Sata purges public service
Friday, 07 October 2011 00:00
Lusaka - In just two weeks in office, Zambia's president has replaced the country's police chief, top anti-corruption official, central bank governor, state utility CEO and scores of lower-ranking public servants.
President Michael Sata portrays many of the changes as part of a campaign against graft in the southern African nation. But some Zambians worry the man they call King Cobra is striking at his political enemies.
"There is so much corruption that this country stinks," Sata, speaking with the bluntness that earned him his nickname, said this week as he swore in Martin Malama as his national police chief.
When Sata replaced Godfrey Kayukwa, director-general of the Anti-Corruption Commission, with Rosewin Wandi, a woman, he said women were less corrupt than men.
In the run-up to elections last month, Kayukwa refused to investigate corruption charges involving the awarding of the ballot paper printing contract to a South African company.
Sata has also brought in anti-corruption fighter Max Nkole as the top civil servant at the Ministry of Home Affairs, which oversees police, prisons and immigration. Nkole, a respected former policeman who once served as chief of investigations for the UN war crimes tribunal on Rwanda, led the Zambian Task Force on Corruption created by the late President Levy Mwanawasa.
Mwanawasa's successor, Rupiah Banda, dismantled the task force amid speculation he was trying to block high-profile corruption investigations. Sata lost three presidential polls before his victory over Banda in
September ended two decades of rule by Banda's Movement for Multiparty Democracy party.
Sata's personnel changes since coming to power included the dismissal of 72 district commissioners who were vocal supporters of Banda's party.
Zambians have seen such purges before.
When the Movement for Multiparty Democracy ousted Zambia's first President Kenneth Kaunda and his United National Independent Party in 1991, all the chief executives of state-owned companies were forced to retire along with their deputies.
Top army officers also were replaced, as were senior editors at state-owned newspapers. Father Charles Chilinda, a respected Catholic priest, has called on Sata to exercise restraint and show forgiveness.
He said that though the new government has every right to probe corruption allegations, proper procedure should be observed.
"If certain issues to do with corruption have to be followed let them be investigated, but let us not dwell on witch hunts and finger-pointing," Chilinda said.
The Law Association of Zambia also has called on Sata to respect the rule of law, saying in a statement that the rule of law was at the centre of good governance and should be a cornerstone of any credible democratic government.
Along with his staffing decisions, Sata has raised concern by returning Finance Bank Zambia Limited to its owners.
The bank was recently sold to First Rand Bank of South Africa after former President Banda questioned its practices and ordered it seized from its shareholders.
The tangled case has political implications. Finance Bank chair Rajan Mahtani had sided with those prosecuting the late President Frederick Chiluba for corruption and abuse of office.
Sata fell out with Chiluba in 2001 in a succession struggle within Chiluba's Movement for Multiparty Democracy. Sata left Chiluba's party to form his own Patriotic Front.
Under Banda, Mahtani was briefly jailed on drug charges.
Opposition leader Charles Milupi said Sata should have allowed an investigation to be completed before stepping in.
"We all know that he constituted a commission of inquiry into the sale of Finance Bank to First Rand Bank of South Africa. So why did he have to hand it over to the Mahtani family in a matter of days even before the inquiry was started?" Milupi said.
The central Bank of Zambia said the national currency, the kwacha, slipped as much as 3,8% following Sata's Finance Bank announcement.
Labour leaders and ordinary Zambians, though, had been concerned about the bank's sale to South Africans, saying Finance Bank was an indigenous institution that served rural communities and employed many Zambians.
"Finally the truth has prevailed," Mahtani declared after the reversal of the sale was announced.
"I am happy the 1 000 Zambian jobs that would have been lost in this transaction are now saved."
Sata had campaigned as a champion of working-class Zambians. - SAPA.
Labels: CHARLES MILUPI, CORRUPTION, MAX NKOLE, MICHAEL SATA, ZAMBIA
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ANC: Living the SA dream?
Friday, 07 October 2011 00:00
by Udo W Froese
The writer of the "TIMES" article on current internal politics and the ANC seems confused. He makes out as if there is a Paul Mashathile and a Tokyo Sexwale camp, in other words, two groups within the ruling ANC with two different leaders opposing incumbent ANC and South African president Jacob Zuma, backing the incumbent deputy president, Kgalema Motlanthe. However, Motlanthe seems reluctant, to possibly stand for president. It is therefore highly unlikely that Motlanthe will stand for president of (i) the ANC and (ii) South Africa, when the incumbent president is expected to stand for a second term of office.
There is actually only one camp at the moment that opposes Jacob Zuma and his support base, according to various public reports. That competing camp, includes Human Settlement (Housing) Minister and ANC NEC member Tokyo Sexwale; ANC NEC member and Minister of Culture Paul Mashathile, together with all the other known ones - ANC Treasurer, among the top six of the ANC, Mathews Phosa; former ANCYL President and current Minister for Sport, Fikile Mbalula; of late even the Minister of Defence and ANC NEC member, Lindiwe Sisulu; current ANCYL President Julius Malema and his Youth League executive; former Finance Minister and Minister in the Presidency Trevor Manuel and various ANC provinces and branches and their leaders.
They include the ANC led provinces of Polokwane, the Northern Cape, possibly Mpumalanga and the most industrious province of Gauteng. Their ANC leaders seem to be on the side of the above-mentioned ANC politicians. Respected senior ANC stalwart Winnie Mandela showed her sympathy when she supported ANCYL president Julius Malema during his court trials. She again stood by Malema during her speech, when she accepted the "Ubuntu Award" for her life long services of the ANC. South Africa's media reported her support widely.
It is also observed that ANC NEC and current Minister of Justice, Jeff Radebe, could possibly jump ship, if the aforementioned strategies become a reality. It would make sense then, that the business family, the Motsepes, would throw their weight behind Radebe.
The good minister is married to a Motsepe - Bridgette Motsepe-Radebe, who owns a mining company, "Makau Mining", with platinum mining interests in Zimbabwe and South Africa. It is learnt that one of the guiding forces behind the scenes seems to be former re-called president Thabo Mbeki. Is he focusing on a come back? Thabo Mbeki would most likely not stand any chance in this South Africa.
His brother, Moeletsi Mbeki, is active as a political commentator. Giving public talks daily and being quoted in the local media, Moeletsi Mbeki claims many things, usually in favour of the opposing side of
President Jacob Zuma. He also stated before the Polokwane summit in December 2008 that his brother, Thabo Mbeki would get a third term in office. That clearly did not happen.
It would seem that additional strategic efforts hope to bring Cope, a group of former senior ANC members, who split from the ruling party immediately after the summit of Polokwane in December 2008, on board. This is the observation of senior ANC NEC members.
Would there be more disgruntled members from the ANC Alliance to join? Do the strategic planners include the DA, IFP, the new Zulu party that split from Inkatha, the NFP and a host of NGOs? Would political leaders from the PAC, AZAPO and others from the former BCM join later too?
What about more political minorities such as the Freedom Front Plus (FF+) and their NGOs, AfriForum the Transvaal Agricultural Union, (TAU) possibly throwing their weight behind that strategic move?
A host of BEE "businessmen and women", such as Mzi Kumalo, Bulelani Ngcuka and Saki Macizoma and others, that came in with Thabo Mbeki, could re-surface. Would the Afrikaaner Brotherhood (AB) and its Stellenbosch business and academic power groups as well as their tentacles throughout society play a quiet role to look after their interests?
Meanwhile, Bishop Desmond Tutu entered the political fray yet again, using the public media platform to attack the government under president Jacob Zuma, announcing that he would pray for the defeat of the ANC led government. Viciously, Desmond Tutu spew out that the colonial-apartheid structure was a better arrangement. He also announced that he would pray for the downfall of the ruling ANC and president Zuma.
His tirade follows the withdrawal of the Dalai Lama's visa application, as the Ministry of International Affairs did not comment on whether or not the Dalai Lama would be allowed to travel to South Africa to attend Tutu's 80th birthday bash. Nobel Peace Prize laureate and "Christian", bishop Tutu also warned the ANC, that they would go the same way as the deposed governments of Egypt and Libya. The bishop issued a direct call for civil unrest in South Africa. The producer of one of the private radio talk shows called Desmond Tutu during a talk show with the Minister of Human Settlement (Housing), Tokyo Sexwale. Tutu stopped short of endorsing the hopeful future deputy president.
The bishop always had a political agenda. Small wonder, he was very close to the African-American-Institute (AAI) in the USA under diamond merchant Maurice Tempelsman and the late Frank Ferrari.
The South African Bishop's aforementioned tirade from the media platform reminds this writer of the Bishop of Bulawayo in Zimbabwe, Pius Ncube. His public prayers for the death of President Mugabe had made him a hero in the Christian civilised international West. But, eventually President Mugabe had to pray for the forgiveness of Ncube's sins, when the poor Christian bishop was shown in the act, committing adultery on camera with ten married women from his congregation. That had also made front-page news a few years ago.
Interesting to note that all of South African print and electronic media carried Tutu's hysterical attacks on the ruling ANC, its president and the government. It became clear that it was all well co-ordinated. Bishop Tutu must perceive himself as quite divine, above all democratic and souvereign government structures, a law unto Himself only. It seems that the competing camp within the ANC under among others, minister
Sexwale, could have another route left, if it cannot sink president Zuma and his support base from inside the ANC. It could form a formidable opposition, after having initiated a palace revolution from within, split the ANC and then break away from what is left.
Such strategy could be an alternative for 2013, or later for 2017. In its strategic planning that group wants to take the ANC name along to possibly confuse the majority of the voters and in that way, get the majority of the vote. If the outlined strategies would indeed be successful, the ANC would be destroyed.
* Udo W Froese is an analyst and columnist, based in Johannesburg, South Africa.
