Tuesday, 9^th November, 2021

 

The House met at 1430 hours

 

[MADAM SPEAKER in the Chair]

 

NATIONAL ANTHEM

 

PRAYER

 

_______

 

MATTERS OF URGENT PUBLIC IMPORTANCE

 

RAISED BY MR MUTALE, HON. MEMBER OF PARLIAMENT FOR CHITAMBO, ON THE HON. MINISTER OF ENERGY FOR NOT INFORMING THE NATION ON WHAT CAUSED NATIONWIDE ELECTRICITY BLACKOUTS

 

Mr Mutale (Chitambo): On a point of order, Madam.

 

Madam Speaker: Are you raising a point of order?

 

Mr Mutale: I refer to Standing Order No. 134; a matter of urgent public importance.

 

Madam Speaker: Hon. Member, when you rise on  Standing Order No. 134, you raise a matter of urgent public importance, not a point of order.

 

Mr Mutale: Madam Speaker, thank you very much for that guidance.

 

Madam Speaker: You can proceed.

 

Mr Mutale: Madam Speaker, I rarely rise on matters of urgent public importance, but I have to raise this one.

 

Madam, last week, the whole weekend, the country experienced electricity blackouts but, so far, we have not heard anything from the Government on why the whole country experienced those blackouts. Is the hon. Minister of Energy in order to not make any statement to the nation on this very important matter?

 

I need your serious guidance and ruling, Madam Speaker.

 

Madam Speaker: Thank you, hon. Member, for raising this point under Standing Order No. 134.

 

Before I make any ruling on that order, first and foremost, I need to ask myself whether the issue that has been raised is important. In this regard, I do find that, indeed, the issue that has been raised is very important because the blackouts are being suffered nationally and Zambians are being affected. The second aspect is: Is it so urgent nature that if nothing is done today, a catastrophe will arise or we will lose a life? On this limb, I find that even if the matter is not attended to today, no catastrophe will result. In fact, we have experienced blackouts previously. So, this matter is not one that has just arisen. In accordance with Standing Order 135, on admissibility of a matter of urgent public importance, it is clear that the matter has to be of recent occurrence. However, blackouts are not a recent occurrence. We have experienced them now and then for a long time now. So, this matter that the hon. Member has raised is not allowed. However, this does not close the hon. Member from raising the matter using other modes. In this regard, I advise him to liaise with the Office of the Clerk of the National Assembly on how the matter can be addressed, but not under Standing Order No. 134. There are other mechanisms which are open to hon. Members who wish to address matters of this nature.

 

That is my ruling.

 

RAISED BY MR MUNIR ZULU, HON. MEMBER OF PARLIAMENT FOR LUMEZI, ON THE HON. MINISTER FOR SOUTHERN PROVINCE FOR USING THE DEFENCE FORCES TO DISTRIBUTE MAIZE AND FERTILISER

 

Mr Munir Zulu (Lumezi): On a point of order, Madam Speaker.

 

Madam Speaker: A point of order on whom?

 

Mr Munir Zulu: Madam Speaker, with reference to Standing Order 134, I am raising a matter of urgent public importance.

 

Madam Speaker, may I take you to Article 192 –

 

Madam Speaker: I have not allowed you yet. You stood and said you wanted to raise a matter of urgent public importance.

 

Mr Munir Zulu: Yes, Madam Speaker.

 

Madam Speaker: You may proceed.

 

Mr Munir Zulu: Madam Speaker, permit me to take this House to Article 192 of the Republican Constitution.

 

Madam Speaker, Article 192(1) of the Republican Constitution creates the Defence Forces while Article 192(2)(b) provides for the fostering of harmony and understanding among the Zambia Army, Zambia Air Force (ZAF), an auxiliary unit and members of society. Further, Article 192(2)(c) provides for co-operation between the Defence Forces and State organs and institutions in times of public emergencies and national disasters.

 

Madam Speaker, at the weekend, we saw in different news tabloids the hon. Minister for the Southern Province flag off the distribution of maize and fertiliser by our men in uniform using military trucks. That raised a Constitutional issue because the functions of the Defence Forces are enshrined in Article 192(2)(c) of the Constitution With your permission, I quote the cited Article as follows:

 

“co-operate with State organs and State institutions in times of public emergencies and national disasters.”

 

Madam Speaker, what we saw at the weekend was not done during a period of public emergency or national disaster.

 

Madam Speaker, we will be failing in our duties, as leaders of this country, if we think that because we are enjoying the peace today, we are immune to being attacked by external forces. What would happen if Zambia were to come under attack from external forces and we were unable to deploy our Defence Forces due to military trucks being wrecked because we used them to transport farming inputs?

 

Mr Mufalali: Question!

 

Mr Munir Zulu: Madam Speaker, all of us in this House sleep peacefully because we know that this country is well protected because it has enough military personnel and hardware to transport our officers. I am convinced beyond any reasonable –

 

Madam Speaker: Order, hon. Member for Lumezi!

 

You are debating, and I am failing to get what the point you are raising is. You stood to raise a matter of urgent public importance. What is that matter? I am trying to get what the matter is that you are trying to raise.

 

Mr Munir Zulu: Madam Speaker, I am saying that we need to debate the issue of using military trucks to transport maize. If this is being done in the whole country, one day, we will wake up without utility vehicles to transport our men in uniform to defend us. We have a history of the Zambian Government having to deploy troops in Kaputa against a Congolese invasion –

 

Madam Speaker: Order, hon. Member for Lumezi!

 

I think you are now debating the issue. However, if it is your desire to debate that issue, you are advised to follow Standing Order No. 136, which provides for debating matters of urgent public importance. You can move a Motion, and the Office of the Clerk of the National Assembly is there to advise you on the procedure that is supposed to be followed. Then, we can make progress.

 

RAISED BY AMB. KALIMI, HON. MEMBER OF PARLIAMENT FOR MALOLE, ON THE HON. MINISTER OF EDUCATION FOR NOT INFORMING THE NATION ON THE STATE OF AFFAIRS AT UNIVERSITY OF ZAMBIA AND COPPERBELT UNIVERSITY

 

Amb. Kalimi (Malole): On a point of order, Madam Speaker.

 

Madam Speaker: A point of order on whom, sorry?

 

Amb. Kalimi: Under Standing Order No. 134.

 

Madam Speaker: I think that for today, we can shelf issues falling under Standing Order No. 134. There have been too many –

 

Interruptions

 

Madam Speaker: Anyway, you can go ahead and raise the matter. We will make the ruling.

 

Hon. Opposition Members: Hear, hear!

 

Amb. Kalimi: Madam Speaker, thank you very much for giving me this opportunity to raise this matter of urgent public importance.

 

Madam Speaker, at the University of Zambia (UNZA) and the Copperbelt University (CBU), lecturers are on strike. Further, today, we saw students march all the way to State House, threatening the peace and work of the President, who is working very hard at State House. Is  the hon. Minister of Education in order to sit in this House without informing the nation on the state of affairs at UNZA and the CBU, yet he was a lecturer at UNZA, the university that also produced him?

 

I need your serious ruling, Madam Speaker.

 

Hon. Opposition Members: Hear, hear!

 

Madam Speaker: The issue of students demonstrating on the streets is a matter of recent occurrence, and I consider it important. I, therefore, direct the hon. Minister of Education to issue a statement on the status of what is happening at the University of Zambia (UNZA) to this House on Friday, this week, so that the House is informed and, in the same manner, the people of Zambia.

 

Hon. Opposition Members: Hear, hear!

 

RAISED BY MR FUBE, HON. MEMBER OF PARLIAMENT FOR CHILUBI, ON THE PRESIDENT’S ALLEGEDLY DIVISIVE REMARKS AT THE KENNETH KAUNDA INTERNATIONAL AIRPORT

 

Mr Fube (Chilubi): On a point of urgent public importance, Madam Speaker.

 

Hon. Member: Lelo ni lelo.

 

Madam Speaker: Sorry, I did not hear what you said, hon. Member for Chilubi.

 

Mr Fube: Madam, I rise on a matter of urgent public importance according to Standing Order No. 134, not a point of order.

 

Madam Speaker: You may proceed.

 

Mr Fube: Madam Speaker, thank you for the opportunity you have given me. Allow me to quote from the Preamble of the Constitution, on paragraph 6, I think.

 

Madam Speaker: Hon. Member, instead of quoting, just raise the matter of urgent public importance that you want to raise, for now.

 

Mr Fube: All right. I just wanted to add some flesh.

 

Madam Speaker, the matter of urgent public importance is that on his arrival at the airport from the 26^th United Nations Climate Change Conference (COP26), the President was asked a question, I think, to do with the Constituency Development Fund (CDF) by some journalist. I think the matter is in the public domain because it was covered by our national broadcaster. In his explanation, the President said, “We have taken the money to the grassroots. Since Independence, this has never happened.” Later, he said, “… unlike what has been happening since Independence, where cliques of thieves have been feasting on public resources”.

 

Interruptions

 

Mr Fube: Some of you are there (pointing at hon. Government Members). Where are the cliques of thieves? Some of them, I think, are on the right side. They have been feasting on public resources, but the resources have now been taken to the constituencies so that they can be utilised properly. The President further said, ‘This is a clique of hegemonists who have always been thinking they are the only ones who can rule, and not others.” His term was “them”.

 

Madam Speaker, I take “them” as the minor premise and “others” as the major premise, and conclude that the  President was dividing the nation.

 

Madam Speaker, the President has sworn to protect the Constitution. In the Constitution, which I wanted to quote, this is a unitary State, and I found the President’s statement divisive to the nation because his reference, from my limited logic, was to tribe, and the statement was frictional. Therefore, I would like to get the position of the Government on whether this is no longer a unitary State, because the President’s statement was inciting members of the public against a particular group of people.

 

Interruptions

 

Mr Fube: So, my matter of urgent public importance is that the President, at that point abused the unitary state of this nation.

 

Mr Matambo: On a point of order, Madam Speaker.

 

Mr Fube: Apart from that, he incited people and divided them into groups. I think, even following his interlude, to say that –

 

Mr Matambo: On a point of order, Madam Speaker.

 

Interruptions

 

Madam Speaker: Order, hon. Members!

 

There cannot be a point of order on a point of order.

 

Mr Fube: You need a workshop.

 

Madam Speaker: Let us have some order.

 

The hon. Member who is upstanding, please, can you resume your seat as I am speaking.

 

Mr Fube resumed his seat.

 

Madam Speaker: Let us have some order. We have the Budget Speech to debate and do not have much time. So, if we are going to waste our time on raising matters here and there, we are not going to use our time properly. Let the hon. Member raise the matter of urgent public importance that he wants to raise. On the other hand, he is advised to not debate, but to get to the matter of urgent public importance that he wants me to make a ruling on. I need to be clear on what it is so that even my ruling will be clear. If I am not clear, then, I will not be able to give a clear ruling.

 

Hon. Member for Chilubi, please, be clear and precise as you raise your matter of urgent public importance.

 

Mr Fube: Madam Speaker, this is a matter of urgent public importance because if we were to peruse through Article 135, from Sub-Articles (a) to (e), we find there matters that qualify the President’s statement as being divisive to the nation. That is my point.

 

Madam Speaker, another point is that the President’s statement can bring conflict.

 

Mr Katakwe: Question!

 

Mr Fube: We have had African countries which have been divided because of tribe, and that led to civil wars. I fear that his statement can lead to violence. That is the point I am trying to raise.

 

Madam Speaker: Thank you, hon. Member for Chilubi, for this point that you have raised.

 

With regard to the statement that the President made, you have not laid any paper on the Table for us to see exactly what the President said. Further, whereas the matter might be important, it is not so urgent that if no statement is issued on it today, a catastrophe is going to be the result. Like I guided the hon. Member for Lunte, please, if you want to raise that issue, liaise with the Clerk of the National Assembly, and you will be guided on the procedure that you need to follow in raising the matter through a Motion for debate by the House. I have seen that hon. Members have not taken advantage of Motions that can be moved on such matters on Wednesdays. So, you are at liberty to present the matter for debate, and the House will debate accordingly.

 

You are accordingly guided.

 

Mr Munir Zulu: On a point of order, Madam Speaker.

 

Laughter

 

Hon. Members: Hear, hear!

 

Madam Speaker: Can we make progress now.

 

Mr Munir Zulu: Madam Speaker, Standing Order No. 207(2)(b) –

 

Madam Speaker: Order, hon. Member for Lumezi!

 

Please, resume your seat. I have not given you permission to raise a point of order; I have not recognised you.

 

Hon. Member, you have already raised a matter of urgent public importance. Do you want to raise another one?

 

Mr Munir Zulu indicated assent.

 

Madam Speaker: We need to make progress. I am not going to take any more matters of urgent public importance for today because I have already attended to four so far

 

That is my ruling on the matter.

 

______

 

MINISTERIAL STATEMENT

 

ARREST OF THREE PATRIOTIC FRONT MEMBERS OF PARLIAMENT

 

The Minister of Home Affairs and Internal Security (Mr Mwiimbu): Madam Speaker, I thank you for giving me the opportunity to issue a ministerial statement on the point of order raised by Hon. Brian Mundubile, Member of Parliament for Mporokoso Constituency and Leader of the Opposition in the House, on the arrest of three Patriotic Front (PF) Members of Parliament.

 

Hon. UPND Members: Hear, hear!

 

Mr Mwiimbu: Madam Speaker, let me give a brief background to the arrest of the three PF Members of Parliament.

