We’ll extensively explore for gas once in power - Sata

We’ll extensively explore for gas once in power - Sata
By Moses Kuwema
Tue 25 May 2010, 04:01 CAT

PATRIOTIC Front (PF) president Michael Sata has said his party will extensively spend more money and time on exploration of natural gas once in power.

During the newsmakers forum organised by the Press Freedom Committee of The Post at Golfview Hotel on Sunday, Sata said Zambia had plenty of gas, which had not been exploited.

“To stabilise energy in this country both fuel and electricity… God has given oil to Angola, God is merciful. How can He deny us oil? Because we have not explored. We are going to have a permanent source with reliable oil and extend the exploration,” Sata said.

“At one time towards the end of Dr Kenneth Kaunda’s regime we were told oil was found in Chama … And gas can be a substitute for cooking and heating of oil because when you address the issue of energy, that is the only way you are going to give people low cost of living.”

Sata said the Energy Regulation Board (ERB) was not to blame for the recent fuel increment but the government.

“Mr Sikota Wina and others who are there, they are employees. If they refuse to increase because some minister of energy says ‘increase’ they would be fired and replaced. What we need is to strengthen these institutions, make the people working there proud of serving Zambians,” he said.

There is corruption today because people have uncertainty of who they are and what they are and what they are doing. When there is no uncertainty there would be no corruption because people will protect their jobs. Today, there is corruption because people are not sure whether they would be there tomorrow.

“The policy of PF on these parastatals ZNBC Zambia National Broadcasting Corporation, Zesco and ERB is that we shall give the first 25 per cent shareholding to the workers, then we will give 24 per cent to the Zambian people and 51 per cent to people with money because at the moment, companies collapse and when companies collapse the people who suffer are the workers and their children.”

Sata said it was strange that workers at Zesco did not have sit-ins.

“We don’t hear Zesco go on sit-in, all we just hear is that they have increased energy 69 per cent. Today, somebody increases fuel by 22 per cent, we have not seen ERB go on a sit-in protesting that they want their wages to be increased,” Sata said.

He said the ERB had not justified the increment in fuel prices.

“When Emmanuel Kasonde was finance minister in 2001, he introduced two important legislative pieces. One of them is fuel levy, then the second legislation was hospital levy. We are still paying those taxes but without any benefit because if there was fuel levy we were told it’s for us to stockpile the fuel. Where do we stockpile the fuel because if we stockpile the fuel, there would be no need of increasing fuel because Zimbabwe is landlocked and has suffered sanctions for more than eight years but fuel is much cheaper in Zimbabwe than Zambia. People who are on the borders are driving into Zimbabwe to buy fuel. Malawi is another landlocked country fuel passes through Zambia, why do we have this fuel impact?” Sata wondered.

He said with the increase in fuel prices, there was no way a miller could reduce the price of mealie-meal because they were also affected by electricity and other energy costs.

“That’s one simple equation which you must all look at. Mealie-meal in Zambia today is at K74,000. If you were in South Africa today 74,000 you can buy three motor vehicles. Here that’s where you are buying a bag of mealie-meal,” he said.
He said police officers had not yet been paid their salaries.

“Zambia Police, they have started evicting them in all divisions because Zambia Police has no houses and yet we have increased the energy. We have increased Zesco, now when you increase Zesco and you increase fuel you have increased the cost of production and once you increase the cost of production they are not rhyming with the wages,” Sata said.

Sata said the PF would have no problems if the increase in fuel was meant to save money to repair the roads.

“If somebody is increasing fuel to raise money to repair Serenje-Nakonde road, PF will be number one to support him but today we have gone back,” he said.
Sata said it was shameful to have MMD run councils with 52 months salary arrears for workers.

“These are not PF councils but MMD. Now those employees working for those councils, what do they eat? 52 months, Rupiah Banda has never stayed one day without getting paid and when we complain, they fire Lameck Mangani. It’s not fair. Let Mangani speak because why should we fire Mangani? The government must resign itself because on this fuel we are going to go to a stage where people will start walking. 46 years after independence why should people walk from Chilenje to town?” asked Sata.

“We are being insulted but the reason why we are being insulted is because we are docile, you have never seen or heard in any church the pastor telling you to reconcile with the devil. The pastors have always spoken to be brave and all of us we are pastors. We are ordained to speak and what we have to do in the Bible, Mathew and John, Jesus said ‘don’t cry for Me, cry for yourself’ and your future. It’s your own relatives who are crucifying you.”

Sata also denied insulting Paramount chief Chitimukulu of the Bemba people in Northern Province.