DAILY PARLIAMENTARY DEBATES FOR THE FOURTH SESSION OF THE ELEVENTH ASSEMBLY

Wednesday, 12th November, 2014

The House met at 1430 hours

[MR SPEAKER in the Chair]

NATIONAL ANTHEM

PRAYER

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ANNOUNCEMENT BY MR SPEAKER

ACTING LEADER OF GOVERNMENT BUSINESS IN THE HOUSE

Mr Speaker: I have received communication to the effect that, in the absence of His Honour the Vice-President, who is also now Acting President of the Republic of Zambia, Hon. Yamfwa D. Mukanga, Minister of Transport, Works, Supply and Communication and also the Chief Whip, has been appointed, henceforth, as Acting Leader of Government Business in the House.

I thank you.

Hon. Members: Hear, hear!

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BUSINESS OF THE HOUSE

The Minister of Transport, Supply and Communication, Chief Whip, and Acting Leader of Government Business in the House (Mr Mukanga): Mr Speaker, I rise to acquaint the House with the business it will consider this week. 

Sir, as can be seen from the Order Paper, today, Wednesday, 12th November, 2014, the Business of the House will begin with Questions for Oral Answer. This will be followed by a debate on the Motion on the death of His Excellency the President of the Republic of Zambia, Mr Michael Chilufya Sata, who passed away on Tuesday, 28th October, 2014 in London and was put to rest yesterday, Tuesday, 11th November, 2014 in Lusaka. Then the House will consider the Motion on the approval of the transfer of portfolio and statutory functions. The House will then, continue with the debate on the Motion of Supply.

Mr Speaker, tomorrow, Thursday, 13th November, 2014, the Business of the House will commence with Questions for Oral Answer, if there will be any. This will be followed by Presentation of Government Bills, if there will be any. Then, the House will conclude the general policy debate on the Motion of Supply and resolve into the Committee of Supply in readiness for the commencement of the consideration of individual heads of expenditure.
Sir, on Friday, 14th November, 2014, the Business of the House will commence with Questions to Ministers, if there will be any. This will be followed by Presentation of Government Bills, if there will be any. Then, the House will resolve into Committee of Supply in order to consider the 2015 Estimates of Revenue and Expenditure and the following heads will be considered:
    
        Head 01     Office of the President State House;
        Head 02     Office of the Vice-President;
        Head 19     Disaster Management and Mitigation Unit; and
        Head 03     National Assembly.

Mr Speaker, I thank you.

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QUESTIONS FOR ORAL ANSWER

REHABILITATION OF THE CHOCHA-KALEULU AERODROME 

216. Mr Ng’onga (Kaputa) asked the Minister of Transport, Works, Supply and Communication:

(a)    when the rehabilitation of the Chocha-Kaleulu Aerodrome in Kaputa District would commence to enable safe landing of small areoplanes; and

(b)    whether the local community would be considered for employment when the rehabilitation of the facility was completed.

The Deputy Minister of Transport, Works, Supply and Communication (Col. Kaunda): Mr Speaker, the Chocha-Kaleula Aerodrome in Kaputa District was worked on from 11th to 21st June, 2014. The maintenance works which included vegetation control of an area of 1, 200m x 90m, clearing the landing and take-off surface area of 1,050m x 30m and the road from the airstrip up to the main junction, took 10 days and 36 casual workers were engaged. The cost of the maintenance works was K27,606.76. The Chocha-Kaleula Aerodrome is not a manned aerodrome. The local community will not be considered for employment when the improvement of the facility is completed because the aerodrome will be not be manned. However, the local community will only be considered for employment on a casual basis when carrying out annual maintenance works such as vegetation control.

Mr Speaker, I thank you.

Mr Kapyanga (Kabwe Central): Mr Speaker, does the ministry have a plan for the rehabilitation and construction of aerodromes throughout the country.

Col. Kaunda: Mr Speaker, the ministry has a programme in place for the maintenance of all the aerodromes in the country where small aircrafts can land in districts and bigger ones can land in provincial centres.

I thank you.

Mr Mbewe (Chadiza): Mr Speaker, in this year’s Budget, some money has been allocated for the maintenance of airstrips. The airstrip in Chadiza is supposed to have been worked on using the same funding. Will all the airstrips which have not been worked on be considered for renovations in the near future?

Col. Kaunda: Mr Speaker, I can confirm that the airstrips which have not been worked on will be considered for renovations in the near future.

I thank you, Sir.

Mr Muchima (Ikeleng’i): Mr Speaker, does the Government have plans to construct an airstrip in Ikeleng’i, especially at the source of the Zambezi River to attract tourism?

Col. Kaunda: Mr Speaker, the ministry will soon release a list of all the airstrips which it plans to work on.

I thank you, Sir.

CONSTRUCTION OF KANYAMA HIGH SCHOOL

217. Mr Katuka (Mwinilunga) asked the Minister of Education, Science, Vocational Training and Early Education:

(a)    when the construction of Kanyama High School in Mwinilunga Parliamentary Constituency would be completed and opened to the public;

(b)    what the total sum of the contract was; and    

(c)    how much money had been paid to the contractor as of August, 2014. 

The Deputy Minister of Education, Science, Vocational Training and Early Education (Mr Mabumba): Mr Speaker, the construction of Kanyama Secondary School in Mwinilunga will be completed in 2015. 

Sir, the contract sum for the construction of the school is K55,868,247,300 and a total sum of K37,460,490,062 has been released as of August, 2014.

Mr Speaker, I thank you.

Mr Katuka: Mr Speaker, has the delay in completing the construction of this school been due to the Government’s failure to pay the contractor?

  Mr Mabumba: Mr Speaker, I cannot confirm that the delay in completing the construction of the school is due to the failure by the Government to pay the contractor. We have been trying our level best to pay the contractor on time. In my response, I said that the contract sum is about K55 million and the amount of money that has been paid to the contractor so far is slightly over K37 million. This confirms the commitment of the Ministry of Education, Science, Vocational Training and Early Education to completing the secondary school.

Mr Speaker, I thank you.

Mr Muchima: Mr Speaker, I do not know whether the hon. Deputy Minister is aware that the construction of this high school was started by the Movement for Multi-party Democracy and should have been completed in 2011. Has the Government allocated funds to complete the construction of the school in the 2015 Budget?

Mr Mabumba: Mr Speaker, the answer is yes. The budget for the Ministry of Education, Science, Vocational Training and Early Education will come to this august House for approval. At that stage, hon. Members will have the opportunity to look at the figures that have been allocated to the ministry’s many projects. Our view as a ministry is that the funds that have been allocated are reasonable enough to complete the construction of some secondary schools going into 2015.

Mr Speaker, I thank you.
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MOTIONS

DEATH OF HIS EXCELLENCY, THE PRESIDENT OF THE REPUBLIC OF ZAMBIA, MR MICHAEL CHILUFYA SATA

The Minister of Transport, Works, Supply and Communication, Chief Whip, and Acting Leader of Government Business in the House (Mr Mukanga): Mr Speaker, I beg to move that this House do place on record its profound regret on the untimely death of His Excellency Mr Michael Chilufya Sata, President of the Republic of Zambia, together with its appreciation of his distinguished and patriotic service to this country and the people of Zambia, and that the deepest sympathies and condolences of the National Assembly be conveyed to his family.

Sir, I am deeply humbled that I have been tasked to move this important Motion. It was with a deep sense of sorrow that I agreed to move this Motion about my political mentor who discovered my political prowess and enabled me to come to this august House in 2004.

Mr Speaker, in moving this sorrowful Motion in this House on this sad historical occasion, I wish to record for posterity our heartfelt regret and anguish over the untimely death of His Excellency, Mr Michael Chilufya Sata, President of the Republic of Zambia, who died on Tuesday, 28th October, 2014, at King Edward VII Hospital, Belmont, Central London in the United Kingdom. As the House may recall, the President was taken to London for medical attention on 20th October, 2014. 

Mr Speaker, allow me to use this sad occasion to say a few words about our late beloved President whose death is a loss not only to this House, but also the Southern African Development Community (SADC).

Interruptions

Mr Speaker: Order!

I am sorry to disturb you. I should not, ordinarily, disturb you on an occasion like this one. This is a very sober and sombre Motion. Can we listen in silence.

The Acting Leader of Government Business in the House may continue.

Mr Mukanga: Mr Speaker, allow me to use this very sad occasion to say a few words about our late beloved President whose death is a loss not only to this nation, but also to the SADC region, the African Continent, the Commonwealth and, indeed, the global community at large. The loss of the President has already reverberated beyond our borders and those of the African continent. 

Mr Speaker, the late President, Mr Michael Chilufya Sata, was born on 6th July, 1937, in Mpika, which at the time, was in Northern Province. He did his primary education in Mpika and later proceeded to Katenshya Seminary where he completed his Standard Six. He later studied at the University of London between 1970 and 1972 and obtained his O and A levels. 

Sir, whilst in the United Kingdom, the late President, Mr Michael Chilufya Sata, enrolled at the London School of Journalism and Manchester Press Syndicate where he obtained certificates in Journalism and Journalism for Children respectively. He also studied political logistics at the University of Berlin. He further obtained a qualification in State Economics and Political Strategy Planning at Lomonosov State University in Moscow, Russia. 

Mr Speaker, the House may also wish to note that our beloved departed President also graduated with a Bachelor’s Degree in Political Science from Atlantic International University, Honolulu, Hawaii in the United States of America in 2011. 

Mr Speaker, in terms of his employment history, the late President, Mr Michael Chilufya Sata, began his working career as a labour assistant in 1954 in the Government of the then Northern Rhodesia. He then worked briefly in 1955 as a Pay Master at the Public Works Department (PWD) before joining the police force as a constable in 1956. He was in the police force of the Northern Rhodesian Government up to 1959 when he joined Anglo American Corperation where he worked until 1960. In the 1964 to 1968 period, the late President, Mr Michael Chilufya Sata, was self employed as a business consultant. He left for the United Kingdom in 1968 to work as a shunter with the British Railways up to 1969 and later as a train driver from 1970 to 1973 in the same organisation. He was doing this whilst undertaking his studies in the United Kingdom which I have already referred to.

Mr Speaker, when he returned home in 1973, he settled in Lusaka where, over time, he became Managing Director of Tanners and Taxidermists Zambia and Executive Chairman of Ndola Inn Limited, Director of Deltor Electrical Contractors and Project Director of Avondale Housing Estates Limited. His offices were located at Farmers House on Cairo Road. The late President Mr Michael Chilufya Sata’s stay at the Avondale Housing Estates Limited brought him into the limelight and provided a conducive platform for him to launch his political career.

Mr Speaker, the late President Mr Michal Chilufya Sata began his political career in 1956, when he joined the African National Congress (ANC) which was calling for the Independence of the then Northern Rhodesia from the British colonial rule. He later joined the United National Independence Party (UNIP) in 1960, where he was given the position of section treasurer. The House will further note that our beloved late President worked his way through the rank and file of the former Ruling Party UNIP to become Governor of Lusaka in 1985. As a Governor, he was fondly described as a man of action with a hands-on approach to work. In this respect, hon. Members will remember that it was during his governorship that the City of Lusaka was cleaned up, had street lights installed, roads resurfaced and flyover bridges built.

Mr Speaker, the late President was first elected as hon. Member of Parliament for Kabwata Constituency in 1983 and was re-elected as a representative of the people for the same constituency in 1988 under UNIP. After the introduction of multi-party democracy in 1990, he was elected as Member of Parliament for Kabwata under the Movement for Multi-party Democracy (MMD). As a member of the MMD, the late President represented the people of Kabwata from the period 1991 to 1996. His last parliamentary assignment was that of Member of Parliament for Mpika Central Parliamentary Constituency from 1996 to 2001 under the MMD. 

Mr Speaker, the late President also served at ministerial level in the period 1988 to 1991 under the UNIP-led Government. He held the portfolio of Minister of State in Charge of Decentralisation. While in the MMD Government, the late President served as Cabinet Minister in several ministries which included Local Government and Housing, Labour and Social Security as well as Health. He also served as Minister Without Portfolio during the period 1991 to 2001.

