WE’RE IN THIS ECONOMIC MESS BECAUSE OF UPND – KALABA
… they are wasting our time because there is nothing they are doing apart from gallivanting all over
Lusaka… Friday, January 27, 2023 (Smart Eagles)
Citizens First Party president Harry Kalaba has blamed the currently economic hardships on the New Dawn Administration.
Speaking when he featured on DC Talk Radio today, Hon Kalaba said the high cost of living is as a result of the UPND’s reckless managerial decisions.
The opposition leader blasted the UPND for giving the mines tax holidays while Zambians are wallowing in poverty.
“It is good to understand that the high cost of living has been brought about by the UPND government and not the PF. It is the UPND government thought their reckless management decisions. The UPND government, the first thing they did was to give money to the mines,” he said.
“Remember what they did, that instead of them having Mineral Royalty Tax not being taxed, they combined it with Cooperation Tax so that the mines now can have a free window. What they have done basically is that they have given tax holidays, they have allowed mines not to be paying taxes, or they should be paying less taxes for the next five years.”
President Kalaba said while prices of essential commodities are escalating, mines are popping Champaign bottles.
He said Zambians are suffering because government has removed subsidies on fuel among other things.
“That is what government has done. And because government has made that reckless decision, the mines now are drinking wine and Champaign and the people that are now suffering are the Zambians,” he said.
“They are suffering as a result of government has now removed subsidies on energy products like fuel and they have also removed on electricity. As a result of the removal of these subsidies, you play with energy, the prices of commodities just escalate. All this has been triggered by the insatiable greedy for the UPND government to give concessions to the mines. So the mines should be happy while Zambians are suffering.”
And president Kalaba frowned at UPND’s tendency of blaming their failures on the PF regime.
“And this nonsense of always trying to refer to the previous regime is not correct. It is irritating to see them blame their failures on their predecessor. It’s the same as you get a wife from another man and when you fail to give the woman a baby you start saying even that man didn’t give her a child,” he said.
“The UPND are wasting your time, they are wasting my time because there is nothing they are doing apart from gallivanting all over…The PF had many flaws, that is why some of us resigned. But even when the PF had many flaws, I don’t think that gives the UPND an open check to always be talking about the previous regime.”