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Zambian Parliament is a mess - Prof Chirwa

Zambian Parliament is a mess - Prof Chirwa
Written by Patson Chilemba
Saturday, July 25, 2009 7:30:40 PM

MMD presidential aspirant Professor Clive Chirwa on Wednesday said he might join another political party should his presidential aspirations fail in the MMD. And Prof Chirwa said the Zambian Parliament is a mess and a great shame to the intellectuality of the nation.

During the newsmakers forum held at Lusaka Playhouse organised by the Press Freedom Committee of The Post under the theme Challenges facing the next President after 2011 and how they can be solved”, Prof Chirwa said he had come up with another plan should he fail to get the presidency in MMD.

He said there were other parties that were interested in what he could deliver to the nation.

"Me; coming up with another party is no starter because there are so many political parties. If I have plan B, I will join another party where I feel I will greatly contribute to the future of this country," Prof Chirwa said.

However, he said people were mistaken to think that he was new in the MMD and just wanted to jump on the bandwagon to become president.

He said he had been a member of MMD since 1991 but that he did not have a party card.

"These parties are draconian and they will tend to kill you off. But they have found that Chirwa is not for the kill," Prof Chirwa said.

He wondered why the country was so poor when it was rich in natural resources.

"Why are we diseased, under educated, lost hope and gone into the shell of depression? Why, my Lord? What have we done wrong as Zambians that we are constantly being punished by this world that comes to take everything away from us in the name of investment, while they walk away once the storm has turned and leave us chewing our knuckles," Prof Chirwa said.

"Why are we still not putting labour framework in place in order to help Zambians to permanent employments and hence abolish casualisation?"

Prof Chirwa wondered why the country had so many corrupt and selfish people who were delaying the country's progress.

"Why are we including donor money in our budget, hence chaining ourselves to outside rule? Why are we not doing enough to empower Zambians to self rule? Why are we rewarding those who do very little or nothing, while a democratic system of meritocracy has been dumped?" he asked.

Prof Chirwa said ministerial positions were being given to people who could not read, write or even carry out comprehensive debates in Parliament and to the outside world.

"I attended two sessions. Our Parliament is a mess and a great shame to the intellectuality of this nation. Very few in Parliament are good and deserve to be there acting on statutory instruments and hence participate in formulating real legislations of substance," Prof Chirwa said. "Many are a waste of space and must be purged, let alone receive unwarranted gratuities."

Prof Chirwa urged Zambians to re-think who they were, saying the work ethic should be governed by action and not just promises, which the people were fed up with.

He said on his part, he would continue generating his momentum so that Zambians could be helped.

"I therefore want to let all Zambians know that this campaign is for every citizen who is going to contribute to our future," Prof Chirwa said.

On the nation's development, Prof Chirwa said foreign investment was welcome but there should be laws to ensure Zambians benefited more from the investment.

He said the promotion of industries such as those for steel plants should be used as one of the answers to the country's economic roadmap.

Prof Chirwa said the country should not waste foreign exchange by sourcing steel from outside "when we can make it ourselves and even export to many countries in Africa and anywhere in the world that needs our steel."

He said to deliver the challenges that would face any President after 2011 would require a Cabinet that was full of brains, small in size and decisive in its decision making.

However, most people who attended the discussion disagreed with Prof Chirwa when he said President Rupiah Banda had from day one followed late president Levy Mwanawasa's development policies.

When Prof Chirwa mentioned that President Banda had followed president Mwanawasa's route, but the economic crisis had derailed many of his plans, the people responded: "No, what plans are you talking about?"

But Prof Chirwa maintained that president Mwanawasa's legacy must be continued with vigour by a leader who understood the new generation.

He said a president who would take over after 2011 would require to take into account fundamental issues affecting the Zambian people such as education.

Prof Chirwa said the current state of affairs had failed too many young people who might show potential later.

"That is why my education drive will be to make sure every child has free education up to grade twelve," Prof Chirwa said. "I have been to the director of curriculum at the Ministry of Education and collected syllabi for all sciences, maths and design subjects for Grade one to 7. I will personally write these textbooks that will be very cheap to every child to own and have a better school experience even in rural areas."

On the Zesco electricity tariff hike of 35 per cent, Prof Chirwa said the Energy Regulation Board (ERB) should not allow the company to hike tariffs without presenting a full plan for the future.

On the media freedoms, Prof Chirwa said the media in the country was still regulated by those in authority.

He said media freedom must start with the liberation of Zambian National Broadcasting Corporation (ZNBC) and Zambia News and Information Service (ZANIS), saying the two organisations should not be government entities.

Prof Chirwa said the two organisations should be open to all political players and members of the public who wanted to air divergent views.

On President Banda's performance, Prof Chirwa said the President was in a difficult position in that he might not be seen to deliver because he had not been intertwined with current affairs.

"He's agreed when we have had meetings. He is doing quite a lot, he has put forward some information which perhaps has been very divisive. He has got a lot of work to do," said Prof Chirwa.

Asked if he would accept a deputy ministerial position like lands deputy minister Michael Mabenga, Prof Chirwa said he would accept any position for the service to the nation.

Labels: CLIVE CHIRWA, PARLIAMENT

posted by MrK @ 6:31 PM