PEOPLE ARE SAYING “BALEYA ABA BANTU MU 2026” SAYS ELVIS, A PROMINENT RADIO CALLER
…as Greyford Monde bemoans the closure of businesses under the New Dawn Administration due to the high cost of living
Lusaka, Friday, December 2, 2022 (Smart Eagles)
If there is a party, in Zambia’s history, that has lost popularity in one year, it is the UPND because they over promised during Campaigns, a concerned Citizen and prominent Radio Caller Elvis has said.
Elvis said this when he phoned in on Radio Phoenix ‘Let the People Talk’ programme which featured Patriotic Front Presidential Hopeful Greyford Monde.
Elvis said individual farmers were promised 8 bags of fertilizer and a reduced price of the commodity, but the current scenario indicates that the opposite has happened.
He said the promise to reduce fertilizer to K250 has not come to fruition as the commodity is now fetching at over K1200.
He said the President further Hoodwinked the Zambian people about reducing the price of Fuel just for the sake of politics.
“When the President was In the opposition, he was telling the people that the PF was stealing three kwacha, we are going to remove the cartels, the Price of fuel is very expensive in Zambia, we shall make sure that it comes to K12, didn’t he know when he was saying these things that there are market forces driving the price of fuel, didn’t he know that Zambia does not produce fuel, today Fuel is K27 from K17,” he lamented.
Elvis said in as much as it is commendable that the current administration has employed Nurses and Teachers, they must be reminded that it is the duty for every government to employ Civil servants.
He said the Government should be reminded that when those employed are hit with a high cost of living, things are bound to go sour.
Elvis said “Today, people are so angry that they are saying that 2026 baleya aba Bantu.”
Meanwhile, Hon Greyford Monde said it is unfortunate that Zambia has the most expensive fuel in the region.
He said it would have been Prudent to leave the fuel prices stable and review only when there is need.
And Hon Monde added that the monthly fuel review is not doing well compared to the System the previous Government had which worked well.
“The Consumers are the ones complaining that this is not working. Where is the UPND learning what they are doing, you can change bit to decide to make such radical changes which are impacting lives of the people , it is not correct. The fuel that was 17 is now almost fetching K29….,” he said.
Hon Monde said what is surprising is that the UPND without their imaginary cartels which were allegedly there in the fuel supply Chain, they have failed to reduce the price of the commodities as promised.
“With cartels not involved, then they say they do not want to take responsibility, that’s failure. There is no country in this world that does not subsidise its citizens,” he said.
He said most people have closed their businesses because the cost of living is now high.
And Hon Monde has noted that it is wrong to pay for the real value of the product if the citizens are complaining.
“If Government is saying this is the real value of fuel, why can’t government come and say the real value of a teacher given the price of fuel ,given the prices of fertilizer and cooking oil , given that put together, what is the real value of a person working for 30 days, jt would be beyond K20,000. If you dont give people K20,000 how do you expect them to live. If they want to apply that, let them also apply that in real terms and pay people…..,” he said.