 

With regard to Hon. Nickson Chilangwa, Member of Parliament for Kawambwa Constituency, and Hon. Ronald Kaoma Chitotela, Member of Parliament for Pambashe Constituency, the facts are that on 12^th August, 2021, Kawambwa Police Station received reports of arson, malicious damage to property, threatening violence, unlawful wounding and assault, which occurred around 1230 hours at Mulyoni Village on the Kawambwa/Mporokoso Road in Kawambwa District, Luapula Province. Zambia Police Service officers rushed to the scene and found a white Mahindra motor vehicle, registration number BAR 1922, property of the United Party for National Development (UPND), on fire. The Zambia Police Service instituted comprehensive investigations pertaining to the said alleged criminal acts. Consequently, on 2^nd November, 2021, the Zambia Police Service in Kawambwa arrested seven suspects in connection with the case. Among the arrested suspects were two hon. Members of Parliament, namely Mr Chilangwa and Mr Chitotela. The suspects have been charged with the offences of arson, malicious damage to property, threatening violence, unlawful wounding and assault occasioning actual bodily harm, and have since been released on police bond and will appear in court soon.

 

Madam Speaker, in the case of Hon. Kalalwe Mukosa, Member of Parliament for Chinsali Central Constituency, the brief facts are that on 10^th June, 2021, during the campaign period, Chinsali Police Station received a report of assault occasioning actual bodily harm which occurred at Chinsali Police Administration Office. So far, four suspects, including Hon. Mukosa, have been arrested in connection with the said offence while one suspect is still at large. The four suspects were released on police bond and have since appeared in the Chinsali Subordinate Court for plea. The case was adjourned to 29^th November, 2021, for commencement of trial.

 

Madam Speaker, let me make it abundantly clear that it is not the first time that Members of Parliament and some prominent members of society have been arrested.

 

Hon. UPND Members: Hear, hear!

 

Mr Mwiimbu: In the previous regime, …

 

Mr Samakayi: Tell them!

 

Mr Mwiimbu: … I repeat: In the previous regime, Members of Parliament and dignified citizens were arrested and prosecuted. Some of them were found wanting and subsequently convicted while others were acquitted. Allow me to give examples.

 

Madam Speaker, the current Head of State was arrested more than fifteen times.

 

Hon. UPND Members: Hear, hear!

 

Mr Mwiimbu: Hon. Gary Nkombo, Hon. Steven Masumba, Mr Chishimba Kambwili, Hon. Romeo Kangombe, Mr Keith Mukata, Hon. Douglas Syakalima, Hon. Chitalu Chilufya and Hon. Ronald Chitotela were also arrested while they were Members of Parliament.

 

Mr Mufalali: Correct!

 

Mr Mwiimbu: Madam Speaker, it is important to note that when the aforementioned hon. Members of Parliament were arrested, there was no mention of the tribal application of the law.

 

Hon. UPND Member: Hear, hear!

 

Mr Mwiimbu: So, let me also take this opportunity to address the insinuations that the application of the law is tribal.

 

Madam, the Penal Code Act, Cap 87 of the Laws of Zamia, states that tribal discrimination is an offence, and this Administration will not discriminate against anyone based on tribe.

 

Hon. PF Members: Question!

 

Hon. UPND Members: Hear, hear!

 

Mr Mwiimbu: Madam Speaker, the fight against crime in whatever form will never be tribal. The law is not selective based on tribe. In any case, all those who committed offences did not do so on behalf of their tribes; they committed those acts on their own volition as individuals and as private persons.

 

Madam Speaker, the law enforcement agencies are applying the law professionally, without any aorta of discrimination. So, the law-breakers should not hide under the guise of tribal discrimination. The New Dawn Government stands firm on the application of the law without fear or favour.

 

Hon. UPND Members: Hear, hear!

 

Mr Mwiimbu: Madam Speaker, let me reiterate that the New Dawn Administration believes in the rule of law and the autonomy of the law enforcement agencies. Let me also warn that no one, I repeat: No one, not even those holding important and dignified positions, is above the law. The Government will not shield anyone be it a Member of Parliament or any member of the public, from the administration of justice when he or she commits criminal acts. The law will visit anyone who commits a crime regardless of their position or status in society. As Members of Parliament, we are expected to lead by example, as laws are made by us. Further, law enforcement agencies must exhibit high levels of professionalism when dealing with members of the public.

 

Madam Speaker, the House may wish to note that there is no statute of limitation in criminal offences in our country. Those who committed offences against the citizens of this country in the past should not think that they are being persecuted when they are arrested for that reason. The Zambia Police Service will use all legal means to bring to book all those who commit crimes, as the New Dawn Administration is determined to bring to a logical conclusion, without fear or favour, all cases reported to law enforcement agencies.

 

Madam Speaker, I appeal to the general citizenry to remain calm as law enforcement agencies professionally discharge their duties.

 

I thank you, Madam Speaker.

 

Madam Speaker: Hon. Members, you are now free to ask questions on points of clarification on the ministerial statement issued by the hon. Minister of Home Affairs and Internal Security.

 

Mr Mundubile (Mporokoso): Madam Speaker, I thank the hon. Minster for this ministerial statement. When I raised the point of order, I focused on two issues. One was the names while the other was the selective manner in which the arrests were being made.

 

Madam Speaker, I am happy that the hon. Minister has constructively admitted, going by the names that he has mentioned and the ones we mentioned, that there certainly is something wrong. When he mentioned the names of prominent persons who were arrested in the previous Administration, I am sure, you could see that they came from across the tribes. So, I am happy that he can also see that there is something wrong with the recent arrests, as they involve people from only one area. Further, when we look at the complaints that were filed in with the police during the campaigns and post the elections, we see situations in which both Patriotic Front (PF) hon. Members of Parliament and United Party for National Development (UPND) members were complained against, sometimes over the same cases, and one party is arrested while the other is left to walk the streets freely. It is that selective manner in which the police have been effecting arrests that raises concern.

 

Madam Speaker, this issue is topical and about Zambians in general, not about the hon. Members only. So, going forward, to allay fears and suspicions among members of the public, is the hon. Minister in a position to present to this House a status report on the various cases that have been reported to all the police stations, especially during the elections, so that members of the public are able to follow up the cases as the police effects arrests and know whether the police continues to act professionally and in a consistent manner in effecting arrests?

 

Hon. PF Members: Hear, hear!

 

Madam Speaker: Hon. Members, as we ask our questions, let us not debate. The issue here is that you are supposed to ask questions seeking clarifications on the hon. Minister’s statement. Let us not prolong our debates. Further, just to advise you, let us try to not put petrol on fire by bringing tribal debates in the House because that is not going to build the country. If there is any institution –

 

Interruptions

 

Hon. Member: Overrule the question.

 

Madam Speaker: Order!

 

If there is any institution that is going to promote peace and harmony in this country, it is this House, and that responsibility lies primarily with the hon. Members of this House. So, as we debate, please, let us bear that in mind. We can go and talk about tribal issues outside this House, not in it. So, let us restrain ourselves as we debate and ask questions on points of clarification from the hon. Minister.

 

Mr Mwiimbu: Madam Speaker, I am alarmed by the insinuations that are being made by my hon. Colleague, the Leader of the Opposition, pertaining to the arrests that have been made by the Zambia Police Service.

 

Madam Speaker, we are all aware that the law of this country allows any person whose rights have been violated by anyone to report the matter to the police. In the instances we are talking about, the persons who reported the matters to the police reside in, and hail from, the areas whose people the hon. Member is alleging are being discriminated; the reports were not made by people who do not hail from the area. They were not reported by people who do not hail from Kawambwa. For example, the persons who reported the matters of Hon. Chitotela and Hon. Chilangwa come from the same tribe in Kawambwa and Luapula.

 

Hon. Government Members: Hear, hear!

 

Mr Mwiimbu: So, how do we bring in issues of tribalism or tribal segregation in this case? Similarly, the people who reported acts of criminality against the hon. Member for Chinsali hail from Chinsali. No one from any other tribe reported these matters. The acts were committed during the time of elections by members of the same community. That is what happened.

 

The hon. Member, Madam Speaker, further alleges that in my statement, I only attributed the arrests to a different clique of people. No, I did not.

 

Madam Speaker, are we now redefining tribe in this country? Are Hon. Gary Nkombo and Hon. Chitotela of the same tribe? Are Hon. Syakalima and Hon. Mukosa of the same tribe? Are we alleging that the people who arrested Hon. Gary Nkombo and Hon. Syakalima were of a different tribe?

 

Madam Speaker, as you have indicated, we should not start raising tribal issues on the Floor of this House because we will divide this nation. There is no Robin Hood in criminality. I repeat: There is no Robin Hood in criminality; there is no tribe that benefits from the criminality of an individual. These issues of assault and arson have no inclination to tribe. In these cases, the injured persons reported the matters to the police in accordance with the law.

 

Madam Speaker, are we now suggesting that when the former regime, the PF, arrested Hon. Chitalu Chilufya, it did that on tribal lines? Our colleagues should tell me. Further, are they now telling me that when the PF arrested Mr Hakainde Hichilema, it was on tribal grounds? They should tell me. They were the ones in power at that time.

 

Interruptions

 

Madam Speaker: Order, hon. Members!

 

Can we maintain the order and decorum of the House.

 

Mr Mwiimbu: Madam Speaker, let us not debate these issues on tribal lines. The police are supposed to be professional and discharge their functions in accordance with the Constitution, and we, in this House, have a duty to uphold the Constitution of Zambia. Anyone, including those who are in this House, who make allegations of tribalism trivially, can face the consequences of their actions, and we can lift the veil for that to happen. So, let us not think that because hon. Members have immunity on the Floor of this House, they can start raising issues of tribalism. That is dangerous.

 

I thank you, Madam Speaker.

 

Interruptions

 

Madam Speaker: Order!

 

If the House does not maintain order, we will move to the next item on the Order Paper.

 

Mr Mung’andu (Chama South): Madam Speaker, I am asking a follow-up question with a very heavy heart and a lot of sadness because our country, if we are not careful, is slightly – It is really a pity that we are talking about tribalism.

 

Madam Speaker, from the examples the hon. Minister has given, it is clear that he is trying to justify what his Government is doing by showing that the Patriotic Front (PF) having done the same. However, that is what we, the people of Zambia, particularly the people of Chama South, do not want to hear and that is, maybe, the reason the PF is out of the Government. Are our colleagues going to act the exact way the PF Government is alleged to have acted in effecting arrests?

 

Madam Speaker, there are reports that police officers from Lusaka are being deployed to certain areas of the country to persecute the PF hon. Members of Parliament being charged on various offenses related to the electoral process. Can the hon. Minister confirm that following the arrests of Hon. Chitotela and Hon. Nixon Chilangwa, officers have been transferred from Kawambwa and replaced with officers from Lusaka with clear instructions to make the lives of the two hon. Members of Parliament difficult?

 

Mr Mwiimbu: Madam Speaker, on the Floor of this House, the official language is English, and it is assumed that everyone of us understands the language.

 

Madam Speaker, I have not said that we are justifying the arrest of others on the premise that it was done under the PF. What I did was ask whether our colleagues’ position on the arrests meant that the arrests that were made during their time were tribal. I also mentioned that as far as we are concerned, there are no tribal arrests in this country. None, whatsoever. Further, I mentioned that the complainants in the cases are of the same tribe as those who have been arrested and asked how tribe can come into the matter.

 

Madam Speaker, the talk of police officers being transferred from Kawambwa to other places and those from Lusaka being taken to Kawambwa in order to make the work of the hon. Members of Parliament uncomfortable is mere speculation, and it should not even be entertained by any right-thinking Zambian because it is a non-issue. What we know is that the transfer of police officers, like other public officers, if there are any transfers, is the order of the day, unlike the way it was under our colleagues, who used to transfer and victimise all officers from an area whenever there was an issue or a by-election. We have said that such things would never happen again, and we will not water the bad seeds that were sown by the PF when it was in power; we want to unite this country, and we will unite it. We are ‘One Zambia, One Nation’. 

 

I thank you, Madam Speaker.

 

Hon. Government Members: Hear, hear!

 

Mr Kampyongo (Shiwang’andu): Madam Speaker, I want to start by agreeing with the hon. Minister of Home Affairs and Internal Security that no one is above the law. The examples he gave of prominent people who were arrested, including colleagues who were hon. Ministers at the time they were arrested, demonstrates that the police, even then, was acting professionally. So, there was nothing to hinder it from acting. What is raising suspicion is that action is not being taken everywhere. As much as we agree that there is no statute of limitation, action can be taken anywhere.

 

Madam Speaker, the case involving Hon. Kalalwe Mukosa is an assault that allegedly occurred on 10^th June, 2021. Similarly, the matters relating to the two other hon. Members, Mr Chitotela and Mr Chilangwa, also happened before August, 2021. Is the hon. Minister telling us that, now, the police officers – The cases could have been dealt with spontaneously; a complainant reports and the suspect is arrested. Why did it take more than five months for the police officers to swing into action at the same time, targeting the hon. Members in question?

 

Interruptions

 

Madam Speaker: Order, hon. Members!

 

Continue, hon. Member for Shiwang’andu.

 

Mr Kampyongo: Is this the kind of professionalism the hon. Minister intends to promote?

 

Madam Speaker: As the hon. Minister answers, please, let us allow him time to do so without interjections because not doing so will not promote order and the good standing of the House.

 

Mr Mwiimbu: Madam Speaker, I thank my colleague, the former hon. Minister of Home Affairs, for bringing out that issue. I have no doubt in my mind that he knows that during the reign of the PF, the Zambia Police Service executed its duties in fear.

 

Hon. PF Members: Question!

 

Mr Mwiimbu: Many policemen and women were victimised for having performed their duties prudently and diligently, and examples are many. We have examples of police officers who performed their duties professionally being retired in the national interest or public interest, demoted or transferred to remote areas as a way of disciplining them and instilling fear in them.

 

Madam Speaker, we have to note that the cases in question were reported immediately after they occurred, but the police could not take action at the time because they feared that if they did, they would be disciplined. Now, since there is a new dawn and fresh air, police officers have realised that they have room to discharge their functions professionally. Equally, members of the public who were aggrieved, but could not pursue their cases, have found opportunities to pursue the cases to their logical conclusion, hence the arrests. Had the PF won the elections, despite the heinous nature of the crimes committed, the individuals would not have been arrested.