Labels: ANC
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COMMENT - The Black New Farmers are going gangbusters, despite the destruction of the national currency by economic sanctions (ZDERA), despite sabotaging and underfunding of agriculture by Tendai Biti and the MDC. This is not the result of the return of any Rhodesian farmers either, because that hasn't happened. It is simply because of good rains and the stabilisation of the currency. And the key to agriculture in Zimbabwe and the entire region - irrigation. Output in numbers:
MAIZE (metric tonnes)
2008 400,000
2011 1,500,000
TOBACCO (kg)
2008 34mn
2011 174mn
That's the stabilisation of the currency and rains. Not the return of rhodesian farmers, which did not happen.
New farmers doing well: Biti
Friday, 07 October 2011 00:00
Herald Reporter
FINANCE Minister Tendai Biti on Wednesday acknowledged that new farmers were doing well with production of most agricultural produce increasing since 2008. He said this while responding to a question by Mt Darwin East legislator, Cde Betty Chikava (Zanu-PF) on what Government was doing to pay farmers for grain delivered to the GMB.
"In 2008 the maize production was 400 000 metric tonnes but in 2011 the production of maize stands at 1,5 million metric tonnes and
could have been 1,7 million metric tonnes but because of the . . . drought between December 2010 and January 2011 we lost 11 percent of hectarage.
"The second crop is tobacco. In 2008 we produced 34 million kg and in 2011 our expected delivery will be 174 million kg and as I stand here 134 million kg have been delivered. In fact, with all the crops and livestock in Zimbabwe there has been a fundamental increase in production between 2008 and 2011 with the exception of two crops, tea and coffee. Even milk has risen to 94 million litres although this is still below the over 200 million that we need," he said.
[And that is just from restauration of the currency. This gives you a stark picture of the extent of the damage that economic sanctions like ZDERA have done to the economy. And destruction of the currency is just one of the effects of the credit freeze has had on the Zimbabwean economy. - MrK]
Zimbabwe, he added, was set to meet its target of 500 000 tonnes of strategic grain reserves due to increased deliveries to GMB.
Minister Biti said Government had spent US$1,9 billion on agriculture since 2008, adding that they are also crafting an input scheme for vulnerable groups and large scale and A2 farmers this farming season.
Government had released US$10 million to pay farmers that have delivered grain but part of the money they are owed would be offset by inputs.
"What we have done is that we are gathering inputs to the tune of US$30 million and a farmer can liquidate his indebtedness with seed and fertiliser. But we will be able to pay any cent we owe by December 31 in the year of our Lord 2011," he said.
Minister Biti, however, took a swipe at the GMB for having a large salary bill that is chewing US$10 million a month. The parastatal would soon be unbundled into two companies dealing with collection of the strategic grain reserve and the other commercial activities.
Minister Biti, however, said the long term solution to ensure that farmers are paid on time was to have a commodity exchange.
********
comments:
So what - Friday, October 7, 2011 at 04:53 AM
He will be arm twisted into reversing it. They will freeze his acconts if he doesnt, all that money they gave him
Jambanja pa Salisbury - Friday, October 7, 2011 at 06:17 AM
That's good, they are doing well....but are they doing well enough, i.e. optimising land use? We want real statistics here, like productive land previously held by whites farmers now owned by blackfarmers', productivity per hectare then (note not prodcution), land under utilisation then, volume of agric exports then, volume of agric imports then, etc, etc and then we compare like for like to see whether they are doing better than their yesteryear farmer or comparatively better than their past selves! Do not forget to take stock of land allocated but not occupied, absentee farmers, I mean! That way we will be able to assess for ourselves whether the figures mentioned have meaning or not!
Now, turning to GMB and Biti's proposal. The parastatal like you rightly say, needs complete overhaul and purging it of dead wood! The most beautiful and practical way you proposed is the commodity exchange, farmers have a much higher likelihood of getting realistic value for their crops! Apa Biti wabaya dede nemukanwa....all farmers should campaign and vote for you as they are poised to earn more income should you be in full charge! Hahahahah ...............Laugh the Beloved Country.
NICHOLAS - Friday, October 7, 2011 at 01:14 PM
Listen who is talking! An MDC-T MINISTER. Am i dreaming? I thought President Mugabe's land reforms were a total failure with food production going down every year. I thought we can not go ahead with our indegenisation policies because just like the land reforms, these will also fail
Vana Biti na Tsvangison wenyu. Musatambe na Gushungo, murume uya ane inonzi vission from the heavens. He is our nation's Moses, and will deliver us from the jaws of collonial bondage which has now reached a critical economic stage. What is independence when you cannot control your own resources???
Fellow Zimbabweans, please take note of what the HON Minister have said. It may be useful in your decisions in the polls which are just around the conner!!!
TruthHurts! - Friday, October 7, 2011 at 01:49 PM
Aaarrrggghhhh, and the above is coming from Biti??????? You are not serious!!! Biti and his numerous ploys aimed at destroying black farmers efforts to provide for the country need no introduction here and yet here he is marvelling at how regardless of his saboteur tactics the same farmers are excelling at proving the wise words of President Mugabe that : Zimbabwe is an agricultural country and Zimbabweans are natural farmers, hence it is through agriculture that we will turn around the economy!!! Zimbabweans will win this one whether the sellouts and their masters like it or not and our country will attain the breadbasket status it has long enjoyed that first came with the govt of President Mugabe in 1980 and not what some re-writers of history want us to believe that the breadbasket status was there during the days of Rhodesia!!!
Mutauri WeChokwadi - Friday, October 7, 2011 at 02:43 PM
The Land reform is irreversible, we have gone through the difficult part..the last 10 yrs.
Now we are on the growth stage and there is no stopping Zimbabweans.
Who said we must whoever be hewers of wood, and drawers of water for the white master?
Gushungo titungamirirei tiende mberi
Labels: GRAIN MARKETING BOARD ZIMBABWE, LAND REFORM, MDC, NEW FARMERS, TENDAI BITI
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52 Karoi farmers take up cassava production, processing
Friday, 07 October 2011 00:00
Agriculture Reporter
FIFTY-two Karoi farmers have ventured into cassava growing and processing under the guidance of the Ministry of Women Affairs, Gender and Community Development in conjunction with the United Nations Development Programme.
The farmers are under the GreenLion Old Age and Orphanage organisation. The project is meant to improve household food security and promotion of consumption of traditional nutritional foods.
The beneficiaries of the project are aged between 60 and 107 years.
The Ministry's director for community development, Mr Christopher Chingosho, said to eradicate extreme poverty, Government mandated his ministry to empower women and promote gender equity and equality.
"The ministry ventured into cassava production since the crop is drought tolerant and resistant to pests and diseases thereby reducing production costs," he said.
"Cassava produces high yields per unit area of between 30 to 40 tonnes per hectare which surpasses those of maize, rice, sorghum and wheat and can do well in poor soils, but still produce better yields."
Mr Chingosho said he was confident local farmers were now equipped with knowledge in production, although they required more training on value addition.
He appealed to UNDP and other interested organisations to support the initiatives through the creation of processing units to enable beneficiaries to create a complete industry where they will produce, process and market locally.
Mr Chingosho urged the farmers to increase production and take advantage of foreigners from Zambia and Nigeria in the country who rely on cassava as their staple food.
After undergoing training Mr Musa Mostafu said he was now able to process cassava into flour, mealie meal, biscuits, chips, glue and cakes.
"Cassava production is a suitable project for the elderly as it does not require much labour as in tobacco; another suitable crop for the area," he said.
GreenLion Old Age and Orphanage chief executive, Mr Lovemore Chigumira, who is the founder of the Karoi organisation looking into the farewell of old people, encouraged society to respect the elderly and assist them.
His organisation promotes livelihood programmes for old people, especially those who look after orphans.
Labels: CASSAVA, UNDP
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MDC-T 'suspends' minister over US cables
07/10/2011 00:00:00
by Staff Reporter
JUSTICE and Legal Affairs Deputy Minister Obert Gutu was suspended from his position as spokesman of the MDC-T party’s Harare provincial executive after leaked United States cables showed him telling diplomats that party leader Morgan Tsvangirai was weak and given to nepotism. MDC-T Harare provincial chairman Paul Madzore said Gutu was suspended last week over statements he made to US ambassador Charles Ray in January 2010.
“It is true that we suspended him as the provincial executive and the suspension was indefinite, but we are thinking of lifting it soon,” the Zimbabwe Independent quoted Madzore as saying. Don Chiringa, an official in the Prime Minister Tsvangirai’s office, was now the acting provincial spokesman.
But Gutu and the MDC-T’s secretary general Tendai Biti poured cold water on the reported move, insisting that the party’s provincial executive had no such authority.
“That’s news to me,” Gutu told the Independent.
Biti, himself described as “ambitious” and sharply opposed to Tsvangirai on tactics in the cables released by WikiLeaks, added: “The provincial executive has no power to suspend Gutu.
“It is only the national executive that can do that. The provincial executive has not communicated with us on that issue so it is not true that Gutu has been suspended.”
Tsvangirai, fearing dividing his party, came out publicly last week to insist that no action will be taken against officials who were critical of him in the cables including treasurer Roy Bennett, Biti, Gutu and organising secretary Nelson Chamisa.
“Our party regards WikiLeaks with suspicion,” said Tsvangirai. “We can’t follow rumours and we cannot run a country on gossip. We are not doing anything about that and that’s where it ends.”
Gutu told Ambassador Ray during a meeting held on January 30, 2010, that although he was “tolerant and humble”, Tsvangirai was however undone by being “indecisive and inconsistent”.
Ambassador Ray wrote: “(Senator) Gutu also stated that Tsvangirai had a tendency to listen to the wrong people.
“He pointed to Ian Makone, Tsvangirai's chief of staff, and Makone's wife, Theresa, who is the Minister of Public Works.
“He opined that neither was a good strategist, and that the Office of the Prime Minister was weak due to Ian Makone's lack of leadership.”
Gutu also laid into Tsvangirai for employing relatives.
“Gutu noted that (Murisi) Zwizwai and Tsvangirai are cousins and this is another example of friendship getting in the way of governance,” Ray added in the cable.
