DAILY PARLIAMENTARY DEBATES FOR THE THIRD SESSION OF THE ELEVENTH ASSEMBLY

Friday 4th October, 2013
The House met at 0900 hours
[MR DEPUTY SPEAKER in the Chair]
NATIONAL ANTHEM
PRAYER
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BUSINESS OF THE HOUSE

The Vice-President (Dr Scott): Mr Speaker, I rise to give the House an idea of the business it will consider next week. On Tuesday, the 8th October, 2013, the Business of the House will commence with Questions, if there will be any. This will be followed by presentation of Government Bills, if there will be any. Then, the House will resume the debate on the Motion of Thanks to His Excellency the President’s Address.

On Wednesday, the 9th October, 2013, the Business of the House will begin with Questions, if there will be any. This will be followed with presentation of Government Bills, if they will be any. Thereafter, the House will consider Private Members’ Motions, if there will be any. The House will then continue with the debate on the Motion of Thanks to His Excellency the President’s Address.

On Thursday, 10th October, 2013, the Business of the House will commence with Questions, if there will be any. This will be followed by presentation of Government Bills, if there will be any. Thereafter, the House will debate a Motion to suspend Standing Orders 19, 20, 21 and 31 to enable the House to sit from 1415 hours until business is concluded on Friday, 11th October, 2013. The intention of this is to enable the hon. Minister of Finance to present the 2014 National Budget. The House will then wind up debate on the Motion of Thanks to His Excellency the President’s Address moved by the Hon. Member of Parliament for Bwacha on 24th September, 2013.

Mr Speaker, on Friday, 11th October, 2013, the hon. Minister of Finance will present the 2014 National Budget starting at 1415 hours.

Sir, I thank you.

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HIS HONOUR THE VICE-PRESIDENT’S QUESTION TIME

Mr Milambo (Mwembeshi): Sir, recently, we were told that the Government Complex on Independence Avenue is not insured. What risk transfer mechanism has been put in place since this property is not insured?

The Vice-President (Dr Scott): Mr Speaker, that is a very technical question. I would require to consult or research a bit in order to provide a proper answer on how the actual issue is being handled. I am afraid, I cannot give a precise answer at the moment.

I thank you, Sir.

Mr Mwila (Chipili): Mr Speaker, the President of the Republic of Zambia attended the recent United Nations (UN) General Assembly. In his speech, he demanded that Africa be given a seat on the UN Security Council. Can His Honour explain to the House the benefits to Africa of such an initiative.

The Vice-President: Sir, in fact, he demanded for two seats, the reason being when a compromise is reached, we can, at least, get one. For if you ask for one item, you get half of it. The advantage is that we will have a say on important matters in the world which may be of interest to us. For example, if the UN Security Council imposed sanctions on North Korea because it was involved in promoting nuclear proliferation contrary to its treaties, we would be part of that decision-making process. At the moment, only big countries like China, the United States of America and regional representatives for smaller countries are involved in the decision- making process. We want to have a voice in the operations of the UN Security Council. If a country produces an atomic weapon in this part of the world, for example, we want to have a very lucid and strong say in what is done to it by the council.

I thank you, Sir.

Mr I. Banda (Lumezi): Mr Speaker, what is the Government doing to ensure the safety of international drivers who enter the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) so that they do not get killed?

The Vice-President: Mr Speaker, there is a means of communication between the DRC and Zambia on cross border issues. I can only presume that this matter is currently being dealt with through that channel.

I thank you, Sir.

Mr Miyutu (Kalabo Central): Mr Speaker, last week, we were told that the Government had put in place measures to prevent nurses from going on strike. Sadly, yesterday’s media reports indicated that the nurses at the University Teaching Hospital (UTH) are on a go-slow. What measures has the Government put in place to stop this go-slow from spreading to other parts of the country?

The Vice-President: Sir, at the moment, there are active negotiations involving the Ministry Labour and Social Security, Ministry of Health and about twelve unions representing nurses and professionals in the medical field. The negotiations are active and will continue over the weekend. I wish to also state that not all of the nurses are on a go-slow.

I thank you, Sir.

Mr Mushanga (Bwacha): Sir, now that the UN General Assembly has come to an end, can His Honour the Vice-President inform this House and the nation, especially those who are concerned, where the President is and when he is coming back to Zambia.

Hon. Opposition Members: Hear, Hear!

The Vice-President: That is leakage, is it not?

Hon. Opposition Members  Laughed.

The Vice-President: Mr Speaker, when I was missing from the House on Tuesday, nobody asked where I was.

Hon. Opposition Members:  We asked.

The Vice-President: I was actually in Johannesburg having a medical checkup, the results of which I did not wish communicated to the Zambian Watchdog. It is not your business ...

Hon. Opposition Members:  Aah!

The Vice-President: ... to know the nature of the personal business the President might be attending to. He has been communicating with us. There are hundreds of cellular phones in Zambia that he can communicate with within thirty seconds. He managed to track me down even when I had no phone and was out of my office. He is in touch with everything that is going on in the country. It is not our business to be living in his pocket.

I thank you, Sir.

Mr Katambo (Masaiti): Sir, may His Honour the Vice-President inform the House what the latest development is with regard to the resuscitation of the operations of the Njanji Commuter Train as this could help reduce the traffic congestion on the roads in Lusaka.

The Vice-President: Sir, our technical view, at the moment, is that resuscitating the operations of the Njanji Commutter Train is not the optimal solution. We will use some alternative means of sorting out the traffic congestion problem. The hon. Minister of Transport, Works, Supply and Communication, will, during this particular Session, make a statement to that effect.

Thank you, Sir.

Mr Muntanga (Kalomo Central): Sir, in his Official Opening Address, His Excellency the President challenged us to give him a list of the farmers who had not paid by the Food Reserve Agency (FRA) so that they could be paid the following day. He said that what he gave was a Government assurance. When is the Government going to pay the outstanding K418 million owed to the farmers, since they need to prepare for the next season?

The Vice-President: Mr Speaker, I would like to be assured by the questioner that the list has been prepared and handed over to the Government so that it can process the payments. There is no point in processing the payments using an imaginary list. We need to know the farmers individually. Even when providing food aid, we have a list which we follow. Please, Hon. Muntanga, let us talk in my office later so that the payments can be processed.

I thank you, Mr Speaker.

Dr Kalila (Lukulu East): Sir, most of the people in Lukulu East, particularly, in the southern half have no access to cellular phone communication services. When does the Government intending to put up more telecommunication towers in Lukulu East so that most of the people there can enjoy the cellular phone facility?

The Vice-President: Sir, a contract with a Chinese firm for the provision of 169 towers should have been signed this week. The contract has an option of an extra 10 per cent of the 169 towers which can be put up at the end of the contract. Twenty months is the time it will take to put up these 169 towers. I do not have the actual details for Lukulu East. If there is a chief there who has no communication services and a survey has been done, then a tower will be built there.

I thank you, Sir.

Mr Mucheleka (Lubansenshi): Sir, I would like to find out from His Honour the Vice- President, what steps are being taken to ensure that corruption is practically fought and brought under control. His Honour the Vice-President, who is very senior, has admitted that there is a high level of corruption in Government to the extent that some hon. Ministers are accusing each other of corrupt practices. Some hon. Ministers have indicated that they have evidence regarding their colleagues’ involvement in corrupt activities. What steps have been taken to ensure that the fight against corruption is renewed so that the confidence of the people is renewed in the work of the Anti-Corruption Commission (ACC)?

The Vice-President: Mr Speaker, there is only one basic way to fight corruption assuming that you have honest people doing it. That is to provide sufficient money in the Budget and, in practice, to enable the researchers and investigations to do their work freely. I do not know of any other solution. If there was a need, we could have even brought in Scotland Yard. However, I do not think we are still in the days when we need to do such things. It is a job that we should do as Zambians. We will keep the House informed when we see the Yellow Book on how much money has been allocated to the ACC and its sister organisations so that it can monitor the release of the funds.

I thank you, Sir.{mospagebreak}

 Ms Lubezhi (Namwala): Mr Speaker, Zambia cannot raise money in the bond market at the moment. That is the reason the Ministry of Finance has gone ahead to raise a syndicated loan of US$ 250 million. What has caused this volatility in the bond market?

The Vice-President: Sir, there is always a price at which you can enter the bond market. Sometimes, you may choose not to enter the market because you do not like the prices of the bonds. The large Eurobond worth US$750million was obtained at an interest rate of about 5 per cent. That was actually a good bargain at the time. There is a difference between a syndicated loan and a bond. Borrowing money is a standard technique for any government which we shall keep using. I can only provide more details regarding the loan on the Floor of this House when I am given more time to conduct some research.

I thank you.

Mr Sing’ombe (Dundumwezi): The Danish Embassy is relocating to Zimbabwe. Why is that the case?

The Vice-President:  Sir, I will refer Hon. Sing’ombe’s question to the Danish Embassy.

I thank you, Sir.

Dr Kazonga (Vubwi): Sir, in August, this year, we lost a great man by the name of Cardinal Medardo Mazombwe, who did a lot for this country in terms of social justice, education and health. Why did the Government not declare a state of national mourning in the country when this great man died?

Hon. Opposition Members: Hear, Hear!

The Vice-President: Sir, despite not having all the details at hand, I do recall that a State Funeral, which is a form of national mourning, was declared. Even though I cannot remember the number of days which were allocated to the State Funeral, 
Interruptions

Mr Deputy Speaker: Order!

The Vice President: … I can state with absolute certainty that the passing on of Cardinal Mazombwe was strongly marked by the Government.

I thank you, Sir.

Ms Imenda (Luena): Sir, since the country’s food security was threatened by the rain pattern last of last season, why has it continued exporting maize to Zimbabwe and other places?

The Vice-President: Sir, we are honouring contracts that were entered into a long time ago. I am not aware of any new contracts. All we are trying to do is to fulfill the obligations of the contracts we entered into. We still have 400,000 tonnes plus of maize in our strategic food reserves and the private sector market is also operating normally.  The enormous explosions in terms of the mealie-meal prices which many people predicted has not taken place. If I was a good lady, I would not worry too much.

I thank you, Sir.

Mr Lufuma (Kabompo West): Sir, the Government has finally admitted that there is a Budget deficit of about 8.5 per cent of the gross domestic product (GDP) this year. This excludes a huge infrastructure bill which has been incurred through the construction of certain buildings and roads. How did this colossal deficit come about and what measures are being undertaken to mitigate it?

The Vice-President: Mr Speaker, these things are very complicated. There are projected and actualised deficits. As an economist, it would take me two pages of quite closely-spaced numbers to explain what is actually happening. I think the best I can do is ask the hon. Minister of Finance when he is back in the House to give us a summary of what is happening. Just to say that we have a Budget deficit of about 8.5 per cent of the GDP is not, in itself, meaningful. Is that projection minus alternative sources of income? We do not know. Thus, for the Government to provide a better answer, either the questioner should give me advanced notice or we ask the hon. Minister of Finance to give us his side of the story.

I thank you, Sir.

Mr Mbulakulima (Chembe): Mr Speaker, today, is 4th October, 2013. Is Judge Chikopa still in Zambia? If he has gone back, has the Government paid him his benefits? If he is still in the country, does this not show intransigence and arrogance on the part of the Government?

Hon. Opposition Members: Hear, hear!

The Vice-President: Mr Speaker, the tribunal is still alive. However, what is holding things up is the court process. We do not control the Judiciary. This is not the Judiciary you are asking the question, but just a simple Vice-President.

I thank you, Mr Speaker.

Mr Livune (Katombola): Mr Speaker, when will the Government fully implement the Decentralisation Policy so that people can be given the power that they deserve?

The Vice-President: Mr Speaker, the Decentralisation Policy cannot be implemented in one day. There are stages which need to be followed. We are doing things in an expeditious manner. We have already created new districts and administrative structures in different provinces. We will remain committed to the implementation process even if it is going to take time. We are not going to back out.

Remember that the word ‘decentralisation’ goes back to the Kaunda era.

Mr Livune: It will be ready in ninety days.

The Vice-President: Who said anything about ninety days?

Laughter

Hon. Opposition Members: PF!

The Vice-President: Are you hallucinating? You cannot complete the implementation of the Decentralisation Policy in ninety days. We did not say that we would complete the process in ninety years or even ninety months.

I thank you, Mr Speaker.

Mr Ndalamei (Sikongo): Mr Speaker, the Patriotic Front (PF) Government is said to be allergic to corruption. When will the President remove the corrupt elements from its Cabinet?

Hon. Opposition Members: Hear, hear!

The Vice-President: Mr Speaker, as soon as they are known.

I thank you, Sir.

Laughter

Mr Nkombo (Mazabuka Central): Mr Speaker, …

Interruptions

Mr Deputy Speaker: Order!

Mr Nkombo: … it is said that when you are in a thicket, it is difficult to determine how big the bush is. Does His Honour the Vice-President not agree with me that public confidence has been eroded in the PF ever since it imploded arising from the in-fighting to levels where even the labour market is so unstable to the extent that strikes have rocked this country? For those who may want to know, the word ‘implode’ means crumbling inwardly.

The Vice-President: Mr Speaker, I do not know the strikes Hon. Nkombo is talking about and the implosion which he is referring to. What he is doing is like putting some sheep in a mine field. It is as if he wants me to walk in a wrong direction so that I can sit on an explosion. There are many possible processes that I may prejudice if I speak too loosely. There are people who may sue others in the process. Further, I do not want to compromise any disciplinary proceedings which may be undertaken in future by exploding or imploding.

Laughter

The Vice-President: I thank you, Sir.

Mr Mtolo (Chipata Central): Mr Speaker, could His Honour the Vice-President explain why the Government is not releasing budgeted for funds to council workers so that they can pay their employees their salaries.