Mr Speaker, in 2001, the late President Mr Michal Chilufya Sata left the MMD to form the Patriotic Front (PF) which he nurtured with one hon. Member of Parliament in 2001 to become the biggest political party today in the country. The late President Sata was a resilient politician who contested presidential elections in 2001, 2006, 2008, and in 2011 when he was elected as the fifth President of the Republic of Zambia.

Mr Speaker, as President of the Republic of Zambia, he was responsible for summoning and officially opening Parliament at the beginning of each session. Further, the House interacted with him through legislation passed by the House which had to be submitted to him as Head of State for assent before becoming law.

Mr Speaker, as Head of State, the late President Mr Michael Chilufya Sata was a firm supporter of the parliamentary reforms which the National Assembly has been implementing in order to bring Parliament closer to the people. The parliamentary reform process would not have been successful without his personal endorsement of this initiative. The House may further wish to know that the late President was an executive member of the Inter-Parliamentary Union (IPU) during his tenure as hon. Member of Parliament. It is for this reason that as Head of State, he encouraged the IPU Secretary General to consider Zambia as a host of the 134th IPU conference in March 2016, when they met in New York.

Hon. Government Members: Hear, hear!

Mr Mukanga: Mr Speaker, during his short, but illustrious presidency, the late President Mr Michael Chilufya Sata contributed immensely to the development of the country that he cared for deeply. During his presidency, Zambia continued its rapid economic growth as his Government invested heavily in developing infrastructure. His Government was also particularly active in promoting the rights of women and girls. His vision was anchored on inclusive growth for all through sustained high rates of economic growth, job creation and poverty alleviation. This is the legacy he has left for us.

Mr Speaker, under his able leadership and guidance, the economy grew by more than 6 per cent per annum, well above the sub-Saharan African average. While inflation had been contained within single digits, the external sector, especially non-traditional exports, grew significantly with agriculture exports exceeding US$1 billion, the highest in the history of the country. This reflected his will for the country to diversify the economy.

Mr Speaker, the House also witnessed unprecedented focus on capital investment in social and economic infrastructure particularly in health, education, roads, railways and energy sectors. Recognising the high unemployment levels in the country, particularly among our youth, the late President Mr Michael Chilufya Sata’s Government put in place an industrialisation and job creation strategy. This strategy is bearing fruit as can be seen through a sustained increase in formal employment and wages, which are important benchmarks in terms of poverty alleviation.

Mr Speaker, as a mark of growing investor confidence, foreign direct investment has continued to grow in our country, reaching the peak of US$1.73 billion in 2012, the highest in the last twelve years. The investments have been broad-based, covering Government’s priority economic sectors, namely agriculture, tourism, labour and export-led manufacturing, mining and construction.  This is a reflection of the improved investment environment in the country made possible by policy consistency and workable pro-private sector strategies which our late President stood for.

Mr Speaker, so much has been said about our late President now, and so much will be said about the legacy he has left behind for generations to come. We will remember him for the lessons he taught us and the ideals he stood for. He taught us many things. He taught us that we can transform our nation in a short period of time if we are focused on what we want to achieve.

Mr Speaker, in view of the foregoing, the late President Mr Michael Chilufya Sata was appropriately referred to as man of action because of his great communication skills, fearlessness, boldness, diligence and conscie … 

Hon. Government Member: Conscientiousness.

Mr Mukanga: … conscientiousness in carrying out his duties. He dedicated his life to the service of the people of Zambia, especially those who are poor and underprivileged. He shall be greatly missed …

Hon. Government Members: Hear, hear!

Mr Mukanga: … not only by his PF, which he formed himself, but also by this House, the entire nation, the SADC region, the continent of Africa, the Commonwealth nations and indeed the international community as a whole. He leaves behind a legacy which is probably unmatched in Africa.

Hon. Government Members: Hear, hear!

Mr Mukanga: Mr Speaker, on 11th November, 2014, this honourable House, led by you, joined a multitude of local and foreign dignitaries and ordinary citizens to put to rest this fallen hero at Embassy Park here in Lusaka. Our comfort is that heroes do not die, but continue to live in the minds and hearts of their followers. 

Hon. Members: Hear, hear!

Mr Mukanga: In conclusion, Sir, allow me to thank sincerely this House and all the people of Zambia for affording me this opportunity to say a few words about our late President, Mr Michael Chilufya Sata, may his soul rest in peace. 

Mr Speaker, I beg to move. 

Hon. Members: Hear. Hear!

Mr Nkombo (Mazabuka Central): Mr Speaker, as we go through this very difficult and trying moment, I am very grateful to you for the opportunity to contribute to this very solemn Motion. 

Sir, from the outset, I wish to put on record, on behalf of the United Party for National Development (UPND) Members of Parliament, and party rank and file, my heartfelt condolences to Dr Christine Kaseba Sata, His Worship the Mayor of the Great City of Lusaka, Mr Mulenga Sata, the whole Sata family, the Patriotic Front (PF) leadership and its rank and file and the Zambian people at large. 

Sir, I have deeply reflected on the many things which have been said about our late President before and after his death. I am not afraid to say that beyond politics, which is a call of duty, are families. Since we know that a family is the smallest unit of our social order, it is important when debating a Motion such as this one not to be injurious to those who are very close to the deceased. 

Sir, I personally know the Sata family. My association with one of the late President’s children, the mayor, and the late son of the Minister of Finance, Chitundu Chikwanda, may his soul rest in peace, stems a long way back in time. Even though I belong to a different political party from that of the late President, I wish to thank the Movement for Multi-party Democracy (MMD), UPND, the Alliance for Democracy and Development (ADD) and Hon. Patrick Mucheleka, for demonstrating, against all odds, that a funeral of that magnitude can be given the respect that it deserves. I think that these groups of people that I have named here have been outstanding during the period of mourning even as they watched events unfold. 

Sir, my feeling is that the late President Sata has taken a great chunk of the PF with him. This is my belief because he was a monumental human being. This is premised on the fact that we saw shenanigans at the height of our sorrow. We saw people’s machinations and the scramble for succession while the Head of State’s body lay in state at the Mulungushi International Conference Centre, which is near Parliament Buildings. This brought a lot of pain in some of us. I recall that on the day that the Secretary-General of the PF, Mr E. C. Lungu, was removed from the position, I was having dinner at Mahak Restaurant, which is under a kilometre from here and I choked with teargas as a result of police action that tried to stop what one would term “sponsored students,” who protested to show their support for the successor of a man who was still lying in-state. Personally, I think that the PF did not manage this process well.  

Mr Speaker, talking about legacy, the term is defined in the English Oxford Dictionary as anything that is handed from the past or ancestor to a predecessor, be it good or bad. My reflections about the departed as I debate this solemn Motion, unfortunately, will extend to those whom he associated with closely. It is said, show me your friend and I will show you your character or birds of a feather flock together. As such, my personal reflection of Mr Michael Chilufya Sata, His Excellency, our departed President, is in the belief that his persona, the human being in him, was good. His persona was wonderful because we are all fearfully and wonderfully made. When it comes to his role as President, I will argue my case in a very sombre manner. As I said earlier, I shall not be slow to include the entire PF in my debate because he was its leader. 

Mr Speaker, it is believed that decent political and socio-economic administration does not need good men or women, but instead good laws. This is so because we might be unfortunate enough to get a leader who can be loose such as what we witnessed yesterday, to my embarrassment, when one of our neighbouring countries’ leaders chastised an individual who is caretaking our country. I am sure that you all know what I am speaking about. If diplomatic etiquette can be breached, it is because of lack of a governing principles and laws. 

Sir, Mr Sata was a very resilient and tenacious politician. In Tonga, we would have referred to his actions as kailya kuzumanana which means he was tenacious. After overcoming a few hurdles in his political life, the Zambian people eventually saw the need to give him the mantle of power. Unfortunately, it was slightly too late because we have not seen the realisation of his full potential. I wish that Mr Sata, like Dr Kaunda, would have lived to see the fruits of his administration so that posterity would have judged him fairly.

Mr Speaker, the late President made lofty statements, especially during the election campaigns. I have been in the Opposition my entire political life. My colleagues in the MMD were in Government and now are in the Opposition, just like the PF which is in Government was once in the Opposition. 
Sir, I do not know what happens when people move from the Opposition to Government. I say this because my colleagues on your right were the pillars of the President’s rule. Unfortunately, when you are elected as President, as some people may be in the next few months, you somewhat become detached from the public. Those of you who are in Cabinet and interacted with the late President were his anchors and were supposed to be telling him exactly what society desired. 

Mr Speaker, I am a firm believer that Mr Sata used to listen to other people’s views because I used to associate with him before he became President. What may have changed? The late President has left a legacy of broken promises. I have said that with a heavy heart. He stated that within ninety days of the PF’s coming into power, a new people-driven Constitution would be delivered. After the PF came into power, we saw subsequent statements coming, not only from the Head of State, but also his hon. Ministers and the rank and file of the PF, talking about a different direction as regards the Constitution-making process. Some people started asking us whether we would eat the Constitution if it was enacted. Worse still, others said that we were yapping as if what we had in place was an animal-driven Constitution.

Mr Speaker, we have a duty to remind one another that human beings come and go, but institutions remain. They say, once beaten, twice shy. We are in genuine grief as a country having lost Mr Michael Sata because nobody wants to see the jostling for power that will take place in the next few days. It will come with a lot of challenges and difficulties. Elections are divisive in nature.

Sir, I said earlier that we do not need good men and women, but good laws. Had the PF Government, under the leadership of Mr Michael Chilufya Sata, assisted the process by hastening the enactment of the new Constitution and the Clauses that are contained therein, we would not have been thinking about having a presidential by-election. I say this because that progressive provision states that in the event that the President dies, the Vice-President, who is the running mate will immediately take charge. Under the late President’s rule, we missed an opportunity to enact a new Constitution.

Mr Speaker, the Public Order Act is one law that the late President denounced heavily when he was in the Opposition. He called it draconian and colonial in nature. The legacy that we have learnt from our late President is that it is perfectly in order to say one thing today and do the other the following day. When he ascended to power, he stated that he thought that the Public Order Act was good. The Public Order Act is a law which curtails the people’s rights and freedoms to assemble, to associate and to speak. 

Sir, the mover of the Motion talked about Zambia’s bid to host the 134th Conference of the Inter-Parliamentary Union (IPU). Whilst this move is welcome, those of you who care have noted that the IPU has generated a report which sites the abuses of power by the PF Government which include arbitrarily arresting citizens.

Mr Speaker, it is also true that Mr Sata was a darling of the non-governmental organisations (NGOs) during his bid to become President. He was a proponent of the Freedom of Information Bill. Almost all NGOs rallied behind Mr Sata because of the promises and hope that he gave to the country with regard to the Constitution and Freedom of Information Bill. However, the PF Government has used legislation …

Mr Munkombwe: On a point of order, Sir.

Mr Speaker: Order!

I am not allowing points of order.

Interruptions

Mr Nkombo: Mr Speaker, statistics do not lie and history can only be altered for those who are not realists. It is a fact that the NGOs are lamenting because, our friends, under the leadership of Mr Michael Chilufya Sata, went back on their promises. Today, the officials from the NGOs’ side and the Government do not see eye-to-eye over the NGO Act. 

Sir, the PF, under the leadership of Mr Sata, used the Barotseland Agreement to cause Zambians people to favour him. The results of that are plain for everyone to see. I shall not talk about this issue any further.

Mr Speaker, the “Lower taxes and more money in your pocket” were slogans that were tactfully and carefully coined by the PF under the leadership of Mr Michael Chilufya Sata during election campaigns. However, three years into their term, they removed subsidies on fuel and agriculture products. The consequence was that transport fares went up and that is a fact. As a result of their lofty promises and miscalculation of figures at certain times, nurses with families lost their jobs. 

Sir, I said earlier that families are the smallest units of the social order. The disgruntlement of families can become malignant and seep into society.

Interruptions 

Mr Nkombo: Sir, those who have different views from the ones I am stating will have their chance to express themselves on the Floor of the House.

Mr Nkombo: Sir, as I terminate my debate, I want to say that under the PF and our great leader, we have seen wasteful expenditure through unnecessary by-elections and many other imprudent activities. Those from the PF can argue all they want. Those who want details can see me during the break. At the moment, I have got no time left. 