Bennett was most scathing, describing Tsvangirai as a weak political operator who "does what the last person tells him to do."
Labels: MDC, OBERT GUTU, TENDAI BITI, WIKILEAKS
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Bank of Zambia officially reverses the sale of Finance Bank
TIME PUBLISHED - Friday, October 7, 2011, 2:57 pm
Bank of Zambia has officially reversed the $5.4 million sale of Finance Bank to South Africa’s FirstRand on today, returning the bank to its previous shareholders.
The move was expected after newly elected President Michael Sata said this week he would stop the sale of Finance Bank to South Africa’s second-largest lender, in his latest move against the policies of the previous administration.
The central bank seized Finance Bank from its shareholders in 2010 for legal violations, including insider lending. Finance Bank’s chairman has said the seizure was politically motivated.
The Bank of Zambia said in a statement that Finance Bank had been handed back to previous shareholders as of today , and that it would continue normal operations.
[Reuters]
Labels: BOZ, FINANCE BANK, FIRST RAND GROUP
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Panji Kaunda qualifies to be nominated MP, KK cleared his debt-Lubinda
TIME PUBLISHED - Friday, October 7, 2011, 10:51 am
Information, Broadcasting and Tourism Minister Given Lubinda said that Defence Deputy Minister Panji Kaunda qualifies to be nominated in his position.
Commenting on the media reports that Col Panji Kaunda did not qualify to serve as member of Parliament at a Press briefing in Lusaka yesterday, Mr Lubinda said that Col Kaunda’s issue of being bankrupt was addressed when the Former President Kenneth Kaunda paid Hybrid Poultry Farm Limited the amount Colonel Kaunda owed.
Mr Lubinda advised the media that it was important to carry out research on the matter before publishing any story relating to Col Kaunda.
Earlier this week, the Foundation for Democratic Process (FODEP) Executive Director McDonald Chipenzi said that the appointment of Colonel Panji Kaunda as Member of Parliament and deputy defence minister, contravened article 65 (1)(b) of the constitution because he was declared bankrupt by the courts.
Mr Chipenzi went on to explain that article 65 (1)(b) stated that a person shall not be qualified to be elected as a member of the national assembly if that person is an undischarged bankrupt, having been adjudged or otherwise declared bankrupt under any law in force in Zambia.
The FODEP executive director called on republican President Michael Sata to either reconsider Colonel Kaunda’s appointment or disclose to the nation that Colonel Kaunda is no longer a bankrupt person.
Colonel Panji Kaunda was declared bankrupt by the High Court of Zambia in January 2004 for owing Hybrid Poultry Farm Limited K121,703,436.
Labels: FODEP, GIVEN LUBINDA, KENNETH KAUNDA, MCDONALD CHIPENZI, PANJI KAUNDA
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Mugabe warns against Libya-style uprising
06/10/2011 00:00:00
by Deutsche Press-Agentur
PRESIDENT Robert Mugabe Thursday said the Arab Spring could have been avoided if the countries' leaders had “read” the situation properly and warned that Western powers backing the uprisings could target Zimbabwe next.
“We have had good relations with those Arab countries in trouble today. We have sympathy with them because they did not read warnings that they should have read. That things were changing because of the wishes of their people, and because of machinations of the imperialists,” the president said.
“The pattern has been the same ... Protests against some political measure or system or wanting change. It ends up being a demand for the entire government to go,” said Mugabe addressing senior members of his Zanu-PF party.
Mugabe said Zimbabwe must be watchful of what has happened in Tunisia, Egypt, Syria and Libya where Western powers “pretend to be following the grievances of the protestors” when in fact they are after resources of the countries.
Last month Mugabe said African leaders would not recognise the interim government in Libya until it has negotiated with the fugitive leader Moammar Gadaffi.
On Wednesday Mugabe warned that “imperialists” could target Zimbabwe. “We must remain prepared to defend our country and sovereignty,” the 87 year-old leader said.
Mugabe also added that he would not give in to demands by Prime Minister Morgan Tsvangirai to stop a law that forces foreign-owned companies to surrender their majority stake to black Zimbabweans.
“Zimbabwe is for Zimbabweans. There shall never be a time when we will give away our resources. Never. Never. Let them come as partners in return for what we do not have say technology. Yes, bring it, but not by more than 50 percent,” said Mugabe.
“We are saying resources to the people. It is not racism.”
The law was passed in 2007, before Zanu-PF formed a coalition with Tsvangirai's Movement for Democratic Change party.
Tsvangirai has since voiced concerns that the law could scare away badly-needed foreign investors. It is seen by some as a controversial extension of Zimbabwe's policy to seize white-owned farms.
The law's critics argue that most Zimbabweans are too poor to own stakes in companies that might require injections of capital. They fear that the equity will end up in the hands of wealthy officials.
Labels: COLOUR REVOLUTIONS, LIBYA, MUAMMAR AL-GADDAFI, NEOCOLONIALISM, ROBERT MUGABE
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Zambia rating affirmed, despite uncertainty
MIKE COHEN
Published: 2011/10/05 07:58:03 AM
STANDARD & Poor’s affirmed Zambia’s foreign and domestic credit ratings at B+ with a stable outlook yesterday,
saying the country’s economic prospects were promising and newly elected President Michael Sata was likely to continue to court foreign investment.Mr Sata defeated incumbent Rupiah Banda in a September 20 vote. Since taking control of Africa’s largest copper producer, he has fired the governor and board of the central bank, dissolved the boards of four state agencies, and scrapped the sale of a local bank to FirstRand .
"We view the smooth handover of power following the recent presidential elections in Zambia as indicative of a maturing of democracy," Standard & Poor’s said yesterday. "While Mr Sata’s victory has increased economic policy uncertainty, we expect any shifts to continue to broadly support investment."
Mr Sata has pledged to extract more money from mining companies to distribute to citizens, create jobs and tackle graft. Companies including Vedanta Resources , First Quantum Minerals and Glencore International operate in Zambia.
Standard & Poor’s warned that Mr Sata may reintroduce a windfall tax on mining companies, raise government spending and cut taxes.
It also expressed concern about political interference in monetary policy following the dismissal of central bank governor Caleb Fundanga last month. Appointed in 2002, he helped bring inflation below 10% for the first time in 30 years. Zambia’s economy has been bolstered by an increase in copper prices and production, with per-capita growth likely to exceed 4% this year and the inflation likely to remain slightly above 8%, Standard & Poor’s said.
Standard & Poor’s first assigned Zambia a B+ rating, the fourth- highest junk-grade rating, in March, which placed it on a par with Kenya and Nigeria. Fitch Ratings gave the country a similar rating the same month.
Bloomberg
Labels: CALEB FUNDANGA, MINING, RUPIAH BANDA
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UPDATE 3-Zambia lifts metal exports ban after two days
Thu Oct 6, 2011 12:02pm EDT
By Chris Mfula and Clara Ferreira-Marques
* Wants guidelines in place to increase transparency
* Ministry initially said ban would last until Oct. 16 (Adds minister comments, analyst)
LUSAKA/LONDON, Oct 6 (Reuters) - Zambia has lifted a ban on metal exports, just two days after imposing it to sort out irregularities and increase transparency in Africa's top cooper producer, a minerals ministry official said on Thursday.
Newly elected President Michael Sata has been concerned -- analysts say with good reason -- that copper exporters are misreporting the amount of ore leaving Zambia. Earlier this week Zambia suspended export permits to put new guidelines in place.
Sata said last week all export payments would need to be routed via the central bank, a move seen as adding more oversight to an industry providing the life blood of the economy.
"The suspension has been lifted. The job has been done. We don't need 10 years to do the job," Godwin Beene, mines permanent secretary, told Reuters.
Information minister Given Lubinda told reporters another reason why the suspension was lifted was because it would take time to come up with new guidelines.
The mines ministry initially said it would need until Oct. 16 to put new measures in place, but mines were able to resume loading trucks on Thursday, logistics sources said.
The chamber of mines, which represents foreign miners, welcomed the lifting of the suspension.
"It was too long and was definitely going to hurt the mining companies. With this reversal the impact will be minimal," said Frederick Bantubonse, its general manager.
"We haven't been given the reasons for the reversal, but we can all guess," he added.
Details of the new procedures were not immediately clear.
"The new measures will come into effect when the Bank of Zambia is ready. For now exports will continue to be guided by the existing Mines and Minerals Development Act," Beene said.
WAIT AND SEE
Copper accounts for three-quarters of Zambia's export earnings, but the mining industry contributes only about 10 percent of tax revenue.
Sata, 74, has wasted no time in removing all vestiges of the administration of Rupiah Banda, whose Movement for Multi-party Democracy (MMD) had been in charge of the southern African nation for 20 years.
He said on Monday he would dissolve the boards of four state-owned companies -- Zesco, National Pensions Scheme Authority, Zambia Revenue Authority and Bank of Zambia.
Last week, he disbanded the board of the Energy Regulation Board, appointed a new head of the country's anti-corruption agency and fired respected central bank governor Caleb Funadanga.
Analysts said some of the drastic moves imposed by Sata's government in only a week may unnerve investors.
"It is fortuitous that since Sata has come in the copper price has dropped like a stone, so there is limited damage he can cause," a London-based analyst said.
Zambia's mining industry aims to double annual copper output to 1.5 million tonnes by 2016, and Sata, who swept to power on the back of voters looking for a bigger share of mining profits, is likely try to wring more revenue from it.
Analysts said foreign firms should brace for labour strife.
"Mining unions will push harder than usual for double-digit raises, albeit from a low base," Philippe de Pontet, an analyst at political risk consulting firm Eurasia Group, said in a note.
In an example of what may be looming for the sector, about 2,000 Zambian workers at NFC Africa Mining, majority-owned by China Nonferrous Metals Mining, went on a strike for higher wages, catching management and their own union by surprise.
Copper producers operating in the country include Canada's First Quantum Minerals , London-listed Vedanta Resources , Glencore International AG and Metorex of South Africa.