The Vice-President: Mr Speaker, that process is going on at the moment.

I thank you, Mr Speaker.

Mr Konga (Chavuma): Mr Speaker, media reports indicate that the relief maize sent to the Chavuma/Lukole region by the Disaster Management and Mitigation Unit (DMMU) has gone to waste and that the people there are now starving. Can His Honour the Vice-President indicate when he is going to send a new consignment of relief maize so that the people there stop starving.

The Vice-President: Mr Speaker, we do not base our relief maize logistical planning efforts on media reports. Today, I received a councillor from Rufunsa in my office who said that there is a maize shortage in his area. There is no better business than walking into the Vice-President’s Office to ask for relief maize. If I were not careful, I would foolishly load up a lorry with maize and then an individual would take it straight to the FRA to sell it. We do not respond to media reports.

Sir, we take hon. Members of Parliament’s reports a bit more seriously because we think they have a serious obligation to their constituents. In the case of Chavuma, the DMMU can work with the local non-governmental organisation (NGO), which I do not know of, to identify the individuals who should benefit from the relief maize. That is the way the system works. We cannot depend on what we read from newspapers.

I thank you, Sir.

Mr Mwiimbu (Monze Central): Mr Speaker, on the Floor of this House, the nation was assured by the hon. Minister of Agriculture and Livestock that the chaotic fertiliser and input distribution situation that occurred in the last two years will not recur this year. However, to-date, the people in Monze Central Constituency have not received the requisite inputs. I am also aware that there is no urea fertiliser in the country which the ministry can distribute to the farmers. When is the Government going to address the plight of the farmers so that, as promised on the Floor of this House by the hon. Minister of Agriculture and Livestock, we avoid what has been happening the past two years?

The Vice-President: Mr Speaker, the use of words like ‘chaotic’ is prejudicial because it seems to suggest that the situation is very bad. The Hon. Mr Speaker yesterday, I believe, gave instructions to the hon. Minister of Agriculture and Livestock or me, to bring a statement on the Floor of this House on the subject Hon. Mwiimbu is referring to.

Sir, essentially, basal dressing fertiliser is already in each district of the country. Maybe, one or two districts might have not been reached, but I doubt if Monze is an exception. The fertiliser has not been distributed yet to the individual beneficiaries because we are trying to properly identify the small-scale farmers. We want to avoid what has been happening allegedly, especially in the Southern Province, whereby people are said to have been buying Canter trucks with bags of subsidised fertiliser.

So, we already have the basal fertiliser. What we only need to do is distribute it. For top dressing, we have two sources. One is the Nitrogen Chemicals of Zambia (NCZ), where the ammonium nitrate plant is being rehabilitated and the other is expected to come to us through Dar-es-Salaam, where I believe the hon. Minister is, at the moment, to make sure that it comes in the country smoothly. We do not need top dressing fertiliser until about January next year. So, I do not think the situation is chaotic. It is very much as it should be. What we are handling is a big logistical exercise which cannot be helped by political sniping.

I thank you, Sir.

Mr Pande (Kasempa): Mr Speaker, when the PF came into power, it spent a lot of money constituting commissions of inquiries. What were the outcomes of the Hon. Kabimba, SC., Rodger Chongwe and Sebastian Zulu led commissions of inquiry, and when are the findings going to be made public?

Hon. Opposition Members: Hear, hear!

The Vice-President: Mr Speaker, as soon as the Cabinet has considered the reports. I believe that the President has to bring the reports to the Cabinet. After that, he will release them at a time he thinks is suitable. However, if, for example, some of these reports are going to be used to heat up flames or embers in some parts of the country, we have to be cautious when handling them.

I thank you, Sir.

Mr Miyanda (Mapatizya): Mr Speaker, I would like to find out when the Government is going to disburse the Constituency Development Fund (CDF) for 2013 to the unpreferred constituencies, especially those from the Southern Province, that have not received theirs.

Hon. Opposition Members: Hear, hear!

The Vice-President: Mr Speaker, there are two implicit statements in that question. One is that the CDF has not yet been disbursed countrywide and the second is that there is discrimination in the disbursement process. I do not believe that there is any discrimination involved in the distribution of the CDF. We are all suffering together. However, if the House wishes for some kind of detailed statement of the situation, I will ensure that it gets it next week.

I thank you, Mr Speaker.

Mr Mbewe (Chadiza): Mr Speaker, may I know the minimum qualification for district commissioners (DCs) and whether they are permitted to be involved in active politics.

Hon. MMD Members: Hear, hear!

The Vice-President: Mr Speaker, I am glad Tom and Jerry has brought up a question in this kind of way …

Laughter

Mr Deputy Speaker: Order!

Be mindful of the time.

The Vice-President: Sir, I think I must have answered that question about six times during His Honour the Vice-President’s Question Time.

Interruptions

Mr Deputy Speaker: Order!

The Vice-President: Mr Speaker, the DC only needs to be able to read and write as well as to obey orders. Whether one is in politics or not is a very difficult thing to define. All I can say is that a DC is a civil servant and not a politician.

I thank you, Sir.

Mr Kakoma (Zambezi West): Mr Speaker, the whole of last week and this week, hon. Members on your left have been complaining about the absence of hon. Ministers in this House. Would His Honour the Vice-President know why these hon. Ministers do not come to attend to the Business of this House.

The Vice-President: Mr Speaker, it is a very bad day to ask that question. I can see about twelve to fourteen hon. Ministers in the House, and they have all been spoken to by the Chief Whip. Hon. Ministers are quite autonomous people. Perhaps, when the quality of the debate from the Opposition improves, the hon. Ministers will want to come to Parliament.

I thank you, Mr Speaker.

Laughter

Mr Kunda (Muchinga): Mr Speaker, could His Honour the Vice-President tell this august House what the PF’s ideological standing is ...

Mr Deputy Speaker: Order!

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QUESTIONS FOR ORAL ANSWER

DIP TANKS IN RUFUNSA DISTRICT

78. Mr Chipungu (Rufunsa) asked the Minister of Agriculture and Livestock:

(a) what the total number of dip tanks in Rufunsa District was; and

(b) whether the Government had any plans to construct additional dip tanks to cater for the increasing population of cattle in the district.

Mr Mucheleka: On a point of order, Sir.

Mr Deputy Speaker: On whom now?

Laughter

Mr Deputy Speaker: Please, be cool. Take your time.

Laughter

The Deputy Minister of Agriculture and Livestock (Mr Mwewa): Mr Speaker, there are three dip tanks in Rufunsa District, namely Nangwenya, Kapete and Mwachilele. All the three dip tanks are functional.

Sir, the Government has plans to construct six additional dip tanks in Rufunsa District to be located at Bundabunda, Tengama, Nyamanongo, Chilimba, Munyeta and Chiyota.

I thank you, Sir.

Mr Hamusonde (Nangoma) Mr Speaker, the ..

Mr Mucheleka: On a point of order, Sir.

Mr Deputy Speaker: A point of order is raised.

Mr Mucheleka: Mr Speaker, I rise on a very serious point of order. Is His Honour the Vice-President in order to mislead this House as well as the nation, by stating that action will be taken against those hon. Ministers who are engaged in corruption as soon as they are known, and yet he and his Cabinet Ministers are on record having said that they have overwhelming evidence of how some hon. Ministers have been engaging in corruption?

I need your serious ruling, Sir.

Mr Deputy Speaker: It is very difficult to make a ruling on the statement of somebody who is not in the House at the moment. Can the hon. Member for Nangoma continue.

Hon. Opposition Members: Aah!

Mr Deputy Speaker: What is ‘aah’? Hold on. I said I could not make a ruling on that point of order and that was the answer. So, what is the ‘aah’ about?

Laughter

Mr Muntanga: That was the ruling. Is that the procedure?

Mr Hamusonde: Mr Speaker, the hon. Minister said more dip tanks would be constructed in Rufunsa District. I would like to know when this will be done.

The Deputy Minister of Agriculture and Livestock (Mr Kazabu): Mr Speaker, according to our plans at the ministry, we intend to construct a total of 200 new dip tanks, in various parts of the country, where our people rear livestock. We will construct 200 dip tanks for next year and another 200 for the year that will follow. In addition, we are going to rehabilitate 400 non-functional dip tanks.

I thank you, Mr Speaker.

Mr Livune (Katombola): Mr Speaker, there has been a tendency …

Ms Kalima: On a point of order, Sir.

Mr Deputy Speaker: A point of order is raised.

Ms Kalima: Mr Speaker, I would like to thank you for allowing me to rise on a point of order. Today, all the newspapers have screaming headlines quoting Hon. Kabimba. In the Times of Zambia, the headline reads “Kabimba Fumes” and the headline in The Post says “Wynter accuses Mwamba of being prepared to destroy public media to please his paymasters.” Hon. Kabimba is also referring to the paymasters, who are President Sata and the PF Government.

Sir, is this Government, through the hon. Minister of Information and Broadcasting, in order to keep quiet and not come to explain before this House, what has been reported in the media?

Mr Deputy Speaker: I think that is one of those issues that should be sorted out out there and not in the domain of this House.

The hon. Member for Katombola may continue.

Mr Livune: Mr Speaker, in the past, dip tanks have been constructed without a reliable water source. Are these dip tanks to be constructed going to come with boreholes or a reasonable water source near them?

Mr Kazabu: Mr Speaker, I can confirm that the policy of the current Government is to sink a borehole wherever a new dip tank is going to be constructed so that water is made available. Without that, such infrastructure would end up being a white elephant.

I thank you, Sir.{mospagebreak}

Mr Muchima (Ikeleng’i): Mr Speaker, out of those 200 dip tanks to be constructed next year and the 200 the other year, how many of them …

Mr Hamudulu: On a point of order, Sir.

Mr Deputy Speaker: Order!

You know, I do not want to be seen to be discarding demands for points of order. However, I think we are getting used to debating through points of order. It has become the order of the day rather than the exception. Can we, please, find a way of debating other than through points of order. All the same, the point of order is granted.

Mr Hamudulu: Sir, my point of order is compelling. I stand realising that points of order must be on issues that are contemporaneously or synchronic with the matter under discussion.

Laughter

Mr Hamudulu: Sir, yesterday, I asked the hon. Minister of Justice a question on whether consideration had been made in next year’s Budget to include the cost of a referendum should it be found desirable for adopting the Draft Constitution. The hon. Minister of Justice said that he could not answer that question because doing so would be tantamount to pre-empting the presentation of the Budget on Friday. However, we have had answers on the Floor of this House indicating that certain projects have been included in next year’s Budget.

Sir, another example is that the hon. Minister of Information and Broadcasting yesterday refused to tell us the cost attached to a project which involves a consultant who has been hired by the Government on account of its being a secret because of legal fees, when all of us know that there are no such fees involved. Now, are we in order to collectively be inconsistent and apply these double standards thereby lowering the stature of this House? I seek your serious ruling.

Mr Deputy Speaker: I gave you all the time just to show that what you are asking on is not, to use your own word, contemporaneous. You have given me examples of what happened yesterday. However, points of order should be relevant to the issues under discussion and also be on decorum and procedure. Your point of order does not fall in any one of these categories. As for the issues relating to the Budget, we have to wait until it is announced. So, that point of order is irrelevant.

The hon. Member for Ikeleng’i may continue.

Mr Muchima: Mr Speaker, arising from …

Mr Deputy Speaker: Maybe, before you do that, I just want to make it clear that, now, I will be very hesitant to grant points of order. Sometimes, my reading is that the point of order to be asked does not fall in any one of the three categories which I talked about earlier. So if I do not allow you to rise on a point of order, I am sure you will understand why. We are wasting a lot of time.

Mr Nkombo interjected.

Mr Deputy Speaker: Yes, I can foretell.

Laughter

Mr Muchima: Mr Speaker, arising from the answer which has been given by the hon. Minister that there will be 400 dip tanks which will be installed in most areas of the country …

Mr Nkombo: On a point of order, Sir.

Mr Deputy Speaker: Order!

You see, I am being put to the test. I will not allow that point of order.

Interruptions

Mr Muchima: Mr Speaker, the provision of dip tanks in the country is quite critical. Is the hon. Minister aware that in the North-Western Province, Kabompo, Mwinilunga and Zambezi, in particular, there are healthy animals, but we lack dip tanks? How many dip tanks is he considering to put up in Mwinilunga, Kabompo and Zambezi?

Mr Kazabu: Mr Speaker, it is difficult for one to give statistics on the Floor of this House for questions that are just asked in the manner questions are asked here. Our offices are open, if Hon. Muchima needs further clarifications. He can come over and together we can go through the project proposal and give him the specific number of dip tanks that are to be constructed in the districts he has mentioned.

Mr Speaker, let me add by explaining to the House that some infrastructure is not distributed on an equity basis. Dip tanks are constructed in areas where there is the prevalence of tick-borne diseases. Therefore, in areas where such diseases are not prevalent, it would not do for this Government to build dip tanks there.

I thank you, Sir.

Mr I. Banda (Lumezi): Mr Speaker, what is the total cost for constructing a dip tank?

Mr Kazabu: Mr Speaker, the estimated cost for constructing a dip tank is K150,000.

I thank you, Sir.

KASAMA AIRPORT RUNWAY

79. Mr Mucheleka (Lubansenshi) asked the Minister of Transport, Works, Supply and Communication when the Kasama Airport runway would be rehabilitated to improve safety.

The Deputy Minister of Transport, Works, Supply and Communications (Mr M. H. Malama): Mr Speaker, the Government understands the status of the aerodrome in question and the safety concerns. A consultant has been engaged for a feasibility study and once the report is completed and handed over, the Government will engage a contractor. The Kasama one is actually among the ten aerodromes which are scheduled to be rehabilitated by the Government.

