration are paramount. The ZDO is confident that, through concerted efforts, we can navigate the current situation and emerge stronger as a nation.
For media inquiries, please contact:
Ferdinand Simaanya. President – Zambia Diaspora Organisation & Zambia Association in South Africa. Email: President@zambiadiaspora-zm.com Cell: +27844999186.
….in which KCM will be handed back to Vedanta, demands ZUPED
Lusaka… Friday February 23, 2024 (SMART EAGLES)
The Zambians for Unity, Peace and Development (ZUPED) has demanded that the government provides a timeframe in which Konkola Copper Mines plc (KCM) will be handed back to Vedanta Resources.
Minister of Finance & National Planning Dr. Situmneko Musokotwane has said there is only one step remaining before KCM is handed back to Vedanta Resources and production will resume.
Delivering a ministerial statement in parliament on Friday, Dr. Musokotwane said this should happen soon.
But ZUPED President Ronnie Jere said the people want to hear the progress made so far not the same rhetoric.
Mr Jere said there is an urgent need for the mining to be up and running in order to help resolve some of the economic woes in the country.
“We are all aware that only one item is remaining before KCM is handed back to Vedanta Resources, and that is the scheme of arrangement. This is why we are saying it is important that the government through the ministries of Finance and Mines gives another update informing the people when they are likely to hand over the asset to Vedanta. We needed it running optimally like yesterday. A lot of people are languishing in poverty and making KCM productive, will help improve the living standards of our people,” he said.
“A lot of young people on the Copperbelt need jobs. Contractors and suppliers need their monies that KCM is owing them. This can only be done when the investor has taken over fully. Otherwise, we will continue moving in cycles.”
Mr Jere noted that the country needs to strengthen its local currency against US dollar and that can only be done if production is increased more especially in the mining sector.
“We have been talking about the weaker kwacha against the US dollar, one way we can make it bullish is by way of increasing production in the mining sector. But how can this be done when KCM and Mopani have not scaled up production,” he questioned.
He also said as a measure to improve the living standards of the people, there must be increased economic activities in the country.
He has since urged the government to expedite this process and ensure that in this first quarter of 2024, KCM should be handed back to Vedanta Resources.
ONLY ONE STEP IS REMAINING BEFORE KCM IS HANDED BACK TO VEDANTA
….and production will resume, says Finance Minister
Lusaka… Friday February 23, 2024 (SMART EAGLES)
Minister of Finance & National Planning Dr. Situmneko Musokotwane says there is only one step remaining before Konkola Copper Mines plc (KCM) is handed back to Vedanta Resources and production will resume.
Delivering a ministerial statement in parliament today, Dr. Musokotwane said this should happen soon.
He added that in terms of Mopani Copper Mines (MCM), the target date for handing it over to the new investor is end February 2024.
The Finance Minister said the importance of these two mining firms is that even before they increase production, they are already sending money to Zambia, in foreign exchange, to pay local creditors and to prepare for increased production.
He emphasized that this is happening now and that these payments are supporting the Kwacha.
“Beyond this preparatory stage which is already supporting the exchange rate, we are looking forward to increased copper production and foreign exchange earnings as the two companies get to work. The effects of the return of the two mining companies is set to change things positively,” he said.
“The second leg of increasing copper production is by expanding production at First Quantum (Kansanshi) and Barrick (Lumwana). As indicated already, both companies had contemplated leaving Zambia because of unconducive investment climate under the PF government. Had that happened, almost the entire mining industry in Zambia would have closed since it would have meant KCM, MCM, FQM and Lumwana all being non-operational. The economic consequences would have been unimaginable.”
Dr. Musokotwane indicated that after the UPND government assumed office in 2021, both companies were successfully persuaded to stay.
“But their earlier decisions to leave has impacted production now because they had not developed new ore bodies in time. Both FQM and Barrick have started developing the new ore bodies and have put in $1.3 billion and $2 billion respectively to achieve enhanced production,” he added.
“Madam Speaker, the shock to the exchange rate was largely attributed to problems in the mining sector. This has been a temporal problem which this government has resolved. Going forward the people of Zambia should feel comfortable that the future is bright. On account of the mining sector alone, without considering other sectors, concrete steps will soon be visible as production towards the three million tons target takes shape. I am sure my colleague in charge of mining will at an appropriate time share the projected expansion of the sector.”
He further indicated that stability comes about because supply and demand for foreign exchange roughly balances.
“We have already discussed the supply, as we described developments in the mining sector because it is the main source of foreign exchange. The demand side can be managed by monetary policy actions such as those instituted by the Bank of Zambia. These included the withdrawal of government deposits from commercial banks to the Bank of Zambia and the increase in the statutory reserve ratios,” he said.
“Both measures have the effect of reducing access to local currency financing from the banking system and, therefore, dampens effective demand for domestic expenditure, including on foreign exchange purchases. Once again, the positive effects of the monetary policy actions are evident today.”
Moving on to debt restructuring, Dr Musokotwane expressed happiness that significant progress has been achieved.
“We all recall that there are two broad categories of external debt: the official and the private. For official debt restructuring, this was already achieved last year. All that remains is to complete the formalities which are expected to be signed shortly,” he informed the House.
“Regarding the private sector creditors, the focus of the work now is to clarify the meaning of comparable treatment of all creditors. Members will recall that as a way of ensuring that no creditor takes advantage of other creditors, a requirement exists which demands that any proposal for debt restructuring must satisfy the criteria of comparable treatment.”
A Texas judge ruled that a school’s disciplinary action against a black student for wearing dreadlocks was not unfair.
Last August, Darryl George, 18, was suspended from Barbers Hill Independent School District because his hairstyle did not follow the school’s rules.
The judge said the Houston-area school did not break a law that stops prejudice against people based on their hair.
The family’s lawyer said they will ask for another court decision.
The student will be suspended and not allowed to go to regular classes at school.
Judge Cain III decided that the school district won after listening to testimony for about three hours on Thursday.
Mr George expressed his feelings of “being mad, sad, and let down” outside the courthouse after the ruling.
The school district has a rule about how long students can wear their hair. It says hair must not go past the top of a T-shirt collar, eyebrows, or ear lobes when it’s down.
However, George did not want to cut his braided dreadlocks. His family said the dreadlocks are important in the black community.
Last year Texas made a law called the Crown Act. It stops people from being treated unfairly because of their hair style.
Darresha George, the mother of the student, complained that the school district broke the new law.
In September, the school district took legal action to solve a problem, and Thursday’s decision was the result of that.
But the superintendent of Barbers Hill High School, Dr Greg Poole, supported the school’s decision. He said that the Crown Act does not specifically mention the length of hair.
Since last August, Mr. George has been getting in trouble at Barbers Hill High School for not cutting his hair.
He got kicked out of class and had to stay in a special school area at school, and then had to go to a different program outside of school.
“His mother told the Associated Press in August that he has to sit on a small chair for eight hours in a small office space. ”
“That feels really bad. ” Every day when he came home, he would say that his back hurts because he has to sit on a stool.
Barbers Hill ISD has been in the news because of problems with its dress code for black students.
De’Andre Arnold and Kaden Bradford had to cut their long, twisted hair in 2020, so their families decided to take legal action.
In that situation, a judge decided that the district’s hair rules were unfair.