Data shows much of the exported copper is destined for Switzerland, but little of it shows up in Swiss customs figures, raising questions about transparency. (Additional reporting by Melanie Burton in London, wriiting by Agnieszka Flak; Editing by Jane Baird)
Labels: EXPORTS, GIVEN LUBINDA, GODWIN BEENE, MICHAEL SATA, MINING, WINDFALL TAX
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REASON WAFAWAROVA: The politics of singular identity
Thursday, 06 October 2011 00:00
Reason Wafawarova
In his book "Liberty in the Age of Terror" AC Grayling argues that generally, the fewer identities people acknowledge themselves as having, the less free they are. He gives as a classical example the issue of religious identity, arguing that the more individuals identify with their religion, and submit themselves to the way of life, relationships and routines it prescribes, the less individual, free and open they are.
An individual wearing some form of religious attire presents an overriding singular identity to those that see him, sometimes demanding to be treated by others chiefly if not exclusively in terms of it. It is like the revered career politician wearing the know it all look that demands from all others to be treated chiefly as an untouchable Chef, to borrow from the Communist lingo.
We can forget the questionable fact that such people try to dictate to others how those others ought to treat them, focusing on the more disturbing reality that these people lay claim to a manufactured value that they expect others to automatically accord them.
The treatment we give to others must of course start on the basis of mutual respect, as invited by common humanity. Thereafter we base our treatment of others as determined by the worth of those others as human individuals, meaning they ought to earn our respect.
It is important for political activists in Zimbabwe to know that the identity of Zimbabwean individuals is far wider than buying a membership card to a political party.
Beyond this symbolic act of belonging to a political organisation an individual can be a mother, a father, a professional, a sports person, a writer, a good friend, a daughter, a son - variously rolled into one. Such an individual has interests, experience and insights so valuable to others in so many ways.
It is this diversity of identities that make it easier to fulfil human potential, something denied by imprisonment in a single overriding identity, regardless of whether this imprisonment is imposed or chosen.
Intolerance, extremism, fascism, racism, political violence and religious fanaticism are all a result of the politics of singular identity. For Zimbabweans the Zanu-PF and MDC labels are so monolithic and narrow that they sometimes even override the collective identity of Zimbabweanhood, making so many people fail to see the value of diversity as they seek to fanatically defend entrenched political positions even to the point of absolute irrationality.
We will die for Zanu-PF or we will die for the MDC such would fanatically quip, if they are not saying they will kill for their parties. This writer resides in the West and is confronted daily by monolithic critics who accuse him of failure to behave like a Westerner, or at least to appreciate the goodness of Western life by not criticising imperialism, itself seen as the strength behind Western economies.
For criticising Western policies, this writer is often accused of living by limited self-chosen identities - preferring to partake of the West's wealth but failing to accept its imperial vision of what makes for the good that the West is seen to be. The logic says one is a hypocrite if they attack imperialism while earning imperialistic dollars. In a way the logic sounds perfectly reasonable, that is before one realises that it makes perfect sense to fight imperialism from where it originates.
This writer believes multiculturalism and respect for individual liberties must include the room for divergent views even on what the West views as its core values, even its critical interests.
The West cannot deny that its values and culture has immensely contributed to present day discontent in the world, through which humanity has been divided within itself, mainly through chosen differences of ideology, religion, politics, and economic self-interests; not that these are wholly separate aspects.
Race and ethnicity do play a part too, regardless that they are no matters of choice. Each time race and ethnicity become a source of division between people the schism is exacerbated by political and sometimes religious differences. We have politicians in Zimbabwe who cover up for their lack of political clout by waving the ethnicity card to try and ramp up emotions among unsuspecting people who for many reasons may be living under the singular identity of belonging to a particular tribe or even totem. Before the European colonial settlers came to Zimbabwe, the Nguni ethnic group settled in parts of Zimbabwe through conquest in many of the cases.
There are some descendants of those who were victims of the Nguni conquest wars who today want to masquerade as the custodians of all Shona memory when they want to play the politics of entitlement or retribution. Equally there are those of Nguni descent who today want to hold the whole country to ransom by ever claiming that the numerically superior Shonas are marginalising them, and that the mid-eighties government-rebel conflict was a collective Shona onslaught on the Ndebele people. It appears that the saddest parts of this conflict are always remembered better at political rallies than they are remembered in the hearts of those who were directly affected by the dreadful events of the conflict.
The truth of the matter is that the Shona and Ndebele are not two contrasting values at all; neither are they two separate identities. Two languages yes, but beyond that there is irreversible mixture and even oneness.
That is precisely why the late Vice President Joshua Nkomo was called Father Zimbabwe. He was not a singular identity person but a true nationalist. Those seeking to pursue separatism in the name of ethnicity are simply victims of the politics of singular identity and they live under the imprisonment of a single overriding identity.
The biggest problem of debates of this nature is that they engage only those who can read and think, and are unlikely to penetrate to the constituencies of ignorance and anger where their lessons are badly needed.
The political goons engaging continually in political violence from across the political divide are most unlikely to read this piece, and if they tried, they are unlikely to comprehend it anyway.
The same goes for the emotive ethnic fanatics masquerading as custodians of ethnic cultures they hardly know anything about. Sadly a significant chunk of our politicians hails from the community of ignorance and anger, and we elected them to be nothing but ignorant and angry in Parliament. Nobel laureate Amartya Sen noted that there is far more wrong with the simplistic division into two identities, adding that describing others, or thinking of oneself in terms of "a choiceless singularity of human identity" is the mistake and the danger which not only diminishes individuals, but fuels the flames of conflict between them. The point is very clear here. A person is not one thing, a Shona or a Ndebele only, a Zimbabwean or a South African only - but many things: a parent, a teacher, a woman, a man, a Christian, a Muslim, a member of a political party, a husband, a wife, and thus a multiple and overlapping complex being whom the politics of singular identity can reduce to a mere political party member, a Christian, or squashing many people to the narrow identity of being a Ndebele or a Shona, even limiting some to mere totem identity.
The tendency to overlook the many identities a human being has in favour of a single identity is the favourite strategy of power politicians. In the West the power politician tries hard to limit the identity of the Westerner to that civilised and envied individual, always targeted by terror-possessed barbarians from the Arab world or some other so chosen a place.
In Africa, the African is limited by the power politician to the identity of the traditionally exploited and oppressed, always threatened by monsters from powerful foreign countries, never really capable of asserting himself, let alone sustaining or developing himself.
But do we not have the identity of victors too as Africans? Did we not collapse colonial empires all by our own determination and resolve? Are we not capable of defending ourselves and asserting ourselves in this global world?
The tendency to overlook many identities is animating more and more dangerous divisions as attitudes harden between feuding parties. This is precisely why Zimbabwe has a polarised political set up. Reason Wafawarova cannot walk the streets of Harare with Nelson Chamisa his homeboy without risking the questioning of the politician's sincerity by the supporters of his political party, or the questioning of Wafawarova's patriotism by those who identify with him on the side of Zimbabwe's revolutionary history.
But surely there is a lot more to Wafawarova the writer and to Chamisa the politician. This is not an attack on the movements whose followers adopt the identity that the movements offer. Rather this is an expansion of that sense of belonging, a removal of the imprisonment brought about by the politics of singular identity.
When this writer happened to sit next to Minister Jameson Timba on one of the July 2010 nights at a club frequented by Zimbabwean journalists, he cherished so much the idea of such close proximity to a man coming from the corridors of power.
Professor Lovemore Madhuku and Minister Patrick Chinamasa were presenting their papers on the Constitution making process that night.
This writer's joy was short lived as the Minister suddenly burst into harsh whispers of abrasive insults, telling this writer how much he hated this writer's column in The Herald, how much he hated the writer of that column and his person, how much he hated President Mugabe for "hiring fools like you," and so on and so on, including threats of the "coming day of justice at The Hague".
This writer could see that the Honourable Minister was holding a beer and was also chain smoking, but it was now confusing to tell if the man was acting under the influence of alcohol or that of plain insanity.
The unhappy truth is that the actors most responsible for insisting on singular identities in Zimbabwe are the politicians, and it is sad that the politics they peddle are the main cause of polarity, intolerance and political violence. In our many and diverse identities we are freer people, happier people, and we will realise our potential a lot more. Zimbabweans should not and cannot be reduced to monolithic blocs of mere political party supporters at the disposal of power-mongering politicians. Zimbabwe we are one and together we will overcome. It is homeland or death!
* Reason Wafawarova is a political writer based in Australia.
Labels: MDC TRIBALISM, REASON WAFAWAROVA
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Credit facility for traders
Saturday, 01 October 2011 12:06
Business Reporter
AIR Zimbabwe is soon expected to unveil
a new credit facility for local cross-border traders which will allow them to fly to China, Dubai and other international destinations and pay later for their travels. This arrangement is being negotiated by the Cross-Border Traders’ Association (CBTA) of Zimbabwe.
The development comes in the wake of the resumption of flights by the national carrier and the launch of the mobile flea market by CBTA this week. The Cross-Border Traders’ Association president, Mr Killer Zivhu, said the “fly now, pay later” facility would empower cross-border traders as they would be able to expand their businesses to competitive markets, especially in Asia.
“Our negotiations are now at an advanced stage as we are hoping this facility will help the growing number of Chinese traders,” said Mr Zivhu. Air Zimbabwe board chairman Mr Jonathan Kadzura said the agreement would help boost the airline’s business.
CBTA is also set to launch the mobile flea market this week and one of the products being introduced is the Rand Card which enables cross-border traders to conduct electronic transactions in South Africa instead of carrying around huge sums of money.
The Rand Card was developed in conjunction with a local financial institution, Interfin Bank.
Under this facility traders are required to open bank accounts with Interfin Bank in which they can deposit money and top up credit on their cards whenever they travel to South Africa on business.
Another such facility available to cross-border traders through the same bank is the Travelex Visa Card, which allows traders to access their money anywhere in the world.