Mr Speaker, I thank you.

Mr Mucheleka: Mr Speaker, is it possible for the hon. Minister to give an indication with regard to how soon the putting together of the feasibility study report will be concluded so that a contractor can be engaged so as to improve safety at the Kasama Airport?

Mr M. H. Malama: Mr Speaker, the feasibility study is almost done. We cannot specify in terms of a date.

Thank you, Mr Speaker.

Mr Nkombo (Mazabuka Central): Mr Speaker, one of the safety concerns at the Kasama Aerodrome is the lack of fuel storage tanks. As we know, the planes that go there normally carry fuel on board. When is the Government going to install calibrated fuel tanks at that airport?

Mr M. H. Malama: Mr Speaker, the issue of putting up calibrated fuel tanks is part of the feasibility studies being undertaken. After the handing over of the study, we are definitely going to look at that.

I thank you, Sir.

Mr Sianga (Sesheke): Mr Speaker, can the hon. Minister do us a favour by coming up with a list of the ten aerodromes which are earmarked to be worked on?

The Minister of Transport, Works, Supply and Communications (Mr Mukanga): Mr Speaker, that is a new question. If the hon. Member would like to know the ten aerodromes, we can provide that information because we have the list. However, I do not have it right now.

I thank you, Sir.

Mr Mbewe (Chadiza): Mr Speaker, Chadiza will have one of the ten aerodromes, just to remind the hon. Minister.

Laughter

Mr Mbewe: Mr Speaker, the hon. Minister should inform this House when the works will start because we are moving towards the end of the year. One of the aerodromes, particularly the one for Chadiza, has been encroached upon. Thus, there is a need for people to be informed when the construction works will begin so that they can prepare their new settlements. When is this job going to start?

Mr Mukanga: Mr Speaker, the question which has been asked about Chadiza is a new one. However, I would like to say that encroachment is one of the problems that we have seen. It is a big challenge across the country and something that we really need to address. We would like all stakeholders to help us because it is not an easy task. We will move in so that we can protect the infrastructure that we have.

I thank you, Sir.

Mr Bwalya (Lupososhi): Mr Speaker, the Kasama Aerodrome is very critical to the development of the Northern Circuit …

Mr Mwila: Hear, hear!

Mr Bwalya: … in terms of tourism. May I know if the feasibility study that has been mentioned will include expansion activities so that the airport can accommodate bigger aeroplanes.

Mr Mukanga: Mr Speaker, that is what we are trying to do.

I thank you, Sir.

Mr Muchima: Mr Speaker, last year, there was a ministerial statement in this House that mentioned Ikeleng’i, where the Zambezi River source is, as a place where one of the ten aerodromes would be constructed. We need to attract tourists to that area. When is this aerodrome going to be constructed, Mr Minister, my brother, Sir?

Hon. Members: Hear, hear!

Laughter

Mr Mukanga: Mr Speaker, in the absence of the list, I cannot give an answer exactly as to which month we are supposed to begin. However, basing on what he has said, I would like to say that we want to prioritise the ten aerodromes and ensure that we work on them as quickly as possible.

I thank you, Sir.

UPGRADING OF IPUSUKILO AND LAURENT CHITA SCHOOLS

80. Mr Mucheleka asked the Minister of Education, Science, Vocational Training and Early Education when Ipusukilo and Laurent Chita schools in Lubansenshi Parliamentary Constituency would be upgraded to secondary schools.

The Deputy Minister of Education, Science, Vocational Training and Early Education (Mr Mabumba): Mr Speaker, let me give a brief background because we have had about four questions on the same subject since last week.

Mr Speaker, the position of the ministry, like we have stated before, is that there are going to be 220 basic schools that are going to be upgraded, countrywide. Twenty-two schools will be upgraded in the Northern Province. In case of Hon. Mucheleka’s area, the decision in terms of which schools are going to be upgraded will be made by the Provincial Education Officer (PEO) in consultation with the District Education Board Secretary (DEBS) for Luwingu as well as the community.  

Mr Speaker, I, therefore, like I did yesterday, want to request hon. Members of Parliament to consult with the offices of the PEOs because we do not want a situation where anyone says that they were not aware of what was happening once the implementation of this exercise begins. We have given them inside information of the direction for 2014. It is up to them to use that inside information.

I thank you, Sir.

Mr Mbewe: Mr Speaker, the hon. Minister has said that 220 secondary schools will be upgraded. There are so many basic schools. I can give an example of Chadiza. We have fifty-four primary schools and only three secondary schools. Upgrading will not make any sense in that most Grade 7 pupils will not find their way into Grade 8. Is 220 not too small a number to meet the need of all the provinces in the country?

Mr Mabumba: Mr Speaker, it depends on which angle one is looking at things from. At the moment, we have around 655 secondary schools. The process of upgrading the 220 basic schools into secondary schools in one year, for me, once implemented, will be a big achievement for the Government. However, I am aware that the need for secondary schools in this country is very high and this is why we have stated, time and again, that the upgrading of these basic schools into secondary schools is going to be done in a phased manner. So, we are saying that for 2014, our target is 220. After that, we will continue in the coming years to decide which other basic schools we will look at.

I thank you, Sir.

Mr Miyutu (Kalabo Central): Mr Speaker, are the basic schools earmarked for upgrading going to be boarding or day secondary schools?

Mr Mabumba: Mr Speaker, because of the issue of the distance which hon. Members of Parliament have been alluding to in this House, the basic schools that are going to be upgraded are going to be day secondary schools.

I thank you, Sir.

Mr Miyanda (Mapatizya): Mr Speaker, in one answer, the hon. Minister said that simple mathematics is twenty-two schools for each of the ten provinces. Hon. Minister, do you not think that you are being unfair by giving twenty-two schools to each province, including those like Lusaka where there are a number of private secondary schools?

Mr Mabumba: Mr Speaker, I did not state that the decision has been made to upgrade twenty-two basic schools to secondary schools in each province. That is because, like he has said, there are some provinces that are better off than others. Probably, the Ministry of Education, Science, Vocational Training and Early Education will take that into account.

I thank you, Sir.

Dr Kazonga (Vubwi): Mr Speaker, may I find out from the hon. Deputy Minister whether the Government will give special consideration in this upgrading programme to those districts that have just been created, such as Vubwi.

Mr Mabumba: Mr Speaker, that is a very interesting question. Some of the newly-created districts have already been supported through the thirty-five secondary schools that we are constructing. Vubwi is going to benefit from the thirty-five schools which we are constructing. It is going to have a boarding secondary school.

I thank you, Sir.

Mr Muchima: Mr Speaker, the question I am about to ask has come here many times. Hon. Deputy Minister, there was the US$750 million Eurobond money which this country managed to secure not too long ago. Is that money not part of the fund that you can use to upgrade most of these basic schools?

Mr Mabumba: Mr Speaker, the Government did clearly indicate how it used the US$750 million Eurobond. I am sure that most hon. Members of Parliament are aware of how this money was used. The Ministry of Education, Science, Vocational Training and Early Education, unfortunately, was not allocated any money from that US$750 Eurobond.

I thank you, Sir.

Hon. Government Members: Hear, hear!

TANZANIA – ZAMBIA RAILWAY AUTHORITY

81. Mr Simbao (Senga Hill) asked the Minister of Transport, Works, Supply and Communication:

(a) whether the Tanzania Zambia Railway Authority (TAZARA) would be privatised and, if so, when;

(b) why salaries of the TAZARA employees were often delayed; and

(c) when all the outstanding salary arrears would be paid.

Mr M. H. Malama: Mr Speaker, the two shareholding Governments of the Republic of Zambia and the United Republic of Tanzania have engaged the TSDI of China to carry out feasibility studies to revitalise TAZARA. Once the detailed report has been received, a decision will be made. The strategic partner will be engaged as soon as the two Governments receive the recommendations from the detailed study of revitalising TAZARA that will be done by the TSDI of China.

Mr Speaker, TAZARA has been under-performing and is currently …

Interruptions

Mr Deputy Speaker: Order!

I am not sure whether we are listening. It is like everybody is talking while the hon. Deputy Minister is talking. I do not know who to listen to. Hon. Deputy Minister, maybe, you should come closer to the microphone because your voice is being drowned.

Mr M. H. Malama: Mr Speaker, TAZARA has been under-performing and is currently unable to sustain its operations. The company is heavily indebted, has high fixed costs and a bloated workforce. The above mentioned problems and others put together lead to the authority failing to pay salaries on time.

Mr Speaker, the arreas for three months have been settled.

I thank you, Sir.

Mr Simbao: Mr Speaker, I would like to know the cost of running TAZARA and the salary component of that cost.

Mr Mukanga: Mr Speaker, that is definitely a new question. The salary component is about US$1.3 million per month.

I thank you, Sir.

Dr Kazonga: Mr Speaker, when the hon. Deputy Minister answered part (b) of the question, he indicated that this company is highly indebted. What is the level of indebtedness?

Mr Mukanga: Mr Speaker, even if I do not know the exact figure, I still do know that the level of indebtedness is very high. We will be meeting in the next two weeks to discuss the operations of TAZARA because we know that the company is facing many challenges.

I thank you, Sir.

Mr Mwila (Chipili): Mr Speaker, the problems at TAZARA were left by the Movement for Multi-Party Democracy (MMD). The MMD failed to revamp this company. That is the reason salaries cannot be paid to the workers. Can the hon. Minister indicate to this House what plans have been put in place to revamp the operations of this company.

Mr Mukanga: Mr Speaker, I appreciate the reminder that the problems that are there have been inherited from the various governments. We have decided to sort out these problems and not to pass the buck. We want to address the problems because we are in power. That is why we have engaged a consultant to carry out a feasibility study. We will be able to sit together within the next few weeks to ensure that we look at the way forward because we cannot bury our heads in the sand. This company is run by two governments. I think that you understand how difficult that is because we need to address many issues together.

I thank you, Sir.

Mr I. Banda: Mr Speaker, what is the time frame for this feasibility study and when did it start?

Mr Mukanga: Mr Speaker, the feasibility study started in 2011 and was supposed to have been completed in 2012. We are waiting for the company to hand over the report to us.

I thank you, Sir.

Mr Mbewe: Mr Speaker, how are the two countries sharing the cost of the feasibility study?

Mr Mukanga: Mr Speaker, we do not have two companies. We have one company, and it is this company which is paying the cost.

I thank you, Sir.

      __________{mospagebreak}

MOTION

MOTION OF THANKS

(Debate resumed)

Mr Mooya (Moomba): Mr Speaker, there are two issues that I want to discuss in connection with the President’s Speech. The first one is on infrastructure development. I note that in all the sectors, there will be a lot of construction that will take place which will involve billions of kwacha. My worry is on the imbalanced allocation of contracts. Contractors are in two categories, that is, foreign and Zambian. When you look at the scenario in Zambia, you will find that about 90 per cent of contractors are local and about 10 per cent are foreign. From this scenario, you will find that the 10 per cent foreign contractors get about 90 per cent of the contracts. the danger in this is that the money from Zambia will be externalised.

   Sir, I expected the Republican President to instruct the hon. Minister of Transport, Works, Supply and Communication, to look into this anomaly because there is no way a country can develop genuinely if it relies on foreign contractors. This issue was not looked at in the President’s Speech. We need to empower our own Zambian contractors and build their capacity, if we are to develop the country.

Mr Speaker, the other issue which I think should be related to what I said is the notion of associating our local contractors with poor workmanship. I think we should get rid of this belief. This poor workmanship is related to the issues which I shall now look at. It is high time that we found an answer to these issues. The first one is registration. We have to be very strict when registering contractors. There should be no political interference involved. The moment we allow political interference to be involved, we will end up registering wrong contractors and, as a result, we will have poor workmanship.

Sir, the second issue is the evaluation of bids. Again, here, we have to be very careful. We should award bids to the right contractors. Further, we must be very strict with supervision. Once we do this, this notion of poor workmanship for Zambian contractors will disappear.

Mr Speaker, the third matter is the 20 per cent sub-contracting policy which the Road Development Agency (RDA) has. I am not happy with this policy. I, therefore, think that there is a need to reinforce this policy because we have read about foreign contractors who refuse to sub-contract Zambian contractors. We should not allow this to happen in our country.

Sir, as I have already stated, we cannot allow a few foreign contractors to take up 90 per cent of the contracts because that will have very sad consequences for our country. We should not always admire the work that is done by foreign contractors. There is a need to do certain things on our own so that our local contractor can improve. This reminds me of a sad story which took place a few weeks ago. This is the story of baby Moses who was wrapped in a plastic and dumped. However, God is great. Today, that baby is with the grandparents. This is what we should do to our contractors. We should not allow our contractors to suffer. The story I referred to was very interesting because before the grandparents appeared, one of us in here was ready to adopt that baby, and that is very good. We should do the same to our own contractors.

Mr Speaker, we should not behave like the photographer in a certain story which I have just remembered. This story is similar to what I am talking about. It is about an award winning picture. It happened somewhere in Ethiopia when there was a lot of fighting and hunger. A child was dumped because the mother was not able to feed him. This child was dumped in the evening, and about 10m away, there was a vulture waiting. A photographer quickly took a picture of this child and went to Europe. A few days later, he was told that the child died. I read a story in a newspaper that the photographer was so touched that he committed suicide since he knew what happened because when the child was being dumped he was there. He was even there when the child was taking his last breath. The child was so thin because of hunger.

Sir, I am trying to relate this to our own contractors. Let us protect our own contractors. I think we should move away from the notion of relating poor workmanship to our local contractors.

Mr Speaker, with these billions that will be pumped into infrastructure development, the President should have instructed the hon. Minister responsible for infrastructure development to do something so that most of that money remains here in Zambia.

