VERY LITTLE WILL HAPPEN
…from 2022 budget, Mweetwa informs Southerners
By Ben Mbangu in Choma
SOUTHERN Province minister Cornelius Mweetwa says the high cost of living in the country has nothing to do with the UPND government.
Mweetwa informed Southerners that the 2022 developmental programme in Southern Province and Choma particularly, “very little will happen this year going by what is in the budget.”
Responding to callers during a governance interactive programme on Choma Maanu Radio dubbed Cikoye Kohuna Liso anchored by Cornhill Choolwe, Mweetwa said the PF left a huge mess in economy.
“The high cost of living we are experiencing in the country has nothing to do with the UPND but purely effects of a bad governance system of PF which left us with huge debts,” he said.
Mweetwa said it was not right for citizens to force a new government to fulfill all its campaign promises in a short period.
He explained that development was a programme that can’t be done in one day.
“When you take up leadership, it does not mean you start doing things you want just there and then but instead you follow what is in the national budget. When you take over leadership you just fulfill programmes that are approved in that year’s budget,” Mweetwa explained.
He reminded people that resources allocated in the national budget does not mean everything was readily available but had to be raised through revenue and other sources.
“As people of Southern Province and particularly Choma, yes you are within your rights to demand for development, especially to do with township roads. But please bear with us the new dawn government. We found a huge debt hence very little development will happen this year. The 2022 developmental programme in Southern Province and Choma particularly, very little will happen this year going by what is in the budget,” explained Mweetwa. “The budget for roads is K2 billion but unfortunately PF left us with a huge debt of K12 billion under local government ministry meant for roads only and as per requirement when you assume government you take over everything. So we took over this K12 billion. No wonder very little is happening in terms of roads because we are servicing the loans.”