The association is planning to take its members to Brazil, South Sudan and other markets that have immense potential but have not been penetrated much.
So far groups of cross-border traders have been going on business missions to China, Dubai, Tanzania and other countries in the region.-The Sunday Mail
Labels: AIR ZIMBABWE, CBTA, CREDIT FACILITIES
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Nama-Herero skulls receive heroic welcome
Wednesday, 05 October 2011 00:00
WINDHOEK. - Thousands of Namibia's ethnic Hereros and Namas gave an heroic welcome yesterday to 20 skulls of their ancestors returned from Germany, where colonial authorities had taken them a century ago.
About 4 000 people stood on the tarmac at the capital Windhoek's international airport, where the plane carrying them home landed at sunrise to ululating women and men shouting battle cries amid banners reading "welcome to our ancestors, our heroes".
At the far end of the runway, two caskets covered with the Namibian flag were taken out of the plane by officers of the Namibia Defence Force, flanked by an honour guard and accompanied by a trumpet salute.
As the caskets were loaded into a military vehicle, a small group of Herero men drew closer, calling to their ancestors and welcoming them home.
"Our people cry tears as our grandmothers and grandfathers are back on their home soil," said Herero chief Kuiama Riruako.
Riruako was part of the 60-member Namibian delegation that flew to Germany at the end of September to receive the skulls at the Charite University hospital in Berlin.
Namibian Prime Minister Nahas Angula and several cabinet ministers welcomed the return of the skulls.
"These mortal remains are testimony to horrors of colonialism and Germany's cruelty against our people," Angula said. "The Namibian nation accepts these mortal remains as a symbolic closure of a tragic chapter."
Lutheran Bishop Zephaniah Kameeta who was part of the delegation said during the sermon at a church service before departing for Germany, "Our journey to Germany to repatriate our ancestors is a divine mission. They were forcefully removed in an undignified way."
Namibia's former ambassador to Germany, Peter Katjavivi, said the "repatriation of the skulls is an essential component of regaining our past, and consequentially our dignity."
For Festus Muundjua, a respected Herero historian, the skulls' return is "part of the decolonisation process of Namibia."
"We can only forgive and reconcile if we sit down and talk to each other, but the German side is not prepared to talk," he said.
Ida Hoffman, a Nama-speaker and former parliamentarian, said the return of eventually all the skulls does not close this sad chapter.
"There must be reparation as a matter of justice," she said. However, Germany has ruled out reparation.
For many, the journey to Germany will have deep personal significance. One of the Nama chiefs, David Frederick, hopes to find out if the skull of his great-grandfather, chief Cornelius Frederick is there, Hoffman said.
"Like the Nama-chief, many of us are looking for information about ancestral family members," Hoffmann told AFP.
The skulls are among an estimated 300 taken to Germany after a slaughter of indigenous Namibians during an anti-colonial uprising in what was then called South West Africa, which Berlin ruled from 1884 to 1915.
Incensed by German settlers stealing their land, cattle and women, the Herero people launched a revolt in January 1904 with warriors butchering 123 German civilians over several days. The Nama tribe joined the uprising in 1905. The colonial rulers responded ruthlessly and General Lothar von Trotha signed a notorious extermination order against the Hereros.
Rounded up in prison camps, captured Namas and Hereros died from malnutrition and severe weather.
Dozens were beheaded after their death and their skulls sent to German researchers in Berlin for "scientific" experiments.
Up to 80 000 Hereros lived in Namibia when the uprising began. Afterwards, only 15 000 were left. - AFP/ timeslive.co.za.
Labels: GENOCIDE, GERMANY, NAMA, NAMIBIA
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Ministerial meeting with EU over sanctions mooted
Thursday, 06 October 2011 00:00
Herald Reporter
GOVERNMENT is seeking to hold a high-level ministerial meeting with the European Union as part of efforts to have the illegal sanctions the bloc imposed on Zimbabwe lifted. The meeting will be part of the re-engagement dialogue that started in 2009 to explore ways of normalising relations between Zimbabwe and the EU.
Foreign Affairs Secretary Ambassador Joey Bimha, told The Herald yesterday that the re-engagement dialogue was continuing and senior officials from both camps met recently. He said Zimbabwe was maintaining its position that the illegal sanctions were unjustified and should be lifted.
"The coming of EU managing director for Africa (Nick Westcott) was part of the re-engagement process. We discussed with the EU at officials' level and we are now seeking another meeting at ministerial level. We are saying there is no justification for these sanctions and that is the position that all parties in the inclusive Government have agreed on," he said.
Ambassador Bimha could not be drawn into revealing when the ministers were expected to meet.
The MDC-T has of late tried to distance itself from the issue of sanctions arguing that the issue had been taken over by Sadc.
MDC-T spokesperson Mr Douglas Mwonzora last week said the sanctions were no longer in the domain of the inclusive Government.
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Ambassador Bimha, however, said all parties in the inclusive Government were still committed to the lifting of the embargo.
"The correct position is that we are still committed to this issue. There was a committee that was set by Sadc to approach European countries over the lifting of these sanctions. It is a parallel process being run by the regional bloc to complement our efforts but as Government we are still seized with that issue," he said.
The lifting of illegal sanctions remained one of the outstanding issues hindering full implementation of the Global Political Agreement.
Although all parties in the inclusive Government agreed that the sanctions were illegal, MDC-T has not shown any commitment to unequivocally call for their removal.
It insists on calling them "restrict ive measures" than illegal sanctions.
The MDC-T had remained silent over the issue preferring to focus on peripheral issues such as security sector reform and staffing of the Zimbabwe Electoral Commission that were never part of the GPA.
Labels: AMBASSADOR, EU, SANCTIONS
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Irvine’s slaughtering 200 000 chickens per week, VP Mujuru told
Thursday, 06 October 2011 00:00
Herald Reporter
Irvine's Zimbabwe, one of the largest poultry rearing companies in the country, is slaughtering 200 000 chickens every week and producing 570 000 eggs daily.
This is a result of the US$5 million the firm invested in the business two years ago. All the chickens are for local consumption while some of the eggs are exported to the Democratic Republic of Congo.
Irvine's Zimbabwe chief executive officer, Mr David Irvine, yesterday revealed this to Vice President Joice Mujuru during a tour of the company's plant. Mr Irvine said the company was also providing day-old chicks to rural areas.
"We are slaughtering about 200 000 chickens a week all for local consumption. We are also producing 570 000 eggs but we are exporting some to DRC. We are providing day-old chicks to rural areas and we are trying to teach them how to keep them commercially," he said.
VP Mujuru said the level of production at Irvine's Zimbabwe was impressive. She urged people to utilise land given to them under the land reform programme to cut on imports.
She said production in all sectors of the economy was the only solution to problems facing the country.
"What we are missing in this country is that we no longer have a middle class. We have got farms and we should be able to farm. This country is very strict on GMOs and GMOs should be prevented right from the farm.
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Our people should think of production, production of soya beans, maize and other crops should help to boost our industry," she said.
VP Mujuru said Government should support local businesspeople to improve the lives of people and also to boost the economy.
"What is impressive is that Mr Irvine came to my office two years ago talking about expansion and it is important that they have lived up to their word. This is what we want and Government should support our local entrepreneurs. I am really impressed by what I have seen here and we want to see more other Irvine's out there doing other things," she said.
Labels: GMOS, JOICE MUJURU, POULTRY
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The amount of corruption in this country is threatening - Sata
By Patson Chilemba
Thu 06 Oct. 2011, 08:30 CAT
THE amount of corruption in this country is threatening, says President Michael Sata. Speaking during the swearing-in of former Task Force on Corruption chairperson Maxwell Nkole as home affairs permanent secretary and Stella Libongani as deputy Inspector General of Police at State House yesterday, President Sata said his government was carrying out reforms in the police service in order to effectively fight corruption in the nation.
"The amount of corruption in this country is threatening. This morning Zambia Revenue Authority (ZRA) is supposed to pay K4 billion to a front of somebody who was in my office because the scans which are at Nakonde belong to the government of the Republic of Zambia through Zambia Revenue Authority," President Sata said.
"And they give to these conmen, they say they are the ones who are going to manage, and they are supposed to release K4 billion. So the three of you Nkole, Inspector General of police Martin Malama and Libongani are all policemen, we have to sweep this corruption."
President Sata said he had dissolved "another conduit of corruption", the Road Development Agency (RDA).
"How do you say you have given roads without a contract, without tender? And when they are paying the money we don't know where the money is coming from…now this company which was supposed to receive K4 billion this morning, this is a bogus agreement made between Zambia Revenue Authority, Bradwell Global Corporation Limited, you know who they are and they put fake names behind those who are the fronts," President Sata said.
"They don't want to put their real names but we know who the people behind are and I don't want to witch-hunt, but Inspector General, permanent secretary, Madam Libongani we have to see to it that this money is not paid."
President Sata instructed ZRA to immediately have their own employees manage the scanners at Nakonde border, and not "these bogus criminals".
"But in the meantime you have to go in and find out how much they have already paid to these con people. We know them," he said.
President Sata said justice minister Sebastian Zulu should come up with legislation to repeal the Pensions Act so that the retirement age could be increased from 55 to 65, saying there were a lot of people who were 55 and still wanted to continue serving.
"Now you can't run a government with people on contract, Chief Justice is on contract, Army Commander contract…then we have to amend the Judicial Service Commission Act, how can you have a person who has an interest, the Chief Justice, to be the chairman of Judicial Service Commission because he is supposed to be supervised, but he is the chairman," President Sata.
"The same thing applies to the Bank of Zambia. Bank of Zambia chairman is the Governor. He is supposed to be supervised by the board but he is the chairman. So you find there is a lot of corruption, moral corruption when appointing people, more especially people of the opposite sex."
President Sata said the police service needs restructuring because the current structure was not effective.
He ordered the Secretary to the Cabinet to hand him instruments to regularise Muchinga Province so that it could become the country's 10th province.
