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By ZamChro Reporter,

Former Zambia congress of Trade Unions (ZCTU) President Fackson Shamenda has advised government to shift its energy towards regulating exploitative foreign investors instead of quarrelling about media regulation.

In an interview Shamenda observed that if the government exerted the same type of energy in regulating investors as it was doing to the media, the country could see a very good work environment that is conducive for productivity.

Regulating investors that are not abiding by the country’s laws should be more of a priority to government.

Shamenda added that quarrelling about media regulation was a waste of time in today’s age because with internet people would still access the kind of information they wanted.

He said that even if the Post was closed today things will still come out and they can even be more embarrassing to those that are exposed. Zimbabwe’s regime tried to stifle media freedom but whatever they tried to hide still came out.

He noted that it was just not possible to silence the media.

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By ZamChro Reporter 

The Government has released K88 billion in Constituency Development Funds (CDF) to 148 constituencies and called for transparency and accountability in the management of funds.

Local Government and Housing Minister Eustarkio Kazonga said the Government expected the released K88.8 billion to be be utilised efficiently to benefit the ordinary people.

Speaking yesterday, Dr Kazonga said each constituency was allocated K600 million and challenged those tasked with responsibilities of managing the funds to ensure that they come up with projects which would improve the lives of people.

Dr Kazonga said only two of the 150 constituencies were not given money because of financial irregularities but he, however, could not disclose the two affected constituencies.

“I can confirm that we have released about K88.8 billion of the total amount of K90 billion to 148 constituencies.

“Two constituencies have not been given the money because of the financial irregularities, “he said.

He appealed to the Members of Parliament (MPs) to assist the Government in coming up with programmes that would contribute to the development of their constituencies.

The Minister said the Government would continue to demand accountability in the utilisation of the funds and warned that any constituency which failed to abide by the regulations risks not being allocated the funds.

He said the Government would continue to support projects aimed at uplifting the standards of living of the ordinary people and appealed to MPs to continue partnering with the Government for the sake of development.

“We will remain firm and ensure any people found guilty of mismanaging public funds face the wrath of the law. As Government, we want to see development in our country,”he said.

Dr Kazonga said that the Government would continue to allocate CDF on annual basis to deserving constituencies in the country under the control of local MP as long as their meet the CDF guidelines.

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PUNITIVE MEDIA BILL ON HAND

By ZamChro Reporter

The Zambian government has come up with a punitive media bill. The bill which is said to be driven by Vice President and Minister of Justice George Kunda is a continued quest to punish The Post and its editor Fred M’membe. The Ministry of Justice came up with the media bill which was later sent to the ministry of Information and Broadcasting Services for scrutiny by stakeholders.

It is said that the technocrats in consultation with other stake holders made some changes to the proposed bill, which excluded some punitive measures. But last week when Vice President George Kunda was shown the bill, he was very upset that the punitive measures were removed. The sources revealed that the Vice President ordered the technocrats to prepare another bill which was to include all punitive measures within 48 hours.

A bill is now ready for presentation to the Vice President. This is after a team of technocrats went into a retreat the whole of last weekend to prepare a bill acceptable to Mr. Kunda. This bill is a hybrid of the media laws of Zimbabwe, Uganda and Kenya. It seeks to establish among other things the Media Council of Zambia as well as the Zambia Institute of Journalists. The bill will provide for the regulation of the media by the Media Council of Zambia whose members will be appointed by the Minister of Information and Broadcasting Services. It will also provide for the licensing of journalists.

According to the bill for any media outlet to employ an editor the employer must register that editor with the Media Council and the Zambia Institute of Journalists. Furthermore the registration is subject to the minister’s (Minister of Information) approval. The sources said one of the punitive measures in the bill is that any journalist contravening this media law would be liable for imprisonment for up to 3 years or a fine of K300, 000 or both for perceived violations only determined by government officials.

Kabwata Member of Parliament Given Lubinda has said that Vice President George Kunda’s evil character has now been completely exposed by his scheme to fix the media through a draconian law. He further commented that the bill had also exposed the vice presidents opposition to the fight against corruption. Lubinda said he agreed with the Media Liaison Committee in declaring George Kunda as the most hostile public officer when it comes to media freedom.

He went on to say that the only impediment to his quest to promote corruption is the media, and he was determined to fix that. Lubinda blamed President Banda for not supervising his Vice President properly and hence his being on the loose. He claimed that George Kunda was blinded by power so much that he was overrating himself unintellectually.

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By ZamChro Reporter,

Vice President George Kunda has maintained that the MMD is still popular country wide.

He said this was because of the positive strides Government has made toward growing the economy.

Mr. Kunda stated that the country’s economy had grown under the leadership of President Banda.

