Maravi

Molenaar urges issue-based campaigns

Molenaar urges issue-based campaigns
By Masuzyo Chakwe
Thu 24 Mar. 2011, 04:00 CAT

THE Netherlands government has urged Zambian politicians to look at how they will improve the people’s welfare as they campaign in this year’s elections. In an interview, Ambassador Harry Molenaar hoped that people would be motivated to vote on the basis of issues.

“Issue based campaigns… I hope all politicians pay more attention to that because there are issues on the economy, women’s rights. As political leaders, they also have a role to play to educate the electorate and not only say bad things about each other,” he said.

Ambassador Molenaar said it was important to get a lively debate and look to the future of the country.

“What sort of things should we be having? What sort of things should be changed? What things should we keep? I think, that will give it more substance,” he said.

And Ambassador Molenaar said Zambia needed policies that would contribute to fighting poverty especially in rural areas. He said the challenge that Zambia had was how to trickle down the much talked about economic growth to the ordinary people. He said although poverty was there in urban areas, it was not as bad as in rural areas. He said rural areas were the places that needed to be addressed and where investment should take place.

Ambassador Molenaar said rural areas needed decent roads so that farmers could take their produce to the markets and get a better price. He said Zambia needed a multi-faceted approach.

“It’s not only one thing that you should change, it’s complicated but that is what I think government should work on. An integrated approach to fight poverty, transport, energy, roads, extension services, it’s not only about fertiliser,” he said.

On the happenings at the Ministry of Health, Ambassador Molenaar said donors were working very hard with the ministry and had put in place a plan to address problems of accountability. He said fighting corruption meant preventing it, which called for hard work in all sorts of agencies including the private sector.

He said fighting corruption was not only talking about it but how to avoid it, how to strengthen the systems and change people’s behaviour.

Labels: 2011 ELECTIONS, CORRUPTION, HARRY MOLENAAR, POLITICS

posted by MrK @ 7:27 PM