President Sata said all the police division commands would be commanded by commissioners of police, saying this would be effective in containing crime.
He said he had introduced the position of deputy Inspector General of Police to bridge the gap between the top most position in the service and that of commissioners.
President Sata said Libongani should convey the message to her colleagues that the police service was not only for men.
"I have found that women can be much more effective in combating crime. Men are more corrupt than women…we are going to strengthen the women in the service.
We are going to strengthen training school and we have to arrange for training locally and abroad for Zambia Police, Zambia Army, Zambia Air Force and ZNS (Zambia National Service) because we are not an island," he said.
On the appointment of Nkole, whom he referred to as ‘Mr Task Force', President Sata said Nkole was not new to the job he had been appointed to, and that instead of restricting himself to a small Task Force he was now carrying a much larger ‘task force' with human beings at his disposal.
"And I know very shortly you are going to throw your walking stick, you will start running because this is what unemployment can do, people become old too early. Congratulations," he said.
President Sata said there should be a re-introduction of the non-existent medical services in the police service and other security wings, and the same applied to education.
"People become corrupt when they can't pay school fees for their children. But all the same get back to work and Mr minister of home affairs Kennedy Sakeni is not new he will buy you Nkole a motorised wheel chair. We know where to find motorised wheelchairs," President Sata said.
And Nkole said he received his appointment with great humility because he had been out of service from the time his contract at the former Task Force on Corruption was terminated 24 months ago.
He said he was thankful that President Sata felt it wise for him to contribute towards the fight against crime and corruption.
Nkole said he was ready for the challenge and to help contribute to the governance of the nation.
Libongani said her appointment would open up more doors for more women appointments to serve in senior government positions.
She said women could operate just as equally or even better than their male counterparts.
Labels: MICHAEL SATA, ZRA
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Government suspends metal export permits
By Chiwoyu Sinyangwe
Thu 06 Oct. 2011, 12:10 CAT
THE government has temporarily suspended metal export permits in a move meant to introduce measures to effectively monitor the exports, says mines permanent secretary Dr Godwin Beene.
Dr Beene in an interview said the move was not going to hurt the mining industry as it was just aimed at allowing the government to keep a tab on metal exports out of the country's vast mining sector.
President Michael Sata has been concerned - analysts say with good reason - about copper exporters misreporting the amount of ore leaving the country, and last week said that henceforth all export payments would have to be routed via Bank of Zambia.
"The mining companies should not panic as this is just a reaction to what the President Michael Sata directed," Dr Beene said.
"The modalities for the exports are already in place and this is just a temporal ban which would be lifted next week. So there is no need to panic because we can't take decisions that would hurt the industry."
The new procedures are to be in place by October 16, according to the document addressed to the chief executives of miners operating in the country, which include Canada's First Quantum Minerals, London-listed Vedanta Resources , Glencore International AG and Metorex of South Africa.
Separately, Reuters reported that much of the copper exports are destined for Switzerland but little of them show up in Swiss customs data, raising questions about transparency.
Labels: COPPER, EXPORTS, GODWIN BEENE, MICHAEL SATA
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Probe NCC microphones procurement, Kabanda urges DEC
By Moses Kuwema
Thu 06 Oct. 2011, 14:00 CAT
THE Citizens Forum has written to the Anti Money Laundering unit of the Drug Enforcement Commission and the Anti-Corruption Commission to investigate the procurement of microphones by the National Constitution Conference (NCC) secretariat in April 2010.
Citizens Forum executive secretary Simon Kabanda (right) stated that the procurement of the microphones at a time when the NCC was winding up its business and the amount of money involved raised a lot of questions. He wondered why the NCC secretariat decided to spend K1.8 billion at a time when it was concluding its work.
"Were these microphones a necessity for the NCC or merely a luxury? If they were a necessity, why were they not procured in 2007 when the NCC began its sittings? Why did these microphones not come in their original boxes? Were they new microphones or they were second hand whose prices had been inflated to the prices of new ones?" Kabanda wrote.
He stated that the NCC chairperson, Chifumu Banda, observed that the old public address system that was being used by NCC worked much better than the newly-acquired one and wondered if it made sense to discard something good and efficient and replace it with an ineffective and problematic one.
"The supplier did not provide the right card to install in a computer for programming the public address system and this led to the failure to use the computer which came with the microphones. Why did the supplier not provide the right card to install in the computer?" he asked.
Kabanda stated that while only four loud speakers were mounted in the conference hall, up to 16 speakers may have been procured and wondered why the NCC procured more speakers and used only four.
"Where did the rest go to? All the above questions raised suspicions that this colossal amount of money may have just been laundered. Now that the NCC is no more, we wish to know where the PA system with all the microphones and the computer are, and what they are being used for. To this effect, we are requesting that you investigate this issue to establish the facts surrounding this questionable transaction. We would appreciate if you could communicate to us the findings of your investigations and make them public as this is an issue of national interest," stated Kabanda.
Labels: CORRUPTION, PROCUREMENT SYSTEMS, SIMON KABANDA
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Probe NCC microphones procurement, Kabanda urges DEC
By Moses Kuwema
Thu 06 Oct. 2011, 14:00 CAT
THE Citizens Forum has written to the Anti Money Laundering unit of the Drug Enforcement Commission and the Anti-Corruption Commission to investigate the procurement of microphones by the National Constitution Conference (NCC) secretariat in April 2010.
Citizens Forum executive secretary Simon Kabanda (right) stated that the procurement of the microphones at a time when the NCC was winding up its business and the amount of money involved raised a lot of questions. He wondered why the NCC secretariat decided to spend K1.8 billion at a time when it was concluding its work.
"Were these microphones a necessity for the NCC or merely a luxury? If they were a necessity, why were they not procured in 2007 when the NCC began its sittings? Why did these microphones not come in their original boxes? Were they new microphones or they were second hand whose prices had been inflated to the prices of new ones?" Kabanda wrote.
He stated that the NCC chairperson, Chifumu Banda, observed that the old public address system that was being used by NCC worked much better than the newly-acquired one and wondered if it made sense to discard something good and efficient and replace it with an ineffective and problematic one.
"The supplier did not provide the right card to install in a computer for programming the public address system and this led to the failure to use the computer which came with the microphones. Why did the supplier not provide the right card to install in the computer?" he asked.
Kabanda stated that while only four loud speakers were mounted in the conference hall, up to 16 speakers may have been procured and wondered why the NCC procured more speakers and used only four.
"Where did the rest go to? All the above questions raised suspicions that this colossal amount of money may have just been laundered. Now that the NCC is no more, we wish to know where the PA system with all the microphones and the computer are, and what they are being used for. To this effect, we are requesting that you investigate this issue to establish the facts surrounding this questionable transaction. We would appreciate if you could communicate to us the findings of your investigations and make them public as this is an issue of national interest," stated Kabanda.
Labels: CITIZENS FORUM, CORRUPTION, PROCUREMENT SYSTEMS, SIMON KABANDA
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RB's government over-procured road works by over K4 trillion
By Mwala Kalaluka
Thu 06 Oct. 2011, 14:00 CAT
THE Rupiah Banda administration over-procured road works through the Road Development Agency by over K4 trillion in its election campaign-motivated urban and townshIP projects, sources have disclosed.
The RDA board which was dissolved by President Michael Sata for alleged
corrupt practices is reported to have also influenced the award of a contract to tar the Pedicle Road to an Italian contractor whose contract bid was K60 billion kwacha over and above the lowest bidder, China Heinan.
The sources said there was a possibility that part of the money obtained from the inflated road projects went towards bankrolling former president Rupiah Banda and the MMD's futile 2011 electoral campaign.
A status report of projects under the so-called Formula One township roads rehabilitation works dated September 26, 2011 indicates that contrary to the MMD 's claims that the road works covering three provinces cost K1.3 trillion, the projects totalled over K2 trillion.
Towards the just-ended elections in which the MMD was defeated by the Patriotic Front, president Banda and his ministers said the K1.3 trillion used in the upgrading of township roads on the Copperbelt, Lusaka and Central provinces was obtained from the mines.
The roads earmarked for upgrading on the Copperbelt include, Chililabombwe and Chingola town by China Civil engineering Construction at a cost of K41,281,544,555.09, Mufulira town roads by Fratelli Locci Sri Limited at K50, 770,394,746.18, Kitwe and Kalulushi town roads by China Civil Engineering at K90, 614,348,143.42, Luanshya town roads by Gomes Haulage Z Limited at K89, 723,044,158.74 and Ndola City roads by Fratelli Locci Sri Ltd at K91, 849,611,038.85.
Jiangsu Wujin Corporation was awarded the contract to upgrade urban roads in Kabwe and Kapiri Mposhi towns in the Central Province at a cost of K117,112,013,727.34 but a problem arose after the Chinese firm submitted a fake security bond and obtained a K5 billion advance payment on the project.
In Lusaka Province, Teichman Construction Limited were awarded the contract to upgrade roads in Lusaka's Chelstone and UNZA areas at a cost of K112,027,643,178.54.
Sable Transport was apportioned the road works in Northmead and Mandevu areas at a cost of K117,151,184,900.62 while roads in Matero township were given to Sanyati Construction at a cost of K102,969,705,286.42 and those in Kanyama and Kafue were awarded to Inyatsi Roads Limited at a cost of K84,844,915,133.00.
The roads in Kamwala and Woodlands areas of Lusaka were apportioned to Roads and Paving Z Limited at a cost of K97,228,603,111.35, bringing the total amount of the MMD's Formula One road projects to over K2 trillion.
The sources said the above amount added to the cost of 'political' projects undertaken by the previous government on the Copperbelt, Northern and Western provinces caused the over K4.4 trillion over procurement of projects outside the RDA's approved budget.
The political projects that were over procured outside the budget by the RDA include the Mufulira-Chembe Pedicle Road, Nakonde-Mbala, Isoka-Muyombe, Kasama-Mporokoso, Mbesuma Bridge and Mongu-Kalabo.