Speaking on a Radio Phoenix programme, Government and You, Mr Kunda said his government will continue to provide a firm but fair leadership. He said the ever growing construction and tourism industries are a sign that the economy is growing although Government faces some challenges.

The Vice President said the MMD government has made progress citing the growth in the education sector which has seen schools being constructed all over the country as opposed to the grass thatched ones that have been in used for many years.

In closing, Mr Kunda called on Zambians to get on board in developing the country’s economy.

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By ZamChro Reporter

The MMD in Kafulafuta constituency has disowned area Member of Parliament George Mpombo.

Mr. Mpombo was disowned for his continued attacks on President Banda and the party.

Kafulafuta Constituency chairman Abraham Mwape said Mr. Mpombo’s utterances against the President are personal and do not have the blessings of the electorate and hence were seen as unwarranted.

In addition, Copperbelt Province Minister Mr. Mbulakulima said Mr. Mpombo utterances are ill-timed and that he is attacking the party that built his image.

He said the party, MMD, and the President had spared Mr. Mpombo despite his consistent attacks. He further added that the President has shown that he is a leader capable of absorbing attacks and has remained steadfast.

Mr. Mpombo when contacted claimed that the meeting to denounce him was stage managed by his enemies.

He said he was not bothered by the statements from the constituency officials because the provincial party chairman Joseph Chilambwe is handling his case.

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By ZamChro Correspondent

Malambo constituency Member of Parliament Maxwell Mwale has revealed that Sable Contractors will tar the Chipata-Mfuwe road leading to South Luangwa National Park.

Mwale, who is also Minister of Mines and Minerals Development, said the government had contracted Sable Contractors to work on the Chipata-Mfuwe road.

“The contract has been awarded and the contractor should start mobilising so that he moves on site on our road so that we can see it upgraded to tarmac. The contractor is Sable. As you know Sable is in the whole of Eastern Province; it will be easier for them to mobilise. They will tar the road. Sable should move on site anytime soon and commence the works,” Mwale said.

He admitted that the K35 billion budgeted for tarring of the Chipata-Mfuwe road in the 2010 national budget was inadequate.

“It”s not sufficient but as the government we are doing everything possible to ensure that some money is added on,” said Mwale.

During the official opening of Parliament last September, President Rupiah Banda said the government would spend K200 billion on the road because of its importance to tourism.

“The South Luangwa National Park is another priority area for tourism development. However, poor accessibility to and within the area continues to pose a serious constraint to further development of tourism. Government, therefore, has this year embarked on rehabilitating the Chipata-Mfuwe road leading to the national park at a cost of K200 billion,” said President Banda.

But in the 2010 national budget, finance and national planning minister Dr Situmbeko Musokotwane only allocated K35 billion for the Chipata-Mfuwe road.

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By ZamChro Correspondent

Speaking at a press conference last week Vice President George Kunda revealed that the Government is currently drafting several pieces of legislation to be tabled in Parliament next year.

Mr Kunda said the bills included the Anti-Corruption Commission (ACC) law which would see the creation of specialised departments in the ACC such as the serious fraud unit to take over the function of the defunct Taskforce on Corruption.
Mr Kunda also commented on a whole range of other issues of national importance. He said the constitutional review process would continue because it was coming up with useful and ingenious constitutional provisions on the economic and political governance of the country.

Mr Kunda said the Millennium Challenge Account (MCA) programme initiated by the American government was another important governance programme which would enable the Government to evaluate its governance standards and indicators on civil liberties, rule of law and freedom of the Press, among others.

He said the Government under President Rupiah Banda’s leadership would continue to create a conducive environment for doing business and had won accolades from the International Monetory Fund, World Bank and other cooperating partners.

On ratification of the United Nations conventions on the rights of persons with disabilities, Mr Kunda said the Government had approved the ratification of rights of persons with disabilities.

He said the move signified the Government’s commitment to the protection and promotion of the rights of persons with disabilities.

The vice-president said under the 2010 Budget, the Government would construct 70 new local courts and rehabilitate 30 others countrywide at K33 billion.

He said construction and rehabilitations of the courts would increase access to justice for its citizens in accordance with the access to justice programme.

On the establishment of small claims court, Mr Kunda urged the public to make use of the facilities, whose minimal charge is K55,000 inclusive of the cost of service of the claim defendant.

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By ZamChro Correspondent

The Law Association of Zambia (LAZ) has said the judgment involving Lusaka lawyer Rodger Chongwe’s claim for compensation should have first been registered in the Zambian courts before payment is considered.

LAZ president Steven Lungu said yesterday that the judgment should have first been registered in Zambia for it to have legal efficacy especially that no Zambian Government official represented the country when Dr Chongwe took the matter to United Nations Human Rights Committee (UNHRC) following the 1997 Kabwe shooting incident.