Sir, as regards the issue of the housing deficit, on page 20 of the President’s Speech, I think he just glossed over it. He did not talk about the reality on the ground in Zambia. The housing deficit problem has been tackled by many governments around the world. I do not know whether we now have the political will to handle this problem despite its being a crisis.

Mr Speaker, in 1996, we all know that there was a housing policy and, at that time, we had a deficit of 840,000 decent housing units. We required a building rate of 110,000 for ten years. If we had gone that way, by the year 2006, we would have conquered this deficit. However, I was reading from the Times of Zambia of 13th February, 2013, in the business section, that the current situation is that the deficit has trebled. We require about 3 million decent housing units. This translates into building about 200,000 or 300,000 houses each year.

Sir, what I am trying to say is that we have a crisis which needs urgent measures. As a way forward, I suggest that we, firstly, come up with urgent measures such as long-term financing with low interest rates by financing institutions. Secondly, we need the issuance of municipal bonds to beef up the supply of houses by local authorities.

Sir, I hear that there are some legal requirements from the Ministry of Local Government and Housing and the Ministry of Finance in order for municipal bonds to be issued. It is these requirements which are making it very difficult for municipal councils to get bonds. We should relax these requirements so that the local authorities can access municipal bonds. I think that this can help us to provide answers to the housing crisis.

Mr Speaker, property developers and institutions in the financial sector need to be provided with a conducive fiscal atmosphere and incentives for them to tackle the housing deficiency. We are in a crisis which needs urgent measures.

Sir, lastly, we seem to have shifted policy regarding the structure of these houses. There are prefabricated houses which are being built these days. We are running away from our normal way of constructing houses. From my knowledge, these prefabricated houses have very bad sound proof properties. You cannot whisper without your neighbor hearing you.

Laughter

Mr Mooya: Sir, I am sure my viewpoint can be supported by a Mr Bwalya who is an architect. Two months ago, he said something similar regarding the same issue. He is an architect and is more conversant when it comes to building structures than me. I am wondering why we are using prefabricated materials to build houses. Were there consultations made before that decision was arrived at? There are quite a number of houses being constructed in Zambia in that fashion, …

Hon. Opposition Member: Including clinics.

Mr Mooya: … including clinics, I hear. The houses have very bad sound properties, and in addition to that my worry is on the maintenance. If a panel or any related part were to break, it would mean we would have to import certain materials and that would cost a lot of money. We need to engage experts to look at whether it is good for us to allow these prefabricated houses to continue being erected here in Zambia. I am against this, personally, because these houses have no privacy. You cannot whisper …

Hon. Opposition Member: What do you mean by whisper?

Laughter

Mr Mooya: We should have a factory or place where the parts of prefabricated buildings are manufactured in case of any breakages.

I thank you, Sir.

Hon. Opposition Members: Hear, hear!

Dr Musokotwane (Liuwa): Mr Speaker, I thank you for this opportunity to contribute to the debate regarding the President’s Speech …

Interruptions ‘

Mr Deputy Speaker: Order!

Dr Musokotwane: Mr Speaker, to start with, I wish to join those who have expressed condolences to the family of the late Hon. Sakeni. Despite our having been on opposite sides, in political terms, I still have to acknowledge the fact that there are children who considered him to be the best father in the world. There is also a spouse who considered him to be the best spouse in the world. Thus, we have to put ourselves in the shoes of his family members and commiserate with them.

Mr Speaker, I also want to welcome the new Members of Parliament, Hon. Mpande, Hon. Mtolo, Hon. Phiri and Hon. Chitafu. I would like to congratulate my friend Hon. Mtolo, in particular.

Hon. MMD Members: Hear, hear!

Dr Musokotwane: Mr Speaker, in the performing arts people say, ‘Encore, encore, encore’ when they see someone doing well and want to see some more of the same performance. Hon. Mtolo did so well in 2011 and the PF Government said, ‘Encore, encore, encore’ and they have got what they wanted with a bloody nose.

Laughter

Dr Musokotwane: Congratulations to Hon. Mtolo.

Hon. Opposition Members: Hear, hear!

Dr Musokotwane: Mr Speaker, he has indicated clearly that the only thing that rains in Chipata is Mtolo.

Mr Speaker, I would have thought that the President would have said something about the massive defeat that they suffered at the hands of the Opposition in his statement.

Laughter

Dr Musokotwane: It shows that there is something seriously going wrong in his Government. Sadly, he chose to keep quiet on that matter.

Sir, from our side, these elections were of very strategically important and I will explain why. The by-elections remind me of the Battle of Stalingrad during the Second World War. Before that battle, the Germany military force appeared to be unstoppable. It invaded Austria, Sudetenland which is part of Czechoslovakia, Poland and then moved into the lower countries like Netherlands. It overran the French Army and then greed for more power set in. It decided to shake the nest of the wasps. Thus, it invaded the Soviet Union. It seemed to have been making progress until it came to Stalingrad.

Mr Speaker, there, their entire Sixth Army was wiped out. In German, they say Vernichtet which means made into nothing. That was the beginning of the retreat of the Germans until they were defeated in the spring of 1945. What are the political parallels here?

Mr Kapeya: On a point of order, Sir.

Interruptions

Mr Deputy Speaker: A point of order is raised.

Hon. Opposition Member: You do not even understand what he is talking about.

Mr Kapeya: Mr Speaker, is the history of Germany part of the President’s Speech? I need your seriously ruling.

Hon. Opposition Members: Aah! It was an example.

Mr Deputy Speaker: Can the hon. Member for Liuwa continue.

Dr Musokotwane: Mr Speaker, the parallel here is that it is not a surprise, today, that the Patriotic Front (PF) has engaged itself in a battle to finish itself.

Hon. Opposition Member: Yes.
 
Dr Musokotwane: Why are its members doing so? They are doing this because they were soundly defeated. Members of any team which is soundly defeated usually begin to point fingers at each other.

Mr Speaker, in congratulating the Royal Air force which stopped the German invasion of the United Kingdom, Sir Winston Churchill had this to say:

“Never before have so many people owed gratitude to the very few.”

Sir, today, we, the 14 million people of Zambia, say never before have so many people been so grateful to a few hon. Members of Parliament.

Hon. Opposition Member: Hear, hear!

Dr Musokotwane: Sir, the members of the PF have started the process of rolling back to where they belong, their core area of competence, which is being in Opposition.

Laughter

Dr Musokotwane: Sir, therefore, I wish to say, Hon. Chitafu, Hon. Lombanya, Hon. Mtolo and Hon. Phiri, well done. My young sister (Hon. Mphande), welcome to Parliament.

Laughter

The Deputy Speaker: Order! Hon. Member for Liuwa, we do not want to hear about her being your young sister. She is an hon. Member of Parliament.

May you continue, please.

Dr Musokotwane: Mr Speaker, let me now go straight into my debate regarding the President’s Speech. The President’s Speech came at an appropriate time. The reason is that at the time it was delivered, the PF had exhausted 40 per cent of its mandate. In five months, that is in February, 2014, those in the Government will have exhausted 50 per cent of their time.

Rev. Lt-Gen. Shikapwasha: Oh, oh!

Dr Musokotwane: Mr Speaker, therefore, it is an appropriate time to ask this Government a number of simple questions. What has this PF Government done to mother Zambia? What is the President promising the people of Zambia now since so many things have been said? Should we really believe the President in the light of what has happened? These are the pertinent questions we should ask as we debate the President’s Speech.

Sir, to characterise the Speech, I tried very hard to see if I could find a proper English word to use, but I failed. I only found an appropriate word in Lozi …

Laughter

Dr Musokotwane: … and, that is, kuichanganisa.

Hon. Opposition Members: Hear, hear!

Dr Musokotwane: Mr Speaker, when you ask a lady for her name and instead of mentioning it, she says that she is very beautiful, it means she has not answered the question. That is kuichanganisa.

Laughter

Dr Musokotwane: Sir, when you ask the PF Government to show you the jobs which it has  created, its members just start pointing at things they have done which they did not even promise to do. That is kuichanganisa. This is exactly what the President did in this Speech.

Laughter

Dr Musokotwane: Mr Speaker, when the PF was campaigning, its messages were very simple, clear and to the point. There were certain things that we attached to the PF. We remember very clearly how the PF attracted the young people by telling them that, in ninety days, they were going to be employed. That is what made the PF a darling of the youth. We remember very clearly how the PF attracted voters by saying that, within three months time of taking office, the pockets of the people were going to be full of money. These were the key messages and promises. These were issues that the PF was known for. That is how it attracted the voters. Today,…

Dr Kaingu: Baichanganisa!

Dr Musokotwane: Baichanganisa!

Laughter

Dr Musokotwane: In his Speech, the President was searching around for good stories in the country to make it appear as if the PF has been working hard. They have not been working hard.

Dr Kaingu: Kulibe!

Dr Musokotwane: Mr Speaker, let us go a little bit into detail and talk about the jobs. We are going to have a serious crisis in this country. The crisis is that there is too much unemployment especially amongst the youths. It is going to get worse. Two years ago, there were 450,000 young people coming on the job market to look for jobs. When the PF was campaigning, taking advantage of the misery of the youth, its members promised jobs. They never meant what they were saying at all. They only promised jobs for the sake of getting the votes. When you listen to the President’s Speech, you cannot get an indication that the PF Government takes the issue of job creation seriously. It does not. I think the President needs to be told that the youths take this issue seriously. We also need to remind our colleagues in the PF  that the so-called Arab Spring, when Governments in Tunisia, Egypt and Algeria fell, was directly as a result of youth unemployment.

Dr Kaingu: You see!

Dr Musokotwane: Sir, the few jobs, they are creating are just for their kith and kin. Those are the ones they are employing in the embassies. If you go along Cairo Road and ask the people if they are seeing any jobs being created, they will tell you that they cannot see any.

Mr Speaker, a few people have also been given casual jobs on construction sites. Very soon, since this Government is failing to pay the contractors and is accumulating a lot of arrears, even those few jobs are going to disappear. The Government is failing to pay the contractors.

Sir, the issue of money in the pockets is a very serious one. Our colleagues from the PF Government have been saying that there will be more money in the people’s pockets. They talk about the fact that they reduced Pay-As-You-Earn (PAYE). That reduction was irrelevant. I am saying so because, already, where the tax stood in 2008, 80 per cent of the workers were being exempted. So, if you reduce that tax marginally, no one is going to feel it. Do you feel it here?

The Opposition Members: No!

Dr Musokotwane: Mr Speaker, these colleagues are now saying that there is more money in people’s pockets because of the increased salaries of the civil servants. If you listen very carefully, only a few hundreds have really benefited from these increments. This is why nurses and teachers are thinking of going on strike. The reason is that they are just paying a few people well. In any case, the number of people in Zambia in the labour market today is about 5 million. If you give a few civil servants salary increments, are you really putting more money into the pockets of most Zambians?

Hon. Opposition Members: No!

Dr Musokotwane: These colleagues are mistaken. They believe that by giving money to a few civil servants, then they have put money in people’s pockets. You should go on the streets and talk to the people. You should to go to Cairo Road and places such as Mongu and ask people if they have more money in their pockets. They are saying that they are not seeing the money which they were promised. If anything, things have become worse because even in businesses, everyone is crying because the sales have gone down. Money is not circulating.

Mr Speaker, to the contrary, there is less money in people’s pockets. Why is it so? This is because all of a sudden, this Government has increased the price of mealie-meal.

Mr Sianga: Can you imagine.

Dr Musokotwane: The price of mealie-meal in parts of Liuwa and Sikongo is more than K100,000.

Hon. Government Members: K100,000.

Interruptions

Dr Musokotwane: Yes, it is more than K100,000 or K100 in the new currency. So, people are wondering where the money they are talking about is.
 
Mr Speaker, they increased the price of fuel and, as a result, the price of every other commodity has gone up. The overall result is that there is less money in people’s pockets.

Hon. Opposition Members: Hear, hear!

Dr Musokotwane: Sir, I have talked about the key things such as employment and money which moved the people of Zambia to support the PF. The other factor that moved the people were the promises on good governance. What has happened is a complete disaster. For the first time in the history of this country, the lawyers are rebellious. They have no confidence in the Judiciary of this country. Can that be good governance?

Hon. Opposition Members: No.

Dr Musokotwane: Mr Speaker, for the first time in the history of this country, the politicians want to appoint traditional leaders, yet these traditional systems have been very good at choosing leaders. At least, they have never put in place a governance system which is as bad as that of the PF.

Hon. Opposition Members: That is right.

Dr Musokotwane: Sir, our traditional systems have been very good at choosing leaders but, today, the politicians want to interfere. Is that good governance?

Hon. Opposition Members: No.

Dr Musokotwane: Mr Speaker, for the first time in the history of this country, we heard an hon. Minister state that those hon. Members of Parliament who wanted to go to their constituencies should first ask for permission from the police. Is that good governance?

Hon. Opposition Members: No.

Dr Musokotwane: Mr Speaker, these people say that they want competition, but when members of the Opposition want to hold rallies …

Mr Nkombo: On a point of Order, Sir.

Mr Deputy Speaker: A point of order is raised.

Interruptions

Mr Nkombo: Sir, I actually hate doing what I am doing, but I am compelled to rise on this point of order. The hon. Member who is debating is touching on very pertinent governance issues and is making references to the departments under the hon. Ministers of Justice and Home Affairs.

Mr Mwiimbu: They have all run away.

Mr Nkombo: Sir, we have been lamenting the fleeing of hon. Ministers from this Chamber for the past three days in a row when we know that Parliament business takes precedence over all other business. Are they in order to continue defying the Chief Whip’s counsel and, indeed, your counsel to make sure that they sit here to hear the deliberations of hon. Members of Parliament so that they can respond intelligently when their time comes? There are only four out of twenty hon. Ministers in this Chamber at this moment.