"If you remember the former executive director Erasmus Chilundika and others were dismissed for over procuring by K1.3 trillion in 2008 but these guys have over procured more than K4.4 trillion over and above 2011 annual work plan," the source said.
"The most unfortunate part is that all these roads are being executed without engineer's design, bill of quantities and book of drawing. What this means is the projects are prone to abuse such as over-inflating the contract prices and not done to specifications."
The sources said the true cost of these projects could only be ascertained once a technical audit was carried out.
"One cannot rule out the possibility that part of the money was used in campaigns," the source said. "For example on the Pedicle Road the RDA board awarded an Italian contractor, Fratelli Locci Sri Limited, who bid K60.7 billion over and above the lowest bidder, China Heinan, whose contract bid was K253 billion."
The sources further disclosed that a Chinese contractor awarded a contract to carry out road rehabilitation works on a key road in Northern Province had not commenced the works despite obtaining a US $27 million advance payment from the RDA.
President Michael Sata on Tuesday dissolved the RDA board saying it was another conduit of corruption where contracts were awarded without tenders.
Labels: CORRUPTION, MMD, ROADS
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Defending what can't be defended
By The Post
Thu 06 Oct. 2011, 14:00 CAT
If Sebastian Zulu does not see that there is corruption in the judiciary, then we have a very big problem with the man Michael Sata has made justice minister.
However, it is understandable knowing where Sebastian is coming from that corruption is not very much an issue with him. This is the man who had no difficulties receiving money from the MMD to destabilise his own political party, UNIP, of which he was secretary general.
We would hope that he has learnt something from that experience. Sebastian got away with that corruption and today he thinks everyone should get away with corruption. What he tried to destroy was a club, UNIP. What is at stake today with corruption in the judiciary is the stability, peace, prosperity and indeed the entire future of our country.
When we comment about corruption in the judiciary, we are not making baseless allegations. We are not children or disgruntled elements. We know what we are talking about.
If Sebastian is ignorant about what has been going on in the judiciary, the best he can do is keep quiet and watch because we can promise him he will have a lot to see. We agree that not everyone in the judiciary is rotten, not every judge and magistrate is corrupt. There are some judges and magistrates who are very decent. What is unfortunate is that the bad ones are giving the judiciary a bad name.
Their wrongdoing is obliterating whatever good things might be happening in our judiciary. The judiciary is like a sick person. Even if it is just one part of the body that is sick, the whole body is affected. And the unfortunate part of our judiciary is that it has a serious headache, a troubled head that needs to be treated.
Chief Justice Ernest Sakala has failed to offer the kind of leadership that would have been expected of a man of his intellect and experience. Today, our judiciary is pathetically dysfunctional and incapable of winning the confidence of many of our people.
And the complaints about the way our judiciary is run are not only coming from us - some judges are complaining, some magistrates are complaining, even ordinary judiciary workers are complaining. Lawyers are complaining and this is why even the Law Association of Zambia is calling for serious reforms in the judiciary.
Litigants are also complaining about corruption in the judiciary. This is a judiciary that has lost a Chief Justice to corruption. Chief justice Mathew Ngulube was forced to resign his position because of corruption, because of unprofessional behaviour and lack of integrity. Is Sebastian telling us that Ngulube is the only judge who was corrupt?
Sebastian should realise that his boss, Michael Sata, has been elected on a reform agenda. Our people are expecting this government to transform their institutions into functioning ones that are going to deliver according to expectations. The judiciary is one such institution that needs transformation. The patronage that has overtaken our politics has not left the judiciary unaffected.
The judiciary has also operated under a shameful system of patronage that should not be allowed to continue. And this patronage was well-demonstrated by the behaviour of no other than justice Sakala himself. Justice Sakala refused to shake hands in church with the leader of the leading opposition party at the time simply because it put him in good light with those who were in charge of the executive.
Today, the man whose hand justice Sakala, for no good reason, refused to shake is the President of our country. By that behaviour alone, if nothing else, justice Sakala showed himself to be a man driven by emotionalism and therefore incapable of being dispassionate.
In other societies where very high levels of integrity are demanded of judges, justice Sakala would have been forced to resign. This is the man who saw nothing wrong in sharing a platform with a politically powerful and politically convenient convict at a state function. We have not forgotten that justice Sakala shared a table with Regina Chiluba, the wife of the late Frederick Chiluba, at a time when she had been convicted of a criminal offence.
This is the head of our judiciary today. Sebastian knows all these things. His defence of the judiciary is totally misplaced. Let him tell the nation that the judiciary has not done the things they are accused of. If Sebastian is doubting us, let him set up an inquiry and see what will come up.
No one is saying that judges and magistrates should be tried for delivering wrong judgments. Nowhere have we ever said such a thing because it would be wrong for us to adopt such a position.
And we have made it very clear that what is at issue here is not whether the judgment to acquit Chiluba was right or wrong. The question is who was talking to who during that time, and what were they discussing? Is the judgment that was delivered on a Monday the same one that should have been delivered on Friday?
Our people are entitled to know. What role did justice Sakala or his office play in this matter? Rupiah Banda has publicly claimed credit for Chiluba's acquittal. What does justice Sakala have to say about this?
We will be more than ready to bring more witnesses to testify to the fact that Chiluba was told by Rupiah that he had secured his acquittal long before magistrate Jones Chinyamba officially acquitted him.
The question is how was this possible? How did Rupiah procure this acquittal? These are the things we are concerned about because they violate the Bangalore principles Sebastian is talking about.
There are judges sitting on the bench today who have abused trust funds which the judiciary has been managing. These are matters of general public knowledge. There are also judges who have questionably allocated themselves cases in which their political friends have an interest and have gone on to make incredible judgments that cannot be defended in law.
These matters are well known. They are being discussed in the corridors of our courts. It is not us bringing these matters. We don't work for the judiciary. Information is available from the judiciary itself. If people were interested to know the truth, they would find it.
The problems of the judiciary are not only of a criminal nature. Some are even of an embarrassing moral nature. Again, it is not us saying these things. Sebastian's boss said it the other day.
If Sebastian wants to be successful in his job as justice minister, he should side with the people and learn to make pronouncements that advance public interests.
Anyway, there is always a problem when people are given jobs they have not earned, they have not struggled for. They always try to pursue an agenda that is at loggerheads with the forces that produced those jobs.
Michael has waged a long and tenacious struggle. He has sometimes been a victim of the same judiciary in that long struggle. If Sebastian does not see the need to reform the judiciary and remove the rot from it, then he is in the wrong place at the wrong time and he will soon find himself at loggerheads with our people.
Let him ask himself why people were prepared to take the law in their own hands during the last election when they thought their victory would be snatched from them. It was because people did not believe the courts will be able to give them justice. This is the kind of judicial system we have.
Sebastian is defending what cannot be defended. And he is not defending it with truth. Sebastian is instead twisting things and principles to try and justify what cannot be justified.
Labels: CORRUPTION, JUDICIARY
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TIZ urges government to take public concerns about Judiciary seriously
By Patson Chilemba
Thu 06 Oct. 2011, 14:00 CAT
SEBASTIAN Zulu and the PF government should take public concerns about the operations of the judiciary and perceptions of corruption very seriously, says TIZ.
Reacting to the justice minister Zulu's remarks in the state-owned newspapers, Times of Zambia and Zambia Daily Mail of yesterday, that some media houses - in apparent reference to The Post - should not insinuate wholesale corruption in the judiciary when it cannot substantiate its claims, Transparency International Zambia (TIZ) president Reuben Lifuka argued that it was not true that the media had deliberately insinuated that the entire judiciary was corrupt.
"Transparency International Zambia would like to counsel the new Minister of Justice and the PF government to take public concerns about the operations of the Judiciary and the perceptions of corruption very seriously," Lifuka stated.
"We find the statement by the Minister to be extravagant as it is not true that the media have deliberately insinuated that the entire judiciary is corrupt.
It is also wrong for the minister to portray an image that there are no challenges of corrupt judicial officers in Zambia. The fight against corruption in Zambia has greatly benefitted from the work of the media - particularly the private media."
Lifuka, who is also the managing consultant for Dialogue Africa stated that the PF itself, when it was in opposition, championed the same causes as the media that it had now already chosen to disparage.
He wondered why the change all of a sudden.
"It is a matter of public record that there were a number of statements from various PF leaders, on the acquittal of some high-profile persons charged with corruption.
It is necessary, in our view, for the new government to take time and study the various challenges before making policy pronouncements," Lifuka stated. "We want to advise the minister to focus on initiating judicial reforms which will be holistic and make our judiciary truly independent. Judicial officers should be given the latitude to make decisions free from any form of interference."
Lifuka stated that the independence of the judiciary was crucial for its own effectiveness, adding that Zambia needed a fair judiciary which was also subject to mechanisms that held it accountable to the people.
"We need a legal culture that upholds the independence, impartiality and integrity of the judiciary," stated Lifuka.
Zulu was quoted in the state-owned newspapers as having said the government had noted with disapproval that some media houses had taken it upon themselves to insinuate that the entire judiciary was corrupt and that they should give reasons behind the acquittal of certain individuals.
He stated that some media houses had also misled the public that adjudicators acted on instructions from some authorities to decide in a particular way.
Zulu further said it had been suggested by some media houses that judicial officers could be arrested and prosecuted for what were perceived as wrong judgments.
He said the position of government was that in terms of the law, no judicial officer could be arrested or prosecuted for delivering what could be perceived as a wrong judgment.
"It should be noted that judges do not dialogue with third parties regarding the content or basis of their judgments. The judgments speak for themselves," said Zulu.
He said the Zambian government was a signatory to the Commonwealth Bangalore Principles which ensured judicial independence, impartiality, integrity, propriety, equity of all before courts, competence and diligence of judicial officers.
Zulu said the principles alluded to were of critical necessity to constitutional governance and were enshrined in the Republican Constitution and the Judicial Code of Conduct.