A law called the Crown Act was approved by the House of Representatives in 2023, but it was not approved by the Senate.
The German government will decide whether to make it legal for people to use cannabis for fun.
If the members of Parliament agree, people over 18 in Germany can have a lot of cannabis, but it will be hard to buy because there will be strict rules.
From 1 April, it will be legal to smoke cannabis in many public places.
You can have up to 25g (almost an ounce) of something in public and 50g in your home.
In some parts of Germany, like Berlin, the police ignore people who smoke in public even though it’s against the law and they could get in trouble for it. Health Minister Karl Lauterbach says more and more young people are using drugs, even though it’s against the law. He wants to change the law to stop this.
He wants to stop illegal selling, keep people safe from bad drugs, and stop criminals from making money.
However, there will not be lots of legal cannabis cafes opening up everywhere right away.
A big argument about making cannabis legal has been happening in Germany for a long time. Doctors worry about young people and some conservative people think that making the laws less strict will make more people use drugs.
Like many times in Germany, the new law that the MPs are going to vote on is hard to understand.
Using marijuana near schools and sports grounds will still be against the law in some places. Importantly, the government will closely control the market to make it difficult to buy the drug.
The idea to let shops and pharmacies sell cannabis has been dropped because the EU is worried it could cause more drugs to be sent to other countries.
Instead, groups of people that are not trying to make money, called “cannabis social clubs”, will be allowed to grow and give out a small amount of the drug.
Each club can only have up to 500 members. People can’t smoke or use marijuana at the club. Only people who live in Germany can join the club.
You can grow up to three marijuana plants at home.
This means that in Germany, people can have a lot of drugs, but it’s hard to buy them. For example, having 25g of drugs is like having a lot of strong joints.
People who smoke a lot would be happy, but people who only smoke sometimes would have a hard time buying it legally and visitors wouldn’t be allowed to buy it. Critics say this will just make the illegal market for goods grow.
In the next few years, the government will study how the new law affects things, and might start selling cannabis legally.
However, because the debate has been difficult, we cannot be certain about anything.
On the other hand, the conservative opposition says that if they win the election next year, they will get rid of the law completely. Germany probably won’t become the new Amsterdam in Europe for a while.
A 28-year-old police officer has been accused of killing Jesse Baird and his boyfriend Luke Davies who went missing.
Police searched hard on Wednesday after the couple’s bloody things were found in a trash can near Sydney.
Beaumont Lamarre-Condon, who used to date Baird, was wanted by the police and turned himself in on Friday.
Investigators are still looking for the men’s bodies and are not sure how they died.
The police say the couple was killed on Monday in Jesse Baird’s house in Paddington, a suburb in Sydney. Then their bodies were put in a white van.
People said they heard loud talking and arguing in the morning. A van that was rented was seen on video at the same place later that day. The van was discovered in the southern part of Sydney on Friday morning.
New South Wales Police found a bullet from Beaumont Lamarre-Condon’s work gun at the Paddington crime scene, along with a lot of blood and furniture that was turned over.
He didn’t come to work on Tuesday. The senior police officer’s gun was found in a safe at the police station later, said Det Supt Daniel Doherty.
The police found clothes with blood on them, a phone, and credit cards in a bin in Cronulla, which is 28km away from where the crime happened. They also found some things in a house in Balmain.
Detective Superintendent Doherty said Beaumont Lamarre-Condon is thought to have also gone to Newcastle, which is 170km north of where the crime happened, after the alleged killings.
He said the information from Beaumont Lamarre-Condon didn’t help the investigation, but tips from the public really did. He asked again for anyone with information to call the police.
“It’s really important that we find the bodies, not just to know how they died but also to give the family some answers. ” “They are very upset,” Detective Superintendent Doherty said.
Mr Baird used to be on TV and report from the red carpet, but his show got canceled in December. Davies used to work as a flight attendant for Qantas.
Many happy pictures of the couple were posted a lot on their social media. Many people have been leaving kind messages since they went missing.
Beaumont Lamarre-Condon started working as a police officer in 2019. Before that, he was a famous blogger who met celebrities like Taylor Swift, Harry Styles and Miley Cyrus.
The Australian media wrote about his meetings with famous people, and a magazine asked if he was the biggest fan in Australia.
Det Supt Doherty refused to say why the crimes happened but mentioned that the police officer had broken up with Jesse Baird a few months ago, so that’s something the police are looking into.
Beaumont Lamarre-Condon was not allowed to go free and had to go to court on Friday afternoon.
…you told people you were capable and now they’re beginning to question how capable you are, Saitubotu warns UPND
TIME IS TICKING DANGEROUSLY …you told people you were capable and now they’re beginning to question how capable you are, Saitubotu warns UPND
By Kholiwe Miti
THE Voice executive director Faith Siatubotu says this is the right time to judge the new dawn government because they have already spent half of their term in office.
Siatubotu says it is not the fault of Zambians that the UPND government has spent all this time complaining about the PF instead of delivering on their promises.
“However, not overlooking the good that they can see, the fact still stands that time is ticking dangerously. You have two years left, and yet there are more complaints than praise on the ground. The economy is biting. People are hungry and they’re not hearing any measures put in place to cushion the impact,” she said in a statement. “All they hear is how they should be patient because the PF damaged the economy. While that is all true, they gave you the mandate because you promised to fix. You told them you were capable and now they’re beginning to question how capable you are, and in which direction are you leading them. As political giants, and leaders, you need to remember that time for toying with your people is gone. You are dealing with people that are ready to give you just one term and move to the next as long as that which you promised is not met. All they want is a people centred leadership. A better Zambia for all, not a selected few.”
And Siatubotu said this is the right time for Zambians to assess the UPND performance because they have been in office long enough.
“The Vice-President advised the Zambian people that it is too early to judge the performance of the new dawn administration. It is not too early. It is just the right time to judge their performance. They have already spent half of the term in office,” said Siatubotu. “There is only two years left before we can decide whether or not we want them to continue in office. If they spent half of the term complaining about the atrocities of the PF and travelling the world, that should not be our fault. But we can only hope that all the blame games and trips were not in vain.”
Nellie Mutti is totally offside, the MPs must defy her and turn up wearing the Umquele
Hon. Given Lubinda speaking on the floor of the House doned in a Siziba and Lishushu( red beret).
On this day he was also carrying the Mulamu ( wooden walking stick).
Ms Nellie Mutti herself always wears Maseka ( the ivory bangles).
I published a picture of Hon. Mutotwe Kafwaya doned in Icilundu complete eith its head gear, a cloth made from tree barks.
Further, there is need to expand the Standing Orders 206 (1) on Dress Code For Members.
According to Standing Order 206 (1) and (2):
The official dress for male Members of Parliament shall be: (a) a formal executive suit, or a pair of long trousers, a shirt, a neck tie and jacket;
(b) a toga;
(c) a decent traditional attire such as siziba; or
(d) a safari suit, with long or short sleeves and a scarf or a neck tie.
The official dress for a female member shall be:
(a) a formal dress, formal executive suit either with a skirt below the knee or a pair of trousers; or (b) a decent traditional attire such as a formal ‘chitenge’ outfit with long or short sleeves, musisi.
To claim that wearing the Umquele is a violation of Parliamentary rules, decorum and etiquette is practicing discrimination and regionalism against the people of Eastern Province.