I need your serious ruling, Sir.

Mr Deputy Speaker: Well, it is good that the Chief Whip is here. We will keep on saying the same things that were said yesterday.

Interruptions

Mr Deputy Speaker: Order!

We have repeatedly guided that it is not in order for hon. Ministers to be absent and that the Chief Whip should take this matter up. I recall that, yesterday, the Hon. Mr Speaker indicated that there is a Committee of Privileges and Absence to which the Chief Whip might consider referring the matter to if the hon. Ministers disobey him. So, that issue is being looked into. It is important that they should be around.

Dr Musokotwane: Mr Speaker, I could go on and on listing the transgressions of good governance by the PF, including political violence against its opponents.

Hon. Opposition Members: Hear, hear!

 Dr Musokotwane: However, what I want to say in the remaining time is that as a result of these failings, this Government has very quickly changed from being loved to be one of the most hated governments in the history of this country.

Hon. Opposition Members: Hear, hear!

Mr Livune: In Africa.

Mr Ng’onga: Question!

Dr Musokotwane: Mr Speaker, if you read through the newspapers, you will realise that the Government is insulted …

Mr Deputy Speaker: Your time is up.

Hon. Opposition Members: No.

Dr Musokotwane: It is not.

Mr Deputy Speaker: I am sorry.

Laughter

Mr Deputy Speaker: Order!

This is the problem that is created when you write several notes to me and in the process of trying to respond to the notes, I get distracted.

Hon. Opposition Members: Hear, hear!

Business was suspended from 1045 hours until 1100 hours.{mospagebreak}

[THE DEPUTY CHAIRPERSON OF COMMITTEES in the Chair]

Dr Musokotwane: Sir, I was just winding up although some of my time was taken away. I was saying that the PF which was so loved and was being showered with praises has now turned into a party which is hated so much. If you went to bus stations, bars and funerals, you would realise that people now hate the PF.

Hon. Opposition Members: Hear, hear!

The Vice-President: On a point of Order, Sir.

The Deputy Chairperson: A point of order is raised.

The Vice-President: Sir, is the former hon. Minister of Finance …

The Deputy Chairperson: Order!

The Vice-President: … who was used to drawing two salaries in order to suggest that he has even seen the inside of a minibus?

I need your serious ruling, Sir.

Hon. Government Members: Hear, hear!

The Deputy Chairperson: Can you come again.

The Vice-President: Sir, is the hon. Member in order to suggest he travels by minibus for the sake of misleading us that he is a common man?

Hon. Members: Hear, hear!

The Deputy Chairperson: Can the hon. Member continue.

Hon. Opposition Members: Hear, hear!
 
Dr Musokotwane: Mr Speaker, I thank you. That point of order was, indeed, not worth responding to.

Hon. Government Member: Question!

Dr Musokotwane: I think my colleagues from the PF need to sincerely ask themselves what has gone wrong. In my view, the problem is that they made promises which they have failed to honour. We all remember that during the campaign period when the President had gone to Barotseland, he stated that he was a Linyungandambo and that during his reign as President he would make sure that the Barosteland Agreement was operationalised. However, when he became President he began arresting people who were supporting the Linyungandambo. These are the things that people are complaining about.

Interruptions

Dr Musokotwane: Mr Speaker, when you assure the people that you are going to rule by the Catholic principles and later you do the opposite, that creates problems.

The Deputy Chairperson: Order!

Dr Musokotwane: I thank you, Mr Speaker.

Hon. Opposition Members: Hear, hear!

Mr Mwiimbu (Monze Central): Mr Speaker, I thank you for according me this opportunity to debate on the President’s Speech that was delivered by His Excellency the President of the Republic of Zambia in this House.

Mr Mucheleka: On a point of order, Sir.

Mr Mwiimbu: Mr Speaker, before I debate the Motion on the President’s Speech, I would like to, first and foremost, thank my endorsement manager, Hon. Charles Kakoma …

Mr Kakoma: Hear, hear!

Mr Mwiimbu: … who has decided to spearhead my endorsement for 2016 despite the fact that I have only served two years of my five-year term.

Hon. UPND Members: Hear, hear!

Mr Mwiimbu: Mr Speaker, it is very unusual in our political dispensation for such things to happen.

Laughter

Mr Mwiimbu: I also want to thank my colleagues who prayed for me after my accident. The prayers have been received by the good Lord …

Mr Nkombo: Amen.

Mr Mwiimbu: … and I am recovering well. I also want to state that in the two weeks that I was in the hospital, I enjoyed my political rights. I had no fear of being arrested for not having permission from the police to be visited by a number of people. Thus, a lot of people visited me.

Mr Speaker, only then did I realise that in Zambia, human rights are enjoyed in hospitals and possibly prisons. 

Laughter

Mr  Mwiimbu: Out here, there is always the threat of being arrested.

Hon. Government Members: Aah!

Mr Mwiimbu: Mr Speaker, I have listened to the debates of my colleagues who have been praising the PF Government for the wonderful developmental projects that have taken place in the country. I have noted with envy that in certain areas, a lot of development activities are taking place. Alas, in my province, the Southern Province, …

Mr  Kambwili: Question!

Mr  Mwiimbu: … nothing much is going on.

Sir, I wish to bring to the attention the various concerns we have been raising to the various Governments from the time of the United National Independence Party (UNIP), the Movement for Multi-party Democracy (MMD) and now the PF.

Sir, I thought that as the President was addressing the nation, these concerns of the people of the Southern Province would be tackled. We are all aware that the Southern Province has become arid. Hon. Members of Parliament from the Southern Province have been praying and pleading with the Government of the Republic of Zambia to ensure that the people of the Southern Province are provided with requisite water for irrigation. Alas, the promises that have been given by the various governments have not come to fruition.

Mr Speaker, we are all aware that the people of the Southern Province, especially those of the Gwembe Valley who were displaced as a result of the construction of the Kariba Dam, are living in mountainous areas where they cannot do any reasonable agricultural activities.

Hon. UPND Members: Hear, hear!

Mr Mwiimbu: We have pleaded with the Government to construct dams to enable these poor people to engage in reasonable agricultural activities. Nothing has happened. I thought that the President would specifically address the plight of the people of the Gwembe valley.

We have always pleaded for the Bottom Road to be upgraded to bituminous standard. To date, nothing has happened.

Hon. PF Members: Question!

Mr Mwiimbu: Mr Speaker, I know that a number of people fight for independence. Sadly, some people fight for the independence of wisdom. As a result of this fight for the independence of wisdom, they cannot see anything tangible and worth discussing.

Mr Speaker, what I am saying is that the Government merely grades the Bottom Road. It never tars it. 

Interruptions

Mr  Mwiimbu: Can anyone tell me which part of the Bottom Road has been tarred …

Mr  Kakoma: And how many kilometres!

Mr  Mwiimbu: … and how many kilometres?

Mr  Livune: Raise up your hands!

Mr  Mwiimbu: Sir, no kilometre has been tarred. 

Mr  Mukanga: On a point of order, Sir.

The Deputy Chairperson: A point of order is raised.

Mr  Mukanga: Mr Speaker, I rarely rise on points of order.

Is the hon. Member who is debating in the manner that he is in order not to realise that the Bottom Road is part of the Link Zambia 8,000 km  Road Project, a project that will raise the quality of the roads from whatever state they are into a bituminous standard?

Is he in order to debate like that when the Government is spending millions of kwacha trying to improve the lives of the people of the Southern Province?

Hon. PF Members: Hear, hear!

The Deputy Chairperson: Order!

The ruling is that the hon. Member should take that submission into account as he continues with his debate.

You may proceed.

Mr  Mwiimbu: Mr Speaker, there is a saying in English that if wishes were horses, beggars would ride them. 

Mr  Livune: Who is the beggar?

Mr Mwiimbu: The situation obtaining now is that not even a metre of the Bottom Road has been tarred. That is the fact. We are not going to live on promises.

Hon. Opposition Members: Hear, hear!

Mr Mwiimbu: We hope that the people of Gwembe Valley will benefit like the other people of this country. That is all we are saying.

 Hon. Opposition Members: Hear, hear!

Mr Mwiimbu: Sir, we have always said that the roads which are linked to the Bottom Road such as the Kalomo/Kabanga, Mapatizya, Thoma/Masuku/Bottom roads and Chisekesi/Chipepo Road, should be tarred to enhance development in these areas. Nothing is being done. We have been pleading that the road from Kalomo to Dundumwezi, up to the national park, the so-called Kafue Loop, be tarred. Nothing has been done in that regard.
 
Hon. Opposition Members: Hear, hear!

Mr Mwiimbu: This is the cry of the people of the Southern Province. This is what we are pleading for.

Mr Speaker, we have been pleading on the Floor of this House that the Kafue/Mazabuka Road be tarred. We have lost a number of lives on this particular road and, to date, nothing has been done. How do you expect us to start singing praises that the PF is doing well when we are not seeing any tangible works being done?

Mr  Livune: It can’t never!

Laughter

Mr Mwiimbu: Mr Speaker, the mainstay of the people of the Southern Province is agriculture. We have been raising issues on the Floor of this House, beginning with the chaotic marketing procedures of this Government. We advised the Government not to delay the purchase of maize from the Southern Province because it would not be able to buy any through the Food Reserve Agency (FRA), if it delayed.

Hon. Opposition Members: Hear, hear!

Mr  Mwiimbu: Our advice fell on deaf ears.

The FRA has now realised that most of the maize that was available in the Southern Province has been bought by Zimbabwean businessmen. The agency only managed to buy 46 bags from the Milile Depot in Monze, which was the hub of the Southern Province. You have put the food security of this country at risk. You should have listened to our advice.

Mr Speaker, on the Floor of this House, the hon. Minister of Agriculture and Livestock and His Honour the Vice-President indicated that the chaotic input distribution that took place in the last two years would not recur this year. As I speak, in Monze and other districts that produce maize, no inputs have been distributed, and yet the rainy season is a few weeks away. Do you honestly think that, next year, the country will be food secure? It cannot be because of the manner in which you have managed issues of agriculture in this country. 

We advise the PF Government because we have the interest of people at heart. The people of the Southern Province and other rural provinces thrive on agriculture, but are being told not to worry about top dressing fertiliser which might come in December or January. However, we have to take note that in some areas it has already started raining. In areas like Mwinilunga, Luapula and Solwezi, people are planting.

Hon. Opposition Members: Hear, hear!

Mr Livune: In Bahati!

Laughter

Mr Mwiimbu: Mr Speaker, if there is no top dressing fertiliser, that crop that has been planted will be destroyed. The recklessness in the management of the food security in this country leaves much to be desired.

Sir, on the Floor of this House, His Honour the Vice-President and other hon. Ministers were proudly informing us and the nation that, for the first time, the PF Government had raised the salaries of public workers to unprecedented levels. We told them that we had seen the collective agreements that were signed between the Government of the Republic of Zambia and the workers. We told them that the highest civil servant was going to get a 4 per cent salary increment, but they refused. They were saying that they had given increments of more than 200 per cent in certain cases.  As a result of those assurances which were made on the Floor of this House and other fora, workers have gone on strike after only getting an increment of 4 per cent and, for some even less than that.

Hon. Opposition Members: Sorry!

Mr Mwiimbu: The nurses who are supposed to protect the lives of our patients in hospitals have withdrawn their labour. We have endangered the lives of our people because of the reckless statements we have been making on the Floor of this House and outside this House.

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

Mr Mwiimbu: Why should we continue hoodwinking the people of this country?

Hon. Opposition Members: Hear, hear!

Mr Mwiimbu: The teachers are also threatening to go on strike because they were also misled that they were going to get a 200 per cent increment which they have not been given.

Sir, when the Local Government Service Commissioner (LGSC) was being introduced, some of us who have served in the local government service before, advised against the decision of the Government to make councils responsible for finding money to pay its employees without any corresponding financing to the local authorities. What has happened now, Mr Speaker, is a disaster. The Government has failed to finance local authorities for almost three months now.

Hon. Opposition Members: Oh, oh! Local authorities!

Mr Mwiimbu: Most of the workers have now gone on strike, thus, threatening the lives of the people in various constituencies and townships.

Mr Livune: Shame!

Mr Mwiimbu: Mr Speaker, why should our colleagues not honour the obligations to the people of this country? They are behaving as if they are not in Government. It seems as if they want to be in the Opposition which provides checks and balances when it is their responsibility to govern this country.

Sir, for the first time since I came into Parliament, I have realised with concern that Permanent Secretaries (PSs) in the PF Government, have become more powerful than hon. Cabinet Ministers.

Mr Mbewe: Shame!

Mr Mwiimbu: At the moment, the PSs are issuing policy statements. They have the audacity even to condemn hon. Ministers in the media. It is unprecedented.

Hon. Opposition Members: Hear, hear! Shame!

Mr Mwiimbu: We have heard of situations where a PS makes appointments of a board in companies …

Mr L. J. Ngoma: Sorry! Where is the hon. Minister?

Mr Mwiimbu: … and later on, …

Mr Mwanza: Mwansa Kapeya!

Mr Mwiimbu: … the board is called to ratify.

His Honour the Vice-President is asking me to give an example. The PS in the Ministry of Information and Broadcasting announced the appointment of the Managing Director of the Zambia Daily Mail, before the board sat to make the appointment.

Mr Livune: That is right!

Mr Mwiimbu: That is what happened. At least, I would have been more tolerant if it was the hon. Minister who made that statement. Unfortunately, it was a civil servant making such a pronouncement.

Hon. Opposition Members: The hon. Minister had seen this!

Mr Mwiimbu: The hon. Minister was quiet and did not even rebuke the PS.

Interruptions

Mr Livune: He is even laughing!