Mr Speaker, I have statistics from the Bank of Zambia (BOZ) which show a comparison of how the MMD left the Treasury in 2011 and how it is today. Quickly, I will say …

Mr Kambwili: On a point of order, Sir.

Mr Speaker: Order! Let me intervene. He is just winding up. Hon. Member, as you indicated, please wind up.

Mr Nkombo: Mr Speaker, you had ruled that there will be no points of order. If they want to cause a stir, I shall sit down gladly. This is a very sombre Motion that does not require us to argue about facts. 

I thank you, Sir.

Hon. UPND Members: Hear, hear!

Mr Speaker: Hon. Members, let me just provide some guidance. This is not a Motion which requires me to intervene constantly in the debates. That is not the nature of this Motion. I stated from the outset that this is a sober and sombre Motion. I know that there are a lot of issues that we have debated on the Floor of this House for the last three years which have kept coming into our thoughts. However, we should remember that this is an occasion to pay tribute in honour of the memory of our departed President. This is why we are debating this Motion. This Motion also provides a platform for hon. Members to convey condolences to the bereaved family. Of course, I should not prescribe what should be said, but let us bear that spirit in mind. Let us proceed as orderly as we can possibly do. I do not want to give any prescriptions. This is not the first time we have debated this kind of Motion. Those of you who have been here longer will recall that a similar Motion was debated a few years ago. We have a precedent. 

Dr Kaingu (Mwandi): Mr Speaker, on behalf of the Movement for Multi-party Democracy (MMD), the people of Mwandi and, indeed, on my own behalf, I am grateful that you have allowed me to say a few words about our late President. You have guided that this Motion is a sombre one. Thus, I will try by all means to take that point into consideration as I debate. I hope I will not open the healing wounds. 

Mr Speaker, I would like to make comments on unity, the First Lady, Dr Christine Kaseba, the former leaders, the Constitution and, indeed, the stupendous works of our late President Sata. 

Mr Speaker, almost all of us have said a lot about the importance of unity in this country. Going by what everybody has said about the late President Sata, it gives me the impression that he must have been a very good man. Very little has been said about his other side. I suppose it is our culture not to ridicule the deceased. 

Mr Speaker, as I debate this Motion, I want to thank Hon. Nkombo for what he has said about the MMD party. I recall the behavior of some of our colleagues when we lost President Mwanawasa, SC. Some of them even boycotted the funeral of the late President Mwanawasa, SC. That was very unfortunate.

Interruptions

Dr Kaingu: Mr Speaker, I am happy that we attended the funeral of the late President Sata. We did so because he was our President. 

Hon. MMD Members: Hear, hear!

Dr Kaingu: Mr Speaker, let me talk about national unity. There is something that was a bit disturbing at the funeral proceedings of the late President Sata. The funeral was almost hijacked by the Bembas. The funeral proceedings lacked the unity that we like talking about. The songs that were sung were all in Bemba. 

Interruptions

Dr Kaingu: Mr Speaker, I do not know whether other tribes do not know how to sing or mourn. Cultural hegemony will not be encouraged in this country if we continue doing things that way. Our motto is “One Zambia, One Nation.” All the Zambians, including those in Shang’ombo, Kasempa and Mwandi mourned the President. These people were all glued to television sets. Unfortunately, the whole funeral proceedings were hijacked by one tribe.

Interruptions

Dr Kaingu: Sit, it is unfortunate that some people did not see anything wrong with that. 

Interruptions

Dr Kaingu: Mr Speaker, let me ride on what the Member of Parliament for Kabwata, Hon. Given Lubinda, said when he debated on a Motion to do with tourism. He stated that the people of Zambia are peaceful and loving. When I was a Cabinet Minister responsible for the portfolio to do with tourism, I used that as a marketing gimmick wherever I went. I told whoever I came across that the people of Zambia were very good, sober, peaceful and loving. This is how it was until the time the PF came into power with machetes. We have experienced violence even at wrong times like what happened yesterday and a few days ago. What sort of unity are they talking about if they cannot put their own house in order? They know very well that the Government must maintain the peace that we keep talking about.  

Sir, let me move on to talk about the First Lady, Dr Christine Kaseba, the wife to the erstwhile President. I take my hat off to her because she has demonstrated the devotion and love that a man requires when he is ill. All the women, including the men of Zambia, should see that having a good partner can enable an individual to live a longer life.

Hon. Members: Hear, hear!

Dr Kaingu: Sir, the President himself said that if it was not for his madam, he would have been long gone. The President was alive until 28th October because of his madam. I hope the women of Zambia will learn something from our First Lady, Madam Dr Kaseba.

Hon. Opposition Members: Hear, hear!

Dr Kaingu: Mr Speaker, let me now talk about our former leaders. In this country, we do not lack human capital with regard to governance issues. When we lost the President on 28th October, 2014, the PF Government should not have been in a situation which the MMD found itself in when President Mwanawasa, SC. died. This is because when the MMD was in power, the death of a President was novel.

Mr Nkombo: Experience.

Dr Kaingu: Sir, what the MMD did when President Mwanawasa, SC. died should have been an example to the PF. The PF Government should not have had any problems with regard to the transfer of power because Dr Kanganja the former Secretary to the Cabinet is still alive. Those of us who formed the committee which organised the funeral of President Mwanawasa, SC. are still here.

Mr Simbao: Hear, hear!

Dr Kaingu: Sir, the PF Government should have consulted us. However, they ended up appointing and disappointing individuals. For lack of better English, they made fools out of themselves.

Mr Nkombo: Hear, hear!

Laughter

Hon. Opposition Members: Hear, hear!

Mr Speaker: Hon. Member for Mwandi, can you withdraw the last part of what you have said. These are hon. Members. I made a plea that we must debate this Motion in a very dignified manner. Even though you are politicians, you must still all bear in mind that this is a special Motion. You can do your politicking away from this Motion.

Dr Kaingu: Sorry, Sir, I ran out of good English words. I apologise to my colleagues. I did not mean to offend anybody.

Interruptions

Dr Kaingu: Mr Speaker, what I saw when I was Minister of Tourism and Environmental Protection was that our colleagues in North and West Africa consult their predecessors. You should not put a big load on yourselves when it can be made lighter by sharing it with others. We are still here and can be consulted as we go through this process of finding a new leader.

Mr Speaker, let me now talk about the Constitution. When I debated the late President’s last Speech to this House, I said that all the problems that we keep facing as a country are as a result of the current Constitution. It was embarrassing to note that people did not even know who would take over as Acting President when President Sata died. French philosopher Kamm's principle of permissible harm encourages individuals to live with a harm which they can accommodate. The PF Government should not do things like that.

Interruptions

Dr Kaingu: Sir, what is happening at the moment is making the whole country a laughing stock. Since those in the PF have made a mistake, they should live with it. After all, we are now talking about …

Mr Nkombo: Eighty.

Dr Kaingu: … eighty days to go before we have the presidential by-election. For now, let us all adopt an accommodating spirit. It is unfortunate that we are now hearing that people want to go to court to challenge certain happenings. I feel this is a mistake that has been caused by our Constitution. It is a mistake that we should live with. Last time I stated that we needed to quickly attend to the Draft Constitution because it was already on the operation table. It is good that the people of Zambia are tolerant otherwise we could have had problems because of our current Constitution. I hope this is a lesson for all of us here and the people out there. We should be fast on our feet in changing our current Constitution.

Sir, let me now comment on the works of our late President. I will not politic as has been advised because we have enough time to politic beyond this Motion. In fact, if Mr Speaker allowed us, we could leave this House and join others in delivering the right President to State House.

Hon. Opposition Members: Hear, hear!

Dr Kaingu: Sir, there is something unusual in the way the Government of the day manages the health of the President. Both the MMD and PF governments did not manage the illnesses of the two late Presidents well because they kept hiding information. What makes people think that when somebody is a President, he cannot fall ill? I think we must be explicit when handling such issues. There is no need to hide information in such circumstances. 

Mr Nkombo: Hear, hear!

Dr Kaingu: It was very unfair for the PF Government to say that the President had gone for a medical checkup when, indeed, he was evacuated for medical treatment. Anyway, let me talk about the stupendous works of our President. So many people have talked about the roads, but we do not have these roads in the Western and North-Western provinces.

Hon. Opposition Members: Correct.

Interruptions

Dr Kaingu: I hope the Government, this time around, will use this opportunity to have a positive discrimination and improve people’s livelihoods in those provinces. They should skew their development to the Western, North-Western and Southern provinces.

Mr Nkombo: Correct.

Dr Kaingu: Mr Speaker, the people of Mwandi do not have water. I have been talking about this issue of water for a long time now and I do not know where they want the people of Mwandi to get water from. I hope that as we debate the legacy of the President, we will enhance his legacy by pushing development to the Western, Southern and North-Western provinces. I will not include other provinces because some hon. Members have stated that there is massive development in their provinces, …

Mr Mucheleka: Include Northern.

Dr Kaingu: … but I will add the Northern …

Mr Mbulakulima: And Luapula.

Dr Kaingu: … and Luapula provinces.

    Sir, as I terminate my debate, I want to add that, listening to people, especially those from the Ruling Party, gives us the feeling that since the President is gone, then his legacy has also gone with him. Nobody has said that he or she will embrace the late President’s legacy and continue with it. Everybody is just saying he was such a good man who has left behind a great legacy. So, why do you want to continue in Government if the man has gone with his legacy?

Laughter

Dr Kaingu: Sir, with those few words, I want to pass my sincere condolences to that wonderful lady, the First Lady Dr Kaseba and her family as well as other members of the Sata family who have been devastated by this death. However, I have nothing to say to those in the PF, who found an opportunity to jostle for the position of President before we even put the late President to rest.

I thank you, Sir.

Mr Muntanga (Kalomo Central): Mr Speaker, in contributing to this debate, I want to begin by conveying my heartfelt condolences to the family of the late President, the wife and the Patriotic Front (PF). 

Mr Speaker, we have to debate this Motion knowing that we need to express our condolences and sympathies, which will then be conveyed to the family. I want to state that in a sermon at the National Heroes Stadium, one preacher said that every good thing had been said about the late President. He went on to say that we are very superstitious and that it was taboo to say anything ill about the dead for fear that their ghost will follow you. He hoped that those people who were saying all the good things meant well.

Sir, the legacy of any individual has both a good and bad side. We are not able to say the bad things and so, we only want to say the good things. You will only start hearing the bad things being said a month from now. However, I want to state that President Sata had certain qualities which the PF Members might find difficult to emulate. He was able to do things that others might not be able to do. He would say something offensive to you in a joking manner which would make you start smiling instead of getting upset. He used to deliver some of his messages using jokes. He came into this House and managed to direct nearly everyone’s attention to what he wanted to change. I had known him for some time. Even when he was in the Movement for Multi-party Democracy (MMD), he had that ability. He had so much influence that those who believed that he was an excellent person also started behaving like him. If you do not have the ability to smile, you will be a very bad ‘Sata’. He liked smiling a lot. At one time, some people here were complaining that they were being insulted by the hon. Opposition Members. Late President Sata told them that the Opposition is there to tell them what they are supposed to do. The Opposition is supposed to attack the Government on its wrongs. Why are they scared? That was Mr Sata. My worry now is that people who emulate Mr Sata will do a lot of wrong things.

Laughter

Mr Muntanga: Sir, the late President once told this House that there were times when people did wrong things in his name. These people will begin to do things in the name of Mr Sata and say that President Sata said this. It will not go well with some of us. They should at all times try to do the right thing. The record indicating that President Sata was born in 1937 and went to school in 1941 must be corrected. What that means is that President Sata was able to go to school four years after his birth. Go and read that document. In an attempt to please, they are now putting wrong information in certain documents. Back then, we were being tested by being asked to put one of our hands over our heads and touch an ear. The paper is there to prove what I am saying. There is no need to exaggerate things.

Hon. UPND Members: Hear, hear!

Mr Muntanga: Sir, let us just put things as they are. I have liked the way the mover came out. He said that President Sata was born in 1937 and went to a certain school without mentioning the year he began his primary education.

Mr Speaker, those in Government had the duty to tell the visitors who came to mourn on what is true about Zambia. Some of us were not happy that issues about late President Chiluba were brought up in public by one of our visitors. What did he do? Why say that President Chiluba was not a good person there?