DRESS CODE IN ZAMBIAN PARLIAMENT: A COLONIAL LEGACY 60 YEARS AFTER INDEPENDENCE
I note from social media posts that some MPs were today ordered to leave the Chamber for wearing Ngoni head dress also known as Umquele. It is reported that wearing such breached Parliamentary rules, decorum, and etiquette of the House.
Obviously this act by the Speaker may have infuriated not only the Ngonis, but all others like me, who value our African culture, let alone the Zambian culture and traditions.
I nearly condemned the Speaker for such an outrageous decision. But when I checked the rules, I noted that it not the Speaker, but parliamentarians themselves to blame, for prescribing a dress code for themselves in parliament.
I say it is parliamentarians to blame because all laws are made by parliament. Therefore, parliamentarians must collectively blame themselves, for bad laws that exist on our statute books, including the dress code.
The Executive has been cautious since independence never to prescribe a dressing code for the President, ministers and others in the executive arm besides the defence and security wings.
For this reason, the President and ministers dress as they please, provided in their personal judgment, such dressing is appropriate for the occasion. Because they don’t have a prescribed dress code, no one will chase away a President or Minister from office for breach of a dress code.
Several parliaments in Africa maintain a dress code on their statute books. The exception is the South African parliament.
The problem with all laws is that they are subject to interpretation only by the courts. Thus, those delegated to enforce the laws can maliciously do things and advise those that are dissatisfied to go to court. Many a time, because of the time, expense, and inconvenience, affected persons don’t challenge repugnant decisions.
In Zambia, a perusal of the dress code shows that for male MPs, they are required to wear a formal executive suit, or pair of long trousers, a shirt, neck-tie, and jacket. The rules also allow men to wear a long or short sleeved safari suit (Kaunda Suit) and a scarf or neck-tie. A toga or decent traditional attire such as the Lozi siziba are allowed.
For female MPs, official dress code include formal dress, formal suit with either a skirt below the knees or pair of trousers. Also allowed is decent traditional attire with short or long sleeves, or indeed the Lozi musisi attire.
However, the rules do not state the type of head dress to be worn by MPs. And this is where the problem lies in the case of MPs chased away today by the Speaker. Legally, there is no offence committed where no rule exist to outlaw a particular activity or thing.
If traditional attire is allowed, it goes without saying that no offence is committed for wearing the Umquele, Lozi red cap, or my traditional cap. If challenged in courts of law on the umquele, most likely, the Speaker could be ruled to have acted ultra vires. But who has time to go to court?
The trend is the same elsewhere in Africa where MPs maintain on their statutes a dress code for MPs. In Kenya, for example, in 2020, Senate Speaker Ken Lusaka, made a historic ruling regarding how Senators are allowed to dress in the house.
During one session, Speaker Lusaka stated that legislators would now be allowed to access Parliament’s debate chambers and attend house business in traditional African attire.
The historic ruling was triggered by Narok Senator Ledama ole Kina who caused a spectacle by dressing in traditional Maasai regalia.
Wajir Senator Abdullahi Ibrahim raised a point of order, noting that Ledama’s dressing contravened the Senate’s standing orders and traditions which have run since the colonial era.
Speaker Lusaka later ruled that the constitution recognises culture as an important aspect of the nation. He added that the Maasai attire was globally recognised as thus acceptable for Ledama to wear.
“It would be absurd, unfortunate, and unconstitutional for me to dismiss Ole Kina for wearing a dress that has been globally recognised not just as a symbol of the Maasai but also something that globally identified our heritage as a country,” he ruled.
The senator thanked Lusaka by saying “My culture my pride. Thank you Mr. Speaker for respecting the constitution and our culture!”
At that time, it was made clear that the landmark ruling was only going to apply to the Senate until the National Assembly reconsiders the age-old dress code. The dress code in Parliament has remained unchanged since Kenya attained independence in 1963. Male MPs have been required to wear a formal suit, a shirt and a tie – a tradition borrowed from Britain.
A number of leaders had been kicked out of Parliament over their dress code including Nairobi Governor Mike Sonko, ODM Leader Raila Odinga and his father Jaramogi Oginga Odinga.
The late Jaramogi was kicked out for wearing a pair of shorts while the ODM leader was ejected in 2003 for dressing in Nigerian men’s attire popularly known as abgaba.
Sonko, then the MP for Makadara, was ordered out of the house after entering the chambers wearing ear studs and sunglasses. He tried to explain that he was a youth and that his dressing represented the youth of the country but his argument fell on deaf ears.
Now there is new Speaker. He has outlawed wearing of Kaunda Suits which have popularized by the current President Ruto. Most likely, the next time hussler President Ruto goes to Parliament, he will wear the Kaunda Suit as a symbol of resistance against colonial mentality.
But as for MPs in Zambia, Kenya and elsewhere in Africa, unless and until they free themselves from the colonial culture of dress code, they will always be chased away depending on the attitude and behaviour of the presiding officer.
I remember, decades ago, there used to be a dress code when travelling by plane. One had to wear clothes like MPs: suits! This is no longer the case. One can wear shorts, slippers, even travel bear feet when flying out first or other class. No one bother anymore.
So, to conclude , MPs should free themselves from the repugnant colonial culture of dress code. And only MPs themselves can free themselves from this colonial yoke of dress code. No one else will do it for them.
POLICE FORMALLY CHARGE JACKSON CHAMA WITH OFFENCE FOR HATE SPEECH
The Zambia Police Service wishes to inform the public that on February17, 2024, Mr. Jackson Chama was apprehended in Lusaka and subsequently transferred to Kalomo Police Station following complaints received from concerned members of the public regarding his online activities.
Upon thorough investigation, it was established that the video contravened Section 65 of the Cyber Security and Cyber Crimes Act No. 2 of 2021. The act criminalizes the dissemination of hate speech through electronic means, including social media platforms. During the process of cautioning the suspect, Mr. Jackson Chama, aged 30, residing at House number 238 Makeni of Lusaka, admitted to creating and sharing the video in question. The contents of the video were found to be offensive and had been widely circulated on various social media platforms, contributing to the propagation of hate speech.
In accordance with the provisions of the Cyber Security and Cyber Crimes Act, the suspect was today February 22, 2024 formally charged with the offence of Hate Speech, as stipulated in Section 65. He is currently detained at Kalomo Police Station pending further legal proceedings. The arrest follows the discovery of a video containing content deemed as hate speech, which was posted on his TikTok page with his username @Jacksonchama2. Mr. Chama is scheduled to appear in court at Kalomo for a possible plea.
The comprehensive docket pertaining to the case has been forwarded to the National Prosecution Authority (NPA) in Kalomo for review and appropriate legal action.
The Zambia Police Service reaffirms its commitment to upholding the rule of law and ensuring the safety and security of all citizens. Acts that promote hate speech and endanger social cohesion will not be tolerated, and those found responsible will be held accountable for their actions.
The public is urged to use social media responsibly and refrain from engaging in activities that may incite hatred, violence, or discrimination. The Zambia Police further encourages citizens to report any suspicious online activities that may compromise the well-being of our country.
Rae Hamoonga POLICE PUBLIC RELATIONS OFFICER. May be an image of 1 person
The solution to our current socio-economic and political problems is not to ask the opposition political parties for a solution.