He said since Dr Chongwe did not exhaust all the local channels before taking the matter to the UNHRC, it was prudent that the matter was registered for it to have legal efficacy.

“One of the conditions for one to take the matter that far is to first exhaust all local channels but in this case, nothing like that was done,” Mr Lungu said.

He said the amount awarded to Dr Chongwe as compensation was too much as compared to what the Zambian courts award as compensation.

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By ZamChro Correspondent

Patriotic Front (PF) leader Michael Sata yesterday urged President Rupiah Banda not to use lies to clear himself on the US $5.9 million awarded to Lusaka lawyer Dr Rodger Chongwe as compensation for the injuries he suffered during the 1997 police shooting in Kabwe.

Reacting to State House special assistant for press and public relations Dickson Jere’s statement on Monday that President Banda blocked the payment of US $6.7 million to Dr Chongwe because the amount was too excessive and was going to set a bad precedent, Sata advised President Banda to desist from lying.

“The problem is when comrade Rupiah Banda became President of Zambia, he thought Zambians were foolish and had a very short memory,” Sata said.

“That’s why whenever he brings a lie, he wants to use another lie to cover up for the earlier lie, thinking that Zambians will forget the first lie. Let him not lie just to clear himself on this matter.”

“Nobody has said Chongwe has been paid the money. What has been exposed is that they were in the process of making the payment. Let them just be honest. You look at what home affairs minister Lameck Mangani said the first day government responded to The Post’s story,” Sata said.

“Mangani told the nation that his boss, Rupiah, was merely seeking the Attorney General’s opinion and guidance on the matter. But now Jere is telling us that Rupiah instructed Mumba Malila to stop the payment. How can Rupiah seek guidance or opinion from the same person he is instructing to halt the payment?” Sata asked.

“And can they tell us when did Rupiah seek Malila’s guidance or opinion as claimed by Mangani since we have been told that he issued instructions to stop the payment on November 30, 2009?”

“I would like to ask one simple question; who is the chief government spokesperson? Is it Mangani or Shikapwasha? Or probably Mangani only rushes to respond to matters concerning Eastern Province because when we spoke about Rupiah’s tribalism of appointing a number of people from Eastern Province in his Cabinet, it was Mangani who rushed to answer,” Sata said.

“And when the issue of Rodger Chongwe who is also from Eastern Province arose, it was Mangani who again rushed to respond.

“So in what capacity does Mangani comment on these issues? Maybe Shikapwasha is only restricted to matters about Zambia and Mangani speaks about issues concerning tribalism and nepotism.”

“If Malila agreed with them he could not have been fired. Malila didn’t agree with them that’s why they fired him. George Kunda is scared of being dismissed that is why he is blowing the trumpet about Chongwe,” he said.

“Why are they rushing on Chongwe yet they have failed to register the London judgment where we were fully represented by George Kunda himself. Why haven’t they registered that?” Sata asked. “The London judgment is in favour of Zambia and we want to recover about US $55 million. Chongwe’s findings and the claim are just for him as an individual and not Zambia.”

Recently after the revelations on Dr Chongwe’s US $5.9 million compensation, Mangani denied that President Banda authorised the payment. He said Dr Chongwe’s issue required legal opinion, hence the move by President Banda to write the Attorney General Mumba Malila seeking his opinion and guidance.

But contrary to Mangani’s denial, Dr Chongwe justified his compensation claim, saying he was happy that the government was going to implement the decision and that President Banda played a part in the matter.
On Monday, Dickson Jere stated that President Banda did meet Dr Chongwe in the company of the Solicitor-General at the request of Dr Chongwe.

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By ZamChro Correspondent

Former finance minister Ng’andu Magande has said, in a reaction to Information minister Ronnie Shikapwasha’s assertions that no one in MMD was scared of Magande because he is not as popular as he claims, that Shikapwasha could not be a good barometer to measure other people’s popularity as he just got his own vote during the NEC elections for the MMD presidential candidate in 2008.

“He is a NEC member as well, but you know the last election we had even within NEC members, Mr. Shikapwasha got one vote. So I can only say that he doesn’t know how to judge popularity even of himself because that was why he stood. He thought he was popular and he goes to get his own vote.”

“So somebody who has such a poor judgment of even himself cannot obviously be a good barometer for comparing other people’s popularity,” Magande said.

 “Because if he is a very good judge, he wouldn’t have stood to just get one vote. So those who have no proper judgment of what is happening in the country should not spend their time talking around.”

Magande said he had a proven track record in the public service.

During the national executive committee NEC elections to choose a presidential candidate for the ruling MMD, Magande got over 11 votes while Shikapwasha acquired one vote, from himself.

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