 

Hon. Government Members: Hear, hear!

 

Mr Mwiimbu: Madam Speaker, we are aware that in Chiengi, …

 

Rev Katuta: Balyocha radio!

 

Mr Mwiimbu: … Nakonde, Isoka and Chipata, radio stations were burnt down, but nothing happened under the PF regime.

 

Interruption

 

Mr Mwiimbu: The police is now saying that the perpetrators of those crimes should not escape the claws of the law. So, the law will follow whoever committed an offence, and I want to state that we are not selective. As I speak, our members in Solwezi and Lusaka are in detention for crimes they committed during the elections.

 

Mr Mulenga: Copperbelt.

 

Mr Mwiimbu: Even on the Copperbelt Province. Further, police cells are full of United Party for National Development (UPND) members we have not released despite being in power because we want the due process of the law to be followed. That is what we are doing. So, we will not target anyone because of their political affiliation, and all my hon. colleagues on your left have protection as long as we are in Government; we will not behave the way they used to behave in their day.

 

I thank you, Madam.

 

Hon. Government Member: Hear, hear!

 

Mr Mushanga (Bwacha): Madam Speaker, before I pose this question, let me ask the hon. Minister, as he responds to the questions, to address Mr Hakainde Hichilema as ‘President Hakainde Hichilema’, not simply as “Hakainde Hichilema”. He said, “When Hakainde Hichilema was arrested”. That is a lack of respect for the President.

 

Hon. Opposition Members: Hear, hear!

 

Laugher

 

Mr Mushanga: Madam Speaker, my question is: What is the justification for the police in Kawambwa arresting Hon. Chitotela and Hon. Chilangwa when the two were not even near the place where the Mahindra vehicle was burnt?

 

Interruption

 

Madam Speaker: Order!

 

From the statement by the hon. Minister, it is clear that these matters are in court. The hon. Minister was only reacting to the point of order and the directive of the Presiding Officer that a statement be made. So, as we ask questions and answer them, we should not comment on issues that are pending before the Courts of Law.

 

Mr Mwiimbu: Madam Speaker, let me sincerely thank the hon. Member for Bwacha, Mr Mushanga, for reminding me that we have a new President, His Excellency Mr Hakainde Hichilema, Commander-in-Chief of the Armed Forces of Zambia.

 

Hon. Government Members: Hear, hear!

 

Mr Mwiimbu: A leader who believes in the rule of law and advises us to let the due process of the law take its course.

 

Madam Speaker, as you have guided, I do not want to delve into the evidence pertaining to this matter because that is not my responsibility. The accused will have to defend themselves, and we do not interfere in the operations of the police. The mattes will be determined in court.

 

I thank you, Madam Speaker.

 

Mr Kasandwe (Bangweulu): Madam Speaker, the simplistic manner in which the questions are being answered is worrisome.

 

Mr Kampyongo: On a point of order, Madam Speaker.

 

Madam Speaker: A point of order is raised.

 

Mr Kampyongo: Madam Speaker, thank you very much for allowing me to rise on a point of order. I sincerely apologise to the hon. Member for Bangweulu for disturbing his thought process.

 

Madam Speaker, I raise this point of order under Standing Order 65(b), which provides as follows:

 

“(b)      ensure that the information he or she provides to the House is factual and verifiable.”

 

Madam Speaker, I have followed the responses of the hon. Minister who, in his submissions, has cited very interesting cases, including those involving former hon. Ministers who were arrested. He has further insinuated that the only reason the police are acting on the hon. Members is that they were acting in fear in the past.

 

Hon. Government Members: Yes!

 

Mr Kampyongo: If that insinuation is true, why were serving hon. Ministers arrested? I appreciate the hon. Minister and I respect the work he is doing for the nation. However, is he in order to insinuate that he now gives directives to police officers to do their work, which we did not use to do? I seek your serious guidance on this matter because it must be verified as it goes on the record of Parliament.

 

Hon Opposition Members: Hear, hear!

 

Madam Speaker: I am not clear on who gives instructions. I did not get that.

 

Mr Kampyongo: Madam Speaker, I can begin –

 

Madam Speaker: You could rephrase.

 

Mr Kampyongo: Madam Speaker, I will rephrase.

 

Madam Speaker, I have already cited the Standing Order on how what we say in our debates here should be factual and verifiable. My concern is that the hon. Minister gave examples of prominent citizens of this country who were arrested at the time we were in Government, a time he was here. He cited then serving hon. Ministers who were arrested by the police when I asked why the police is only acting now on matters such as the case of Hon. Kalalwe Mukosa, an assault that allegedly happened on 10^th June, 2021, and the other case for which Hon. Chilangwa and Hon. Chitotela have been arrested, which happened five months ago, and his response was that the police could not act at the time the cases occurred due to the fears the officers had. This contradiction is very interesting, and it is why I am raising it. If serving hon. Ministers were arrested and there was no fear on the part of the police, how justifiable was the fear that was allegedly there during the time the accused were ordinary citizens and candidates? I want this matter to be addressed because the information he has given needs to be verified. Is he now saying he gives directives to the police on what to do, which we never did? 

 

Hon. Member: That information is –

 

Mr Kambita: What is the point of order?

 

Mr Kampyongo: Madam Speaker, my point of order is: Can the hon. Minister either verify the information he has given to the House or revisit his statement. I seek your serious guidance on this very important matter before it goes on the record of this august House.

 

Hon. Opposition Members: Hear, hear!

 

Madam Speaker: Since the issues that have been raised are not familiar to me, I reserve my ruling so that I can re-examine what the hon. Minister said in his statement and what the point of order relates to. Then I will render a ruling.

 

May the hon. Member for Bangweulu continue.

 

Mr Kasandwe: Madam Speaker, before I was interrupted by that very important point of order, I was saying that the simplistic manner in which points of clarification are being dealt with by the hon. Minister is very worrisome. It is a notorious fact that the complainants in the cases that have been cited are United Party for National Development (UPND) members, and that is not by coincidence. Further, as Hon. Mung’andu observed, the hon. Minister has insinuated that his Government can victimise members of the Opposition because members of the Patriotic Front (PF) did the same. To some of us, it is not what he says that matters; it is what he implies, because we can read between the lines. Is this handpicking and prosecution of political opponents a new way of uniting the nation?

 

Hon. Opposition Members: Hear, hear!

 

Mr Mwiimbu: Madam Speaker, it is very interesting to hear that the UPND is now a tribe. The point of order that was raised by the hon. Leader of the Opposition hinged on tribalism, but the issue the hon. Member is now raising is that the complainants are members of the UPND. Is the UPND a tribe?

 

Hon. Government Members: Imagine!

 

Mr Mwiimbu: The hon. Member should realise that members of the UPND in Luapula and other areas belong to the tribes in those areas and that the members of the UPND in Kawambwa belong to the same tribe as Hon. Chilangwa and Hon. Chitotela, and that they have a Constitutional right to report matters to the police if they are aggrieved. Is the hon. Member telling us that because they belong to the same tribe as Hon. Chitotela and Hon. Chilangwa, they should not report matters even if they are aggrieved? Is that what he is telling us? If so, that is very unfortunate.

 

Madam Speaker, I am not being simplistic. I have explained the circumstances pertaining to the matter in question. The concerned individuals in that area followed up the matter and complained that their complaints to the police were not being actioned. Now that the police have acted, the members of the public in that area are happy; it is not me who is happy because I do not know the circumstances. However, as far as I am concerned, hon. Members of Parliament and members of the public have the right to be protected by law enforcement agencies.

 

Madam Speaker, I did not insinuate that because members of the PF did wrong things, we should now do the same. I emphasise that the police are now being professional because they do not receive any instructions from anyone, and that is what has changed.

 

Madam Speaker, I do not want to delve into the point of order, but the fact is that those individuals who have been referred to were arrested by the Anti-Corruption Commission (ACC), not the police, and the two are different institutions.

 

I thank you, Madam Speaker.

 

Madam Speaker: We have taken over thirty minutes on this ministerial statement. So, I will allow only two more questions.

 

Mr Anakoka (Luena): Madam Speaker, a nation that does not enforce its laws fairly and justly shakes its existence. Given that the New Dawn Government is going to follow up the criminal activities that took place during the elections without regard to the status of the individuals who were involved, which is, indeed, a breath of fresh air, how soon is the nation going to see the establishment of fast-track courts so that all the people who belonged to a clique that was supposedly in charge at that point in time and participated in harassing citizens are brought to book as soon as possible?

 

Mr Mwiimbu: Madam Speaker, with your permission, I would like to define the term ‘clique’ because it is being abused by the clique.

 

Laughter

 

Mr Mwiimbu: Madam Speaker, a clique is a narrow and exclusive circle or group of persons, especially those who are held together by common interests. If the common interest is criminality, it is a clique of criminals engaged in criminal activities. The term has nothing to do with tribe. There can be cliques of criminally-minded persons from different tribes coming together to form a bigger clique to perpetrate serious clique issues on the nation. It is not me defining the term; it is a dictionary. So, the term has nothing to do with tribe.

 

Madam Speaker, even the allegation being made that the President talked about tribe when he referred to the issue of the clique is misguided, misplaced, misconstrued, mischievous and calcareous, and should not be raised by anybody who is a leader in this country, except for a member of the clique with a clique mentality.

 

Laughter

 

Mr Mwiimbu: Madam Speaker, in responding to the issue raised by the hon. Member for Luena, I state that a directive was given that we establish fast-track courts to pursue matters of plunder by anyone, irrespective of where they come from. Those courts will be established under the Constitution of Zambia and the laws established, and they will be presided over by the Judiciary. At an appropriate time, the hon. Minister of Justice will come to this House and inform us on whether we are proceeding on those lines or not. However, even without fast-track courts, we are on course to bringing to book those who have abused national resources meant for the benefit of the country.

 

I thank you, Madam Speaker.

 

Mr Fube (Chilubi): Madam Speaker, according to what we know, in Zambia, an Occurrence Book records those who are involved in a particular crime. However, when we perused the Occurrence Book in Chinsali, we found that it did not include Hon. Mukosa. Can the hon. Minister confirm that he and the hon. Minister for Southern Province have been calling police officers in Kawambwa and pressurising them to implicate the hon. Member for Pambashe and the hon. Member for Kawambwa?

 

Mr Mwiimbu: Madam Speaker, I make it very clear that I have no interest, whatsoever, in following up the cases of Hon. Chitotela and Hon. Chilangwa because they are my colleagues and we have been friends for a long time. There is no way I can be as trivial as those who think that when the law takes its course, there are people giving instructions to that effect. I do not even know the phone number for the police station in Kawambwa and I have never spoken to any police officer at any police station in my life. I have no interest in doing that. There is no interference, and I declare our commitment to not interfering with the operations of the police. Maybe, my hon. Colleagues on the left want me to interfere in police operations, but I will not do that. Further, it is not in my interest to start pursuing my colleagues, and I am above that because I am not like the others.

 

I thank you, Madam Speaker.

 

Interruptions

 

Madam Speaker: My lips are sealed.

 

_______

 

QUESTIONS FOR ORAL ANSWER

 

REHABILITATION OF KALENGWA/MUSHIMA ROAD

 

  80. Mr Kamondo (Mufumbwe) asked the Minister of Infrastructure, Housing and Urban Development:

 

1. whether the Government has plans to rehabilitate the Kalengwa/Mushima Road in Mufumbwe District; and
2. if so, when the plans will be implemented.

 

The Minister of Infrastructure, Housing and Urban Development (Eng. Milupi): Madam Speaker, the Government has no immediate plans to rehabilitate the Kalengwa/Mushima Road in Mufumbwe District. However, the rehabilitation will be considered in future plans when funds are secured for the project.

 

Madam Speaker, as indicated in (a) above, the plans will be implemented when funds have been secured for the project.

 

Madam Speaker, I thank you.

 

Mr Kamondo: Madam Speaker, I thank the hon. Minister for the answer he has given the people of Mufumbwe. However, I bring to his attention and that of the country at large the fact that from 2016 to date, the road has been impassable, and that has made it practically impossible for the people of Mufumbwe and Government officers to go to the southern part of the district without passing through Kasempa, which is almost 60 km. Given this and other difficulties that the people of Mufumbwe, including Government officers, face, is the ministry not thinking of engaging the Zambia National Services (ZNS) to work on the road like we have seen it done in other places?

 

Eng. Milupi: Madam Speaker, I thank the hon. Member for Mufumbwe for this follow-up question.

 

Madam Speaker, as a country, we find ourselves in a very difficult situation, and it is not pleasurable for me, as a Minister, to stand here, time and again, to answer questions on infrastructure development throughout this country, and give the reason of a lack of funds for not having made progress on any infrastructure or road. I have said before on the Floor of this House that as of this year, we owe contractors K14.11 billion for certified works. Overall, in terms of infrastructure, in the 2020 Budget, when we take out the component that was to come from outside sources, the locally generated revenues were planned to be in the range of K66 billion. Using the applicable exchange rate, that amounts to just over US$3 billion, and that is the amount we owe on infrastructure alone. In other words, this year, if we used the locally generated revenues to paying all we owe for infrastructure, we would not have been able to undertake any other activity. These are the issues that this Government is dealing with, and measures are being taken to address them, going forward.

 

Madam Speaker, with respect to the road in question, the Road Development Agency (RDA) will endeavour to undertake maintenance works on it to keep it safe for road users in the interim. We have already made a request to the National Road Fund Agency (NRFA) for K2.78 million for maintenance works, and we await the release of those funds. Whether we use the Zambia National Service (ZNS) or not, undertaking the necessary works will still require funds. So, the key issue in the question is the availability of funds. In this regard, the Government is not idle. In time, some of these matters will begin to be addressed.