The solution for those who have failed is clear for all to see. Mr Hakainde Hichilema and the UPND need to pave way for those that have a vision and direction. Those who have failed like Mr Hichilema, should leave and not go on a spree to ask for solutions from opposition political parties that they do not even implement when advised. How many times have we offered solutions to this regime and what has been the response?
The truth is, we in the opposition are always advising Mr Hichilema and his regime, but they don’t listen. And this advice has not only been coming from the opposition leaders, but even from civic leaders, traditional leaders, the church and ordinary Zambians.
In any case, why should the opposition give the UPND solutions as frequently asked by their supporters? Is this an admission that they have failed? Are they telling us that they don’t have answers to our problems? What happened to Mr Hichilema’s ten- point plan, the manifesto and the numerous promises that they made to the Zambians? So if they are failing to implement their own plans, whose plans will they implement?
The simple solution to all this is Mr Hichilema and his team need to go! They have lamentably failed to implement their manifesto, and they have no ability to listen to advise. The solution for those who can’t improve the well being of our people is not a magical one. It’s clear. The real immediate solution out of these problems is to let the UPND go. They have clearly demonstrated that they have no capacity to unite and run this country.
We the Socialist Party have a manifesto, we have plans and solutions, some of which we are already sharing whilst in opposition. We urge the people of this country to engage us when we share these issues.
We look forward to you engaging us on our plans and solutions.
SABOI FACES CHALLENGES IN ROUNDING UP HAMASAKA’S TO SUPPORT HER DEFAMATION CASE
Saboi faces challenges in rounding up Hamasakas to support her defamatory case
INSTEAD of lining up the Hamasakas as her defenders in her libel case as promised at the last sitting, political songstress Saboi-Imboela opted to settle for journalist Wilson Pondamali as her savior.
Imboela’s lawyer Melisa Phiri informed the Lusaka magistrates’ court that the former singer faced a glitch in convincing a Feston Hamasaka whom she claims was the recipient of the defamatory remarks, to support her case.
In this matter the Facebook polemicist is charged with libel for accusing State House Chief Communications specialist Clayson Hamasaka of engaging in graft when she claimed that his farm was being developed by the Chinese.
Imboela also accused Hamasaka of being a lethal womanizer and was at the verge of being dumped in the singles bin by his wife as his marriage was on rocks.
But the singer cum-politician at the last sitting confirmed to having accused Hamasaka of being related to State House press analyst Brian Mwiinga in justifying her claims that there is nepotism in the UPND.
She said the infidelity accusations were directed at a Feston Hamasaka who opposed her crude style of offering checks and balances to the UPND and promised to line up five Hamasaka’s to prove that she did not defame the State house Communications specialist.
But to the surprise of many who were eager to see a group of Hamasakas paraded before court, Pondamali instead took the stand and explained how he pleaded with Clayson Hamasaka not to take legal action against Imboela.
Testifying before principal resident magistrate Sylvia Munyinya, the former senior scribe at the Zambian watchdog said that in September 2022 he received a phone call from Imboela who claimed that she was having disagreements on Facebook with a Feston Hamasaka and she asked if at all he was known to him.
He said he informed Imboela that he did not know the Hamasaka.
“Then later after that I saw a post on Saboi Imboela-SI which she posted a Hamasaka having an affair and that the marriage was on rocks. Later on in a whatsapp blog called dynamic analysis Zambia I saw a comment of Clayson Hamasaka threatening to take legal action against Imboela, I happened to know Hamasaka as a fellow Journalist whom I worked with at Zambian watchdog,”Pondamali said.
“Having known both Hamasaka and Imboela, I went to Hamasaka telling him not to go ahead with legal action against Imboela. On the basis that Imboela has been having wrangles with Hamasaka whose name has not been mentioned.”
Pondamali said having known the duo he pleaded with Hamasaka not to proceed with legal action.
“After that Hamasaka reported Saboi to the police for which I did not agree. She told me that they had fights with Feston Hamasaka.”
In cross examination by State advocate Lewis Kandela Pondamali indicated that he did not have evidence to prove that he had a conversation with Imboela.
He confirmed that the defamatory words were published on a page Saboi Imboela-SI but expressed ignorance about Imboela being the owner of the page.
Pondamali said he does not know the wrangles which Imboela had with a Feston Hamasaka though he was compelled to plead on her behalf with Clayson Hamasaka.
He said he is not a personal assistant to Saboi Imboela and the only person who knows the person who posted the defamatory words on Facebook is Saboi herself.
Asked if Feston Hamasaka was mentioned in the posting, Pondamali denied.
He indicated that the Hamasaka he knows is the State House Chief Communications specialist.
At this point lawyer Melisa Phiri requested for an adjournment on reasons that the defense faced challenges in contacting the last witness
She requested the the court to adjournthe matter to the next pre-set date of March 6.
However Kandele opposed the application on reasons that the defense was seemingly not interested in using judicial time accordingly.
“The challenges show that they don’t have a witness other than the two they have provided in court. They should close the case and give time to the court to determine the case. The defense only wants to delay the case. If they don’t have any witnesses they should indicate so,” said Kandele.
In reply, Imboela’s other lawyer Emmanuel Phiri said the case already has a preset date and the State will not be affected in any way. He said it was wrong for the state to imply that Imboela who was placed on defense was wasting time.
Ruling on the matter magistrate Munyinya censured the lawyers for not utilizing time and relying on pre-set dates.
“The idea of banking on pre-set dates should come to an end there’s no guarantee that the matter will be adjourned to that date. They are just dates for convenience sake to allow us to plan don’t talk about pre-set dates going forward I will not allow it,” warned the magistrate.
President Joe Biden‘s dog Commander has bitten US Secret Service agents 24 times, according to new documents.
The US Secret Service has records that show how much trouble the German Shepherd caused for the president’s bodyguards.
A very experienced agent noticed that the bites meant the Secret Service is now telling agents to keep their distance and give more space.
The notice came many months before the Commander was taken out of the White House.
The papers were shared because of Freedom of Information requests and uploaded on the internet. The information is edited a lot to keep the Secret Service agents’ identities and security tactics a secret.
Between October 2022 and July 2023, there were at least 24 times when people were bitten. This includes members of the Secret Service who were bitten on different parts of their body like the wrist, forearm, elbow, waist, chest, thigh and shoulder.
The papers may not have all the times when Commander bit someone because they only have information about the Secret Service, not other people who work at the White House or Camp David in Maryland.
The Biden family’s pet left the White House in October last year. This happened one week after a Secret Service agent got bitten and needed medical help.
In June, an agent got a serious bite on the arm that needed stitches. There was some blood on the floor in a part of the White House, so they had to stop tours of the East Wing for 20 minutes.
In July, another agent got bitten on the hand and needed six stitches. The bite made a big open wound and the person started to lose a lot of blood. This was in an email.
This agent received a gift from coworkers that included medicine for pain and infection, pepper spray, a muzzle, and dog treats for safety reasons.
In an email, a senior agent said that agents looking after Mr Biden and his family need to be creative to make sure they stay safe.
“The recent dog bites have made us change how we do things when Commander is around- please stay far away (ideally stay one feature of land away),” the agent wrote.
The UK has said it will place more than 50 new restrictions on Russia before the second anniversary of their invasion of Ukraine.