Mr Mwale: What for?

Mr Muntanga: Sir, what for? It is the job of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs to ensure that, that does not happen. I know that President Sata was able to tell anybody what he felt. For instance, he was able to tell others about being bald at certain conferences and people would laugh about it. So, if you want to emulate that legacy, find a way of doing that, but we should not talk about other Presidents who are late and compare them to others. You will be hurting some people by doing that. What do you think that did to the family of the late President Chiluba?

Sir, in politics, the real people who mourn a politician are the relatives and not the politicians. That is why there is a jostling for power when a politician dies. It is an opportunity for some people to take up certain roles. That is why they are exhausted. You can only mourn a person sincerely the first few days. Some people cry genuinely while others do not. President Sata used to be dynamic. One of the legacies he has left, humble as he was, is that he made everybody believe that they qualified to be President because he was one who would joke with everybody. So, now, I would not be surprised to see half the people sitting there (pointing at hon. Government Members) jostling to be President without any self assessment.

Laughter

Mr Muntanga: Sir, just because Mr Sata became President does not mean every one qualifies to be President.

Mr Belemu: Hear, hear!

Mr Muntanga: Sir, our colleagues need to assess themselves. Mr Sata had a long battle before becoming President of this country. I can make a comparison of his battle with going to university. Some people will qualify to go to university straight from secondary school. Others will only go there when they are older and have gone through night school and burnt a lot of candles in the night studying. Others get their doctorate after having children and so on and so forth.

Laughter 

Mr Muntanga: Sir, therefore, some are faster runners than others and achieve certain things quite early in their lives. So, some of our colleagues should not think that they can become the President of Zambia just like Mr Sata. He was able to tolerate things that are not normally acceptable to others. I would have used a different word, but I think tolerance is better. A number of the people across the Floor of the House do not have tolerance. Immediately they hear something, they start grumbling. Why do they do that?

Laughter 

Mr Muntanga: Sir, when you look at their faces, they have totally changed because of something they heard. They should learn to tolerate that which is said by others. If they do not know, when you said something that President Sata did not like, he would just laugh and find a way of shutting you up. Their worry is that he had so much influence. I agree with the people who said here that he has taken part of the PF with him.

Dr Kaingu: He has taken the whole party. Kwasila. kwamana.
Mr Muntanga: Sir, they have now remained battling for positions because, as we all agree, the PF was formed by President Sata alone. I wish our colleagues had formed this party with him. For us in the Opposition, we formed our parties together with our leaders. President Sata has been praised for founding the PF, but without him, there is nobody to lead the party.  Those in the PF are now jostling to see who takes over from him. Mr Sata’s boots have become too big to be filled by anybody in the PF. I, however, advise my colleagues to stop jostling for positions. They should not even try to joke like President Sata. One who tries to do so will lose a nose …

Laughter

Mr Muntanga: … because they will not manage to joke the way he did.

Mr Speaker, Mr Sata is one President who would walk in here and start greeting hon. Members of the Opposition, judges and service chiefs. Some people even said that this was part of his creativity and so on and so forth. Yes, he had his own way of doing things. Unfortunately, no one questioned his appointments, thus our ending up with the current problem of who should act as President. People have been talking about changing the Constitution so that we have we have a system in place to deal with such situations. This is a situation we should not allow to recur.

Mr Speaker, since Zambia has become an expert in dealing with the death of an incumbent President, we should now know how to handle such issues. Before President Sata, even the late President Mwanawasa, SC. died in office. I am not talking about those that have died after leaving office. Each one of these two Presidents had their own qualities. 

Mr Speaker, when there was a by-election in Livingstone, the PF was scared to lose such that the Opposition was detained for nothing. After the death of President Sata, this trend has remained with the PF. This should not continue because when our colleagues are out of power, they will also be subjected to the same treatment. 

Mr Speaker, I am one person who has said many things here. In one of my debates, I said that it was important for His Honour the Vice-President to have acted as President. If His Honour the Vice-President was not eligible to act, he should have been replaced. I was called all sorts of names for saying that and told that I did not understand the Constitution. However, when Dr Scott was allowed to act as President after the death of President Sata, the people who did not agree with me rushed to say that this was not the right thing to do. 

Sir, what happened to the Acting President at the death of President Sata was actually an overthrow of a President. It was a total abduction of the presidency. The Acting President then was just told what to do. There are still others threatening that by tomorrow, we shall have another person acting as President. If there is something wrong with Dr Scott acting as President, we should just live with it. We do not want any more of our friends’ supposed knowledge which they have now acquired because President Sata has gone. They seem to have so much knowledge about how things should be done.  They need to slow down.

Mr Speaker, there was a Kenyan who was not surprised that Mr Sata had won the presidential elections. This man believed that President Sata was a true fighter. This is because he had witnessed what President Sata had done in the past at a conference in Kenya or Ethiopia. When Mr Sata went to attend this conference, he declared from the beginning that he was going to take up one of the vacancies which had been announced. People thought it was a joke, but by the conference finished, Mr Sata had won that position. 

Sir, that type of resilience is not found in everybody. The ability to joke with anybody about anything or ‘send someone to hell while they are smiling’ is not an attribute everyone can claim. All we are saying is that the party that he created should not plunge us into trouble now. All of our colleagues are itching to become President. They need to slow down. They should not use money because after their money finishes, the people they are paying are the same ones who will come to throw them out after getting money from somebody else. So, we are saying that President Sata ruled us well and showed us that even in old age you can be President. This gives hope even to others who are aging that not all is lost.

Dr Kaingu: No, mwana.

Laughter 

Mr Muntanga: Sir, they can still make it, although the citizenry is now looking for young leaders to move this country forward. 

Sir, let me register my sincere condolences about a person who was able to make big jokes while delivering a serious message. At one time, he even asked me to go bungee jumping with the hon. Minister of Tourism and Art in Livingstone. He said it in such a way that I looked forward to it, even though I was scared of the rope snapping and falling to my death.  In essence, what he meant was that we should work together as hon. Members of the Opposition and Executive. However, when our colleagues are told facts, they look elsewhere and start grumbling. They should stop it and start accepting harsh criticism. That is the only way they will learn to govern others.

Mr Speaker, I thank you.

Hon. Opposition Members: Hear, hear!

Ms Namugala (Mafinga): Mr Speaker, I also stand to record my regret and, through me, the regret of the people of Mafinga on the passing on of a gallant man, the late President of Zambia, Mr Michael Chilufya Sata.

Mr Speaker, in passing my condolences, I want to note, with a lot of pride, the commitment of the First Lady in the welfare of her late husband.

Hon. Members: Hear, hear!

Ms Namugala: Sir, she did her best and he attested to that. She truly mourned her husband. This is a very sad development for Zambia. It is a sad development for the Patriotic Front (PF) and especially so for the Sata family. We, as a country, are mourning our Presidents too many times. In less than six years, Mr Speaker, we have buried a second President in office and one who had left office. We do hope that we will get a break. We pray that God will look upon Zambia with favour so that there is continuity as our leaders lead.

Mr Speaker, as we mourn this gallant man, Mr Sata, allow me to bemoan the management of information regarding his illness.

Mr Pande: Hear, hear!

Ms Namugala: Mr Speaker, President Sata was a President for all of us. The Zambians through their representatives here and outside inquired about his health. The Cabinet and the PF collectively felt that it was none of our business. A President is a human being just like any one of us. He is bound to feel unwell once in a while. Once this happens, it is expected that information will be disseminated so that the people that he leads can pray for him. I remember hon. Members here, at one point, putting His Honour the Vice-President under a lot of pressure to explain the whereabouts of their President. However, Cabinet was adamant and chose not to tell us the facts.

Mr Speaker, when the news broke that President Sata had died, we were all in shock because we were told that he had gone for a medical check-up. We all know that when a person goes for a medical check-up, it means that the individual is not seriously ill. 

Mr Ndalamei: Yes.

Ms Namugala: Mr Speaker, we were sad to receive his coffin at the airport. I hope that those who are in the PF now know that it is also our business to know about the health of our President. I hope that this death provides an opportunity for all of us, as Zambians, to learn certain lessons. The confusion that has arisen regarding who should act as President has made a lot of us very sad. Being a patriotic Zambian, …

Mr Pande: And a mother.

Ms Namugala: … I would not want to see a non-indigenous person acting as President.

Rev. Lt-Gen. Shikapwasha: Hear, hear!

Ms Namugala: Mr Speaker, a Namwanga man, last week, was mourning President Sata and he said in Namwanga, “Sata, katukwi izulole, umuzungu wasendinsi.”

Interruptions

Hon. Members: Meaning?

Ms Namugala: Meaning, Mr Speaker, come back Mr Sata and see, a white man has taken over our country again. 

Laughter

Hon. Opposition Members: Hear, hear!

Ms Namugala: Sir, that is what a Namwanga man said. He was confused that, fifty years after Independence, …

Mr Muntanga: Yes!

Ms Namugala: … we again have a white man acting as President. Without wanting to sound racist, I wish to state that we are celebrating fifty years of Independence from colonial rule. 

Rev. Lt-Gen. Shikapwasha: Hear, hear!

Ms Namugala: Sir, we cannot stand here and give our people an impression that we are unable to manage our affairs to the extent that we can allow a non-indigenous person to act as President.

Rev. Lt-Gen. Shikapwasha: I agree with you.

Hon. Opposition Members: Hear, hear!

Ms Namugala: Mr Speaker, if President Sata could not allow His Honour the Vice-President to act as President whenever he left the country, why should we?

Mr Mwale: Question!

Ms Namugala: Sir, now that President Sata is no more, why are we allowing this non-indigenous person to act?

Mr Mwale: Question!

Interruptions

Mr Mwale: Look at ba PF.

Mr Ndalamei: Even ma Ministers zoona.

Ms Namugala: Mr Speaker, where were the so-called experts who have now given advice that Dr Scott qualifies to act as President when President Sata was alive? Why did they not advise him to allow this person, a descendant of our colonial masters, to act?

Dr Kaingu: Hear, hear!

Ms Namugala: Mr Speaker, I take great exception …

Hon. Opposition Members: Hear, hear!
Ms Namugala: … that my children are asking me questions with regards to this matter. Why then were we fighting …

Hon. Opposition Members: Hear, hear!

Ms Namugala: … for self rule if fifty years down the road, we can let a white man rule us? Even though I am not a racist, I still think that having fought against colonial masters …

Mr Mbewe: Bwelezapo apo.

Ms Namugala: … we must stand tall and proud that those that fought and lost their lives did not do it in vain. 

Hon. Opposition Members: Yes.

Ms Namugala: Sir, they did so in order to guarantee a better life for future generations. This country belongs to indigenous Zambians and must be led by them.

Dr Kaingu: Yes.

Ms Namugala: Sir, that is what the blood was shed for.

Dr Kaingu: Yes.

Ms Namugala: Sir, that is what our parents and forefathers shed blood for. It is a pity that Hon. Munkombwe is not here. That is what they fought for. 

Dr Kaingu: Yes.

Ms Namugala: Sir, that is what they burnt bridges for.

Hon. Opposition Members: Yes.

Ms Namugala: Sir, women went around topless demanding self-rule. 

Mr Speaker, as I have said, the confusion that has been created by the PF is spilling over to all of us. We do hope that, even as you have ceded power to a former colonial master or a descendant of the colonialists, you are still in charge of our affairs.

Rev. Lt-Gen. Shikapwasha: Hear, hear!

Ms Namugala: Mr Speaker, I hope that the PF which has demonstrated to be a violent party, will ensure that the transitional period is peaceful because there is only one Zambia. President Michael Chilufya Sata may be gone now, just as there will be Presidents who will go after him, Zambia must still remain intact for us and our children. 
Mr Speaker, as we all start the campaigns to elect a President that will succeed President Sata, may I again appeal to the PF to be truthful in the campaigns and not to malign their opponents. As we all go to campaign, can we remember to be truthful and patriotic as we seek to replace President Sata with hopefully, another gallant man …

Rev. Lt-Gen. Shikapwasha: Or woman.

Ms Namugala: Mr Speaker, as a nation, we have become accustomed to praising a person when he or she is no more. It is sad to note that even the people who were condemning President Sata just a few weeks ago are now praising him in his death. I am very sure that he would have been very happy to hear some of those praises. We are hypocrites …

Hon. Members: Hear, hear!