 

I thank you, Madam Speaker.

 

Mr Mushanga (Bwacha): Madam Speaker, my question has been overtaken by events. I wanted to ask when the funds will be made available, but the hon. Minister has touched on that as he concluded his answer.

 

Rev. Katuta (Chienge): Madam Speaker, I am one of the hon. Members from rural constituencies. So, I know what the hon. Member for Mufumbwe is talking about.

 

Madam Speaker, the Government has an account called the Force Account. When can funds from that account be used? I thought that account was used for projects such this one and other emergencies.

 

Eng. Milupi: Madam Speaker, there is nothing particular about the Force Account because it is all Government money. Government resources are currently depleted and there is no hidden account where we can get resources to undertake some of these activities. I am an engineer by profession and engineers like to do things, not to make excuses; they are trained to do things. So, my inclination is to execute the works as and when the need arises, but I cannot do the works without resources from any account that originates from Control 99, which is the Government account.

 

Madam Speaker, particularly this year, whatever was budgeted for is completely depleted. Our remaining hope is in this House’s passing of the Budget that was presented by the hon. Minister of Finance and National Planning the other Friday. That is why when we debate the Budget, I hope we will take this into account and expeditiously pass it so that we can begin to address some of the issues that are being raised on the Floor of this House.

 

I thank you, Madam Speaker.

 

DEPLOYMENT OF A MAGISTRATE TO CHIENGE DISTRICT

 

81. Rev. Katuta asked the Minister of Justice:

                                     

1. whether the Government has plans to:

 

1. deploy a Magistrate to Chienge District; and

 

1. introduce the position of District Attorney;

 

        b. if so, when the plans will be implemented; and

 

       c.  if there are no such plans, why.

 

The Minister of Justice (Mr Haimbe): Madam Speaker, the Government has plans to deploy a Magistrate to Chienge District. However, the plan cannot be implemented, as there is no court building to accommodate the Magistrate.

 

Madam Speaker, the plan to send a Magistrate to Chienge is included in the Judiciary Strategic Plan and will be considered once a court building and Magistrate accommodation are built. The two structures are planned for construction in the 2022 Budget because at present, the Government’s policy is to concentrate on completing projects that are at 80 per cent or above.

 

Madam Speaker, the Government has plans to devolve the Attorney-General’s Chambers to the provinces and, progressively, to the districts, including Chienge District. The plan will be implemented once the Cabinet approves the proposed new structure the Ministry of Justice has submitted for approval. However, the proposed new structure does not introduce the position of District Attorney. It merely introduces the position of State Advocate, which is already in existence at the national level, at the district level.

 

I thank you, Madam.

 

Rev. Katuta: Madam Speaker, because Chienge does not have a Magistrate, sometimes, the Local Court is converted into a Magistrate’s Court, just like the business is conducted in the High Court. The concern that the people of Chienge have is that they are denied justice because they have to wait for transport to be provided for them to go and have their cases heard in Nchelenge. Sometimes, witnesses fail to travel to Nchelenge and some cases end up being dismissed. Thus, justice is denied to the people. Can the ministry not take just one Magistrate to Chienge? We have many houses there. For example, I am the occupant of a beautiful house there.

 

Madam Speaker, if a Magistrate is deployed to Chienge, the Local Courts can be converted into a Magistrate’s Court whenever a need arises. Can we be served that way?

 

Mr Haimbe: Madam Speaker, with due respect, to an extent, it seems that there is a contradiction in the question. On the one hand, the hon. Member points out that the use of the lower court facilities for purposes of the Magistrate’s Court and the High Court results in an injustice and, on the other, she proposes that the permanent solution is to send a Magistrate who will use the local court facilities.

 

Madam Speaker, justice is served at all levels; the Local Court, Magistrate Court and High Court. Yes, sending a Magistrate might be looked at as a possible solution, but the result will be that those cases that are supposed to be heard at the Local Court level will get delayed.

 

Madam Speaker, as I indicated earlier, and as was made clear in the Budget Address by the hon. Minister of Finance and National Planning, the process of decentralisation will mean making some facilities available to the people in due course. That was the essence of my answer.

 

I thank you, Madam Speaker.

 

Madam Speaker gave the Floor to Mr Lusambo, but he was unavailable.

 

Rev. Katuta: Madam Speaker, I have heard the answers that have been given by the hon. Minister of Justice –

 

Madam Speaker: Order!

 

We have moved on to the next question.

 

Rev. Katuta: Madam Speaker, sorry. I was –

 

Madam Speaker: Were you still asking a supplementary question?

 

Rev. Katuta: Madam Speaker, yes.

 

Madam Speaker: Okay, then. We can allow you to ask that supplementary question.

 

Rev. Katuta: Madam Speaker, I heard the hon. Minister’s response to me. However, maybe, he did not get me right. My question is on when the Government will provide us with a Magistrate and in one of his responses, he spoke about accommodation for the Magistrate. I asked whether we could have a Magistrate because many people in Chienge are denied justice. Currently, many people have to travel either to Mansa or Nchelenge to access a Magistrate’s services. However, many cannot afford to travel and, as a result, are denied justice. Further, the hon. Minister said that a Magistrate can only be deployed when a Magistrate Court and accommodation for the Magistrate are constructed. Can the Government not do something for the people of Chienge, who are being denied justice, other than the plans he outlined?

 

Mr Haimbe: Madam Speaker, we seem to be speaking at cross purposes with the hon. Member of Parliament for Chienge. By ‘accommodation’, I am referring to the Local Courts, which the hon. Member is suggesting they be used as a substitute for the Subordinate Courts. The question that begs an answer is: If you convert the Local Court into a Magistrate Court, what do you do with the cases pending in the Local Court? It means you will deny the people access to justice at the Local Court level. By the way, all the tradition-related cases are heard by the Local Courts. So, you will be denying a good number of people access to justice. Is that a solution? The answer, quite clearly, is ‘No’. So, the Judiciary is looking at a permanent solution, and the construction of a court has been provided for in the plans. In that way, the problem will be sorted out once and for all. The stop-gap measure that is being proposed is impracticable because it has knock-on effects.

 

Madam Speaker, I believe that the people of Chienge do have circuit courts that go there from time to time to hear cases that need to be handled by a Subordinate Court. So, there is, currently, a solution in place. Once again, taking a permanent Magistrate there who will use the Local Court facility, as is being proposed, is, with due respect, impracticable.

 

I thank you, Madam Speaker.

 

_______

 

MOTIONS

 

BUDGET 2022

 

(Debate resumed)

 

Ms Mulenga (Kalulushi): Madam Speaker, thank you for giving me this opportunity to also add my voice to the debate on the Budget on the Floor of the House.

 

Madam Speaker, even as I debate this Budget, I am a very disheartened Member of Parliament. When I came to this Parliament five years ago, two hon. Members were an inspiration to me and I prayed that one day, I would end up like them. Hon. Dr Musokotwane, whom I would call my papa, an inspiration –

 

Mr Mulusa: What do you mean by “papa”?

 

Ms Mulenga: …my father; a mentor. I actually sat with him on the same Committee.

 

Madam Speaker, the Budget that Hon. Dr Musokotwane, the Minister of Finance and National Planning, has brought to the Floor of the House is very disheartening, especially to me, a Member of Parliament with twenty-four wards, with three of them as big as constituencies. I have seen many hon. Members of Parliament celebrate the K25.7 million Constituency Development Fund (CDF). However, what we must look at, as hon. Members of Parliament, is the essence of the CDF and why the Government established it, which was to cushion some of the problems that hon. Members of Parliament face in their constituencies.

 

Madam Speaker, the K25.7 million CDF allocation, as tabulated in the Budget, looks like the Central Government is running away from its responsibilities. Everything that the Central Government was doing has been slashed onto hon. Members of Parliament, and I must warn every hon. Member of Parliament that within a year-and-a-half, they will be the most unpopular Members of Parliament ...

 

Mr Munsanje: You cannot warn us.

 

Ms Mulenga: … because every – God forbid, the year is coming.

 

Madam Speaker, for a Member of Parliament with twenty-four wards like me, how is the distribution done? I will give one specific example, especially in the accounting of bursaries.

 

Interruptions

 

Madam Speaker: Can we have order!

 

Ms Mulenga: We are told that bursaries have now been put under the CDF. However, the guidelines of the CDF are very clear, and I do understand that the hon. Minister of Local Government and Rural Development will bring in new guidelines. Further, we know that the world over, governments that strengthened their systems have performed. What this Budget will do is weaken the systems. For example, right now, there are advertisements doing the rounds to the effect that Ward Development Committees (WDCs) will begin their selections. However, the members of the WDCs are not trained in any way in making allocation or selecting students who deserve to be on bursaries.

 

Madam Speaker, this Government talks about implementing decentralisation for the very first time. What we must note is that decentralisation already exists and that it was spearheaded by the late Mr Michael Chilufya Sata. Currently, if you go to your constituencies, the ministries of Community Development and Social Services, Health and several others sit in the council. 

 

Madam Speaker, what this Budget should have done is strengthen the ministries at the district level and continue giving us the CDF. For instance, how does my WDC chairman choose and, at the same time, vet those to sits on the Bursaries Committee? For example, the only guideline is that one does not have to be a member of any political party. However, everyone has affiliations. So, where will the equity be in the awarding of bursaries? We know for a fact that Social Welfare Officers do the vetting and selection. However, if we award the bursaries to students under the CDF, at what point does the hon. Minister and the Permanent Secretary in the Ministry of Local Government and Rural Development, are not even Social Welfare Officers, do the vetting? Is this Government telling me that, now, various ministries will use staff from – We are going to confuse and weaken the system. Five years from now, our colleagues will be called corrupt because of weakened systems.

 

Madam Speaker, one other issue I want to talk about is that there are women in this Parliament, but I think I have heard very few speak on gender issues. I do not see any measures addressing issues of gender. All we are told is that, now, the issues of women empowerment are under the CDF. At what level, with twenty-four wards, will I be able to build schools and dams, implement women empowerment programmes, help children in need of bursaries and do several other things? It is practically impossible.

 

Madam Speaker, we are told that 30,000 teachers and 11,000 health workers will be deployed. What this Government should have done is deploy forty-something thousand civil servants. What happens to my son who graduated as an engineer? Is being a teacher or nurse the only qualification in this Government? It is not fair at all.

 

Madam Speaker, under the Social protection Programme, nothing I have seen in this Budget is new. What the hon. Minister brought to the Floor of this House is something the Patriotic Front (PF) Government had done under the Dual Additional Financing Tool with a US$105 million from the World Bank. Under the Food Security Pack, the PF managed to increase the allocation by more than 200,000, but this Government has only increased it by 20,000. Under the Social Cash Transfer Scheme, the United Party for National Development (UPND) has only managed to add another 20,000. When these numbers are brought to the Floor of this House, they look very big, yet the PF did most of the work.

 

Madam Speaker, I now come to the issue of free education. We are all very happy about it, but the question is: Is it workable? The user fees that the hon. Minister has removed – I think 23^rd December, 2021, will be the last day for considering the Budget, and schools open in January, a few weeks after the festive season, yet there is no guidance on when the abolition of user fees will be effected.

 

Madam Speaker: Order!

 

The hon. Member’s time expired.

 

Mr Malambo (Magoye): Madam Speaker, thank you very much for giving this wonderful opportunity to the people of Magoye to debate this very important Motion on the Floor of this House.

 

Madam Speaker, the people in Magoye are very happy, and they have sent a very special message of greetings and appreciation of the Budget to the hon. Minister of Finance and National Planning. 

 

Madam, having been a farmer for so long, I understand the impact of investing K5.4 billion in the agricultural sector. This listening Government of the United Partly for National Development (UPND) under the able leadership of President Hakainde Hichilema has increased its funding to towards the Farmer Input Support Programme (FISP) to K3,600 per farmer. That alone is unprecedented, and it will enable farmers to harvest a good number of bags and ensure that we are food secure. Further, the money for buying maize from the farmers for food security has been increased to about K960 million. That money will have a huge impact on the economy of each farmer at the household level.

 

Madam Speaker, having been a youth leader for some time, I also want to dwell a little on the Constituency Development Fund (CDF) because most of the money is going to the constituencies to create employment for youths. A good number of youths voted for the UPND primarily because they understand the impact of a youth on the economy; youths generating resources for themselves to ensure that they are responsible children. If you look at the money that has been allocated to the CDF – There is a lot of cattle rustling in our area. If our youths are employed and have an income, I can tell you that cattle rustling in our constituency is going to reduce because the youths will generate money through the projects to be implemented using the CDF.

 

Madam Speaker, you may have seen that during the previous Governments of the Patriotic Front (PF) and the Movement for Multi-party Democracy (MMD), there was rural-urban drift, with shanty compounds having been created because many of our families have been coming into Lusaka to seek employment and creating the shanty compounds. If they failed to find jobs, they resorted to crime, and many people were being affected by thefts every day. So, this CDF is going to create jobs in Magoye and, as a result, people are not going to regularly leave our constituencies to come and look for employment in Lusaka because the money will be taken back to them.

 

Madam Speaker, if you consider it carefully, you will realise that the 30,000 teachers who are going to be employed are youths, primarily, those who were not considered under the PF and are languishing in abject poverty despite having diplomas and bachelor’s, master’s and even Doctor of Philosophy (PhD) degrees. Those people ended up accepting any job because there was no job creation under the past Governments.

 

Madam Speaker, there are many of our sisters and brothers who have been trained as nurses in our localities. As a result of the UPND’s policy of engaging everyone, it plans to create 11,000 jobs for healthcare professionals to ensure that we get good health care. The same UPND Government has proposed to allocate K350 million to small and medium enterprises (SMEs) under this Budget. This is also unprecedented, and I really wonder why my hon. Colleagues do not want to support this very important Budget.