The sanctions aim to punish people and companies supporting Russian President Vladimir Putin’s war effort.
Foreign Secretary Lord David Cameron said the UK will keep supporting Kyiv for as long as necessary.
After the opposition leader Alexei Navalny died, six Russian prison bosses were punished with sanctions.
The Foreign Office said the new punishments will target those who give Russia’s military weapons like rocket launchers, missiles, and explosives.
The sanctions are aimed at stopping Russia from making money from metals, diamonds, and energy. This is to stop President Putin from getting funding for his war.
Lord Cameron said that because of the economic pressure from other countries, Russia cannot afford to continue with the illegal invasion.
“Our sanctions are making it hard for Putin to get the money he needs to support his war. ”
“United, we will keep fighting against tyranny without giving up. ” We will keep helping Ukraine in its fight for democracy for as long as it is needed.
Some people were punished, including oil trader Niels Troost and his company Paramount Energy and Commodities SA, and Pavel Alekseevich Marinychev, the new CEO of Alrosa, which is the biggest state-owned diamond producer in Russia.
The Foreign Office said that they have also targeted several foreign companies for helping Russia in their war efforts.
Saturday is the second anniversary of when Russia invaded Ukraine.
The fight is kind of stuck and not making much progress, although Moscow seems to be doing better lately. The President of Ukraine, Volodymyr Zelensky, has asked the western countries to give Ukraine more weapons. He says if they don’t, it will make Russia’s forces feel more confident.
The EU is creating a set of plans to go along with the anniversary of the war.
The British government has put restrictions on Russia. This happened one day after the Foreign Office said it had stopped the prison bosses in charge of the jail where Alexei Navalny died from using their money and from traveling.
Some people said the measures were not strong enough and complained about them.
The government has approved sanctions on 2,000 people, businesses, and groups as part of its efforts against Russia.
The US said it will impose more sanctions on Russia after Navalny died.
Navalny was a very important leader for the Russian opposition for the last ten years. He was in jail for 19 years for charges that many people thought were made up for political reasons.
The Russian prison service said he died last Friday at the IK-3 Arctic penal colony, also known as “Polar Wolf”, after going for a walk and suddenly falling down.
Navalny’s team says they think President Putin ordered his murder. Western leaders are putting the blame on Mr. Putin and the Russian authorities for his death.
Mr Putin has not said anything about his death directly. The Kremlin admitted that he died and said the Russian president knew about it.
In a big change, South Africa’s government has fired one of its most important judges for doing something wrong.
A study uncovered that John Hlophe, the top judge in Western Cape province, tried to pressure judges at the country’s highest court in a case involving former President Jacob Zuma.
In 2008, he asked two judges if they would help Mr. Zuma in a corruption case.
Mr Hlophe always said he didn’t do it.
The long time it took to impeach him was because there were many appeals and investigations.
The judge being removed has never happened before since the country became a democracy in 1994.
Another judge, Nkola Motata, was removed from his job because he acted badly and made racist comments after a car accident in 2007.
Mr Motata, who is now retired, was a judge in Gauteng province when the incident happened.
He also said that the accusation was not true.
President Cyril Ramaphosa needs to approve the decision and choose a date for their official removal.
The judges will no longer get any special benefits, like a monthly salary of over 1 million rand, a car allowance, and full medical care.
Mr Hlophe was removed from his job on Wednesday evening because most of the MPs voted for it.
The ruling African National Congress (ANC), the main opposition Democratic Alliance (DA), and some other smaller parties all supported the decision.
Mr Hlophe tried one more time to stop being removed, but the court said no.
He was removed from his position, and then Mr. Motata was also removed.
A group called the Judicial Service Commission (JSC) found that in 2008, Mr Hlophe tried to influence two out of eleven judges of the Constitutional Court to make a decision in Mr Zuma’s favor for his arms-deal corruption case.
Mr Zuma said he did not do anything wrong and it is not implied that he was involved in Mr. Hlophe’s actions
Both judges who were impeached didn’t answer the MPs’ choices. However, Mr Hlophe said in court documents that parliament’s job was not just to approve findings by the JSC, but to investigate on its own.
ANC Secretary-General Fikile Mbalula said the party is happy about parliament’s decision, while the DA’s Glynnis Breytenbach said her party feels justified after “years of the ANC government delaying the judges’ removal. ”
It’s been 15 years since we’ve waited for this moment, but the impeachment of Judge Hlophe, or any judge, has big effects on how trustworthy the courts are in South Africa. It shows how important it is for judges to follow the highest moral rules, obey the law, and respect the constitution.
Ms Breytenbach said it shows that everyone, no matter how important they are, has to follow the law.
The Economic Freedom Fighters party voted against the impeachments. MP Busisiwe Mkhwebane said the judges were sorry and should be allowed to live in peace for the rest of their lives.
“Can we just let Judge Motata, who made a mistake, retire at home and enjoy his retirement. ” We know that Hlophe was very experienced and did his work with respect. “Let’s punish the ANC government,” she said in parliament, and her party’s supporters cheered.
Lawyer Alison Tilley from the group Judges Matter said the removals were a big moment in the country’s history.
“It took a while, but it proves that the systems to hold the judiciary accountable do work. ” We now have systems in place that make us feel sure that the same process won’t take as much time.
The most luminous object ever detected has been observed in the distant Universe.
This object, known as J0529-4351, is a quasar, which is the bright core of a galaxy powered by an enormous black hole that is 17 billion times the mass of our Sun.
The object’s immense power was confirmed through observations made by the Very Large Telescope in Chile.
Scientists, reporting in the journal Nature Astronomy, say the black hole has a voracious appetite, consuming the mass equivalent to one Sun every day.
J0529-4351 was actually recorded in data many years ago but its true glory has only just been recognised.
“We have discovered an object which has previously not been recognised for what it is; it’s been staring into our eyes for many years because it’s been glowing at its brightness for longer than humankind has probably existed. But we’ve now recognised it, not as being one of the many foreground stars in our Milky Way but as a very distant object,” Christian Wolf, from the Australian National University (ANU), told BBC News.
A quasar is a type of Active Galactic Nucleus (AGN), identified by astronomers as the highly energetic core of a galaxy. It is powered by an enormous black hole that is actively pulling matter towards itself at an incredibly rapid rate.
As this matter is drawn into the black hole, it is accelerated and torn apart, emitting a vast amount of light. This emission is so intense that even an object as distant as J0529-4351, located billions of light-years away, is still observable to us.
The light from this quasar has traveled an astonishing 12 billion years to reach the detectors at the Very Large Telescope (VLT), which is part of the European Southern Observatory organization.
Overall, the characteristics of this object are truly remarkable.
“What is unusual is the rate at which it’s digesting other material; you know, swallowing mass. And that’s at the rate of about one Sun – one solar mass – per day, which is an enormous rate. And that makes it very, very luminous,” said Rachel Webster from the University of Melbourne.
The brightness of this quasar is estimated to be equivalent to more than 500 trillion suns. The hot accretion disc responsible for this luminosity measures about seven light-years in diameter, approximately 15,000 times the distance from the Sun to the orbit of Neptune.
The presence of supermassive objects at the cores of all galaxies suggests that these entities play a fundamental role in the evolution of galaxies.