Ms Namugala: … and must admit it. We have confused outsiders that have been reading the Zambian Watchdog and Zambia Reports insulting President Sata. Now, they hear and read about Zambians who are praising this gallant man. One would think that he was an angel. He was not an angel just as none of us are. We should praise him for the things that we know he did right, for the contributions we all know he made and the perseverance that he exhibited. Indeed, we should learn lessons from his life that no matter how bad your background, you can still achieve a lot if you remain focused.

Mr Mukanga: Hear, hear!

Ms Namugala: Sir, President Sata showed us that even with a very humble background, he was able to beat professors and assume the high Office of President. That is a lesson and that is what we should be talking about. We should not give him accolades that he did not deserve. We are being hypocritical to the extent that our children are getting confused. Is this the same man who was being called names a few weeks ago? Now it is like he is an angel.

Sir, there is a lot to remember President Sata for like his sense of humour. He would come here and joke with the hon. Member for Gwembe and note all the women with big hats like my elder sister, Hon. Prof. Luo.

Hon. Members: Shamenda!

Ms Namugala: Yes, indeed, he would come here and caution me not against sitting next to him, but not to attempt to shorten the first name of …

Hon. Members: Fackson!

Ms Namugala: … Hon. Shamenda.

Laughter
Ms Namugala: Sir, that is what we want to remember about one President Michael Chilufya Sata. Many of us who interacted with him would, at times, want to mourn hard, but when we remember his jokes, they comfort us. We would have liked to hear more of those jokes …

Mr Muntanga: Comedy.

Ms Namugala: … about how some men never keep hair.

Laughter

Mr Mbulakulima: I cut mine because I cannot comb.

Mr Muntanga: You must not cut your hair.

Ms Namugala: Why do you want me to cut your hair? Mr Speaker, I am looking at my father- in-law, Hon. Sichinga, …

Laughter

Ms Namugala: … and wondering what President Sata would have said.

Laughter

Ms Namugala: Sir, he had issues with people who cut their hair. He kept his hair although we noted that from being a big afro at one point, it started thinning out as he grew older. Yes, he is gone, but we have memories. We will continue to remember his sense of humour and his perseverance. I only hope that we can learn the good things about the late Michael Chilufya Sata such as his love for his country and the people who are vulnerable.

Mr Speaker: Order!

Business was suspended from 1615 hours until 1630 hours.
 
[MR SPEAKER in the Chair]

Ms Namugala: Mr Speaker, before business was suspended, I was just appreciating the sense of humour of our departed President and, in so doing, I was hoping that we will remember that he was just human and did his best. He tried to bring change in the short time of three years. I can attest to the fact that even though Mafinga District was so declared by President Rupiah Banda, we were not neglected. President Sata would always ask “How is Mafinga?” He took interest in knowing what was happening in this very new district.

Mr Speaker, I know that a lot of people have criticised the creation of new districts, but I beg to differ. I feel that in the spirit of decentralisation, the creation of districts with prudent financial allocations to infrastructure development, poverty levels are impacted much more quickly.

Hon. Government Members: Hear, hear!

Ms Namugala: Sir, apart from the fact that jobs are also created, the district Government is closer to the people when a new district is created, especially if the district that is in existence is more than a 120 km away from certain places.

Hon. Government Members: Hear, hear!

Ms Namugala: Sir, it simply means that particular district will have a district hospital and other facilities that go with a district. I must say that this will be the legacy of President Michael Chilufya Sata. Short as it was, his leadership was appreciated.

Mr Speaker, I thank you.

Hon. Government Members: Hear, hear!

Mr Mucheleka (Lubansenshi): Mr Speaker, I thank you for giving me the opportunity to convey my condolences on my behalf as well as the people of Lubansenshi Constituency in Luwingu District of the Northern Province.

Mr Speaker, this is a very difficult time for our country. President Michael Chilufya Sata, the gallant son of this country ran his race. However, he has left us too early, when the country needed him most.

Mr Speaker, personally, Mr Sata was related to me within the extended family. I came to know him when I was a young boy in school, when he held the position of Governor. My father also held the same position. He was my father’s colleague and they worked together. They were also related.

Mr Speaker, death is a mystery, and this is why those of us who subscribe to the Christian faith always have difficulties in accepting the situation when somebody dies. I do not think that President Sata died suddenly. There was a time when hon. Members of Parliament and the public were concerned about the health of the President. Sadly, there was even a time when some people were even threatened when they attempted to ask about the wellbeing of the President. When the President came to open our current session of Parliament, some of us, although we are not medical doctors, saw that all was not well with our President and from that time, we began to commit him and his family into our prayers. We continued to pray for him even up to the time of receiving that sad news that our President had passed away. 

Mr Speaker, as we celebrate the life of President Sata, I would like to say that he was a person who dominated our politics for over thirty years, having been first elected as hon. Member of Parliament for Kabwata in 1983. Later, he joined the Movement for Multi-Party Democracy (MMD) and became its National Secretary, and that is the time that I closely worked with him. There are very few people here who might have known and worked closely with Mr Sata then. I did, and I know that Professor Nkandu Luo was there and, at that time, she was hon. Member of Parliament for Mandevu.  Perhaps Hon. Gary Nkombo also remembers that very well.

Hon. Nkombo: Hear, hear!

Mr Mucheleka: Mr Speaker, at that time, President Sata was our National Secretary in the MMD and I remember being referred to as “mwana wa njoka ni njoka” by some people. This statement means that King Cobra’s off springs are also cobras in the making. 

Mr Muntanga: Small cobra.

Mr Mucheleka: Mr Speaker, I was referred to as a small cobra. 

Mr Speaker, my point of departure from associating with President Sata was during the infamous Third Term campaign. At that time, I decided to part company with President Sata on principle. He was perceived to have supported the Third Term campaign, but I did not support it. I remember President Sata as a gallant son of Zambia who really persevered. I remember him for his tenacity. In 2002, when the MMD was in power, almost all the other political parties such as the Forum for Democracy and Development (FDD) were wiped away in no time. They were gone, and there was a very huge void that was left, and President Sata, as an individual, formed the Patriotic Front (PF). Those people who had previously been insulting him are his best friends today. They ran away from him in the beginning. It is only when they encountered challenges in the MMD that they went back to the PF, and some of them are still here. I know them.

Hon. Opposition Members: Hear, hear!

Mr Chitotela: Continue.

Mr Mucheleka: Mr Speaker, when that void was created by the demise of other political parties, President Sata made a very positive impact on the politics of this country in no time. By 2006, he gave a very formidable challenge to the MMD. In the 2008 presidential by-election, he missed the presidency by a whisker, and the writing was on the wall. In 2011, he became our President. The people of Lubansenshi will remember President Sata for the positive impact that his Government has made in the last three years in their livelihoods. We have been able to see our area opened up. There are feeder roads, bridges and access to electricity. We have seen that. Those of us who have remained behind have to learn some lessons from the life of our late President. What positive lessons have we learnt from President Sata? 

Mr Speaker, there was a time I posed a question to His Honour the Vice-President when it became blatantly clear that the old order was giving way to the new order. I asked him: What positive legacy are you going to leave behind? I was asked: what are you talking about? We are still here. However, here we are. We are stuck. The President is not there. 

Mr Speaker, in moving forward, there are still issues that we have to deal with. In the interest of time, I will not repeat what the hon. Members who spoke earlier said. However, the issue that comes to mind is the governance issue, and the Constitution in particular. If we agree that the old order has given way to the new order, in moving forward, should we continue quarrelling on whether we should have the fifty plus one clause in the Constitution or not? Should we be quarrelling on whether we should have a running mate for the President in the Constitution? Here we are. We have a Draft Constitution that has been presented. There was no roadmap that was given, and I know that the Draft Constitution was given to us in panic mode. We have an opportunity to go back to the drawing board and look at it. We have to look particularly at those clauses where we are in agreement such as the fifty plus one clause and the one to do with the running mate. Those clauses are non-debatable. We must move forward. If the new generation is taking over, then we must agree that even the politics of this country have to be practiced differently. You can never govern alone. You need to govern with others. 

Mr Speaker, the issue of the Non-Governmental Organisations Act still remains.  The issue of access to information still remains. The Public Order Act is one issue we have been seriously discussing in the last three years. Its management is nothing to be proud of. We need to quickly resolve this issue.    

Mr Speaker, with regards to the Northern Province, I now know that the President was misled by some people. The Bemba chiefs have complained for the last three years about the manner in which they are treated. Now I know that perhaps it was not the President, but possibly some people who today I hear are jostling for positions. I hear also that the same people who were insulting us want to become vice-presidents. 

Interruptions

Mr Mucheleka: Sir, the ones who claim to come from the Northern Province are today saying that they want to become Vice-President upon backing a particular individual. These are the same people who were insulting the Bemba chiefs. 

Mr Shakafuswa: Do not allow them!

Laughter 

Mr Mucheleka: Sir, how can you today come and say that you want to be Vice-President if a certain person became President? Who will allow you?

Laughter 

Mr Mucheleka: Sir, who will allow you? Certainly not the people of the Northern Province.  

Mr Pande: Tell them!

Mr Muntanga: We know them!

Mr Speaker: Order!

Mr Mucheleka: Mr Speaker, …

Mr Lubinda: We do not know them.

Mr Mucheleka: Mr Speaker, someone has said “We do not know them”. You know them. 

 Mr Speaker: Order! 

Hon. Member for Lubansenshi, the idea of giving you a platform is not to begin these dialogues that you are constructing. Just address the Motion. 

Continue. 

Mr Mucheleka: Mr Speaker, I thank you for your guidance. 

Sir, I now turn to my colleagues in the Opposition. Dear colleagues, there is something which has been going on in the media since President Sata’s demise. The debate is concentrated on the PF simply because you do not seem to be offering a viable alternative. 

Mr Muntanga: No, we were mourning. 

Mr Mucheleka: Sir, this is because the Opposition is fragmented. Why can the Opposition not try and shift the debate so that it is seen as a viable alternative? This can only be done if the Opposition political parties demonstrate a unity of purpose. 

Hon. Opposition Members: We were mourning. 

Mr Mucheleka: Sir, given that the mourning period is over as we have buried our President, the country has to move on. We have to look at President Sata’s legacy positively. As much as President Sata, a democrat, believed in the existence of many political parties, I still think that some political parties need to come together. This issue of small parties with a certain level of support in particular regions …

Laughter 

Mr Mucheleka: … will not work. 

Dr Kaingu: Aah, again?

Mr Mucheleka: Sir, the opposition political parties need to show that they have no major fundamental ideological differences and put aside the selfish interests of individuals running them. They need to subject themselves to the greater needs …
 
Mr Ng’onga: Continue!

Mr Mucheleka: … of the country and stop denying Zambians an opportunity for better governance.

 Sir, what is the problem with the United Party for National Development (UPND), MMD and other parties coming together and showing that they can offer a viable alternative?

Hon. Opposition Members: Hear, hear!

Mr Mucheleka: Sir, as it is now, the debate has been reduced to the PF alone. Everyone is waiting to see who the PF candidate will be and yet there is no need. As the Opposition, they are not demonstrating that they have the capacity to compete favourably. 

Mr Pande: Watch the space now. 

Mr Mucheleka: Sir, I am requesting the Opposition as an Independent Member, who has no political interests whatsoever, that it uses this period for transition wisely. The general elections are coming in 2016, but in the meantime, we have the issue of the Constitution to deal with. The question for now is if our friends on the right of The Hon. Mr Speaker are not given a formidable competition that they need, how do we know that they will look favourably at the Constitution when they are the same ones who are already in Government? 

Hon. Opposition Members: Hear, hear!

Mr Mucheleka: Sir, it is possible for us to move together and overcome the governance challenges which this country is facing. 

Mr Speaker, why does everyone in the PF want to be president now? Is there anything wrong with agreeing to support a particular candidate …

Mr Kunda: Yes, Bob Sichinga.

Mr Mucheleka: …who will face the Opposition? 

Mr Mutale: The Opposition cannot agree. 

Mr Speaker: Order!