 

Madam, those who are happy with the K1.6 million that was allocated to each constituency should consider giving me the difference so that I use it …

 

Hon. Government Members: Hear, hear!

 

Mr Malambo: … because the people in our rural localities are crying for development.

 

Madam, I know that I will be failing in my duties if I do not speak about corruption, as I know that most of the contracts that were awarded under the immediate past Government were based on patronage through party affiliation. However, if you look at this Budget, you will see that it has considered all the 156 constituencies so that every person is considered. Further, if you looked at the recently released CDF, you would see that there was no consideration of whether the recipient constituency was Shiwang’andu, Kalabo or Magoye. What the UPND Government has done is to disburse the money at the same time, and we need the money to work on our feeder roads, especially those that are not passable. Currently, many roads in our constituencies are dilapidated simply because we had a very uncaring Government.

 

Madam Speaker, the UPND Budget has prioritised youth and women empowerment. This money is going to trickle down to the people who need it the most. So, I stand here as a proud member of this very important club, the UPND.

 

Hon. Government Members: Hear, hear!

 

Hon. PF Members: Question!

 

Mr Malambo: This Budget is going to change the lives of the people. In fact, even my hon. Colleagues on your left who are saying, “Question!” are very happy with the Budget.

                                

Hon. Government Members: Hear, hear!

 

Mr Malambo: Madam Speaker, on behalf of the people of Magoye who voted for me, I whole-heartedly support this very important Budget.

 

Madam Speaker, I thank you.

 

Hon. Government: Hear, hear!

 

Mr Chisanga (Lukashya): Madam Speaker, thank you very much for giving me this opportunity to debate the Motion on the Floor. Forgive me if my voice is going to be disappearing. It will be because I am next to Hon. Kalalwe Mukosa who has just come from being an accused person in Chinsali.

 

Laughter

 

Mr Chisanga: I know he belongs to the non-existent fictitious clique which is now causing problems for the nation.

 

Madam Speaker, allow me to debate this Motion from a different perspective, especially on the issue of mining. My hon. Colleagues have debated this part of the Motion from the standpoint of the taxes that are intended to be applicable in this Budget. I will debate it from a standpoint of shareholding because I have debated before and made a clarion call to the United Party for National Development (UPND) Government to consider increasing the Government’s stake in the mining companies to 50 per cent. I have also said before that at the time our hon. Colleagues were taking over the Government, the Patriotic Front (PF) Government had rescued Konkola Copper Mines (KCM) from the owners because of misuse of the mining tenement. By God’s blessing, Mopani Copper Mines (MCM) was also given to us by the shareholders. Our expectation was that this Government would introduce a shareholding structure that would allow it to retain 51 per cent of the two mines and leave 49 per cent to the investors, which would have created an opportunity for the country to earn income from the operations of the mines and make that money available for use in other sectors of the economy. Unfortunately, this Budget missed the opportunity.

 

Madam Speaker, on the Constituency Development Funds (CDF), I can only echo what my hon. Colleagues have said. The money appears to be a lot and, when the allocation was announced, it was received with a lot of excitement by many people in the country. However, when somebody gets down to how the money is going to be utilised, it becomes very clear that contrary to suggestions, the amount is not enough to achieve the objectives for which the fund was set up. The Government is asking somebody in Lukashya to use this amount and, since the constituency has ten wards, the into K25 million divides into K2.5 million per ward. In the same wards, I have to construct schools, bridges and roads, and provide bursaries for children. That is just not practical, and I hope and expect that this Government is not abdicating to Members of Parliament its responsibility of delivering development to the whole nation.

 

Hon. PF Members: Hear, hear!

 

Mr Chisanga: Madam Speaker, on the Judiciary, we have just come out of petitions in which some of our cases had to be heard in police stations because there are no High Court or Subordinate Court facilities in the country. My hon. Colleague from Chienge just raised the issue of staffing. I was hoping that some of the money in this Budget would be allocated to expanding court facilities around the country to ensure that, for instance, there is a High Court in every provincial headquarters, a number of Subordinate Courts and many local courts, as that was going to enhance access to justice and ensure that the rule of law that is being preached very much by the UPND Government is achieved. Without that expansion, this Budget presents problems for the Judiciary.

 

Madam Speaker, I must add that to date, people are still expecting the Judicial Service Commission (JSC) to be considered different from the other service commissions in terms of the autonomy it should have. As long as the commission is not considered an autonomous institution, it will continue going to the Central Government with a begging bowl when the Central Treasury knows what is required in ensuring access to justice is enhanced.

 

Madam Speaker, this Budget has suggested the borrowing of US$1.3 billion from the International Monetary Fund (IMF), and it is a known fact that IMF conditions are always onerous for the borrowers, especially for developing countries. The US$1.3 billion is not going to come without any conditionality. In fact, the conditions are going to be so onerous that they even risk making this Government unpopular. An example is Sudan, which is, today, going through hardships simply because it accessed IMF loans on conditions that became so onerous that the public has risen against the Government there.

 

Madam Speaker, I now come to the recruitment of teachers. When it was announced that the UPND Government would recruit 30,000 teachers and 11,000 doctors, my office was swamped with other professionals in the constituency who were very worried that they have not been considered in the first employment of unemployed youths. The PF Government is going to be remembered because we built infrastructure countrywide, trained staff and even started an internship programme because we did not have the capacity to employ the young men and women.

 

Hon. PF Members: Hear, hear!

 

Mr Chisanga: Now they are being considered for employment, but only a restricted number of them are going to be employed. Like my hon. Colleagues have done, I appeal to the hon. Minister to consider extending the new employment programme to more fields. The Government cannot restrict the exercise to teachers and medical staff, as the youths in the two fields are not the only ones who supported the UPND. So, by restricting recruitments to those two fields, the Government is taking a risk.

 

Madam Speaker, in conclusion, this Budget is more populist and less pragmatic.

 

Hon. PF Members: Hear, hear!

 

Mr Chisanga: So, it will be difficult to implement, and I hope my hon. Colleagues could listen to the people on the left side of the House who have been arguing against the Budget, and consider some of the issues we have raised, which are very important.

 

Madam Speaker, I thank you.

 

Hon. PF Members: Hear, hear!

 

Mr Katakwe (Solwezi East): Madam Speaker, thank you for according the people of Solwezi East this opportunity to add their voice to the debate on the wonderful Budget Speech that was delivered to this august House.

 

Madam Speaker, allow me to begin with a little story about the Budget. The story was told by Alexander the Great about a man who before he died, instructed his people that when he died, they were to put him in a casket with hands dangling outside and spread money on the road to the cemetery. He also asked that the best doctors in the world carry his casket on their shoulders. When his people asked what he meant, he said the actions were meant to remind the people that when it came to matters of life and death, money meant nothing and even the best doctors could not save one’s life.

 

Mr Munsanje: Correct!

 

Mr Katakwe: He also said that when one died, one’s hands would be open and empty.

 

Madam Speaker, when it came to matters of life and death for this country, His Excellency the President of the Republic of Zambia, Hakainde Hichilema, stretched his hands.

 

Hon. PF Members: Aah!

 

Mr Katakwe: He did not clench his hands in a fist like our friends whose slogan was “Donchi kubeba’, meaning they were hiding plenty things.

 

Hon. PF Members: Question!

 

Mr Katakwe: Madam Speaker, after ten years of a brutal regime, the people of Zambia realised that there was corruption, discrimination and tribalism was in that hand. Further, in that hand, there was a clique of criminals with an insatiable appetite for amassing money to themselves.

 

Mr Kampyongo: Debate the Budget.

 

Mr Katakwe: Madam Speaker, this Budget has given the people of Zambia great hope. The people of Solwezi East have been given the hope they did not have for the past ten years. To begin with, the Budget addresses the aspect debt. If that debt is dismantled, that poor farmer who has been waiting to invest in farming, the retiree who has been waiting to receive his money and lamenting at the offices of the powers that be without being given their dues will get what they have been waiting for. That retiree is saying when this debt is dismantled, he or she is going back to the land, and we have plenty of land in Solwezi East to give to the people. So, there is hope in this Budget.

 

Madam Speaker, the hon. Minister stated that the Government aims to promote growth in the agricultural sector. We have plenty land and a lot of water in Solwezi East. Talking about coming up with farming blocks, the people of Solwezi East are very excited about having a border and are just waiting for this Budget to be rolled out so that they can grow their agriculture produce.

 

Madam Speaker, in the tourism sector, there is hope even for people of Mushindamo that they will be able to invest in the sector. They can start ranches because there will be the aspect of reviewing the licences. So, the people of Solwezi are happy that they have forests and they can go into ranching. The people of Solwezi will be able to invest heavily in tourism because they know that when there is growth in tourism, then, the revenue of this country will also grow.

 

Madam Speaker, talking of mining, we host First Quantum Minerals (FQM) Limited, which is currently in the process of opening a mine in our border area and investing in the mines. The people of Solwezi East are saying that they are happy because for the first time, jobs will be created in their area. They are going to work in the mines, and Solwezi East will have a border town and a central business district (CBD). They also know that wherever there is a mine, definitely, there is development.

 

Madam Speaker, talking of manufacturing, through the Constituency Development Fund (CDF) that was taken to the people, the youths will have the ability to invest in manufacturing of desks, and they are excited about that. The youths will also have the bricklaying skills they need to build the schools that we are going to build using the CDF, which has been given through that outstretched arm of His Excellency the President of the Republic of Zambia.

 

Madam Speaker, on the energy sector, my hon. Colleagues on the left talked about load-shedding, which they perpetuated during their time because they did not invest heavily in the energy sector.

 

Mr Kapyanga: On a point of order, Madam Speaker.

 

Madam Speaker: A point of order is raised.

 

Mr Kapyanga: Madam Speaker, thank you so much.

 

Madam Speaker, during the debate on the President’s Speech for 1999, a son of the soil, Hon. Tondo Chindoloma, reminded his fellow hon. Members and hon. Ministers then as follows:

 

“We cannot keep crying for seven to eight years about how the UINP Government ruined this country and the economy. Our platform for elections was based on how we were to rectify the economy. We should not be crying every time. If we run out of ideas, let us consult and see whether we can do it. If we cannot, let the people who can carry this country forward.” 

 

Madam Speaker, is the hon. Member of Parliament for Solwezi East in order to continue referring to the hon. Members on your left when he knows that they were removed from the Government based on his party promising the people that they would come in and rectify everything?

 

Mr Kapala: On a point of order, Madam Speaker.  He is not referring to any article.

 

Mr Kapyanga: Sit down!

 

Madam Speaker: Order!

 

There cannot be a point of order on another point of order.

 

Mr Kapyanga: Madam Speaker, sorry, I was still trying to quote Standing Order 65.

 

Madam Speaker: In what respect is the point of order being raised? What rule has been breached?

 

Mr Kapyanga: Madam Speaker, according to Standing Order No. 65(b), the hon. Member is not being factual by referring to the hon. Members on your left.

 

Madam Speaker: The point of order is not clear. So, it is disallowed.

 

You may proceed, hon. Member for Solwezi East.

 

Mr Katakwe: Madam Speaker, the truth pains. So, when I say the truth, there is agitation.

 

Hon. Government Members: Hammer!

 

Mr Mung’andu: On a serious point of order, Madam Speaker.

 

Mr Katakwe: Madam Speaker, because they thought that the person with an outstretched hand was never going to rule this country, today, they are grappling with the pain of disbelief.

 

Madam Speaker, I was talking about the energy sector and the lamentation from our colleagues on the left that we are now experiencing load-shedding, which they perpetuated because they did not invest heavily in the sector. The people of Solwezi are actually happy that we are going to have investment –

 

Mr Mung’andu: On a serious point of order under Standing Order No. 65(b), Madam Speaker.

 

Madam Speaker: Hon. Member, you have not been recognised. When you have a point of order –

 

Hon. Member for Solwezi East, please, resume your seat.

 

Hon. Members, when there is a point of order to be raised, you rise and say, “On a point of order, Madam Speaker”. Then you will be told whether to proceed; you will either be recognised or you will not. You do not start raising your point of order before you are given that opportunity.

 

Mr Mung’andu: Madam Speaker, I stood and said, “Point of order under Standing Order No. 65” and sat down. I did exactly what you have said.

 

Madam Speaker: Hon. Member, you know what you did, and we do not have to argue or engage each other. I have guided.

 

When you stood up, you said, “Point of order”, and before I recognised you, you went ahead and said, “… under Standing Order No. 65(2)”.

 

Let us observe the Standing Orders. Hon. Members were taken through the Standing Orders. It is a pity that the attendance was very negligible, but let us take time to go through the Standing Orders, as they are very helpful in to our conduct of dignified debates and observance of the honour and decorum of the House. So, please, let us observe them.

 

Hon. Member for Solwezi East, you can proceed.

 

Mr Katakwe: Madam Speaker, the truth still pains some people. Now, because of the lack of heavy investment in the energy sector –  

 

Mr Mung’andu: On a point of order, Madam Speaker.

 

Madam Speaker: A point of order is raised.

 

Mr Mung’andu: Madam Speaker, I rise on a point of order under Standing Order No. 65(b), on content of speech, which provides as follows:

 

“A member who is debating shall:

 

“(a)      confine his or her debate to the subject under discussion; and

 

“(b)      ensure that the information he or she provides to the House is factual and verifiable.”

 

Madam Speaker, is the hon. Member who is debating on the Floor in order to insinuate that the Patriotic Front (PF) Government did not invest enough in the energy sector? Information is there in the Hansard of my asking the then hon. Minister of Energy whether we, as a country, had invested enough in the energy sector, and he assured this august House that the country had invested enough. We even have a surplus. So, we are energy secure. This is a House of rules, and what we communicate to the people out there should be factual. Is he in order to mislead the House and the masses who are watching him by saying that this country is not energy secure and that the past Government did not invest enough when figures clearly show that in the history of this country, the only Government that invested in the energy sector is the PF Government?