“In simple language, it means that without these black holes, our galaxy as we know it wouldn’t be what it is today. In fact, all galaxies would be very different without their supermassive black holes. In fact, it may even be possible that all galaxies form around these supermassive black holes,” ANU PhD student and co-author Samuel Lai said.
The puzzle is how some of the black holes got so big so early in the Universe. This is leading scientists to consider a scenario in which the objects grew directly out of the gas that existed just after the Big Bang, perhaps even before the first stars formed.
We’ve a huge crisis looming which requires much thinking and tenacity, says M’membe
By Kholiwe Miti
BECAUSE of these socio-economic challenges government is likely to resort to suppression of fundamental human rights such as freedom of assembly, association, expression and speech, says Socialist Party leader Fred M’membe.
He says without enough stocks of maize, “especially if we make a mistake of importing mealie meal like we are doing currently although ZNS is saying it’s importing for the DRC which is so foolish not to import for itself – our milling plants will not have stocks of maize for their operations, which means jobs will be lost”.
“There will be job losses in the milling industry and on livestock farms. We certainly have a huge crisis looming, which requires much thinking, much honesty, and much tenacity. But Mr Hichilema and his minions do not have any of these qualities,” Dr M’membe says. “That is why today, despite having denounced the National Day of Prayer as being useless, Mr Hichilema is turning to prayer. We know they’re worried. They’re panicking, but worry and panic without reason is dangerous.”
Commenting on the looming crop failure due to the drought the country is facing, Dr M’membe claimed that President Hakainde
Hichilema has been clear to “his friends in the EU and the US that he can’t allow these liberties when the country is undergoing austerity measures”.
“Since he came to power, Mr Hichilema has never allowed any political rally for anybody else other than himself and his minions,” he said. “They’re running the country like we are under a state of emergency. Literally, all freedoms and liberties of citizens and political opponents in a normal democracy are supposed to enjoy have been taken away.”
Dr M’meembe, in an article on his Facebook page, said President Hichilema has resolved to abuse the public order Act with impunity.
“We are in a very autocratic space where nobody except Mr Hichilema and his minions are free to express themselves, assemble, associate, and protest. He has resolved to abuse the public order Act with impunity by citing the austerity programme,” he said. “This is a position he has proudly shared with his Western friends to justify his dictatorship. There is a tin pot dictator on the rise in Zambia, and the West has chosen to pay a blind eye. What hypocrisy! Can Western governments deny their citizens’ rights and freedoms on account of austerity measures? Which government in the West can ban protests and political rallies and remain in office? But they have allowed Mr Hichilema to get away with it. It won’t work. We shall not allow it. This is not how you govern a country. This is not how you unite a country. Things can’t continue in this way. We make a clarion call to all Zambians of goodwill to unite and fight for our existence as a people with fundamental human rights.”
Dr M’membe warned that if the food situation is not handled carefully, the government might resort to importing GMO mealie meal for consumption.
“We are patriots, we do not want to defeat Mr Hakainde Hichilema and his corrupt tribal puppet regime on the back of national failure. And we know that crop failure is looming. By June/July this year, if nothing is done, the price of our staple food and mealie meal will more than double. The options are very limited and if these people are not careful they will end up feeding this country with imported genetically modified (GMO) mealie meal, most probably from South Africa,” he said. “Other than boasting, posturing, and lack of humility, there’s absolutely nothing that they are doing to mitigate the looming threat of immense hardship ahead of us. They probably think a miracle will happen! There will be no miracles! Bembas say Lesa tapela muminwe apalamika fye. Chachine, inshiku sha kwa Noah shalipita kale. Tashakabwele. Modern human-beings must produce their own food. They can’t live by hunting and gathering anymore.”
Dr M’membe said that if there is crop failure in the country, the prices of other foods and livestock would rise.
“If there is a crop failure, as it seems to be the case in this situation, it means food has to be imported. This is much more so because in his wisdom, Mr Hichilema decided to nearly wipe out all the maize reserves. They sold the maize that could have been used as reserves to the DRC and other countries. The country is literally left without any food reserves. Even the financial reserves needed to enable us to import maize or mealie meal have also been depleted. Clearly, they have created a mess, which they are trying to get us out of by guesswork,” said Dr M’membe. “And it’s not only mealie-meal that will be affected. Stockfeed will also be affected, which means the price of chicken, pork, beef, and other livestock products will also go up.”- The Mast
Esther Lungu seeks suspension of forfeiture case few days before main hearing
WITH only few days left to have her day in Court and explain how she managed to acquire her 15-semi-luxurious flats, former First Lady Esther Lungu has asked the Economic and Financial crimes Court to halt her ‘graft’ so that she can challenge one of its rulings.
Esther had asked the Court to refer her graft case to the Constitutional Court for a determination on whether the Chief Justice has power to constitute the EFCC through a statutory instrument as a division of the High Court.
She argued that there is a difference between a specialized Court and a division of the High Court.
Judge Pixie Yangailo who delivered a ruling on behalf of Mwanajiti Mabbolobbolo and Vincent Siloka said the Court’s obligation to refer a question to the Constitutional Court for determination is not triggered by a mere application for referral but on whether the question meets the threshold for the same.
Judge Yangailo said Esther cannot use the forfeiture proceedings to challenge the enactment of the fast track court as she should have petitioned the ConCourt for redress.
“The application for constitutional reference is denied. Consequently it follows that the application for a stay of these proceedings is dismissed,” she said.
The Court also expunged some paragraphs from Emmanuel Khondowe’s affidavit in support the motion for the confiscation of Esther’s semi-luxurious flats, on reasons that they offend Order 5 Rule (16) of the High Court Rules.
Esther had also raised a preliminary issue on Emmanuel Khondowe’s interest in the matter, for deposing an affidavit when he is not a public prosecutor.
However judge Yangailo directed that the affidavit in support of the application is not supposed to be sworn by a public prosecutor for it to be properly before Court.
She said Khondowe investigated the case and he is the right person to depose to the affidavit as he has personal knowledge of the facts of the case.
“The contention by Esther that Khondowe has no locus standi lacks merit,” judge Yangailo ruled.
In relation to the argument by Esther that Khondowe is not a certified bean counter to analyze her financial status and draw a conclusion that the property is tainted, the Court guided that the former First Lady is at liberty to challenge the findings of the investigations officer.
“This court in considering this application will make a decision based on the facts before it and is not bound by the evidence of a qualified person,” judge Yangailo said.
She ruled that it is insignificant to institute criminal proceedings and prove that the 15 double storey houses are tainted before a non-conviction based forfeiture can be considered, as the subject for determination is in the application.
Judge Yangailo added that in the event that Esther is found wanting she has the opportunity to prove the legitimacy or interest in the alleged tainted properties.
The Court slated hearing of the main case for March 21, 2024 but Esther has hinted of her intentions to challenge the decision before the Court of Appeal as she was dissatisfied with the ruling.
In an affidavit in support of ex-parte summons for an order to stay proceedings pending determination of interested party’s appeal against a composite ruling, Esther said the appeal may be rendered nugatory as the main case is scheduled for next month.
She said her right to a fair trial might be infringed on.
Esther argues that the jury erred when it ruled that the specialized Court enacted by the Chief Justice is a division of the High Court.
She said the Court erred when it held that the matter was properly commenced.
