Anthony Bwalya writes………✍️
Fellow citizens,
LET US NOT BE CHEATED
By August 2021 when oil prices were hovering around $70 per barrel, the PF regime were borrowing around $67m per month to finance their fuel subsidy program.
Note that all local borrowing associated with this very expensive, unsustainable subsidy program by the PF, was also partly responsible for diverting critical capital away from our SMEs as g local banks preferred to lend to government than to SMEs, while any available headroom for banks to lend to SMEs came at a heavy premium of over 28%.
This is why, in part, the economy died; there were zero growth opportunities for SMEs.
To make the situation worse, the PF regime, rather than taking the money they were collecting at the pump to paying international oil suppliers, they simply squandered the money – hence the $627m UNPAID invoices they left us with.
Needless to mention, that the PF fuel subsidy program was also costing Zambians jobs in the health and education sectors, Army, Air-force, ZNS, Police; as well as eroding opportunities for local community development.
The PF – run fuel subsidy program had simply become unsustainable and counterproductive to the economy – with our country credit profile having failed, no one was willing to lend the PF regime any money, while suppliers were on the verge of withholding supplies.
We were sitting on a ticking time bomb.
Simply put, the PF were like an irresponsible parent leading a debt funded luxury lifestyle, only to be paid for by his children when he is long dead and gone.
Today, oil prices are around $90 per barrel. A fuel subsidy program similar to what the PF were doing would cost us around $80m per month or approximately $960m per year, if not over $1bn!!!
President Hakainde Hichilema and the UPND have done the difficult but RESPONSIBLE thing: cut subsidies on fuel, cut irresponsible local borrowing and restore our national credit profile – interest rates are now lower than 17%, meaning cheaper access to capital for SMEs and a lower cost of money for individuals.
We are dismantling PF arrears on fuel, over $500m worth; we are redirecting resources towards citizens’ programs such as public sector employment, community development via CDF, FREE EDUCATION, dismantling pensions arrears and expanding support to the most vulnerable.
To top all of this up, macroeconomic stability is back – inflation is at 9.7% from 24% under the PF, Kwacha is stable and performing brilliantly against other currencies, economic growth is back on a positive path at +2% from less than -2%.
Fellow citizens, you cannot solve the problem around the cost of living without REBUILDING THE ECONOMY – Takwaba, elyo takwakabe ( In Simon Mwewa’s voice).
The President is working and you fellow citizens, the ones who elected him, will judge him on the strength of actual deliverables come 2026.
We are facing past and current problems head – on, responsibly paying our way through them, and creating a solid base for future generations to face and solve their own problems.
I submit.