 

I seek your serious ruling, Madam Speaker.

 

Madam Speaker: Hon. Members, as you raise your points of order, if you debate them, you tie my hands in terms of making a ruling on the point of order.

 

Our Standing Orders clearly provide that as we debate, we should be factual. However, as we debate, if there is a point that an hon. Member who is debating makes that you do not agree with, you are advised to make a note and respond to it in your debate. One person gives one view and another person gives a contrary view. That is what debate is all about.  If we raise points of order because we do not agree with the views of a particular hon. Member, then, we are defeating the whole purpose of debate. In this case, if the hon. Member for Chama South has not yet debated the Budget Speech, he should note that point so that when his time comes, he can address it and show that the hon. Member for Solwezi East was not being factual by your providing the factual information. That is what debate is all about.

 

The hon. Member for Solwezi East will proceed.

 

Order!

 

Business was suspended 1640 hours until 1700 hours.

 

[MADAM SPEAKER in the Chair]

 

Mr Katakwe: Madam Speaker, I was saying that we did not invest heavily in the energy sector because, had we done that, we would not be experiencing the load-shedding that we have currently. There was no investment in thermal, solar and wind energy.

 

Madam Speaker, the people of Solwezi are very happy about this Budget for the reason I stated. In a nutshell, someone cannot argue with an economist with the track record of success like His Excellency the President of the Republic of Zambia, Mr Hakainde Hichilema’s. Therefore, to the people of Zambia, the North-Western Province and Solwezi East, in particular, I say the economy and the country are in safe hands because of His Excellency the President of the Republic of Zambia.

 

Madam Speaker, I thank you.

 

Mr Shakafuswa (Mandevu): Madam Speaker, thank you so much for according me the opportunity to contribute to the debate on the Motion of Supply before this House this afternoon.

 

Madam Speaker, the hon. Minister of Finance and National Planning has proposed to spend K173 billion, of which K100.7 billion will be raised through domestic revenues and grants. The gross financing deficit of K72.3 billion will be raised through internal and external sources. In short, the deficit will be raised through borrowing.

 

Madam Speaker, the New Dawn Government was against borrowing, especially for recurrent expenditure, and Mandevu Constituency has people who depend on trade and businesses that can be categorised as small and medium enterprises (SME). Some of the people on the Katimamulilo Road depend on metal fabrication, some are marketeers who sell vegetables awhile others own buses that they use to transport commuters every day.

 

Madam Speaker, I have noted that among the institutions the New Dawn Government would like to borrow from is the International Monetary Fund (IMF). The Patriotic Front (PF) Government avoided getting money from this institution because of its conditions, which are capitalist and do not favour the poor. One of the contentious conditions is that the Government must introduce cost-reflective energy tariffs. I remember very well that the New Dawn Government campaigned on the premise of restructuring the operations of ZESCO Limited, including the human capital of the institution, to reduce its operational costs. That would have resulted into reduced tariffs. However, I have noted that the New Dawn Government, whose policies serve the rich, want to go ahead and enter into a marriage with the IMF, which will hurt the people of Mandevu and push them into abject poverty. I say so because implementing cost-reflective tariffs on energy will have a direct effect on the production costs, meaning that the mealie meal, for example, which is currently being produced at, for example, K50, will be produce at double the price or K100. Equally, the farmers who produce the vegetables that our women sell in the markets will increase the price of their vegetables. Hence, I urge the hon. Minister to reconsider this decision and look again at the markets to see where else the Government can borrow so as to not hurt the people of Mandevu, who thrive on trade.

 

Madam Speaker, the people of Mandevu have noted the allocation to decentralisation and the increase in the Constituency Development Fund (CDF) from K1.6 million to K25.7 million. The people, of course, are excited and look forward to the implementation of this programme. However, I have noted that the figure has come with many devolved functions from the Central Government. If we are going to have sustainable development in Mandevu Constituency, there is a need for the amount to be increased substantially to match the increased number of functions that are going to the local authorities. To give an example, Mandevu has more than ten primary schools that were upgraded to secondary schools without the matching infrastructure. To build more classroom blocks for the children in those schools will require money to the tune of more than K10 million per school to be expended. Therefore, it is my appeal that the hon. Minister considers increasing the amount so that it matches the functions that have been devolved to the local authorities.

 

Madam Speaker, as I conclude, let me say that having been a Councillor for ten years, I have noted that the Budget does not have any resources towards the proper remuneration of Councillors, yet the devolved functions mean that the Councillors will need to perform more duties. It is very painful that a Councillor can work for twenty-four hours while a Member of Parliament is here in Lusaka. I feel for the Councillors in faraway places who perform many duties, but are not given pay that equals the work they do.

 

Hon. PF Members: Hear, hear!

 

Mr Shakafuswa: So, I ask the hon. Minister to amend the Budget to make sure that the Local Government Equalisation Fund (LGEF) includes a proper pay for Councillors before we approve it.

 

Madam Speaker, I thank you.

 

Hon. PF Members: Hear, hear!

 

Interruptions

 

Madam Speaker: Order!

 

Mr Mutinta (Itezhi-Tezhi): Madam Speaker, thank you for giving me this opportunity to add my voice to this important debate on the Budget.

 

Madam Speaker, to me, the Budget of K173 billion that was announced in this House is historic and it has come at the right time. The theme for the Budget is “Growth, Jobs and Taking Development Closer to the People,” and the Budget is a clear demonstration of equity and equality, and that the United Party for National Development (UPND) Government means well and wants to take development closer to the people in the rural areas.

 

Madam Speaker, let me talk about the Constituency Development Fund (CDF). In English, there is the word ‘chrematophobia’, which means ‘the fear of money’. That is the disease our friends are suffering from. The people of Itezhi-Tezhi told me that the K25.7 million is actually not enough, and the reason is very simple. From the time Itezhi-Tezhi was established in 1997, there has not been any development from the Central Government, as the development from the Central Government was very selectively distributed. Now, here is manna from heaven, which will enable the poor people to decide their destiny, as the disabled, the youths and women will be members of the Ward Development Committees (WDCs). What else do we want to do, apart from letting the people decide what kind of developmental agenda to push? That is what we will do with the CDF, and we need to support that. 

 

Madam Speaker, the Budget that our able hon. Minister announced very clearly indicates that the Government wants to invest in social protection. Our colleagues had wished we would not retain the Farmer Input and Support Programme (FISP) and the Social Cash Transfer programme for political reasons. However, in an economy like ours, we still need to strike a balance because the poor need social protection. There are retirees whose benefits have not been paid since 1972. Now, the Government wants to bring about equality and ensure that such people get a fair share of their national cake because they already worked.

 

Madam Speaker, let me talk about the health and education sectors. We have a responsibility to provide equitable and quality health services and education in the country, and we need to do that. Therefore, the recruitment of 30,000 teachers and 11,000 nurses has come at the right time. We have friends we were with at university ten to eleven years ago who have not been employed to date. Therefore, the employment of 30,000 teachers might look like it is not important, but education is the greatest equaliser. The recruitment of staff is gradual, and it does not mean that the people in the other disciplines will not be employed. The hon. Minister was very categorical.

 

Madam Speaker, for your information, the recruitment of 30,000 teachers and 11,000 health staff will change the lives of over 247,200 families that will benefit from it.

 

Mr Munir Zulu: On a point of order, Madam Speaker.

 

Mr Mutinta: Madam Speaker, the recruitment of new members of staff is not a waste, as the people recruited will go to key sectors of this economy. Moreover, the 30,000 teachers and 11,200 health staff will be paying Pay-As-You-Earn (PAYE), which will trickle down to the economy. So, I suggest that we employ the unemployed people and make those who are opposing the idea jobless so that they know what it means to be jobless. Education is an investment, and people invested money in the education of young people. So, the youths need to be employed so that they provide a service to this country.

 

Madam Speaker, let me talk about agriculture. In the Budget, there is an allocation for the establishment of farming blocks. Agriculture is key in national development, and we support that fully.

 

Madam Speaker, lastly, let me talk about small and medium enterprises (SMEs). There is an allocation for SMEs and a new ministry has been established for them. Young people have been jobless for a long time, and they need capital. Further, they need to acquire skills, especially those in rural areas, so that they can invest their skills in business ventures and become rich like the tycoons in Lusaka. We want the young people to access services and provide services in their respective rural areas. In this vein, and in the interest of saving time, let me just say that the Budget is timely and needs to be supported by all well-meaning Zambians.

 

I thank you, Madam Speaker.

 

Hon. Government Members: Hear, hear!

 

Madam Speaker: Hon. Member for Lumezi, did you want to raise a point of order?

 

Mr Munir Zulu: Yes, Madam Speaker. My point of order is premised on Standing Order No. 65, on the content of speech.

 

Madam Speaker, the hon. Member talked of equity in his debate without providing verifiable facts.

 

Madam Speaker: Hon. Member for Lumezi, you have changed seats. You were seated on the other side. Can you, please, resume your seat and raise your point of order from there. We will give you time.

 

Mr Munir Zulu resumed his seat.

 

Madam Speaker: You may now proceed.

 

Mr Munir Zulu: Madam Speaker, I draw my authority from Standing Order No. 65(1)(b), on content of speech, which states as follows:

 

“(1)      A member who is debating shall –

 

“(b)      ensure that the information he or she provides to the House is factual and verifiable.”

 

Madam Speaker, if we are to reduce the figures to the number of voters in Chongwe and Nalolo constituencies, there are 94,677 voters in Chongwe Constituency, which translates into K271 per person. In Nalolo, there are 23,436 voters, translating into K1,096 per person, representing a difference of K825 between the two constituencies. I put it to the House that he has deliberately chosen to bring unverified information.

 

I seek your serious ruling, Madam Speaker.

 

Madam Speaker: Who has brought unverified information and to what does your point of order relate? When you raise a point of order, you have to state the rule or Standing Order that has been breached. What rule or Standing Order has he breached?

 

Mr Munir Zulu: Madam Speaker, I am referring to Standing Order 65, and the point of order is on the previous speaker.

 

Madam Speaker: So, how has he breached the Standing Order?

 

Mr Munir Zulu: He said that there is equity in the Budget, yet he has failed to bring factual information to the House.

 

Madam Speaker: The point of order is too general and is, therefore, overruled.

 

Hon. Government Members: Hear, hear!

 

Mr Mukosa (Chinsali): Madam Speaker, thank you for giving me an opportunity to contribute to the debate on the Motion of Supply on the 2022 Budget presented by the hon. Minister of Finance and National Planning.

 

Madam Speaker, the Budget Speech looks very good at face value because it is very exciting. However, at the same time, if one sits down to critically analyse the pronouncements, and evaluate the figures as well as the projections that were made, one realises that the 2022 Budget is not just ambitious, but also very unrealistic. I will demonstrate what I mean.

 

 Madam Speaker, the Budget has increased by 44.6 per cent compared with the 2021 Budget. That is a nominal increase of almost 45 per cent. Looking at the nominal increases to the Budget in previous years, for example, in the past five years, one agrees with me that they have been averaging 18.8 per cent. This increase, on the other hand, is 44.6 per cent, which will be very difficult to achieve, and that, in itself, is unrealistic.

 

Madam Speaker, the analysis by the Zambia Institute for Policy Analysis and Research (ZIPAR), a leading research institute in Zambia, shows that the tax measures that were pronounced in the Budget are going to culminate in a net reduction of about K4.6 billion in tax revenue. If the tax revenue is a pointer that we are going to have a negative net effect, how are we going to achieve the projected increase of 44.6 per cent? This means that the target is not going to be achieved.

 

Madam Speaker, the proposal to reduce the Corporate Income Tax from 35 per cent to 30 per cent is not a bad idea because Zambia currently ranks among the countries with the highest Corporate Tax Income rate in the Southern African Development Community (SADC) region. The concern is on the revenue that has been projected to be generated from the tax. The Budget has projected that the amount that is going to be realised from the tax is going to increase by about 79.9 per cent, from K9.1 billion, which was targeted in 2021, to K16.4 billion. The expectation should be that the same way the reduction that has been proposed in the tax should result in a reduction in revenue from the tax by the same proportion. If there is to be any increase, it should be a bit, not the 79.9 per cent increase that is indicated. That is increase is unachievable because it is too sharp.

 

Madam Speaker, non-discretionary spending, that is, the amount that we are going to spend on debt servicing and emoluments, represents 114 per cent of the revenue that we are going to generate locally. This basically means that in the event that we do not manage to secure any funding from the financiers, we are not going to manage to meet the obligations of debt servicing and emoluments. This also shows us how difficult it will be to achieve the pronouncements in the Budget.

 

Madam Speaker, revenue has been projected to be generated on the assumption that copper prices will not slump, and the Government has not taken into account the issues like climate change and the Coronavirus Disease 2019 (COVID-19). Looking at the volatility of copper prices, there is a chance that the prices will go down, and that might negatively affect our ability to attain the targets that we have set in terms of revenue generation.

 

Madam Speaker, I have talked about the Budget being ambitious and unrealistic. There is nothing wrong with the Budget being ambitious because dreaming is free and allowed. However, there is everything wrong with a budget being unrealistic, and the reason is very simple: We will not achieve anything when the Budget is unrealistic. Our colleagues know that they do not have the capacity to finance this bloated Budget, but they proceeded to prepared it. The people who prepared it will fail to achieve its goals. In finance, we say that an unrealistic budget is destined to fail.

 

Madam Speaker, with those few comments, I thank you.

 

Hon. Opposition Members: Hear, hear!

 

Mr A. Banda (Chimwemwe): Madam Speaker, I am so delighted to be given this time to say a few words on the Budget.

 

Madam Speaker, the Budget was well presented by our well qualified and highly experienced hon. Minister. However, when the hon. Minister mentioned “unsustainable external debt”, we all got worried, and the first thing that came to my mind was that the hon. Minister was going to cast his net wide and collect all the revenue due to the Government so that the Government could service the debt. However, that was not the case.