Mr Mucheleka: Sir, just like the Ruling Party, the Opposition political parties are also failing to agree on which candidate to support.  Whether you belong to the so-called ‘clique’ or ‘cartel’, whichever term is used, it does not matter because there are important governance issues that have to be addressed. 

Sir, we must learn lessons from President Sata over the Constitution and move forward. For the period between now and 2016 whichever president will be in office, according to me, will be an interim president. The Opposition can even have a Government of national unity. 

Interruptions

Mr Mucheleka: Sir, this is all I call for. Let us shift the debate.
Mr Speaker, I would like to passionately appeal to my friends in the civil society and the media not to divide the country at this time. We need to maintain peace and tranquility. However, we can only do so if all of us exercise our political rights responsibly. The media itself seems to be paralysed and does not at this stage think that there are other political players. They are the ones who seem to be creating problems for this country because they even want to show and believe that in this country, there is only the PF and yet there is also the UPND, MMD, the Alliance for Democracy and Development (ADD) and other political parties. 

Mr Pande: And independents.

Mr Ng’onga: And you. 

Mr Mucheleka: Sir, I will not talk about the independents because I am alone. 

Laughter 

Mr Mucheleka: Mr Speaker, I cannot say that this is the time for me to inflate my ego and think that single-handedly as I am, I can offer myself for the presidency. I cannot. Let us be realistic. 

Hon. Opposition Members: Hear, hear!

Mr Mucheleka: Sir, that time will come later, but not now. 

Hon. Opposition Members: Hear, hear!

Mr Mucheleka: Mr Speaker, I want to appeal to my friends in the civil society to act responsibly. This is not the time to take positions that are compromising. They should be able to stand on principle. The biggest challenge in the last fifty years, has been the issue of governance, in relation to the provisions of the Constitution. Why could constitutional office holders not advise the President at the time that certain people cannot act as President? Did they have to wait for the President to die to give different interpretations of the Constitution?

Laughter 

Mr Mucheleka: Mr Speaker, I want to appeal for peace because we only have one country. We need to ensure that we continue where President Sata left off. The burden has been passed on and we must move on. We need to ensure that we strengthen our governance systems and not deposit power in one particular individual when he is not around such that the party gets stuck. Let us also democratise our political parties. We need to all open up and realise that we only have one country and not tribes. Tongas, Bembas, Lozis, Tumbukas, …

Hon. Opposition Member: Ngonis.

Mr Mucheleka: … and Ngonis all have one country which is Zambia and we are all shareholders.

Mr Speaker, I thank you. 

Hon. Opposition Members: Hear, hear!

The Minister of Finance (Mr Chikwanda): Mr Speaker, I join my hon. Colleagues in placing on record their profound regrets at the untimely death of our hero and greatest warrior of our times, President Michael Chilufya Sata. He was a darling of many suffering people who placed their total trust in him as a tireless custodian of their interests. There was no time when these humble folk ever felt they had misplaced or misallocated their trust. 

Sir, as we continue to mourn our departed hero, let us remember that it is our honest actions and selfless service to Zambia and not dazzling rhetoric and glowing tributes that will hold Zambia together. The interests of Zambia should always transcend our petty, personal and partisan considerations. Zambia, as an edifice, can only stand if the structural integrity of the building is flawless. The inputs into this structural integrity are meaningful peace and unity.

Mr Speaker, we have a very long way to go to guarantee every Zambians’ welfare and social security, which only a strong economy can deliver. We have serious challenges in the economy principally induced by shocks in the global economy. The major components like the Eurozone, which accounts for 20 per cent of the global gross domestic product (GDP) and almost 30 per cent of world trade, are sliding. Even in China, the recent robust growth rates are showing stress. The other significant emerging economies of India, Brazil and Russia appear to be hitting strong headwinds.

Sir, we have a big task to ensure confidence in Zambia is kept intact by the investor community both local and external. This confidence is invariably benchmarked by policy consistency and predictability and not by frequent policy somersaults.

Mr Speaker, the legacy of our President of a robust and transformative development agenda can be severely impaired by the unbecoming conduct of leaders, especially those of us in the Ruling Party.

Hon. Opposition Members: Hear, hear!

Mr Chikwanda: Sir, in desperation, as people strive for ascendancy, careless remarks which engender divisions and cleavages may be made. Those leaders in the Patriotic Front (PF) who are both players and referees should keep their cool. My advice to the dear colleagues is to avoid the reckless proliferation of statements, especially those with policy dimensions that have not been endorsed by the Central Committee of our party. 

Hon. Opposition Members: Hear, hear!

Mr Chikwanda: Mr Speaker, of very topical importance, as Cabinet, we endorse the current Acting President. Whether the legal advice was wrong or right is neither here nor there. It has since become our inescapable moral duty to give Dr Guy Scott our undivided support …

Hon. Government Members: Hear, hear!

Mr Chikwanda: … for him to fulfil the late President’s mandate for the balance of the ninety days. They are now seventy-six days …

Interruptions 

Mr Speaker: Order!

Mr Chikwanda: Mr Speaker, we have a lot of unfinished business. We, the Zambians, can be very clever in halves sometimes. As a collective, we did not do a good job when we changed to multi-party politics in 1991. We crafted multi-partism on the glaringly flawed institutions of the one-party system. There was no reflection on the current electoral system which is becoming unbearably costly and is corruption-laden as candidates have to marshal huge resources to buy voters.

Dr Kaingu interjected.

Mr Chikwanda: Sir, maybe, we could have given consideration to a system like proportional representation which distributes the seats more equitably and fairly without the exorbitant and outrageous costs associated with the current system.

Mr Speaker, Zambia has both the culture and even levels of discipline to sustain a strong presidential system. Effective checks could be achieved by nominal presidency with executive functions reposed in a Prime Minister or whatever you may call that office. The later office can exchange obscenities with colleagues in Parliament while a President chosen by his wider acceptability, respectability and integrity, safeguards the unassailability of that office. 

Sir, these are some of the sentiments of our departed President which he did not have an opportunity or time to anchor.

Interruptions 

Mr Chikwanda: Mr Speaker, I am not intending to strain the Houses’ attention span. Let me, as I draw to the end of my very short remarks, thank the hon. Members of Parliament for their kind words about our departed hero. These sentiments will provide comfort and encouragement to the First Family, especially the First Lady, who will need the nations support to overcome the devastation and huge emotional upheaval resultant from the death of our beloved President.

May the good Lord in his infinite mercy and endless compassion continue to bless Zambia so that our country can remain a role model of peace, harmony and unfettered human fellowship.

I thank you. 

Hon. Members: Hear, hear!
Mr Speaker: Hon. Members, a Motion such as this one is never wound up. So, I shall not call upon the Acting Leader of Government Business in the House to wind up the Motion. I shall also not put the Question to the House. The House may also recall that we have already observed a minute of silence in honour of the late President, Michael Chilufya Sata. We did so when his passing on was announced. The Motion is, therefore, carried nemine contradicente.

Hon. Members: Hear, hear!

APPROVAL OF TRANSFER OF PORTFOLIO AND STATUTORY FUNCTIONS 

Mr Mukanga: Mr Speaker, I beg to move that in terms of Article 44(2)(e) of the Constitution of Zambia, this House do approve the transfer of portfolio and statutory functions of the Government ministries and departments as recommended by the President as set out in the Appendix hereto. 

Mr Speaker, under paragraph (e) of Clause 2 of Article 44, the President is empowered by the Constitution to abolish and establish Government ministries and departments as he sees fit, subject to the approval of this House. Under this authority, the President is also empowered to alter or transfer portfolio and statutory functions from one ministry or department to another. It is in this vein that His Excellency the President recommends to this august House the changes contained in the Appendix to this Motion.

Sir, at the moment, the Decentralisation Unit, as a portfolio function, falls under the Ministry of Local Government and Housing. In order to accelerate the rate at which we are moving towards decentralisation, it has become imperative that this function moves to the Office of the President. Similarly, the Zambia Air Service Training Institute as a statutory body, which provides training in air service programs, currently falls under the Ministry of Education, Science, Vocational Training and Early Education. This is in spite of the fact that the air service functions fall under the Department of Civil Aviation in the Ministry of Transport, Works, Supply and Communication. It is, therefore, imperative to realign these functions within the Government set up. The realignment does not involve any variation in the number of ministries or departments or, indeed, loss of jobs. It is purely the reorganisation of the governance system aimed at achieving effectiveness and efficiency.

Mr Speaker, it is in this regard that I request this august House to favourably consider these measures taken by the Executive.

Mr Speaker, I beg to move. 

Mr Belemu (Mbabala): Mr Speaker, I thank you for giving me this opportunity to debate on this Motion. Since this is the first time that I am speaking, may I also render my condolences to the nation for the loss of our President.

Mr Speaker, let me revert to the Motion on the Floor. Last time I debated a Motion as this one in this House, I did indicate to the Patriotic Front (PF) Government that the next time they bring a similar Motion, they will be chased. Considering the circumstances, I just want to highlight a few things that I think they must seriously consider. 

Mr Speaker, if you have noticed, since 2011, almost every time that we have met here, there has been some realignment of portfolios. This gives us an indication that the PF Government has not thought about the governance process. I think this is not a correct way of doing things, considering the fact that there are a lot of technocrats that would have advised it on how to manage or run the affairs of this country, including the realignment of portfolios. We have seen this level of inconsistence from time to time. That is unacceptable because it gives an indication that there is no stability in the country. It also gives an indication that there are no Government agencies which provide relevant advice to those who are running the affairs of the country. 

Mr Speaker, we all know that there are Government agencies that can advise the Government appropriately. When the PF Government came into power, it was in a hurry to discard certain things in the name of trying to make this and that work. Considering the time limit that the PF Government has in office, I hope that this is the last time we are being called to realign portfolios. It does not look good to keep realigning portfolios in a country. This gives an indication that nothing is happening and that people do not know what they are doing. This is not correct. At the beginning of its tenure, the PF Government needed to be told to be consistent. They should have consulted their colleagues who were in Government before so that when they came across certain things, they knew what to do. These decisions are not arrived at individually because there is always a price you will have to pay. 

Sir, I am also cognisant of the fact that any transfers at the level of permanent secretaries (PSs), ambassadors and high commissioners incur a lot of costs. Today, they may assure us that there will be no staff transfers, but that is not true. The staff will be transferred to certain areas throughout the country and that will invite a lot of costs. In Zambia, our resources are precious. At the moment, we have a very big national undertaking known as the presidential by-election and we will need to divert our attention and resources to that exercise.  

Mr Speaker, it is sad to note that we have kept on doing the same things over the years. At what stage are we going to do new things? At what stage are we going to speak about new projects, new programmes and new activities? It is unfortunate that we are talking about these things at the time when the National Budget has already been presented to us by the hon. Minister of Finance. Those are the things that should have moved in tandem. I have always said that you should not start by setting up an organisation before deciding what you want to achieve with it.  That has been my advice. The PF does not know what it wants to achieve and where it wants to take this country. If it knew what it wanted to achieve, it would have known what type of a Government structure was needed for this country. Those in the PF Government are not aware of what needs to be done for this country.

Mr Speaker, I do not want to sound a bit hard on the PF Government. This is a matter that it must give a serious thought to. It should know that there are more important things that it needs to do for this country than what it is trying to propose today.  The most important one is the issue of the Constitution of Zambia. We should be talking about a people-driven Constitution right now. It is not supposed to bring to this House the things that they want to change piecemeal at the expense of the people of Zambia. Today, we should focus on what happens in the next eighty to ninety days in terms of the election of the President. It is unfortunate that it has never heeded our free and friendly advice. 

Mr Speaker, my message to them is that the die is cast. The people of Zambia have seen how inconsistent the PF Government is. They have also seen how much there is likely to be confusion in the PF Government. This Government does not know what it wants to achieve for this country. That is why you will find that every day, it is changing portfolios. We are tired of such things. In my district, almost every month, we are receiving senior officers at the level of town clerks, council secretaries and directors. We have had four different town clerks from the time I became an hon. Member for that constituency and a member of the Choma Municipal Council in 2011. We have changed directors and structures. We have created so many ministries. That is actually a drain in terms of our resources in this country. 