Labels: PROCUREMENT SYSTEMS, REUBEN LIFUKA, TIZ
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Sata urges MPs to back Matibini for Speaker
By Bright Mukwasa
Thu 06 Oct. 2011, 08:30 CAT
PRESIDENT Michael Sata has appealed to members of parliament to support the candidature of Judge Dr Patrick Matibini SC whom the ruling Patriotic Front is floating as Speaker of the National Assembly.
In a statement issued in Lusaka by the President's special assistant for press and public relations George Chellah, President Sata also called on the members of parliament to support Lundazi MMD MP Mkhondo Lungu as Deputy Speaker of the National Assembly.
"Patriotic Front has fully endorsed Judge Matibini's candidature as Speaker, Hon Lungu as Deputy Speaker and any candidate the opposition MMD will propose as Chairperson of Committees," said President Sata.
"Parliament needs impeccable leadership. And, above all, a person with vast legal knowledge to preside over its affairs."
And PF parliamentary Chief Whip Yamfwa Mukanga said his party was confident Dr Matibini would win the position going by his sound track record of his impartiality and public service.
"Of course Judge Dr Matibini that's our candidate. It's not a closed book, it's an open book. I am saying it publicly. We are trying to do everything possible to ensure that we have a better candidate," Mukanga said.
"Other political parties even if they float the other candidates they should look at who are level-headed.
A candidate who is qualified, a candidate who will be able to meet the trends in modern politics. A candidate who will be able to take Zambia higher realising that we are a multi-party state. So even when the other candidates come, they should be able to vote for my candidate because I believe my candidate will be the best whoever they float."
Mukanga, who is also newly-appointed Minister of Transport, Works, Supply and Communications, said his party was backing a candidate who was ‘very qualified.'
He said his party appreciated what the past speakers had done in the past, hence the decision to back Dr Matibini to ensure that they contributed to propelling the legislature to higher heights.
Meanwhile the opposition UPND has been in talks with the opposition MMD to back UPND's vice-president Richard Kapita for the position of Speaker.
According to sources the UPND has been pressing MMD to support Kapita for Speaker and have offered to rally behind MMD's Lungu for Deputy Speaker.
The source said the MMD decided not to float a candidate for position of Speaker to give advantage to Kapita after the talks but cracks have emerged in the MMD over the proposals as PF has also been having talks with them.
The MMD and the UPND has been in talks to support each others' candidature for the Speaker position. The ruling PF however feels that they have also done enough preparation to guarantee them a win in the election which will be the first business of the House when they resume business on Thursday.
Parliamentarians will be voting for the new Speaker, Deputy Speaker and Chairperson of Committees when Parliament resumes sitting.
Labels: MICHAEL SATA, PATRICK MATIBINI
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Mugabe to attend CD, DVD launch
05/10/2011 00:00:00
by Staff Reporter
PRESIDENT Robert Mugabe is lending support to a pop song being launched at the Zanu PF headquarters on Thursday in support of the party’s push for majority stakes for locals in 700 foreign firms. The Zanu PF leader will attend the launch of the CD and DVD of the song ‘Indigenisation: Chimurenga Chekupedzisira/Umvukela Wokucina’ by the artist Diana Samkange.
Facing accusations from rivals in a power sharing government that its “indigenisation” programme is ill-thought, Zanu PF is determined to push full steam ahead with what political observers say is a central plank of its re-election plan.
Indigenisation Minister Saviour Kasukuwere is the public face of the programme dubbed the final phase of "economic emancipation", after controversial land reforms targeting white-owned farms a decade ago. It says it is unacceptable that foreigners own the country’s riches.
Kasukuwere will be at the launch of the CD and DVD on Thursday, signalling the escalation of an information war.
The minister said: “The song is a musical masterpiece that is certain to capture the hearts and minds of the nation… to be proud of the natural resources that God has given to our nation to benefit all of its indigenous people regardless of their political affiliation.
"It’s heart-warming to see a young and talented artist like Diana and others who collaborated in this inspiring song. It shows that the indigenisation message is resonating everywhere in our minds, hearts and rhythms.”
Kasukuwere said the indigenisation scheme was the “Last Chimurenga” – the previous being the liberation war and the land reform.
“Zimbabwe's natural wealth should be in the hands of none other than the indigenous people of this great country,” Kasukuwere said.
The minister would not say if Zanu PF had funded the production of the CD and DVD.
The singer Diana Samkange told reporters on Wednesday: "We have been working on this great track since last April and to finally have it on the airwaves is a dream come true not just for me but the entire team involved in the production.
“I hope everyone will enjoy the song as much as we enjoyed making it.”
Labels: INDIGENIZATION AND EMPOWERMENT ACT (ZIMBABWE), ROBERT MUGABE, SAVIOUR KASUKUWERE
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MMD owes NAPSA K460m in unpaid rentals
By Chibaula Silwamba
Thu 06 Oct. 2011, 05:40 CAT
MMD owes NAPSA about K460 million in unpaid rentals for its national secretariat in Lusaka, according to well-placed sources at NAPSA. Sources at National Pension Scheme Authority (NAPSA) disclosed that the former ruling party had failed to settle the rentals for a long time and NAPSA's efforts to recover the money were not yielding any positive results.
"Our management has since written to the former ruling party MMD demanding that it pays the K460 million within one week. In fact, if the MMD fails to pay within the time we have given it, we will send bailiffs to enforce the recovery of the rentals," the sources said. "So just wait and see. The bailiffs will soon swing into action and the MMD will be left without offices if they don't pay."
MMD national chairman Michael Mabenga referred queries to party national secretary Major Richard Kachingwe, whose phone remained unanswered by press time.
When the issue of unpaid rentals was introduced to him, Mabenga responded: "Why don't you ring the national secretary? He will be in a position to know all the details. That is the man who keeps all records; he will be able to tell you the fair information."
Efforts to contact Maj Kachingwe and deputy national secretary Chembe Nyangu proved futile as they were not answering their phones while MMD deputy national chairman Kabinga Pande said he was in a meeting.
Former president Rupiah Banda had presided over a number of irregularly awarded contracts with NAPSA, among them the K75 billion Meanwood deal and the redevelopment of the Society House building, which raised a lot of concern among members of the public.
The MMD conducted one of the most extravagant campaigns in Africa with hundreds of vans, trucks, abundant chitenje materials, t-shirts, badges, Rupiah Banda-branded sweets, MMD campaign message-inscripted ‘flags' placed on streetlight poles and trees including bicycles among others items distributed to would-be voters.
Seventy-four-year-old Banda and the MMD lost to President Michael Sata, also 74, and his Patriotic Front (PF) party in the September 20 elections
Labels: DOMESTIC DEBT, MMD, NAPSA
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COMMENT - This is an update from Ian Scoones and his project on landreform in Zimbabwe. Finally, someone is interviewing the actual recipients of the land, the New Farmers. Something that has not happened in 11 years of land reform, which should give anyone who still thinks that the media is objective, pause for thought.
Julius Malema (ANC Youth League) on Zimbabwe and Land Reform in Zimbabwe and South Africa.
Youtube Channel:
http://www.youtube.com/user/ZimLandReformBook:
Zimbabwe's Land Reform: Myths and Realities (African Issues), by Ian Scoones
Zimbabwe's Land Reform: voices from the field.
Part 1
Zimbabwe's Land Reform: voices from the field. Part 2
Zimbabwe's Land Reform: voices from the field. Part 3
Zimbabwe's Land Reform: voices from the field. Part 4
Zimbabwe's Land Reform: voices from the field. Part 5
Zimbabwe's Land Reform: voices from the field. Part 6
Zimbabwe's Land Reform: voices from the field. Part 7
Zimbabwe's Land Reform: voices from the field. Part 8
Labels: A1 FARMERS, A2 FARMERS, AGRICULTURE, JULIUS MALEMA, LAND REFORM, LAND RIGHTS, ROBERT MUGABE
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COMMENT - This is not an article, but a reaction to an article, that is so relevant and specific that it warrants it's own posting. It makes eminent sense that the people who used to live in the low rainfall areas also want to see the people deported from the so-called European Areas return.
Biti in trouble over Mujuru deathFriday, 30 September 2011 09:37
written by dodzo, October 04, 2011
You people you are being mad for nothing. When it comes to land, I do not agree with you. Land Reform was necessary. This land belongs to black Zimbabweans and it is our heritage. For example, in Nyanga District we were dispossesed of our land (Selbourne, Sanyatwe, Nyakupinga &Troute Back) in 1952 and were thrown to region 5 of the district ( Katerere area).
Now,
due to congestion the original Whesa people of Katerere area are now telling us to go back to where we came from in 1952. Yes, since 2000's Land Reform Programme some have managed to get pieces of land "grabbed" ( as you like to say it) from some of the white farmers.
With this history in mind it boggles my mind kuti makadyiswa here ma Zimbo. Can't you see Israelis and Palestinians fighting for land. Why should we shy from our land of heritage. Surely, for my Nyanga people it is a restitution of land rights and even in the bible vanotaura wani panyaya yenhaka yeminda. Anyway, I always say kune vasina kubviswa nevarungu kunzvimbo dzamive nyararai and do not ask for land. Musatirwadzisa nemashoko asina basa.
Let us stay together as Zimbabweans and do not vilify those who claimed their heritage back. We do not want hate speeches and statements. For those White farmers who remained in Nyanga (the are m*re than new farmers) we are working together without any problems. For Zimbabweans, musazoyeuka bako mvura yanaya, hatidi vanhu vanozoti tipeiwo minda or to ask for another land reform. This is the end of the chapter. On economic problems in Zimbabawe, look at Greece, Spain and Italy. MaDemonstrations hamusi kumaona here?
Was there any Land Reform, Corruption, Croynism and mismanagement you talk of in Zimbabwe. Do not be myopic and I urge you to work together as Zimbabweans. Remember alot of people died for this land. They did not die to buy the land. If it was so, then they should have not gone to war. If Mugabe had share this adverse view, he would be in spiritual prison.
Labels: LAND REFORM, LAND RIGHTS
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