Mr Mwiimbu: Sir, we have noted with concern the PS in the Ministry of Information and Broadcasting castigating party cadres as if he was a party cadre himself. It is very unprecedented.

Mr Mbulakulima: Is he a politician?

Mr Mwiimbu: Sir, that is very unusual. That is not how the Government operates. Why should His Honour the Vice-President and other hon. Ministers allow this sad milieu to continue obtaining in the Government? It is very unfortunate. Can you put your house in order, hon. Government Members?

Hon. Opposition Members: Hear, hear!

Mr Mwiimbu: Mr Speaker, finally, we were told on the Floor of this House by the former Minister of Justice that the Technical Committee that is dealing with the Constitution-making process was not appointed under the Inquiries Act, but under the Constitution of Zambia by the President of the Republic of Zambia.

Yesterday, we were informed that that committee was appointed under the Inquiries Act. The repercussions and admission by the Government of that pronouncement that that Technical Committee was appointed under the Inquires Act are too ghastly to contemplate. This is because under the Inquiries Act, the President has no obligation to accept the recommendations of the Technical Committee. He can decide to ignore a recommendation from the Technical Committe.

Mr Speaker, from what I have been hearing from the senior members of the PF about the good things which we used to agree on together when they were in the Opposition, they have decided to shift goal posts. They have been telling me that they behave like rain which you cannot predict whether it will rain in July or December.

Laughter

Mr Mwiimbu: They have changed their stance and position pertaining to the Constitution of the Republic of Zambia. I am a very sad person …

The Deputy Chairperson: Order!

The hon. Member’s time has expired.

Ms Sayifwanda (Zambezi East): Mr Speaker, thank you very much. I am going to confine myself to gender issues, governance, violence and development.

Sir, may I take this opportunity also to add my voice in congratulating the newly-elected Members of Parliament, both on your left and right side. However, special congratulations go to Hon. Mtolo for building the pride of the MMD Party. You have recorded your name on the list of heroes.

Hon. MMD Members: Hear, hear!

Ms Sayifwanda: Well done, Hon. Mtolo!

Hon. MMD Members: Hear, hear!

Ms Sayifwanda: Mr Speaker, I would also like to congratulate Hon. Lombanya in a special way. His victory has sent a message to the people on your right. The message is that they should watch out. The people of the North-Western Province have decided. I can not forget to also welcome the only woman among the new hon. Members of Parliament. I have been advising the PF to field more women, and they thought I was just joking. However, when they did what I told them, a woman emerged victorious. This shows that there is power in a woman. To you my sister, congratulations and welcome.

Mr Livune: Question!

Hon. Opposition Members: Hear, hear!

Ms Sayifwanda: Mr Speaker, in the past two years, the PF has been staging forced by-elections, and here now we have a special woman. I would like to assure you that you have a special place in my heart because you have increased the meagre number of women in this Chamber. You have also restored our pride as women. We will always cherish you, Hon. Mphande.

Hon. MMD Member: Dora Siliya is coming.

Ms Sayifwanda: Do not hesitate to consult us whenever you are in trouble. Our hearts are open. You are here to add your voice to the fight against the inequality against women out there who have always worked hard to make the face of mother Zambia shine and yet they are never appreciated.

Mr Speaker, knowing well that you are a believer, together we shall remove that dark cloud over the Zambian women.

Sir, let me now turn to page 2 of the President’s Speech. Here, the President praised the hon. Minister of Tourism and Art for having been behind Zambia’s successfully co-hosting with Zimbabwe, the highest ever attended United Nations World Tourism Organisation (UNWTO) General Assembly. If I may ask, who is behind that ministry? It is a woman.

Mr Sikazwe: Question!

Ms Sayifwanda: Mr Speaker, it has taken a woman to perform wonders for this nation. We are all proud of her achievements. Sadly, when it comes to appointments, women are often marginalised. For example, out of the eight nominated hon. Members of Parliament to this House, none of them are women. It is a shame!

Sir, so many hon. Ministers have been dropped and replaced with men. Where are the women? On your right side, there are great women who struggled to bring the PF into power.

Mr Chitotela: They are in Foreign Service.

Ms Sayifwanda: Mr Speaker, some women were even arrested while others were used to manage the imposed by-elections. Unfortunately, their efforts have never been recognised. Hon. Jean Kapata has performed wonders in all these by-elections where men have failed, but she has never been recognised by being appointed to a Cabinet portfolio. Is it because she is from the North-Western Province?

Hon. Opposition Members: Hear, hear!

Ms Sayifwanda: Mr Speaker, it is very unfortunate that the PF Government has decided to take such a stance concerning the appointing women as full Cabinet Ministers. It would have been better if Hon. Jean Kapata was appointed as a Cabinet Minister because she can even do better than some of the men in Cabinet.

Hon. Opposition Members: Hear, hear!

Ms Sayifwanda: Mr Speaker, this Speech …

Ms Kawandami: On a point of order, Sir.

The Deputy Chairperson: A point of order is raised.

Hon. Opposition Members: A woman raising a point of order on a fellow woman.

Ms Kawandami: Mr Speaker, is the hon. Member of Parliament, who has been speaking so well for the women, in order to fall by the wayside and start criticising other women who are in these senior positions?

Interruptions

The Deputy Chairperson: Order!

The serious ruling is that, I understood the contribution from the hon. Member for Zambezi East to be making a general comparison without emphasising that it is the women who are under-performing. To the extent that she did not discriminate, I think that she is in order.

Ms Sayifwanda: Mr Speaker, thank you. I was saying that I have read this Speech from the beginning up to the end. There is no mention of gender and women empowerment. I wonder how the hon. Minister of Gender and Child Development is going to run the women’s affairs in this nation.

Sir, let me take you back to 2006. I have the speeches that were delivered then by that great man, late President Levy Patrick Mwanawasa, SC., who will forever be missed in the North-Western Province. May his soul rest in eternal peace.

Mr Speaker, in 2006, the late President made sure that women’s issues were discussed under a stand-alone topic, and that women’s needs were catered for. On page 43 of that Speech, the topic or sub-heading was gender and development. This man had a vision for women in this nation. He believed that they are the majority voters in this nation. I can even read part of that Speech on page 43. It reads:

“Mr Speaker, in my Address during the Official Opening of the last Session of the National Assembly, I emphasised the ever-increasing commitment of the Government to the empowerment of women in order to redress gender inequality and imbalances in this nation.”

Mr Speaker, women of this country shall miss that great man.  In 2008, on page 70 of the President’s Speech, gender and development also had a stand alone theme and carried the same message as before. However, in the 2013 President’s Address made in September, there was no mention of a woman in the whole document. Maybe, someone can guide me to where there is a mention of a woman in this booklet (holding up the President’s Speech).

Mr Livune: On a point of order, Sir.

Interruptions

The Deputy Chairperson: Order!

A point of order is raised.

Mr Livune: Mr Speaker, is the hon. Member debating on the Floor in order not to tell this House who the man who has no vision for women is because she has told us that the only one who had a vision for women was the late President Mwanawasa, SC.?

Laughter

The Deputy Chairperson: She is in order to debate the way she is doing.

Hon. Members: Hear, hear!

Ms Sayifwanda: Mr Speaker, thank you very much for that protection.

Mr Speaker, when the MMD under the leadership of His Excellency the President Rupiah Bwezani Banda left the Government, it left the first ever budgetary line for gender and women empowerment. To start with it was a K5 billion, which was not enough. In the second year, it was K10 billion which was still not enough for the whole nation in terms of addressing gender affairs. The MMD Government was on the right path to ensuring that women had something to do in this nation.

Mr Speaker, however, this time around, things are different. The Ministry of Gender and Child Development is being given an allocation that is equal to that of a section in other ministries. This is a very serious issue. I am that woman who does not just politicise everything and I am bringing out real issues. It is up to our colleagues to take the advice I am giving them or to leave it. However, I am telling you that these people here (pointing at hon. Opposition Members) will be that side and those will come back to where they belong.

Hon. Opposition Members: Hear, hear!

Interruptions

Ms Sayifwanda: Mr Speaker, as I have already stated, women are the majority voters in this nation. Unfortunately, the President had no message for them in his last address to this House. He did not even give policy guidance to the hon. Minister on how she is going to run the women’s affairs in this nation.

Dr Kaingu: She has no idea.

Ms Sayifwanda: Therefore, the women are going to respond at the right time, which is in September, 2016.

Laughter

Mr Livune: We shall kick them out.

The Deputy Chairperson: Order!

That is not consulting less loudly. You are louder than the person on the Floor.

Ms Sayifwanda: Mr Speaker, could I also mention that …

Ms Kapata entered the Assembly Chamber.

Hon. Opposition Members: Jean! Jean!

Ms Sayifwanda: … the PF Government should take into consideration what is happening in the North-Western Province. The people in the North-Western and Western provinces vote in the same fashion. When the Western Province decides to do something, the North-Western Province will also follow. Let me say they are twins.

Hon. Opposition Members: Hear, hear!

Ms Sayifwanda: Mr Speaker, I want to assure the people on your right that if they continue with their present attitude towards national issues, they will not even retain the three or four seats they have in the Western and North-Western provinces in 2016.

Hon. Opposition Members: Hear, hear!

Ms Sayifwanda: Mr Speaker, let me now talk about governance. On page 2 of his Speech, the President says that he wants the Golden Jubilee Independence celebrations to be based on a theme about continued peace, unity and democracy. I would like to ask His Honour the Vice-President, who is not here right now, when he comes to wind up this Motion, to explain to the people of Zambezi East and the North-Western Province as a whole, what has happened to the Ten Commandments. In 2011, we were told that the PF Government was going to rule by the Ten Commandments. What has happened to the Ten Commandments? Let me simplify my question. How many commandments out of the ten have been followed in the past two years of the PF Government?

Hon. Opposition Members: None!

Ms Sayifwanda: If any, which ones are these?

Mr Speaker, talking about peace, is there any real peace in this nation?

Hon. Opposition Members: No!

Ms Sayifwanda: Sir, if people are being harassed and killed, where is the peace? I am talking of the Kampasa incident and that of the late Hon. Chella, may his soul rest in peace. All the political leaders of the MMD and United Party for National Development (UPND) are always in police cells and offices. Now, which unity are we talking about?

Interruptions

Ms Sayifwanda: Mr Speaker, I am longing for that time when we shall have a President who will come and call on …

Prof. Luo: On a point of order, Sir.

The Deputy Chairperson: A point of order is raised.

Prof. Luo: Mr Speaker, as you know, I have spent many of my years investing in issues regarding woman empowerment. That is why I feel compelled to raise a point of order. Is the hon. Member of Parliament debating, who is my young sister, in order to come to this House and forget so easily to state that the MMD sent Hon. Jean Kapata and Mumbi Phiri to prison over trivial issues? I need a serious ruling.

Interruptions

The Deputy Chairperson: Order!

May the hon. Member continue, please.

Hon. Opposition Members: Hear, hear!

Ms Sayifwanda: Mr Speaker, I think I mentioned the arrest of Hon. Jean Kapata. However, she is being misused by the PF Government who keep sending her to manage imposed by-elections. Even after winning, they do not thank her.

Interruptions

The Deputy Chairperson: Order!

May you, please, address the Speaker. That is the only way …

Mrs Kawandami: On a point of order, Mr Speaker.

Interruptions

The Deputy Chairperson: Order!

The hon. Member may proceed.

Ms Sayifwanda: Mr Speaker, it is very unfortunate that when I was raising the issue of upgrading the Gender Division to a ministry, it is the women who were against me, but now it is the same women who are enjoying its services. Now, when I am speaking on their behalf, it should, again, take the same women …

Mr Mucheleka: On a point of order, Sir.

The Deputy Chairperson: A point of order is raised.

Mr Mucheleka: Mr Speaker, I need your serious ruling. I am very saddened that while the hon. Member of Parliament, who is debating so well, is supporting her fellow women, they are against her. Are they in order?

Interruptions

The Deputy Chairperson: Order!

The hon. Member for Zambezi East may continue.

Ms Sayifwanda: Mr Speaker, last August, some hon. Members of Parliament walked from Chingola to Solwezi in protest ...

Interruptions{mospagebreak}

Mr Ng’onga: Question!

Ms Sayifwanda: … over the bad state of Chingola/Solwezi Road and other developmental issues in the province. I was shocked to learn that some hon. Ministers were defending the Government position that there was a contract already signed for the rehabilitation of the road. Where is that contract?

Mr Speaker, the Government decided to pave the road instead of upgrading it to a dual carriageway. Are the people of the North-Western Province, honestly, supposed to be subjected to such a level of development?

Hon. Opposition Member: No!

Ms Sayifwanda: They are going to respond at an appropriate time ...

Hon. Opposition Members: 2016!

Ms Sayifwanda: … in 2016.

Mr Speaker, let me now come to Zambezi East. The people of Zambezi East have a question to ask that Government. The Government officials were going around the country to justify the removal of subsidies. The people were told that the money is supposed to go to road infrastructure, health and education. However, in Zambezi District, not even a single feeder road is on the list of the roads earmarked for construction under the Link Zambia 8000 km Road Project. Where has the money withdrawn from subsidies gone?

Mr Speaker, as I speak, Zambezi Secondary School has collapsed …

Mr Mpundu: It is witchcraft …

Ms Sayifwanda: … and the Government is quiet.

Hon. Opposition Members: Hear, hear!

Ms Sayifwanda: Mr Speaker, I am really disappointed. May I also say that come 2016, September, at 1200 hours, this woman (pointing at herself) will be celebrating her third term here in this Chamber.

Hon. Opposition Members: Hear, hear!

Ms Sayifwanda: I want that side to field 20 men to challenge me. They are going to have a shock of their lives.

I thank you, Sir.