 

Madam Speaker, the Mineral Royalty Tax has always been non-deductible, but the hon. Minister said it will be deductible, and the reason he gave is that he wanted the mines to expand their production and, at the same time, create jobs for Zambians.

 

Madam Speaker, we all know that copper is the future crude oil and that the world is now slowly moving away from the old car systems to green energy systems. Goldman Sachs, an American investment company that makes predictions on commodity prices, has predicted that as of next year, copper price will range from US$13,000 to US$14,000 per tonne, and that from 2025 to 2026, it will range between US$18,000 and US$20,000. The bank further says that it has been overwhelmed by investors scrambling to find to invest in the mining sector. This means that every mining company, including the mines in Zambia, have already been instructed by their shareholders to increase their capacities. The owners know where they are going to get their money. So, one wonders why the hon. Minister of Finance and National Planning wants to act as a donor. Why should we forgo our tax revenue and give it to private investors?

 

Madam Speaker, the price of copper is at about US$9,000, and this is the highest, according to the Zambia Revenue Authority (ZRA) threshold. So, we are losing 10 per cent of the tax that we are supposed to collect and service our debt. Why should we help the mines when they can find their help elsewhere?

 

Madam Speaker, the hon. Minister has options under his sleeve. He could convert the Mineral Royalty Tax into a loan to the mines that need it and charge a bit of interest so that after ten or twenty years, we get something out of it, rather than forgoing the revenue completely. Another option he has is to convert the Mineral Royalty Tax into shares, because what we need is to grow. We all know that in the coming years, copper mining will be like the oil rigs of the 1970s.

 

Madam Speaker, why should we be so desperate when it is the mines that are supposed to be desperate? I am sure that the K3.2 billion loss the hon. Minister told us about is not realistic because he, obviously, made his calculations based on the price of copper being US$6,000 to US$7,000 per tonne. Now, we are looking at US$9,000, and the projection is that the price will keep rising, meaning that by the time we get to next year, the losses that the Government will make will be much more than US$3.2 billion. I think that is too much money for us to just give away to private investors who have the ability to borrow from Zambian banks that employ Zambians. The hon. Minister told us about copper production capacity rising from 800,000 metric tonnes to 3 million metric tonnes. That cannot just be dreamt by the mines. Obviously, they must have done their studies on mineral resources and all reserves, and they know what they are doing. So, we should not look like a Government that is very desperate. Instead, we should look like a Government that really wants to get what is ours.

 

Madam Speaker, it is very unfortunate that a highly paid worker is now charged 37.5 per cent in tax and contributes that to the State coffers, yet we want to allow big mining companies to go scot-free. If we continue with this, we will be encouraging base erosion profit shifting (BEPS) and then, tomorrow, we will blame the mines when this is our own doing.

 

Madam Speaker, it is also very unfortunate that the Pay As You Earn (PAYE) threshold has actually been moved from K4,000 to K4,500, which is, in a way, very good because three-quarters of Zambian workers belong to this group. However, I believe it is the case of one hand giving and the other one getting more because the same people who are exempted from paying tax because they earn K4,500 or less have small cars, which are a necessity to them, not a luxury, because most of them are teachers and nurses whose duties start as early as 0400 hours and end at 0100 hours or midnight. Now, the hon. Minister has told us that he is going to increase the Road Tax as well as Road Fitness Certification. Why can he not look at increasing road tolls for heavy-duty vehicles which, when they go to the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC), they pay almost seven times as much as they pay here? Those vehicles come from South Africa, Zambia and Botswana, and are able to pay. Besides, it is very easy for them because they are in business and can factor in the difference. Why get money off ordinary Zambians, but not businessmen?

 

Madam Speaker, on a lighter note, the hon. Minister spoke about the previous regime constructing airports that lead to nowhere. I thought, maybe, they really did not lead anywhere and decided to do a bit of research, and I did the research. Let us start with Livingstone. The Harry Mwaanga Nkumbula International Airport leads to our tourism capital, where the mighty Victoria Falls, the only natural wonder in Zambia; the only natural resource that has put Zambia on the market, is. Over the years, people have been travelling to Zimbabwe from Europe because they did not know where Zambia was and thought the Victoria Falls was in Zimbabwe. Now that we have an international airport in Livingstone, tourists are landing there. So, that airport leads to somewhere.

 

Madam Speaker, the Kenneth Kaunda International Airport (KKIA) in Lusaka is centrally located between two large cities, Kampala and Johannesburg. Does it lead to nowhere? No. Instead of traffic going to Harare, now, it comes into Zambia, meaning that the Zambia Airports Corporation Limited will collect more revenue. Besides, we have the Mulungushi International Conferences Centre (MICC), and we are not building it for nothing. We need people from everywhere to be having their conferences here. So, where do they land? It is at the KKIA.

 

Madam Speaker, the Simon Mwansa Kapwepwe International Airport in Ndola is at the heart of the Copperbelt, and all the Congolese and South Africans going to the DRC, Mwinilunga and all the other mining towns on the Copperbelt land in Ndola.

 

Madam Speaker: Order!

 

The hon. Members’ time expired.

 

Mr P. Phiri (Mkaika): Madam Speaker, I thank you for this opportunity to contribute to debate on the Motion on the Floor, which is the Budget Speech.

 

Madam Speaker, the 2022 Budget looks good on the outside, but the inside of it leaves much to be desired, and I would describe it as a watermelon because a watermelon has two colours. The green outer part of a watermelon might look promising and ripe, but the red inner part might leave much to be desired.

 

Madam Speaker, the growth rate of the economy in 2022, as per the hon. Minister’s projection, will be at 3.5 per cent. However, my question is: How will this growth provide the much-needed resources to sustain the Budget? Further, in his presentation of the Budget, the hon. Minister talked about gradually reducing the deficits on page 5 of his speech. In his own words, he said:

 

“We must gradually reduce the deficits and debts to restore fiscal and debt sustainability”.

 

Madam Speaker, indeed, that is what most Zambians wanted to see because the United Party for National Development (UPND) is on record criticising the previous Government on borrowing. It accused the previous Government of having borrowed too much. However, there are our colleagues today. We thought we were going to see a difference, but what we are seeing is the opposite; this Budget will be partly financed by borrowed money. We have seen copper prices go up, but are they going to continue to go up? Where is the money going to come from? This is our worry on this Budget. Otherwise, most of the things that are in it are welcome.

 

Madam Speaker, talking about the K13 billion allocated to the health sector, I welcome this move because in most of our hospitals, there are no drugs, and we do not want this situation to continue. With the amount allocated, we want to have drugs in all our hospitals. Most of our people who go to hospitals and clinics are only given prescriptions and told to buy drugs. This is a new phenomenon in our country.

 

Madam Speaker, coming to the recruitment of 3,000 teachers, ...

 

Hon. Government Members: 30,000!

 

Mr P. Phiri: … that is also a very welcome move, but the question is: Is education the only sector in our country? No. What we wanted the UPND to do was allocate a lot of money to small and medium enterprises (SMEs) so that many of our youths and other people can benefit, and to grow this industry.

 

Madam Speaker, we need to bring everyone on board. Maybe, it was going to be much better to recruit 40,000 or 50,000 civil servants because education and health are not the only sectors in our country. 

 

Madam Speaker, on the export of maize and the 10 per cent reduction in Export Duty, we are exporting jobs with this measure. What we would like to see in this country is value addition, which the UPND has been preaching about. We needed to give the 10 per cent Export Duty on maize to our youth in our country, Zambia, so that we add value –

 

Madam Speaker: Order!

 

The hon. Member’s time expired.

 

Mr Mapani (Namwala): Madam Speaker, thank you very much for according me this opportunity to add my voice to the debate on the important Motion on the Floor of this House.

 

Madam Speaker, to start with, I put it very clearly that the United Party for National Development (UPND) Budget is one the people of Zambia have taken to be corruption-free. Some people in some quarters of this country have called this a living Budget because this is the only time, since Independence, when the people of Zambia have been accorded the opportunity to manage their affairs through decentralisation.

 

Madam Speaker, I want to spend two minutes on the issue of the road network. The people of Zambia have been accorded an opportunity to work on their road network through this Budget, which will start working from January, 2022. We have heard from submissions that have been made before this House that in some provinces, road works have been ongoing for the past five or ten years. However, in this same country, people in some provinces have never seen even a single kilometre of a feeder road graded. This is what we call a living Budget because it cuts across and will facilitate development for the people of this country regardless of their region.

 

Madam Speaker, this Budget further addresses agriculture. Coming from Namwala Constituency, where the people depend on livestock farming, I thank the New Dawn Government for taking keen interest in ensuring that the people of Namwala are accorded the opportunity, this time around, to take care of the agricultural sector, particularly livestock, by sinking boreholes, and constructing dip tanks and centres that are going to be used for insemination services. So, through this Budget, we expect to increase the number of animals in Namwala, as the people there will sit and decide where to construct dip tanks for ease of looking after their animals and protecting them from diseases.

 

Madam Speaker, this Budget will help us attend to the road network in our areas. As I submitted earlier, it has been difficult to move deliveries, such as inputs and yields, from one point to another because of the poor road network in our constituency.

 

Madam Speaker, allow me also to indicate that this New Dawn Government has promised the people of Zambia that agriculture will not depend on rainfall only, as it is going to construct irrigation systems that will add value to our economic position because we shall continue our agricultural activities even outside the Rainy Season, that is, in winter, because of the new methods of agriculture that the New Dawn Government is going to introduce.

 

Madam Speaker, it must be important to everyone when we talk about decentralisation. This is the first time ever we have decentralised, although I heard my hon. Colleagues indicate that in the past ten years, they talked about decentralisation. Let it be put on record that when people talk about something, but do not practice it, the result is zero. The people of Zambia need action, and the actions that the New Dawn Government has taken include decentralisation. Now, the element of corruption will be cut off, as people will know exactly what has been allocated to them and will endeavour to undertake all the activities commensurate with the money that they are given, unlike in the past when all activities were undertaken by the Central Government, and because of that, areas that were perceived to be non-supporters of the then Ruling Party remained underdeveloped.

 

Madam Speaker, this is a Budget that leaves no one outside because it has nothing to do with ethnicity and politics. All it is intended to do is improve the living standard of the people of Zambia regardless of their region. So, only those who preached corruption and have always survived through it will see anything wrong with it.

 

Madam Speaker, in conclusion, I thank the people who sat and drafted this Budget. Indeed, when they were drafting it, the most important thing they had at heart was the interest of the citizens of this country. This is what we want to see, going forward. We do not want people who sit and plan the downfall of others, which is ill. We expect to see our hon. Colleagues on your left realise that the time to develop and support a living Budget like this one is now.

 

I thank you, Madam Speaker.

 

Mr Amutike (Mongu Central): Madam Speaker, I did not have any intention to debate this afternoon. However, when I came here, I found the Yellow Book had been issued. So, I want to put it on record and settle this matter of a certain clique of people saying that the Budget is not balancing and all that.

 

Madam Speaker, let me congratulate the hon. Minister of Finance and National Planning for tabling a very progressive National Budget, which the people of Mongu are very happy about. I think if it were an examination to draft a budget under the circumstances we had, the hon. Minister would have graduated cum laude. He produced this Budget under very difficult conditions, with the economy was on its knees. In fact, I argue that the economy had no knees and no legs; it had really collapsed.

 

Madam Speaker, just from a quick perusal of the Yellow Book, we can see how the Budget balances. The Budget is K173 billion, and the Zambia Revenue Authority (ZRA) has been tasked to raise K79 billion. This past financial year, the ZRA raised about K90 billion or something like that. The K79 billion that the ZRA will raise leaves a shortfall of K94 billion in the Budget. However, there is also K49 billion Budget support from donors. The donors only fail to give support when people steal or abuse money. So, that money will come through now, and will leave us with a shortfall of K45 billion.

 

Madam Speaker, the International Monetary Fund (IMF) programme is coming, as we have heard, and there is nothing wrong with borrowing. What is wrong is borrowing and then being unable to pay the loan. Therefore, US$1.3 billion is coming, and it can now sit at the Bank of Zambia (BOZ). So, we can now use the earlier sourced US$1.4 billion as drawing rights. If you convert US$1.4 billion into Kwacha, it is roughly K22 billion, and K45 billion minus K22 billion leaves K23 billion to finance. Further, in the Yellow Book, we see that the hon. Minister intends to borrow about K20 billion from the local market, and we know that the hon. Minister does not fail in that regard because he does things methodically and meticulously. That is how this Government works. So, K23 billion minus K20 billion just leaves us with K3 billion and even in their sleep, the hon. Minister and President Hakainde Hichilema can never fail to raise K3 billion. We know we can easily get that K3 billion from the various Government charges and levies, which are the various taxes. So, people just have to read the whole Yellow Book to see how well it balances; they should stop reading one page or half a page and coming to a conclusion. It is very important that we support this Budget.

 

Mr Mung’andu: It does not balance.

 

Mr Amutike: Madam Speaker, the people of Mongu Central are very happy about this Budget because they are able to see that for the first time, development will be taken to the people. Look at the amount allocated to the Constituency Development Fund (CDF), which the people will be able to control at the ward development level. People are busy forming Ward Development Committees (WDCs) right now because they are excited, especially in my ward, about having, for the first time, the ability to decide what development is required in their wards or their constituencies. Further, for the first time, they will be able to decide who gets assisted in terms of bursaries because they know the orphans and the very disadvantaged in their wards. We explained what the Budget means to them and they feel it is a people’s Budget and that it is the first time that the Budget has been aligned to the National Development Plan and to the promises that we made when we were campaigning.

