Removal of ERB Bosses is not the solution, reinstate the old prices.
…TAZAMA and INDENI remain sure way to guarantee cheaper prices…
By Amb. Emmanuel Mwamba
Reports indicate that the Minister of Energy, Hon. Peter Kapala has removed Energy Regulation Board Chairperson Eng. Reynolds Bowa and Director General, Mr. Yohane Mukabe.
This week, ERB increased the price of fuel at pump station by a whopping K7.50 for Petrol.
ERB also approved multi-year tariff increases for ZESCO and North Western Energy Corporation.
The wild increases are not surprising as they reflect the turmoil in the economy with a volatile exchange rate market, rising inflation rate and the huge debt owed to oil marketing companies, that has risen from $400million as at August 2021 to $800million.
So I’m surprised that the duo at ERB can be removed as they acted within their statutory powers looking at the environment.
You can’t wish low prices when you have abandoned primary state participation in the oil sector.
If they did something irregular, Kapala must order the reinstatement of old prices for fuel and electricity tariffs.
Further the ultimate solution to low and stable prices remain TAZAMA and INDENI Oil refinery.
When you import a crude oil tanker, it would provide cheaper fuel and stability of prices for 3 months.
Our friends have turned TAZAMA into a finished product carrier and INDENI into a methanol/alcohol blender.
Further, INDENI has been converted to an oil marketing company!
These decisions cannot mitigate or help control fuel prices.
The chaos at ZESCO is being driven by greed, corruption, tribalism and extremely poor management.
These are national strategic assets that guaranteed national oil, fuel supply and energy security thereby guaranteed national security.
BaMwamba, let me remind you that you and fellow PF misleaders and gangsters left unpaid 627 million US dollars (not kwacha) in the oil industry. Please have some shame and human decency before assuming you are on any moral high ground on this matter. Please just shut the FARK up.
As for the 2 who have been removed, they will be replaced by better performing individuals. Why the anguish over these 2? Were they PF sympathisers?
The entire Ministry of Energy has not preformed well so far.
1. The issue of low water levels for power generation should have been forecast way before we got to this level and appropriate measures should have been implemented then;
2. The haphazard loadshedding we are currently subjected to should is totally unacceptable;
3. There appear to be no tangible plans to address the sabotage of power in the short and long term;
4. All the talk about Tazama pipeline and the expected stability in prices of fuel have come to nothing.
Totally agreed. The Minister and government became aware of the eminent changes from the same Mwamba leakages. Why didnt their intelligence fact check or call the two.
ERB is an independent body. Then why have it if they are going to keep running to government for approval. Kapala has just failed over and over and he needs to go not these two.
What exactly did they do wrong? Guidelines as to how they were suppose to work as ERB were given, their role as an independent board is work within the broad guidelines given in the act that the law states. Kapala just loves puppets and he has and had no confidence in those he appointed to run the institution and any subsequent appointees wont effectively run the institution independently. Lets have thinkers of men that are being exposed for futher higher leadership positions not parots. UPND youre on the right tract with the efforts that youre making. Tough calls but necessary given where we are coming from. Those like Mwamba want you to fail and the end of the day the country will never go beyond the empty rethoric and speeches that you make with little traction in numbers or reality.
Kapala must go…enough of his meddling and sleeping on the job. He should have called ERB if he wanted to object to the increases…he is not the market. The market spoke amd appropriate action was taken.