Hon. Opposition Members: Hear, hear!

Mr Evans (Livingstone Central): Mr Speaker, I thank you for giving me this opportunity to add a word to the Motion on the Floor. First of all, I would like to express my sincere condolences to the Sakeni family and the people of Mansa on the loss of Hon. Sakeni.

Mr Speaker, I note with, disappointment, that there are hon. Members of Parliament in the House that cannot still appreciate the works that the PF Government has undertaken in the two years it has been in power.

Hon. Government Members: Hear, hear!

Mr Evans: Mr Speaker, allow me, at this time, to draw this august House close to Livingstone where the PF Government has undertaken a number of projects. Some of the projects are ongoing.

Mr Speaker, before the PF Government came into power, the people of Livingstone were subjected to a standard of life which they were not entitled to. Infrastructure in Livingstone was left in a dilapidated state. The place literally had no roads at all. However, when the PF Government came into power, it saw it necessary to bring development closer to the people of Livingstone.

Mr Speaker, first of all, I will start at the entry point. Livingstone plays a very important role in our trade as it is a gateway to the south. It is actually embarrassing that, before the PF Government came into power, we had no roads at all in Livingstone. The main road itself was named by the people of Livingstone as the Bubblegum Road. You would actually wonder what criteria our predecessors used to sign the certificates for the contractors that worked on those roads. However, when the PF Government came into power, it saw it necessary to bring development close to the people.

Mr Speaker, the Victoria Falls is one of the seven natural wonders of the world and is now declared a national heritage site. The people selling curios at the Victoria Falls used to sell them in tuntembas or makeshift shops. When the PF Government came into power, it saw it necessary to quickly build curio shops. Today, I am proud to say that tourists that come from across the world can come around and go into these shops and buy their curios.

Mr Speaker, Mukuni Village is a tourist attraction. When people come from around the world, they would like to see how Africans live. For a long time, the Mukuni Road, after independence was never tarred. Our predecessors were in power for twenty years and never attended to this road. The PF Government has only been in power for two years and, today, I am proud to say to you that the road has been tarred.

Hon. Government Members: Hear, hear!

Mr Evans: I am sure that the tarring of the road will be extended to the people of Katombola who share their boundary with me.

Hon. Government Members: Hear, hear! Livune! Livune!

Hon. Government Member: Tautasha!

Mr Evans: Today, our tourists can go to Mukuni and come back as clean as they went. Before, when you drove on that Mukuni Road, you would be covered with dust on your head and clothes.

Mr Speaker, before the PF Government came into power, the MMD Government had …

Interruptions

The Deputy Chairperson: Order!

Mr Evans: Mr Speaker, before the MMD Government came into power, we had the Maramba Cultural Village. As young people that were growing up in Livingstone, that is where we could go and learn our culture. However, when our predecessors came into power, they ran that place down completely. Today, you cannot even see that that there was a cultural village in the place where it used to be.

Mr Speaker, when the PF Government came into power, it saw it necessary to build another cultural village on Sichango Road.

Hon. Government Members: Hear, hear!

Ms Namugala indicated dissent.

Mr Evans: Sir, today, I am proud to say that youths now have a place where they can go in Livingstone to learn about culture.

Mr Chipungu: What culture?

Mr Evans: Mr Speaker, under the UNIP Government, the whole street from National Milling to the suburbs was lit up. You could literally see a person who was walking a kilometre away. However, when our predecessors came into power, …

Hon. Government Member: They destroyed!

Mr Evans: … they destroyed all that. Today, I am happy to tell this august House that when the PF Government came into power, it lit up all the streets of Livingstone.

Mr Livune: Question!

Hon. Government Members: Hear, hear!

Mr Evans: Mr Speaker, let me say that when you drive on the Nakatindi Road, you will find things which will catch your eye. You can never drive there without noticing what is happening on the left hand side at the Villa Grounds.

Mr Speaker, for a long time, Livingstone has had no international bus terminus.

Hon. Government Members: It is true!

Mr Evans: Mr Speaker, I can assure this august House that in the next two or three months, Livingstone will have an international bus terminus.

Hon. Government Members: Hear, hear!

Mr Evans: Mr Speaker, that is the development that has come to my constituency. I am sure that the hon. Member who drives to Mwandi, at times, wonders what is happening there as he drives past.

Laughter

Mr Evans: Mr Speaker, for a long time in Livingstone …

Dr Kaingu: On a point of order, Sir.

The Deputy Chairperson: Order!

A point of order is raised.

Dr Kaingu: Mr Speaker, I do not know whether this hon. Member of Parliament is really from Livingstone or whether he has lived in Livingstone or he has come from somewhere else, maybe, Canada. Is he in order to say that the Maramba Cultural Centre was built by them when the programme of building cultural centres in the whole country, including the Maramba Cultural Centre, was an MMD programme?

Hon. Government Members: Ah!

Dr Kaingu: Mr Speaker, is he in order to mislead this House?

The Deputy Chairperson: Order!

May Hon. Evans take that point of order into account as he continues debating.

Mr Evans: Mr Speaker, for a long time, when our predecessors were still in power, the people of Livingstone were denied a better life that they were entitled to. Today, I am proud to tell this august House that Livingstone is one of the cities that has one of the most beautiful airports in Zambia …

Hon. Government Members: Hear, hear!

Mr Evans: … and this is as a result of the hard work of the PF Government under the good leadership of His Excellency Michael Chilufya Sata.

Hon. Opposition Members: Question!

Mr Evans: Mr Speaker, yesterday, I went to my pigeonhole and found a magazine edited by the Permanent Secretary in the Ministry of Commerce, Trade and Industry, Mr Mwansa. If you looked in that magazine, you would find that the women in Livingstone used to trade at a market called Zimbabwe Market. They used to conduct their business in ramshackles or tuntembas. However, when the PF Government came into power, it saw it necessary to build a modern market. All these projects in Livingstone are ongoing and, as I stand here, they are changing the lives of the people. Thank God we have the PF in power.

Hon. Government Members: Hear, hear!

Mr Evans: Mr Speaker, there is a road called Simatobolo Highway …

Hon. Government Members: Ha?

Mr Evans: … which leads to a quarry site. That road has not been tarred since Independence. Today, I am very happy to tell this House that this road has been upgraded to bituminous standard. It has been tarred. This is as a result of the hard work of the PF Government.

Hon. Opposition Members: Question!

Mr Evans: Mr Speaker, the infrastructure that I am talking about is not a sand castle. I am talking about real buildings that will stand the test of time.

I thank you, Sir.

Hon. Government Members: Hear, hear!

Mr Kakoma (Zambezi West): Mr Speaker, I thank you for allowing me to contribute to this Motion of Thanks to His Excellency the President’s Speech.

Mr Speaker, first of all, let me join the many other hon. Members of Parliament in welcoming the new hon. Members to this House. In particular, I would like to single out the new hon. Member of Parliament for Solwezi East, Hon. Lombanya, who did us, the people in the North-Western Province proud.

Hon. Opposition Members: Hear, hear!

Mr Kakoma: Mr Speaker, by the UPND winning the Solwezi East seat, the North-Western Province effectively shut the door for the PF to enter that province.

Hon. Opposition Members: Hear, hear!

Mr Kakoma: Mr Speaker, it has also taught a lesson to those people who are being lured to join the PF Government. The lesson is that those people that are defecting will not get their way as it happened to the former hon. Member of Parliament who resigned and was not even adopted by the PF. He was dribbled and was not adopted. That is why you will find that now, not many hon. Members of Parliament are eager to defect to the PF.

Mr Speaker, we also learnt the lesson that when you take people for a ride in terms of development, sooner or later, they will teach you a lesson. The wealth that is coming from Solwezi, Kansanshi and Lumwana, which is not benefiting the people of the North-Western Province annoyed the people in the province. That is why they rejected the PF.

Ms Kapata: On a point of order, Sir.

Interruptions

The Deputy Chairperson: Order!

A point of order is raised.

Ms Kapata: Mr Speaker, I thank you for according me this opportunity to raise this very important point of order. Is the hon. Member who was debating on the Floor in order to say that the PF lost some of the by-elections when those seats were not for the party? Is he in order not to …

Hon. Opposition Members: Question!

Ms Kapata: … mention that those seats were not for the PF, but the MMD, and that the PF has never lost any of its seats? We have instead gained many seats. Is he in order? I need your serious ruling.

Hon. Government Members: Hear, hear!

The Deputy Chairperson: Order!

There is no need to make a ruling on that one. You may continue, Hon. Kakoma.

Mr Kakoma: Mr Speaker, I thank you for allowing me to continue with my debate. I would also like to thank Hon. Chitafu for Kafulafuta for doing the UPND proud. For the first time in the history of the UPND, it managed to win a seat on the Copperbelt, …

Hon. Opposition Members: Hear, hear!

Mr Kakoma: … a province that was considered to be a stronghold of the ruling PF.

Interruptions

Mr Kakoma: Mr Speaker, this election opened the door for the UPND on the Copperbelt. Right now, when you go to the Copperbelt, the talk on the streets is about the UPND and Mr Hakainde Hichilema.

Hon. Opposition Members: Hear, hear!

Mr Kakoma: Mr Speaker, I would like to welcome, …

Interruptions

The Deputy Chairperson: Order!

Mr Kakoma: … to this House, the hon. Member for Mkaika who is now popularly known as 9/1.

Hon. Opposition Members: Hear, hear!

Mr Kakoma: Mr Speaker, the 9-1 refers to the 9,000 votes that the Opposition got against the 1,000 votes that the PF got.

Hon. Opposition Members: Hear, hear!

Mr Kakoma: Mr Speaker, it was very embarrassing for a party that came to power barely two years ago to lose embarrassingly by that margin.

Hon. Opposition Members: It was whitewashed.

Mr Kakoma: Mr Speaker, it was whitewashed. Hon. Phiri, I would like to welcome you to this House. I would also like to welcome Hon. Mtolo who, again, did us proud in the Opposition because the Ruling Party wanted to enter the Eastern Province through Chipata Central. However, Hon. Mtolo and the Opposition worked so hard to shut that door. 
  
Mr Speaker, this goes to show the trend in the political development of this country. I would like to extend an invitation to all the hon. Members in this House, especially, hon. Members of Parliament from Lusaka, to the UPND rally which will be held in Mandevu on Sunday, 6th October, 2013, at Mutambe Grounds.

Hon. UPND Members: Hear, hear!

Mr Kakoma: You are going to see how the shape of Lusaka has changed in terms of politics.

Mr Nkombo: That is right!

Mr Kakoma: Mr Speaker, coming to the President’s Speech …

Mr Lubinda: On a point of order, Sir.

Hon. UPND Members: Aah!

The Deputy Chairperson: A point of order is raised.

Mr Lubinda: Mr Speaker, precedence was set in this House, in 2008, when an hon. Member of the Opposition was reprimanded for advertising a political rally, using this House. At that time, the hon. Member for Solwezi West was Deputy Chief Whip. Is my good friend, the hon. Member of Parliament for Zambezi West, Hon. Charles Kakoma, who is the UPND Spokesperson, in order to use this House to campaign for a political rally, and yet, he was here in 2008, when that precedent was set? I seek your very serious ruling.

Hon. Government Members: Hear, hear!

The Deputy Chairperson: My serious ruling is that the hon. Member debating should take that into account as he continues with the debate.

Hon. Opposition Members: Hear, hear! Long live the Chair!

Mr Kakoma: Mr Speaker, when the President was delivering his Speech to this House, I was out of the country. When I came back, I asked some of the people who attended the Official Opening of Parliament what the President had told this House and the nation. The response I got was that he said nothing.

Laughter

Mr Kakoma: I was not sure what they meant by saying that because people sat here for a number of hours listening to his Speech.

Mr Speaker, I took the trouble to go through this Speech. I actually found out that there was nothing worth talking about in the President’s Speech. This Speech simply told the story of the PF’s failure to govern this country in the last two years.

Hon. Opposition Members: Hear, hear!

Mr Kakoma: It also revealed to this nation that the PF Government lives in wonderland. The whole Government sat down to provide the falsehoods which are contained in the President’s Address.

Sir, let me give some examples. On page 27 of the President’s Speech, he talked about employment creation and said that this year, 316,000 jobs had been created in this economy.

Sir, for the past many years, formal sector employment in this country has remained stagnant, at around 500,000. To imagine that within this year, 316,000 jobs have been created, is fiction. If you create 316,000 jobs, which is more than half of the existing workforce, you can easily feel the impact. For example, if in terms of income, many of the people pay PAYE, you can go to Zambia Revenue Authority (ZRA) to find out whether of the additional 316,000 jobs, the PAYE contribution to the Treasury has gone up. So, how did the additional 316,000 enter the payroll without the workers contributing tax to the ZRA?

Mr Speaker, let me show you how big a number 316,000 is. Independence Stadium, Heroes Stadium and Levy Mwanawasa Stadium in Ndola, probably, take between 35,000 and 40,000 people. You would need nine of those stadiums to carter for 316,000 people. If 316,000 people were to be employed, very few youths would remain unemployed in Ndola and Lusaka. However, the fact that we still have youths roaming the streets means that these figures are false. I wonder why the whole Government sat down to concoct figures of employment in order to mislead the people of Zambia that it is working when, in fact, there are no jobs being created.

Sir, this Speech says that 110,000 jobs will be created from the multi-facility economic zones (MFEZs). I was privileged to have gone to these MFEZs. If you go to the one which is near the Airport in Lusaka East, you will notice that there are no jobs being created there. There are just two warehouses that have been built. There is no activity going on there. If you go to the Lusaka South MFEZ, there are no factories being built there to employ people. There are just roads that have been constructed. If you go to the Chambeshi MFEZ, you will not find all these people they are talking about. There is nothing.