Esther said the Court erred in law and in fact in failing to pronounce itself on her application to set aside the case for irregularity.
In this case the DPP has requested the Court to penalise the landlady by forfeiting her 15 semi-luxurious houses worth K41.5 million on reasons that they were acquired using illegal means.
Male Jackson Chama 30 of makeni was arrested yesterday 2 days after issuing tribal remarks on his tiktok page after a Kalomo man complained.on a trending Jackson was seen warning Tongas of hardships ahead after the UPND leave office.
Hon Chishimba Kambwili was also arrested and convicted over a similar offence yet his self confessed accomplice who is also an MP for Choma central constituency,UPND party spokes person as well as Govt Spokeperson is still roaming the streets despite self revealing that the two whilst jointly and acting together worked very well to orchestrate tribal remarks which were issued by Hon Kambwili.
Dr Fred M’membe of the Socialist Party reported the matter to the police but as usual our police haven’t disappointed in dragging their feets to arrest the suspect due to his current Govt position like they used to do with previous PeP individuals who are now so cheap and vulnerable for arrests by anyone wearing a uniform even wa G3 or Cadets can manage to lock them up.
What baffles me is how our Police officers become tight legged arresting serving Govt officials whilst too swift to arrest ordinary citizens,where is equity and fairness in the application of the law?
Should we also wait until UPND leave power or Hon Mweetwa get fired for the police to get the courage to arrest him ?
Why has our police been reduced to mare scavengers who just prey on ordinary poor citizens and persons whose political influence has expired?
Anyways the self confession of working together very well in issuing tribal remarks are preserved on the media,we shall exhume them mapepe yakapusuka,who thought that once powerful political figure could be reduced to ordinary kapususus who can be bundled and arrested for leisure whenever police get bored.
UPND are now groping in the dark, we know what is going on – Lungu
By Fanny Kalonda
WHAT has happened is that everything is being managed from State House, says former president Edgar Lungu.
“We held power before and we know exactly what went wrong and we know exactly what is going on now and what is wrong,” he says.
Lungu accused the current administration of destroying everying adding that they are now “groping in the dark.”
Featuring on Radio Delight Kwitonta of Muchinga Province on Sunday, Lungu accused the government of frustrating Zambians.
“Zambians have woken up. Me I woke up a long time and I can tell you they have done nothing. There was no magic in how we succeeded pantu (because) we succeeded by listening to those who are better. Nomba pantu bena niba best, mwamona apo batusha (But because they are the best, you see where they have left us). You cannot have everything managed from State House. Leave the line ministry to deal with these issues. Issues of agriculture should be dealt with by the Ministry of Agriculture. You have your minister, he reports to you in cabinet and you have your secretary he reports to the Secretary to the Cabinet and the government has mechanisms for making sure that these standalone ministries are synchronised with others and are being able to deliver. But what has happened is that everything is being managed from State House,” he said. “So we did not manage these things from State House, that’s how we succeeded. And if these line ministries had difficulties, they always reported to me through the appropriate channels, saying Mr president we are having difficulties in this. Either funding or technical support is not forthcoming and then me as supervisor would make sure that I whip this one in line. But what is happening now is everything has to go through State House and civil servants are very frustrated. And they regret every morning when they wake up because they don’t think that that is how the civil service is supposed to run. So we succeeded again by being careful with what we do and learning from the best and introducing a new system. Obviously, we brought in stakeholders and inquired from them. We want to do this, we think this is how it will work and they would always tell us, have you looked at this aspect…”
Lungu said the UPND government did not mean well for the people.
“We were experts because we allowed the experts to give us guidance and these people who came and said they knew how to be farmers, destroyed everything and now they are groping in the dark. That’s why kuli insala (there’s hunger). And iyi insala ishileko, Lesa abikapo na drought (with this huger God has also added the drought) . Immediately they saw that the crop was failing countrywide, they should have triggered a mechanism of engaging the commercial farmers. The big farmers who are known and engage them to say twalacita shani, tufwayeko amataba (what shall we do, let’s look for maize)…,” Lungu said. “But they cannot think because they don’t know. The funny part and the worst part, which is annoying, is that we have experts. We have ministers who are there. [Michael] Katambo is still in parliament, my minister of agriculture. I am not saying he’s the best person but they can talk to him and he can tell them how we used to do it. And apart from that, you know what they have done? They went into ministries like agriculture and health and pruned everyone who had institutional memory, who had contacts, who is an expert, because they belonged to PF or probably they belonged to the wrong ethnic grouping.”
Lungu also accused President Hichilema of exaggerating the levels of caderism that was there under the PF administration.
“Caderism is bad. Going into the future, the Zambians have said yes they don’t want to have caderism. We will make sure we take measures in place to make sure that caderism is eradicated, which they have not done,” he said.
And Lungu said the government should not be ashamed to admit failure.
“Beumfwa insoni bepusheko abaishiba, abafibombapo… Nafilwa, nganafilwa uwafishiba… kwipusha ifwe fwebafibombelemo. Kukweba ati ni apa na apa; tinika apa (I have failed, if I fail those who know…ask those of us who have done it before. We shall tell you that it’s here and here; press here),” Lungu said further.
He said PF understands what is going on and what is wrong.
“We are the most experienced political party in existence now apart from UNIP, I don’t know if they are still there. Apart from MMD, I don’t know if they are there. We held power before and we know exactly what went wrong and we know exactly what is going on now and what is wrong. So we are the most prevalent in terms of experience and knowledge. And we have the resource which is required, which is necessary to tap in, to exist as an opposition political force and form government. So there is no doubt PF is still existing. PF has got a president, me. PF has got SG (secretary general) that is (Raphael) Nakacinda. PF has a vice-president who is Given Lubinda. So tekweba ati ngawaisafye nobufufuntungu (It’s not that you just come with crookedness), you see nobukangalume, waisafye waiposafye ati iyo nine muka balya bamayo balya nimbapoka abalume; takwaba uko bacita ifyo naimwe ((with an iron fist, you just throw yourself and say I am the owner of this wife, I have grabbed her from the husband; you don’t do that!)” he explained. “We were listening to experts and that’s how we did it. Ifwe palwesu, inkama yabapo twalelanshanya mu cabinet, te cabinet ya muntu umo. Amano yashinguluke umuntu umo, takwaba. So ifwe kwena I think we were experts. (For us the secret is that we used to discuss in Cabinet, it’s not one man’s cabinet. One person possessing all the wisdom, there’s no such a thing. So for us, I think we were experts).”
Lungu said if PF was still in power by now they would have found a way of resolving the debt issue.
Asked for his position on the education sector, Lungu said, “We have to revisit what we are seeing. Abaana (children), there is no quality education ati (that) I want to be a pharmacist because I like farming. That’s a joke. But I am telling you that they have diluted the level of education and the quality of education. It’s unfair especially to those people abashakwata indalama (those without money). The quality of education is zero,” said Lungu. “We had borrowed, yes, and we were going to pay and if we had been in charge of the country by now we would have found a way of resolving this indebtedness.”- The Mast
From the time Zambians voted the Patriotic Front out of government, we have seen an avalanche of attacks on those who served in the previous government. We have also witnessed a barrage of scorn, ridicule and outright gagging of former president Edgar Lungu.