 

Madam Speaker, for the very first time, people feel that they are part of the Government and that there is a Government in place that is closer to them and taking care of their needs. They are also excited about Government-assisted education. We may say it is free education, yes, from the point of view of a parent, but we know that there is nothing that is free; it has to be financed by the Government, which has to find the money to do so. So, from the Government’s point of view, it is not as free as it seems. However, the point is that the Government has made great efforts to ensure that those who are disadvantaged and not able to pay school fees for their children are catered for. No child in my constituency and in Zambia who is intelligent and passing will fail to go to school because of the parent’s or guardian’s not being able to pay school fees. That is what the people are excited about.

 

Madam Speaker, the people are excited about the many teachers who are qualified with certificates in Mongu Central. I meet them and I met them this weekend, and we discussed what this Budget means to them. However, the excitement is not only about teachers, but also the health workers and various other professionals who will be employed in the Government. even more important is the amount of money the Government has put aside for people who are innovative and who want to venture into business so that they can create their own opportunities. If they want, they can be shareholders or company owners.

 

Madam Speaker, the people of Mongu Central told me that they do not want outsiders to go there and venture into the cashew nut business. There are many cashew nut and mango trees in Mongu, and they want to do the business. I was in Katongo Ward and met a very exciting lady who has started doing that. She is just waiting for support from the Government so that she can provide a better service. So, people are very excited about this Budget, this developments and this new Government, and they want to get involved and get the assistance that they want. So, many of these arguments coming from your left are because people just argue for the sake of arguing. It is the final nail that is being put in the coffin of the rotten corpse of the failed Patriotic Front (PF) Government. The PF is buried, and there is no way it can rise after this Budget. So, its members must just come to the party and join the winning team of the United Party for National development (UPND). We have planted the seed of prosperity through this Budget, and we are going to see the fruits very soon.

 

Madam Speaker, we have the right hon. Minister of Finance and National Planning and the right President at this stage, and we are going to win.

 

I thank you, Madam Speaker.

 

Hon. Government Members: Hear, hear!

 

Madam Speaker gave the Floor to Mr Kapyanga

 

Mr Kapyanga: Madam Speaker, sorry, I already debated.

 

Madam Speaker: Sorry, there was an indication.

 

Dr Mwanza (Kaumbwe): Madam Speaker, I am going to deliver my maiden speech and then debate the Motion.

 

 Hon. PF Members: Hear, hear!

 

Dr Mwanza: Madam Speaker, may I begin by expressing my profound gratitude to you for according me this opportunity to deliver my maiden speech as Member of Parliament for Kaumbwe Constituency.

 

Hon. PF Members: Hear, hear!

 

Dr Mwanza: Madam Speaker, allow me to also take this opportunity to congratulate our new Republican President, His Excellency Mr Hakainde Hichilema, on his election as the Seventh President of the Republic of Zambia.

 

Hon. Government Members: Hear, hear!

 

Dr Mwanza: I wish him God’s guidance and blessings as he discharges this responsibility of leading our country. I also congratulate you on your historic election as the first female Speaker of this august House. I have every reason to believe that you and your team will execute your functions with impartiality.

 

Madam Speaker, allow me to profoundly rise to the occasion of thanking my party, the Patriotic Front (PF), and the people of Kaumbwe for adopting me and giving me this rare mandate and honour of serving them. I promise my party and the people of Kaumbwe my firm commitment to serving them with due diligence and intellect without leaving anyone behind. Needless to say, I should mention that my election to this august House through a by-election that occurred immediately after the general election is the first indicator check and balance that the people of Kaumbwe have sent to this august House. I am a bearer of a message from the people of Kaumbwe that this victory is dedicated to His Excellency the Sixth President of the Republic Zambia, Mr Edgar Chagwa Lungu.

 

Hon. PF Members: Hear, hear! Hammer!

 

Dr Mwanza: This is motivation for the PF as it bounces back in 2026.

 

Hon. FP Members: Hear, hear!

 

Dr Mwanza: Madam Speaker, contrary to media reports to the effect that the campaigns in Kaumbwe were violent-free, the constituency witnessed the worst forms of violence, ranging from assault to smashing of cars. One instance endangered our lives and the life of the PF Vice-President, Hon. Given Lubinda, as we came from a radio station; his car was smashed, yet the police in Petauke have done nothing about those cases.

 

Hon. PF Members: Shame!

 

Dr Mwanza: So, there was a lot of intimidation on the polling day and our supporters, such as the Constituency Chairman, and the Councillor for Kaumbwe Ward had his Toyota Corolla smashed and the car’s engine damaged. However, to date, no arrests have been made. The said violence was registered on polling day and perpetrated by United Party for National Development (UPND) supporters who were clad in red berets.

 

Hon. PF Member: But they lost.

 

Dr Mwanza: Yes, they lost.

 

Madam Speaker, the above-cited instances do not synchronise well with the pronouncements on which the UPND Government was founded; the rule of law and respect for unman rights.

 

Madam Speaker, let me present my bio-data, which highlights the environment that I grew up in and exposes the social and economic challenges that the people of Kaumbwe Constituency are face.

 

Madam, I am a typical example of a true patriot with a desire to contribute to this country’s progress through my new portfolio as Member of Parliament for Kaumbwe Constituency. Born and bred in Kaumbwe, I went to Chassa Boys Secondary School, which is 110 km from Kaumbwe because there is no boarding secondary school in Kaumbwe Constituency. To date, there is no boarding secondary school.

 

Interruptions

 

Madam Speaker: Can we have some order in the House!

 

Dr Mwanza: Madam Speaker, at fifteen years, I went to secondary school, and that was the first time I used a flushing toilet and saw a tarmac road, the Great East Road. These are some of the indicators of the social and economic challenges that Kaumbwe Constituency faces to date.

 

Madam Speaker, I am a civil engineer, a university lecturer and a researcher with unparalleled experience, both here in Zambia and in the Diaspora. My last position was at China Railways as Technical Manager in charge of railway and road projects in developing countries, negotiating transportation infrastructure projects on finance, build and transfer (FBT) basis, and there are many successful projects I can point at, including the Lagos-Ibadan Railway Project in Nigeria. In Zambia, one of the projects is the Mchinji Railway Line to Serenje Connection at the Tanzania-Zambia Railway Authority (TAZARA).

 

Madam Speaker, let me use this opportunity to briefly share the challenges faced by Kaumbwe Constituency. Firstly, Kaumbwe is a rural constituency with more than 100 km of an informal border with Mozambique. As such, to date, there are many security challenges. The border has no security post and there is no formal immigration. In 1998, when I completed my Grade 12, we suffered from attacks due to the war between the Mozambican National Resistance (RENAMO) and the Front for the Liberation of Mozambique (FRELIMO) in Mozambique. Zambia, through Kaumbwe Constituency, was host to refugees, and we used to sleep in the bush because of fear of attacks.

 

Madam Speaker, Kaumbwe Constituency has a population of close to 55,000 people. Of course, the Voters Register showed about 32,000, of which I garnered 7,800.

 

Hon. PF Members: Hear, hear!

 

Dr Mwanza: For that population of 55,000 people, there are only twenty-six primary schools, which are in a very dilapidated state, and only four rural clinics in a very deplorable state that have no maternity wings and medical diagnostic equipment.

 

Madam Speaker, there are many water challenges. During the dry season, our animals, such as cattle and goats, go into Mozambique to look for water and, unfortunately, do not come back to Zambia because they are stolen. So, we need dams, boreholes, et cetera.

 

Madam Speaker, the first time I went out for my postgraduate studies, I realised that as black people, we are beset by many challenges of our own making with our own solutions. It was not until 2002, when I left for China for my postgraduate studies, that I was met with many questions. For example, there were questions like, “Do you have traffic lights in your country?” or “In your country, do you have houses that are made of concrete blocks?”, and I would answer the questions based on my mood on a particular day. I could co-operate or not, but it would stick on my mind that those were the challenges, and that was the motivation that drew me to serve the people of Kaumbwe.

 

 Hon. Opposition Members: Hear, hear!

 

Dr Mwanza: Madam Speaker, let me mention what the people of Kaumbwe want to hear. Fifty-seven years after Independence –

 

Madam Speaker: Order!

 

The time for the hon. Member’s maiden speech expired.

 

Dr Mwanza: Madam Speaker, on the Budget presentation made on 29^th October, 2021, I congratulate the hon. Minister of Finance and National Planning for a job well done. Considering that he was appointed just a month after the UPND won the last elections, it was not easy for him to come up with this Budget.

 

Madam Speaker, I am going to comment on three things; my comments are going to be anchored on – I have looked at the Budget, and the people of Kaumbwe are very excited.

 

Hon. UPND Members: Hear, hear!

 

Dr Mwanza: Madam Speaker, this Budget brings a lot of hope, and I tailored my maiden speech with that in mind. In my maiden speech, I highlighted the challenges in Kaumbwe Constituency. Therefore, I am going to talk about what I call the ‘sweet items’ that attract us to this Budget. The first one is the increment in the Constituency Development Fund (CDF) from K1.6 million to K25.7 million. This is a welcome move.

 

Hon. UPND Members: Hear, hear!

 

Dr Mwanza: Come 2026, any Member of Parliament who will lose in his constituency will have only himself or herself to blame.

 

Hon. UPND Members: Hear, hear!

 

Dr Mwanza: The K25.7 million is enough affinity for constituency development.

 

Mr Mung’andu: If released.

 

Dr Mwanza: We have to start from somewhere. Our contribution on this Budgetary increase is that the guidelines set by the Ministry of Local Government and Rural Development need to be discussed here because as an engineer, I believe that we need to have a guideline on the threshold of the value of a single project that we can execute from this money, because there are many issues to attend to, such as courts, schools, water and sanitation, and drainage systems. Capacity building is not a problem. In fact, the councils in Zambia have the most highly qualified personnel. I know that because I worked in Zambia before I went into the diaspora.

 

Hon. UPND Members: Tell them!

 

Hon. Member: Ah, capacity!

 

Mr Kapyanga: Now, hammer on borrowing. You have entertained them too much. Do not do that. Hammer them now.

 

Dr Mwanza: Furthermore, Madam Speaker, we are interested in seeing the K25.7 million sustained and disbursed on time. The method in the Budget is to depend on borrowing.

 

Hon. PF Members: Hear, hear!

 

Dr Mwanza: The borrowing of US$1.3 billion from the International Monetary Fund (IMF) is a welcome move.

 

Hon. UPND Members: Hear, hear!

 

Dr Mwanza: However, we have to look at sustainability from 2022 and beyond. If the IMF loan comes through, it will pay for the K25.7 million, and we are happy that it will continue, but what happens from 2022 and beyond?

 

Hon. UPND Members: Tell your brothers!

 

Interruptions

 

Dr Mwanza: Madam Speaker, I am talking about sustainability, in short. The UPND Government has announced that it is going to build 120 schools across the country.

 

Mr Kapyanga: Not across the country; it is in three provinces only.

 

Dr Mwanza: As I stand here, Kaumbwe is already having one school. I want one of the 120 schools to be in Kaumbwe.

 

Mr Kapyanga: They are building in three provinces.

 

Dr Mwanza: I hear that the 120 schools are going to be built in three provinces.

 

Hon. PF Members: Yes!

 

Dr Mwanza: That is not fair.

 

Hon. PF Members: Now, you are talking.

 

Dr Mwanza: I need a school in Kaumbwe. We have reserved land with a very good landscape for it, overlooking a mountain and a perennial river. The school that is going to be given to Kaumbwe under this scheme will be the best school ever.

 

Laughter

 

Mr Kapyanga: Hammer them on the US$4.3 billion.

 

Dr Mwanza: Madam, in the transport sector, I have seen that the Budget has no allocation for road and railway development. We are just saying 4,300 km of feeder roads is under maintenance. That is a product of the PF, and it should not be in the 2022 Budget.

 

Mr Kapyanga: Now you are talking.

 

Dr Mwanza: This project is already ongoing, and the loan concessions and everything else were already agreed.

 

Hon. PF Members: Yes!

 

Dr Mwanza: Right now, feeder roads in all the ten provinces are being upgraded.

 

Interjections

 

Dr Mwanza: My constituency, in Petauke and everywhere –

 

Madam Speaker: Order!

 

Hon. Member for Kaumbwe, just resume your seat, please.

 

Hon. Members, there is a lot of noise. Some hon. Members are debating from their seats and interjecting. That is not expected of hon. Members of Parliament. Please, can we observe the order and decorum of the House?

 

Hon. Member for Kaumbwe, please, proceed.

 

Dr Mwanza: Madam Speaker, I thank you for the protection.

 

Madam Speaker, the borrowing of US$ 4.2 billion is envisaged on the premise that it is going to support this K173 billion Budget yet, from this abstract Budget, the figures do not add up. Already, on page 40, I can see K37 billion missing before the money is spent. Where is the money? How can we support the borrowing of US$ 4.2 billion to support the Budget that already shows K37 billion missing?

 

 Madam Speaker, the employment of 30,000 teachers and 11,000 health workers is a welcome move. I have on my list fifty teachers from Kaumbwe Constituency who are on internship; they are working in community schools in very deplorable conditions. What I want to see is the employment of the teachers and health workers spread in a fair manner. The way the Government is giving us K25.7 million is what it should also do in the employment of teachers and health workers.

 

Mr Mung’andu: I second.

 

Dr Mwanza: Madam Speaker, I have a passion for railway infrastructure, and we are trying to say we are going to increase –

 

Madam Speaker: Order!

 

Hon. Member, on that word, “passion”, you have run out of your time.

 

Dr Mwanza: Madam Speaker, thank you. I will continue next time.

 

Madam Speaker: Order!

 

The hon. Member’s time expired.

 

ADJOURNMENT

 

The Chief Whip and Acting Leader of Government Business in the House (Mr Mulusa): Madam Speaker, I beg to move that the House do now adjourn.

 

Question put and agreed to.

 

_______

 

The House adjourned at 1819 hours until 1430 hours on Wednesday, 10^th November, 2021.

 

____________

.