Sir, we cannot allow a situation where a Government keeps aligning portfolios every day. Why can it not have one thought? In any case, it had a document where it could have started from, which is the Sixth National Development Plan (SNDP). This document clearly outlines what Zambia needs to achieve in terms of structure. I am disappointed with the PF Government’s level of competence, capacity and their levels of reasoning in terms of what it wants to achieve for this country by continuously realigning the portfolios. I do not know what next they will want to change.

Mrs Mazoka: Hear, hear!

Mr Belemu: Sir, it must go on record that I do not agree with what it is trying to propose at this hour. It is living in borrowed time. 

Sir, the safest thing it could have done was withdraw this Motion so that it can reflect on what is important for this country. So, today what is important for this country is what His Honour,  now the Acting President of this Republic, already said which is to usher in a new Government. So, it should facilitate for the Electoral Commission of Zambia (ECZ) to have sufficient resources so that the elections run smoothly. 

Mr Speaker, I thank you.

Mr Simbao (Senga Hill): Mr Speaker, firstly, I want to lament that my biggest problem is that the people in my constituency cannot listen to the parliamentary debates. I hope that by the beginning of next year, they will have the opportunity to listen to my debates. Having said so, I also want to pass my condolences to the people of Zambia for the loss of their President. It is not an easy time.

Sir, I will be brief. I have been prompted to speak because of two issues. Firstly, I would like to thank the Patriotic Front (PF) Government for listening to what the Portfolio Committee actually recommended. My brother who spoke earlier might not have read our report on the Zambia Air Service Training Institute (ZASTI).

Mr Speaker, your Portfolio Committee on Transport, Communication and Works recommended that the best way to run ZASTI was to put it under the Ministry of Transport, Works, Supply and Communication. The reason was that all the people that appeared before your Committee thought ZASTI was placed under a wrong ministry. Further, looking at the amount of money that was being channelled to ZASTI, your Committee strongly recommended that it should be moved from the Ministry of Education, Science, Vocational Training and Early Education to the Ministry of Transport, Works, Supply and Communication.

Mr Speaker, it is for that reason that I would like to thank the Government for listening to the Committee’s recommendations. It is difficult to do such a thing because ministries tend to fight over these bodies. We hope that by moving ZASTI to the Ministry of Transport, Works, Supply and Communication, it will receive all the attention it deserves. It used to be one of the best institutions in Africa and had trained a lot of pilots from all over Africa. However, the institution does not train pilots anymore because according to it, the Ministry of Education, Science, Vocational Training and Early Education for one reason or the other, decided not to give it any attention. So, the Portfolio Committee then found it necessary to recommend that ZASTI be moved to the Ministry of Transport, Works, Supply and Communication. Therefore, I commend the Government for listening to your Committee’s recommendations.

Sir, the second issue I want to talk about is this business of moving the Decentralisation Unit from the Ministry of Local Government and Housing to the Office of the President. I do not understand why they want to do that and would like to find out from the Government how this suggestion came about. If it was a recommendation of the Portfolio Committee, then I will have no option, but to support it despite my thinking that it is a wrong move. When the Government or President moved the Road Development Agency (RDA) from the Ministry of Transport, Works, Supply and Communication to State House, we had a lot of problems. We are still facing these problems because the operations of such a unit become very difficult since it basically becomes untouchable. So, I am wondering why this particular unit is being moved to the Office of the President. It would have been better if the Acting Leader of Government Business in the House could have given us a lot of reasons why they thought that this particular unit needed to be moved. As far as I know, the previous Government had the will to decentralise local governance, but the problem was on how to implement it. If this unit is moved to the Office of the President, it will be stuck there. It will be very difficult to rescind this movement. So, I am very reluctant to support this particular movement.
 
Mr Speaker, at this particular time, I would like to request the Portfolio Committee on Health to consider moving Ridgeway Campus to the Ministry of Health because there is a lot of confusion between this ministry and the Ministry of Education, Science, Vocational Training and Early Education over Ridgeway Campus. If they come to that conclusion, I hope you, Mr Speaker, and the Government will support that bold movement.

I thank you, Mr Speaker.

Mr Mukanga: Mr Speaker, thank you for giving me this opportunity to address some of the issues that have been highlighted. Firstly, I would like to thank Hon. Simbao for stating the fact that we have responded to the recommendation that was given in this House by your Committee by moving ZASTI from the Ministry of Education, Science, Vocational Training and Early Education to the Ministry of Transport, Works, Supply and Communication. 

Sir on the Decentralisation Unit, I think that it will have a lot of authority under the Office of the President. Therefore, it is important for it to be there so that we may accelerate the decentralisation process because we have been talking about it for a long time. At no time did the functions of the Road Development Agency (RDA) shift to State House. State House only supervises the operations of the RDA. If you look at the Yellow Book, you will realise that the RDA has independent funding. We are only trying to synchronise everything so that projects can be done efficiently and effectively.

I thank you, Sir.

Question put and agreed to.

BUDGET 2015

(Debate Resumed)

  Prof. Lungwangwa (Nalikwanda): Mr Speaker, thank you very much for this opportunity to express my reflections on the Budget that was presented by the hon. Minister of Finance. Debating the Budget at this time, in our nation, when we have just experienced the death of our Head of State is not easy. However, this is the time to provide advice to the hon. Minister of Finance as he continues to manage our national resources.

  Sir, this Budget should have been different in tone and direction because it is a Budget that is seeing Zambia in a different direction in the next fifty years, after having celebrated our fifty years of existence. I expected that this Budget would provide a new trajectory for the development of our country. I also expected it to set a different tone from what we have been experiencing before.

  Mr Speaker, this is very important because, as a nation, we have gone through two very important consensus building periods for our country. The first consensus building period was when we fought for political independence through our forefathers. The second consensus building period was when we reverted to multi-partism so that our country could continue being a democratically governed country. We all agreed on that in 1991. At the moment, there are no fundamental differences across all the various parties. All of us agree that if this country is to be governed well, in the interest of everybody, certain clear principles should be followed. For example, private sector involvement in the economy is paramount. The rule of law is cardinal. Human rights are very important to observe. The equitable development of our country is also extremely fundamental. We do agree that in all these principles, there are no fundamental differences. We have built consensus. One would be very surprised to see a Zambian leader who does not agree with these principles. We all agree. So, what is important now is to build a third consensus stage for our country. The third consensus stage is related to the better management of our country.

  Mr Speaker, we must lay a foundation for the better management of our country so that fifty years from now, when our grand children will be celebrating 100 years of Independence, they will be able to look back and say when the last fifty years started, our forefathers were able to lay a foundation for the better management of our country. That is the consensus we need to build as a nation. This Budget should, therefore, have set the tone of how our country can be best managed and what areas of emphasis should be put so that we develop a new direction for the good of our country, a direction that will enable us to lay a foundation for our people to be productive and prosperous. In the end, we will have a Zambia in which people are productive and prosperous. That way, we shall usher the country in a proper development trajectory. That is what I expected out of this Budget. The hon. Minister of Finance extended the thought in paragraph ten where he says that if we are to develop this country, resources must be managed prudently for the good of the country.

  Sir, clearly, that is what the Budget should have done. That is what the Budget should have zeroed in. That is the thought which is important at this point in time for our country. We need to find better ways of managing the country. We need to do certain things differently. For example, in terms of human resources, what we need now for our people to be productive and prosperous is investment in certain ways of managing our resources that will build capacities for prosperity and productivity. For example, beyond just building infrastructure for our educational institutions, the cardinal question now is: What are our training needs as a country are, especially in critical areas that can uplift this country? We need to make a comprehensive assessment of the training needs of the country, which will form the platform to redirect our educational institutions. That way, our education institutions will be able to come up with curricula that are relevant to the development of our country. I do not see that in this Budget. What I am seeing is just what we have been doing all along. More infrastructure is important, but we must go beyond that.

   Mr Speaker, the other dimension is the whole critical issue of the performance capacities of our people, those who are in industry, the Civil Service and other areas. As a country, we need to develop a culture of performance assessment so that there could be surety that those eight hours of work that our people put in everyday are resulting in production and the uplifting the country. Clearly, the Budget should have made indications to the effect that we are investing in performance assessment, which is not only an important indicator of productivity, but also a way to create new directions for our people. 

Mr Speaker, reference has been made to research and development. Clearly, research and development are vital ingredients for the development process of our nation. However, what has been allocated in terms of resources for research and development is totally insignificant. It is very little in terms of meeting the research and development challenges of our country. 

Sir, we need to enable our researchers to come up with critical knowledge and information and find new paths of creativity, imagination and innovation that are important in moving the wheels of development of our nation. Clearly, as we look forward to 2064, that is the way to go and this Budget should have set the tone in that direction. 

Mr Speaker, in the area of infrastructure development, indeed, the construction of roads is taking place and so on and so forth. This is important, but we can do it differently. The Budget could have set another tone. We needed to research into new ways of constructing our roads so that we have permanent and durable roads which can last for, maybe, fifty and more years. Research can provide that kind of information. For example, constructing a road in a place like the Western Province, which is predominantly sandy, should not be the same as constructing a road in other parts of the country which may not have the same terrain.  We need research in order to come up with materials which are suitable for the construction of roads in certain parts of our country which have certain environmental challenges. Clearly, these are the areas in which the hon. Minister of Finance should have provided guidance so that we have new paths of doing things. 

Sir, since we already have railway systems, we need to think of what we should do to develop our various transport corridors through investment. We have, for example, the Windhoek/Ndola/Lubumbashi transport corridor. There are many benefits that can accrue to our country through investing in this corridor. We also have the challenge of the Nakala/Beira transport corridor. In the Northern Province, there is the Dar-es-Salaam transport corridor. There is also the Western Province transport corridor going into Angola. I think focusing on that could create a bigger picture for the development of our country. 

Mr Speaker, in short, what I am saying is that this is the Budget that should have set the tone of a different Zambia for the next fifty years. This has not been done, which is very unfortunate. However, we can still do this so that we take this country into a different direction which will see Zambia quickly transform its development process. We are all not going to be there when we celebrate 100 years of Zambia’s development and growth, but I think this is the time to lay a proper foundation for our grandchildren to celebrate 100 years of Independence and development for our country. This is a challenge not only for Zambia, but for the rest of Africa. There is need for a better management of African countries. This is the consensus that we ought to develop as we look to the next fifty years.

Mr Speaker, I thank you. 

The Deputy Minister of Agriculture and Livestock (Mr Kazabu): Mr Speaker, allow me first of all, on behalf of the people of Nkana Constituency and, indeed, on my own behalf, to convey my heartfelt condolences to the First Lady and family, relatives, Patriotic Front (PF), Government and people of Zambia on the untimely and painful loss of our beloved President, His Excellency Mr Michael Chilufya Sata, who passed away on 28th October, 2014 in a London hospital. We have, indeed, lost a great leader, father and son of the soil. 

Sir, my condolences and sympathy also go to the families who lost their beloved ones in the banana boat accident on the Kariba Dam in Gwembe District on Friday, 24th October, 2014. May the souls of His Excellency the President and those who perished in the boat accident rest in eternal peace.

Mr Speaker, before I move on with my debate, let me use this opportunity to congratulate our late President, Mr Michael Chilufya Sata, posthumously, and the people of Zambia on the momentous occasion of our great country’s Golden Jubilee Independence Celebration. Further, I wish to thank both our living freedom fighters and those who have passed on for their sacrifices and gallantry which brought us the political Independence which we celebrate every year. Their sacrifices and greatness shall be remembered forever.

Mr Speaker, as I begin my debate, allow me to congratulate the hon. Minister of Finance, Mr Alexander Bwalya Chikwanda, on presenting an innovative and forward-looking Budget for the fiscal year 2015, amounting to K46.7 billion. In the interest of time, I have elected to comment on only a few aspects of the Budget. Further, I will also respond to statements which have been made on the Floor of the House by some hon. Members on your left.

Mr Speaker, the 2015 Budget is special in that it comes shortly after our fiftieth Independence anniversary and marks our first step into the sixth decade and beyond on our political Independence, economic and social development journey.

Mr Speaker, on the Farmer Input Support Programme (FISP), the hon. Minister has allocated K254 million for the electronic voucher (e-voucher) system. To that effect, I wish to state that it has been a long-standing desire of the Ministry of Agriculture and Livestock to introduce the e-voucher system as a way of enhancing agricultural diversification and reducing the huge distribution cost of farm inputs in the form of transport, storage and labour. Therefore, the allocation will go a long way in fulfilling that desire. Accordingly, we commend the hon. Minister for the consideration which he has made.