Whenever he has opened his mouth even in good faith, he has received criticism, both justified and unjustified. We remember writing and publishing an editorial comment in September last year where we advised the UPND government against gagging Edgar.
Yet, the trend has continued viciously, especially after he announced his political come back. And just as we said then we repeat that Edgar’s come back was orchestrated by the UPND who have proved that they have had no agenda of their own to govern this country other than blaming Edgar and the PF. They cried for the mandate to govern this country and Zambians gave them after they promised paradise. Almost three years in office, the new dawn government has been blaming PF for almost everything. Whatever PF did, Zambians punished them by voting them out. So it is incompetence of the highest order for the UPND to keep blaming PF for all their time in office. They have the keys to government, and so they should just work and deliver.
We have also noticed that some of our fellow citizens have nothing to talk about other than waiting for Edgar to say something then they attack him. It’s like they can’t initiate ideas of their own – they’re just a bunch of reactionaries who praise President Hakainde Hichilema even when they are also affected by his incompetent leadership.
It is not our mandate to worship any leader the way they’re worshiping Hakainde. Yes, Edgar made mistakes but he also did a lot of good things. At least even when he was campaigning to succeed Michael Sata he did not promise big things like Hakainde did. Besides, Edgar would never talk too much like Hakainde who talks more than he works. The point here is that Edgar is a Zambian who should be allowed to speak and interact with his fellow citizens. If those in leadership have failed, let them admit instead of always blaming Edgar and the PF for everything. We will not be surprised if they blame Edgar for the many foreign trips Hakainde has taken in a very short period.
We have also noticed that whenever Edgar keeps quiet, some UPND mouthpieces also run out of what to say. The moment he says something, they wake up from slumber and compete in issuing empty statements in order to be noticed by Hakainde. They quickly turn themselves into Hakainde’s dogs of war. We urge them to find issues of their own to talk about. This country is in a crisis.
The economy is bleeding, civic space has shrunk, and the Judiciary and Legislature have been swallowed by the Executive arm of government. Just when we thought we had brought in gentlemen and women who would follow the rule of law as they campaigned, lo and behold, we are treated to shameless mingalato. The same things they were condemning Edgar for, they have tripled them without shame. They are totally stranded. They don’t know what to do with the mandate Zambians gave them. It’s mistake upon mistake from the super economist. We therefore ask them to find better things to talk about other than Edgar. Zambians are tired of this topic, please! Work and show Zambians the results or else just keep quiet.-The Mast
Fire Mweetwa in public interest, demands Christian Coalition
By Rhoda Nthara
CHRISTIAN Coalition Zambia has demanded that President Hakainde Hichilema fires chief government spokesperson and information minister Cornelius Mweetwa.
Last Monday, Mweetwa revealed that his party had worked with PF central committee member Chishimba Kambwili to promote hate speech to make Zambians hate then president Edgar Lungu and vote against him.
“We expected by now Mr Lungu to see through his political schemes. And I can now begin to disclose that we worked well with Mr Chishimba Kambwili to bring down Edgar Lungu. That’s the reason why he didn’t go with his party into PF, he left it. He said ‘no, remain here, me I will just go and issue tribal remarks. The person I’m representing will be hated by the citizens’. And that’s what happened,” said Mweetwa.
Reacting to the statement, Christian Coalition Zambia president Clergy Chombela said Mweetwa’s statement suggesting collaboration in making tribal remarks not only undermines the democratic process but also damages national unity and social cohesion.
“As the President we urge you to put up an investigating team, we demand that the minister be fired in public interest as the statement is contrary to what the new dawn claim to stand for which is uniting the nation,” he said.“ Hon Cornelius Mweetwa’s statement is an embarrassment to democracy and we advocate for an investigation into the matter. Additionally, it calls for President Hakainde Hichilema (HH) to show leadership by taking appropriate action, including the potential dismissal of Mr Mweetwa.”
Chombela said political discourse is very important in any democratic system.
“However, as a nation we need responsible political discourse which is vital for the health of our democracy,” he said.
Chombela said Zambia needs leaders who will have respectful communication, constructive criticism and the avoidance of inflammatory language or tribal remarks.
He said it is imperative that a thorough investigation be conducted.
“This investigation should aim to uncover the truth behind the claim and hold those responsible accountable for their actions. Only through a transparent investigation can we ensure that our political leaders are held to the highest standards of integrity and ethical conduct,” Chombela said. “We hope that the President will take this matter seriously because the statement made by the chief government spokesperson has brought embarrassment to the government and the nation as a whole. It reflects poorly on the leadership of the country and raises questions about the moral compass of those in power. Such remarks not only tarnish the reputation of the ruling party but also damage the image of Zambia on the international stage.”
He explained that the embarrassment caused by the statement also necessitates swift action to rectify the situation.
“We urge President Hakainde Hichilema as a person whom the Zambian people elected to take responsibility and to show the Zambian people strong leadership and address the issue promptly. He must demonstrate his commitment to upholding the principles of responsible governance, unity and national cohesion. Firing Mweetwa, if found guilty of making tribal remarks would send a clear message that such behaviour will not be tolerated under his leadership,” he said. “We also make a call to all political leaders especially those in government to be sober minded and be cautious of the statements they make because to maintain a thriving democracy it is crucial that political leaders prioritise the values of inclusivity, respect and accountability.”
Chombela said President Hichilema has an opportunity to set a precedent for his administration by taking decisive action against any form of tribalism or inflammatory rhetoric.
“By doing so, he can foster an environment conducive to constructive dialogue and national progress. The recent statement made by the chief government spokesperson regarding collaboration in making tribal remarks is not only embarrassing but also undermines the principles of responsible political discourse,” said Chombela- The Mast
The National Biosafety Authority – NBA has seized and destroyed twenty five bags by 25 kilograms of mealie meal that may contain genetically modified organisms – GMOs, in Kazungula-Southern Province.
In a statement released in Lusaka, NBA Communications Officer Sandra Lombe said the bags of mealie meal were intercepted by the inspectors and other enforcement agencies.
She said last Friday a joint team of law enforcement agencies seized 12 bags of Papa Super maize meal which was found in the district believed to have been offloaded from a truck and placed on the market illegally.
Ms. Lombe adds that this followed a tip-off alert from members of the public who were suspicious of the product.
“Further investigations led to the Authority seizing another 13 bags of the mealie meal which may contain GMOs. The products were seized as they were placed on the market without prior authorization from the Authority. The traders have no permit to either import or place on the market the mealie meal. The Biosafety Act prohibits anyone to bring into the country a product of a GMO or GMOs without prior authorization from the NBA. The products were also seized as risk assessment had not been conducted on them to ascertain their safety,” she said.
“The two traders were arrested by the Zambia Police and taken to court where it was determined that the products be destroyed. An unknown trucker is believed to have offloaded the mealie meal in Kazungula. Investigations have been instituted into the matter.” Ms. Lombe said.
The NBA has since commended the residents of Kazungula for being alert and calls on the public and traders to desist from dealing in products which may contain GMOs without seeking prior authorization from the NBA.
“We have been engaging the public on our regulatory role and what to look out for. We are happy with positive response from general public on being alert and able to come forth with such vital information.” Ms. Lombe said.
“The Authority would like to warn transit permit holders not to offload on the Zambian market any of the GMOs and their products transiting as they risk their authorization being cancelled and the law taking its course,” she adds.
