UPND HAS FAILED, ZAMBIANS MUST BRACE THEMSELVES FOR DIFFICULTY TIMES NEXT YEAR, WARNS GBM
By Correspondent Reporter
PF presidential aspiring candidate, Geoffrey Bwalya Mwamba has observed that the delay by the UPND government to distribute farming inputs to small scale farmers in the 2022 – 2023 farming season will negatively impact the food basket of the country.
Commenting on the cries by most farmers across the country who have not received their inputs by yet, Mwamba, popularly known as GBM and former vice president in the UPND, says he is shocked that President Hakainde Hichilema is failing to do simple things which he promised the people of Zambia.
He said what was more confusing is the fact that President Hichilema boasted of being a successful farmer who understood the needs in the sector better than anybody else.
Mwamba said while in the opposition, President Hichilema promised early delivery of inputs but wonders how he was failing to address the challenges peasant farmers were experiencing in the distribution chain.
“I was his vice president and among the key economic issues that we (then) said should be top of our priority was farming. Sadly my brother is failing to see what he saw then in the opposition. He is failing to even use his calculator to manage the prices. He has neglected the very economic sector he said was capable of creating over 2 million jobs for Zambians and feed the entire Southern region in exports and earn more foreign currency,” he said.
Mwamba said it is clear now with the failures the UPND has exhibited that the PF performed better in the sector, adding that Zambians should expect much more harder times under the foreign centred policies of the UPND.
He said in the last few weeks he has been overwhelmed by different small scale farmer groups from Southern, Eastern, Northern, North Western, Copperbelt and Central Provinces asking for support of cheaper and affordable inputs .
“Just yesterday, have had meetings at my office with leaders of various cooperatives who are asking me what has gone wrong with Mr. Hichilema who promised cheaper and affordable fertilisers to farmers? These cooperatives want us to support them as they fear that hunger will strike this country next year because of the delay in the distribution of inputs,” he said.
Mwamba has appealed to the UPND administration to learn from the previous government how it managed the agriculture sector and the procurement and distribution process of inputs five months before the farming season starts.
“This government is a failed project and it is good that Zambians are seeing it for themselves. The future of this country under the UPND is bleprocessing is under serious threat, it is heading towards the coma and by next year things in this country will be worse. Only the foreign interests will enjoy living in this country and not poor Zambians,” he said.
Mwamba said just like the UPND government has given free visas to foreign interests, Zambians should expect all sectors of the economy to be run by foreigners connected to State House.
Government has todate not distributed the 2022 – 2023 farming inputs to small scale farmers across the country, while most cooperatives started paying their K400 last week.