Mr Speaker, in paragraph 30, page 5 of the Budget Address, the hon. Minister has stated that the Government will recruit 500 additional extension officers and equip them with motorcycles and extension kits to provide effective extension services to the farmers. He has further stated that the Government will continue to rehabilitate camp houses to ease the housing problem for extension officers.

Sir, hon. Members of this august House will recall that in my recent debate on the Motion of Thanks to His Excellency the President’s Speech, on the Official Opening of the Fourth Session of the Eleventh National Assembly, I, inter alia, raised the issues of poor staffing at camp level, inadequate transport and dilapidated camp houses. Therefore, the decision by the Government to employ additional extension officers, notwithstanding, the moratorium on recruitment and the rehabilitation of camp houses, is a positive response to our cries at the ministry. It is our hope that Treasury authority will be granted in the first quarter of 2015 and that further additional extension officers will be employed beyond 2015 in order to cure the inadequacies of the past.

Mr Speaker, on page 23 of the Budget Address, the hon. Minister has proposed changes to the mining fiscal regime. I am particularly interested in the mineral royalty which has been adjusted from 6 to 8 per cent, chargeable on production instead of profit for underground mining operations and 6 to 20 per cent, for open cast or open pit operations. In my view, these changes strike a fair balance between the interest of the investors and those of Zambians who own the mineral resources. In fact, the measures are long overdue because that is one way through which we can secure meaningful dividends for our generation and generations to come. The hon. Minister should be applauded for his bold decision

Mr Speaker, in paragraph 34 on page 5, the hon. Minister states:

“The focus in the livestock sub-sector will be on enhancing extension and disease control services. This will be done by establishing twenty-three livestock extension service centres, constructing and rehabilitating livestock blocks and camp houses, establishing thirteen satellite artificial insemination centres, continuing the livestock restocking programme and upscaling disease control measures. The Government will also encourage initiatives by the private sector to promote livestock production.” 

Sir, to the programmes, the hon. Minister has allocated K307 million. It is gratifying to note that the livestock sub-sector has now begun to receive its due consideration in the allocation of resources. 

Mr Speaker, on fish production, it is comforting to note from the hon. Minister’s Speech at page 6 that the Government will undertake reforms that will ease the entry of our citizens into aquaculture production. To actualise the reforms, the K307 million to be shared with livestock promotion has been allocated in the Budget.

Sir, the envisaged reforms could not have come at a better time than now, when our natural water bodies cannot cope with the fishing activities of thousands of our people motivated by food and commercial interests. The participation of more of our people in aquaculture will boost production and enable us not only to meet our national fish requirement which currently stands at 156,000 metric tonnes against the total production of 98,000 metric tonnes, but also export fish to foreign markets. 

Mr Speaker, before I conclude, let me respond to some of the statements that have been made on the Floor of the House by some hon. Members on your left hand side. Notably that:

(a)    the Government has failed to build and rehabilitate dip tanks in the country despite so much talk on the issue;

(b)    the Government has failed to construct and rehabilitate dams required in various parts of the country in order to provide water for livestock;

(c)    the Government has failed to pay farmers for the maize sold to the Food Reserve Agency (FRA) in the 2014 Crop Marketing Season; and

(d)    the Government has failed to deliver inputs, like fertiliser and seed, to farmers at the right time.

Sir, I shall respond in a manner that befits a Government Minister and in keeping with the decorum and dignity of this august House.

Hon. Members: Hear, hear!

Mr Muntanga: Uyo, uyo!

Mr Kazabu: Mr Speaker, it is not true that the Government has failed to build and rehabilitate dip tanks in the country. What is true is that, since 2011, thirteen new dip tanks have been built while forty-two old ones have been rehabilitated. Further, 324 dip tanks will be rehabilitated and 175 new ones constructed between now and the end of 2015. 

Sir, on the construction and rehabilitation of dams countrywide, it is true that on this front, we have not done much. Only three irrigation dams have been constructed since 2011 and two old ones are currently undergoing rehabilitation. However, hon. Members will draw comfort from the fact that, under the National Water Resources Master Plan, twenty-four large dams for multi-purpose use, will be constructed in all the ten provinces of our country. Further, with support from the World Bank, another 100 large dams and twenty-two small ones will be constructed by 2016.

Sir, even though Hon. Sing’ombe is not in the Assembly Chamber, I wish to state that a site for the planned dam for Nkandazovu has already been identified and surveyed. Therefore, as soon as funds are available construction will commence. 

Sir, as regards to payments to farmers for maize sold to the FRA, it is not true that the Government has failed to pay all the farmers. The stubborn fact is that, as at 7th November, 2014, a total of K481 million had been paid. It should be noted that when considered against the total value of 500,000 metric strategic reserve, this amount reflects a 69 per cent settlement. However, when you take into account the purchase of the additional 800,000 metric tonnes, necessitated by the bumper harvest, it is true that most of the farmers have not yet been paid. To this end, the Government is doing everything possible to ensure that the farmers who have not been paid yet are paid without any further delay.

Sir, it should be noted that, if the Government, through the FRA, limited the purchase of maize to 500,000 metric tonnes, and left our dear and hard-working small-scale farmers at the mercy of the private buyers, the farmers would have been exploited to the bone. As an example of exploitation, there were cases in the marketing season, where some private buyers paid as little as K45 per 50 kg bag of white maize.

Mr Speaker, in the case of the delivery of farmer inputs, it is an act of naivety for anyone to say that the Government has failed to deliver inputs to the farmers in time. The reality is that as I speak, 86,632 metric tonnes of D-Compound have been delivered to the districts reflecting 81 per cent of the total tonnage required. By now, I am sure that the picture is different. For Urea, 20,801 metric tonnes have been delivered. This represents 20 per cent of the total requirement. Further, 5,580 metric tonnes of assorted seed have also been delivered. Clearly, we are on top of things. 

Interruptions

Mr Kazabu: Mr Speaker, another issue that was raised on the Floor of the House is that the Ministry of Agriculture and Livestock is sitting with US$115 million which, for whatever reason, people believe it has not been able to utilise. The truth of the matter is that, so far, out of that amount of money, only US$14,260,556 has been released. So, we keep on wondering as to where the rest of this money is sitting because we are ready to use it. 

Sir, by the way, this amount of money is meant for the construction of Momboshi Dam, another dam in Chirundu District and Musakashi in Mufulira. The road network has already been done in all the three areas that I have referred to. This is the correct position. In terms of the implementation plan for this project, we are on course. The feasibility studies and the design have been completed and, as we get to 2015, we will commence constructing in all the three areas.

Mr Speaker, as I conclude, in the context of our nation and the Golden Jubilee of our Independence, I wish to borrow from a biblical teaching in the book of Psalm 133 v 1 ...

Interruptions

Mr Speaker: I am sorry, hon. Deputy Minister. 

Mr Kazabu: Mr Speaker, I beg your pardon. 

Mr Speaker: You are constrained in that regard.

Laughter

Mr Kazabu: Mr Speaker, I meant to say that we have learnt that we need to co-exist irrespective of our ethnic groups because it was decided by the person above that we should have this piece of land and live in harmony and that, by so doing, we will be blessed abundantly. So, let us not be divided for whatever reasons.

Mr Speaker, I thank you.

Mr Chipungu: Hear, hear!

Mr Muchima: Continue!

The Minister of Tourism and Art (Ms Kapata): Mr Speaker, allow me and the people of Mandevu to pass our condolences to Dr Christine Kaseba Sata and the children, the Patriotic Front (PF) and the Zambian people at large, on the loss of our gallant President, Mr Michael Chilufya Sata, may his soul rest in peace.

Mr Speaker, allow me also to thank the Zambian people that turned up in large numbers to pay their last respects to our fallen hero.

Mr Speaker, as I wind up debate on the 2015 Budget Speech, allow me to add my voice to those that have spoken before me in support of the well-articulated Speech delivered by the hon. Minister of Finance. I commend him for prioritising infrastructure development in the 2015 Budget as it is the cornerstone of all sectors, including tourism development. The development of tourism and the welfare of communities depend upon appropriate infrastructure creation. It is in this regard that I strongly support the stepping up of infrastructural development programmes that the Government has embarked on such as the Link Zambia 8,000 km Road Project, the development of new power generation plants to enhance electricity connectivity and the modernisation and expansion of the international airports.

Mr Speaker, in addition to the improvements in road and air transportation, a certain bed capacity of accommodation is needed to create the critical mass to convince airlines to establish routes and tour operators to promote the destination. This can be achieved through public investment in large to medium size establishments.

Mr Speaker, I wish to inform this House that I recently led a delegation to the African Hotel Investment Forum in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia. This forum brings together top level executives from all areas of the tourism industry, especially the hotel industry. One of the key issues learnt is that international hotel brands are more willing to invest in a destination which already has the requisite infrastructure than getting involved in the green field construction of hotels and convention centres. In this regard, my ministry will engage local institutions with financial capacity such as the National Pensions Scheme Authority (NAPSA) and other corporate institutions to develop the available hotel investment sites.

Mr Speaker, allow me to respond to the various tourism-related issues raised by hon. Members of Parliament during the debate starting with what my ministry is doing to promote domestic tourism since the launch of the Domestic Tourism Campaign on 17th June, 2014. 

Sir, as you are aware, the high costs of tour packages has been the limiting factor for the locals to take holidays. The ministry has in this regard solicited reduced tour package rates for locals from selected tourist enterprises which cover accommodation, transport and various activities in the following areas: the Lower Zambezi, Kafue, South Luangwa and Nsumbu National parks, Livingstone and Lusaka. 

Mr Speaker, arising from this negotiation, the cheapest package currently is K890 and includes return road transfers between Lusaka and Livingstone, two nights’ accommodation and breakfast, tour of the Victoria Falls, walk with the lions and local transfers to activity venues. Other competitive local rates on offer are publicised in the bi-weekly supplement in the Zambia Daily Mail. I call on all hon. Members of this House to take advantage of these favourable rates and consider taking local holidays.

Mr Speaker, you may be aware that in 2011, Zambia changed its tourism brand tagline from “Zambia, the Real Africa” to “Zambia: Let’s Explore.” The Government commissioned a study in collaboration with Cornell University of the United States of America (USA) to assess whether the tagline “Zambia, the Real Africa” was still effective in promoting the destination as it was when it was first introduced many years ago. The study findings revealed that the tagline did not appeal to our source markets, especially those in North America, Europe and Australia. The “Zambia the Real Africa” tagline was associated with problems prevalent in Africa such as famine, disease, poverty, war, bad governance and political instability. Zambia was, therefore, perceived to be the epicenter of all these negative connotations. The tagline should appeal to foreign tourists, as the whole world targets this market segment.

Mr Speaker, with the new tagline in place, I wish to inform this House that one of the immediate benefits is that the perception of Zambia as a tourist destination has changed from negative to positive as evidenced by increased tourist arrivals. In addition, Zambia was this year voted as one of the top three holiday hot spots to watch for in 2014 by the New York Times. This was based on data from the World Travel and Tourism Council. 

Interruptions

Mr Speaker: Order!

Order, on the right.

Ms Kapata: Mr Speaker, with regard to the question on the expected benefits that tourism will derive from the expansion and modernisation of the new airports, I wish to inform this House that Zambia has always been seen as an expensive destination to get to visit. This means that the cost of transportation via connections through other countries makes air travel to Zambia very expensive. The construction of bigger and modern airports will increase the number of direct flights to Zambia and reduce the cost of travel both in terms of time and cost. From our strategic central location in the sub region, the construction of new airports will serve as a regional air transportation hub with attendant spill-over effects to the tourism sector.

Mr Speaker, I end by supporting this Budget.

I thank you, Sir.

Hon. Government Members: Hear, hear!

Mr Speaker: Order!

ADJOURNMENT

The Minister of Transport, Works, Supply and Communication, Chief Whip, and Acting Leader of Government Business in the House (Mr Mukanga): Mr Speaker, I beg to move that the House do now adjourn.

Question put and agreed to.

__________

The House adjourned at 1809 hours until 1430 hours on Thursday, 13th November, 2014.