Mr Speaker, it is hard to imagine from which sectors the jobs were created. The sector that has a highest potential for employment creation is the agricultural sector but, in 2013, it performed very badly in terms of growth. The output went down. How then could it contribute to more jobs being created?

Sir, the PF Government has been boasting of a GDP of 7.3 per cent, which has not translated into the creation of jobs. Therefore, this Government is misleading itself by believing that it is creating jobs when, in fact, not.

Mr Speaker, let me explain why I said that the President’s Speech exposed the failures of the Government in the last two years.

Sir, when talking about infrastructure, reference was made to the Link Zambia 8,000 km Road Project and Pave Zambia 2,000 km Road Project. I have a Speech for the year 2011 in which the President already talked about these projects. This is 2013, and the President is still coming to talk about the same projects which have not taken off.

An example is the road from Kaoma to Lukulu via Mumbeshi in Kabompo to Zambezi. His Honour the Vice-President misled us, on the Floor of this House, by telling us that the road had been worked on. I am just from using that road. The contractors are not even on site up to now, but they keep on talking about this road being worked on under the Link Zambia 8,000 km Road Project.

Mr Speaker, just a few days ago, people were talking about the Link Zambia 8,000 km Road Project in relation to the road from Manyinga in Kabompo to Mwinilunga. If you are to go there, you will see that there is nothing on the ground.

Sir, a few days ago, unfortunately, my sister, Hon. Jean Kapata, misled the House by saying that a road from Kaoma to Kasempa was being constructed under the Link Zambia 8,000 km Road Project, when nothing was being done on the ground. All the examples I have given have clearly shown that this Government is not performing.

Hon. Government Members: Question!

Mr Kakoma: It is a Government that is failing to implement projects. One of the biggest problems we have had in this country is that people only talk without action. This Government which came on the platform of action has failed to perform.

Hon. Opposition Member: Hear, hear!

Mr Kakoma: It has exposed itself as a Government that cannot deliver. Even in the health sector, the story is the same. Two years down the line, not even one of the 640 health posts which the Government has kept talking about …

Hon. Opposition Member: Two years.

Mr Kakoma: … has been constructed.

Mr Speaker, words alone are not going to make the Zambian people believe that this Government is working. We want tangible results and projects on the ground.

Hon. Opposition Member: Hear, hear!
 
Mr Kakoma: We do not want the President coming to the House every year and promising us the same projects. Repeating the same song is not going to help. We have already heard all of their promises.

Mr Speaker, they are even failing to fulfill their old promises such as putting more money in the people’s pocket, creating jobs and lowering taxes. They have run out of promises and are now going back to the same old songs.

Sir, the President’s Speech should have set the tone for the Budget that is coming. For example, when the late President Mwanawasa, SC., came to make the President’s Speech, he said they would introduce a windfall tax. That was setting a tone for the Budget and the hon. Minister then came and introduced the windfall tax.

Mr Speaker, the President did not give any policy direction regarding the Government’s resource mobilisation measures. All that is there is how the Government is going to spend money.

Hon. Opposition Member: Hear, hear!

Mr Kakoma: I hear that the His Honour the Vice-President said at a workshop that this Budget would focus on income redistribution.

Laughter

Mr Kakoma: Mr Speaker, bafuna kugabana ndalama zaboma.

Laughter

The Deputy Chairperson: What does that mean?

Mr Kakoma: Sir, it means, they are just sharing Government funds without telling us how they are going to generate additional funding to meet their additional careless expenditure.

Hon. Opposition Member: Bafuna kugabana.

Mr Kakoma: Sir, they just want to gabana the money for the Boma. They just want to share. That is not what we want contained in the President’s Address.

Mr Speaker, lastly, the President’s Speech created no hope for the people of the North-Western Province. The President talked about creating thirty new districts. Out of the thirty new districts, the North-Western Province only received one. That does not show that the Western Province will benefit sufficiently from the Decentralisation Policy because the resources will be shared by districts and the districts in the North-Western Province will be very few.
 
Hon. Opposition Member: Hear, hear!

Mr Kakoma: Mr Speaker, we can also see that the North-Western Province is nowhere near having one of the universities that the President talked about. Maybe it will get one after the PF Government has been kicked out of power.

Hon. Opposition Members: Hear, hear! Paul Mushindo.

Mr Kakoma: We have resources such as copper from the North-Western Province going out to other provinces to build universities like Paul Mushindo University. I do not even know who this Mushindo is …

Laughter

The Deputy Chairperson: Order! Your time has expired.

Mr Phiri (Mkaika): Mr Speaker, I wish to thank you for giving me this opportunity to make my maiden speech to this House.

Firstly, I wish to congratulate my fellow hon. Members of Parliament who, like me, entered the House after emerging winners in the September, 5th by-elections which were held in various parts of the country. I know it was not an easy battle, especially for those from the Opposition.

Hon. Opposition Members: Hear, hear!

Mr Phiri: Sir, what God has given to you, no one can take away.

Hon. Opposition Members: Amen!

Laughter

Mr Phiri: Mr Speaker, I bring with me the greetings from the constituents of Mkaika in Katete District in the Eastern Province of Zambia. The greetings have been extended to you, especially from traditional leaders, the clergy, the business community and all political parties found in my constituency, especially the PF membership who also assisted me to have a landslide victory.

Hon. Opposition Members: Hear, hear!{mospagebreak}

Mr Phiri: Allow me to thank the MMD’s National Executive Committee (NEC) for having confidence in me and eventually adopting me. May I extend my words of thanks to the provincial, district and constituency committees of the MMD for their collective efforts in supporting my candidature in Mkaika. My being here is evidence that they really reaped what they sowed.

Mr Speaker, special gratitude goes to my family members, friends, well-wishers, the MMD President, Dr Nevers Mumba, …

Hon. Government Members: Aah! He is not a doctor.

Mr Lubinda: It is Namugala.

Mr Phiri: … my campaign manager, Hon. Levy Ngoma and all hon. Members of Parliament who rendered their support to me during the campaigns.

Mr Speaker, Zambia is known world over as a Christian and peaceful nation. We need to respect each other regardless of the difference in political affiliation. May I refer to the level of political violence that characterised our by-elections.

Mr Speaker, why should there be violence during an election in a Christian nation? I wish to appeal to all political parties, especially the PF to preach peace during elections. As an elder in the Reformed Church of Zambia, I am allergic to violence and bloodshed of any nature. In Mkaika, there was no loss of life, but the level of political violence was alarming. This must be stopped.

Mr Speaker, according to the 2010 Census of Population and Housing, Mkaika Constituency has an estimated population of 95,918 people of whom more than half are women. The constituency has eight wards. Just like other constituencies in the country, Mkaika is among the least developed. There are many areas in the constituencies that require improvement. May I, therefore, take this opportunity to highlight some of the problems faced by the people in my constituency.

Water Supply and Sanitation

Mr Speaker, this is a big problem as it is affecting many people in Mkaika. There are not enough boreholes in the constituency. This has resulted in low access to safe drinking water. I wish to request the PF Government to drill more boreholes in Mkaika Constituency under the National Rural Water Supply and Sanitation Programme in order to improve access to water supply. For peri-urban and urban areas of my constituency, there is an urgent need for the construction of a dam to serve as a source for piped water supply.

Roads and Bridges

Mr Speaker, the road network in Mkaika is really poor and most of the bridges were washed away by the heavy rains. I wish to urge the Government to ensure that roads which are impassable and bridges which were washed away by the heavy rains are urgently maintained by the Road Development Agency (RDA). The Great East Road passes through the Katete Stores area, but there is no bus station there. During campaigns in the Mkaika By-election, the PF Government promised to construct a bus station in the constituency, especially at Katete Stores. The PF members even said that money for the same project was available. I hope and trust that the PF Government will fulfill the promise by releasing the money for the project quickly so that it can commence.

Interruptions

Mr Phiri: Mr Speaker, I am also asking the Government to consider tarring the busy road that links the Great East Road to St. Francis Hospital and the one that links Kalonga Gawa Undi’s Palace, where the Kulamba of the Chewa People of Zambia, Malawi and Mozambique takes place, to the Great East Road.

Mr Speaker, the Great East Road also needs serious attention because it is a danger to motorists and the people as it is in a poor state. Most of the accidents which occur on that road are not as a result of careless driving, but because of the poor state of the road.

Agriculture

Mr Speaker, agriculture is the main economic activity of the people of Mkaika Constituency. 95 per cent of the population depends mainly on agriculture for their livelihood. The reduction of the farming subsidies …

Interruptions

The Deputy Chairperson: Order! The consultations are rather too loud on my extreme right. You may proceed.

Mr Phiri: … under the Farmer Input Support Programme (FISP) will negatively affect subsistence farming as most of the farmers will not afford to buy a pack which is at K670. The late distribution of farming inputs and lack of markets for agriculture produce in some parts of the constituency is a general outcry. I hope the Government will address this problem urgently because under the MMD, we saw a very effective FISP, which resulted in two consecutive bumper harvests. This reduced the poverty levels in the country.

Hon. MMD Members: Hear, hear!

Mr Phiri: Mr Speaker, the Government has announced that it will introduce a programme for maize and fertiliser exchange. The people of Mkaika are asking the Government when this programme will start. Mkaika is one of the parts in the country where hunger is looming.

Health

Mr Speaker, it is not a secret that the provision of medical services is paramount to human life. In my constituency, we still lack health centres. People walk long distances to seek medical attention. May I take this opportunity to request the Government to put up more health centres in Mkaika Constituency.

Mr Speaker, the Katete Main Market is in a very poor state. I wish to appeal to the Government to construct a modern market and improve water supply and sanitation there. At present, the situation is pathetic and requires urgent attention.

Employment Creation

Mr Speaker, the PF promised Zambians to create employment for the youths within ninety days. It is sad to report to you that the level of unemployment in Mkaika Constituency is very high. Due to the lack of employment opportunities in Mkaika, youths are indulging themselves in delinquent activities which are a danger to their lives. I, therefore, urge the PF Government to create more jobs, especially for the youths in Mkaika so that they are protected from these vices.

Hon. MMD Members: Hear, hear!

Mr Phiri: Mr Speaker, education plays a very important role in the development of the country. In Katete, we only have two boarding schools and these are Katete Girls Boarding School and Kafumbwe Boarding School. It is my request that the Government considers constructing more boarding schools in the area. I am also appealing to the Government to consider electrifying Chisale Day Secondary School and funding the construction of the administration and classroom blocks at Katete Day Secondary, which had been initiated by the Parent-Teacher Association (PTA) at the school.

Sir, in conclusion, may I, once again, thank the people of Mkaika for voting for me and the MMD as a party for adopting me. I won not because the MMD had money, but as a result of the message we had for the people. I was also the best candidate.

Hon. MMD Members: Hear, hear!

Mr Phiri: Mr Speaker, I wish to assure my party, the MMD, that I will not cross the Floor. I will remain loyal to the party that sent me to this House.

Mr Speaker, I thank you.

Hon. MMD Members: Hear, hear!

Ms Namugala (Mafinga): Mr Speaker, I would like to take this opportunity to pass my condolences to the family of the late Hon. Sakeni, the PF and the nation at large. I would also like to take this opportunity to congratulate all the new hon. Members of Parliament, especially, my sister, Hon. Mpande, who has joined us.

Hon. Government Members: Hear, hear1

Ms Namugala: Mr Speaker, the Speech by the President means nothing if it does not make a meaningful difference in the lives of the people.

The President stated that the citizens of this land did not only deserve better, but are also entitled to better lives.

Mr Speaker, the PF Government has been talking about its achievements in the last two years which include the implementation of the Link Zambia 8,000 km Road Project and obtaining the Eurobond. Apart from the fact that these so-called achievements are not enough for a party that came into office on the platform of poverty reduction, I wish to state that they have not brought about any meaningful change.

Sir, the President said part of the Eurobond funds were used to recapitalise the Nitrogen Chemicals of Zambia (NCZ) …

Mr Muntanga: In Kafue.

Ms Namugala: … in Kafue. Is the President aware that this is just a small proportion of the entire Eurobond which was obtained at a great cost to the people of Zambia? Is he aware that the bond has overwhelmed his hon. Ministers? This is despite the Government continuing to pay colossal amounts in interest thereby creating a burden on an already struggling economy. The PF Government must admit that it does not have the capacity to manage the Eurobond.

Mr Livune: Repeat that point, mama.

Ms Namugala: Sir, the PF Government has no capacity to manage the Eurobond so as to create economic value for our people. It is sad that we, as a nation, can borrow and fail to fully utilise a loan which could have been used to reduce the impact of poverty in our country.

Mr Speaker, the President also talked about the need to diversify our economy. There is more need to diversify our economy now than ever before. Apart from the usual sectors of diversification which we have known to be manufacturing, agriculture and tourism, I note that our friends have included technology. This is a welcome move because as we know, technology can, in itself, be a driver of an economy as we have seen in countries such as Malaysia.

Sir, the pronouncements regarding the process of developing policies aimed at economic diversification started being made in 2000. Unfortunately, just like the MMD Government did, the PF has just been making pronouncements in this area. I want to say that for a party that promised to get into office running, talking is not enough. It needs to act. It needs to ensure that all the failures of past governments are taken into account so that the people of Zambia can have a better life.

Mr Speaker, for too long, we have depended on the mining sector and its contribution to our GDP.

Mr Nkombo: Hear, hear!

Ms Namugala: This cannot continue to be the case because, as we know, …

Mr Sikazwe:  We do not know.

Ms Namugala: Those who are interested will know that the mine with the longest lifespan has only got forty years. Forty years is the time that we can continue to derive economic value from our mineral resources. What happens after forty years? What happens if we do not fully diversify our economy?  Can we imagine our country without copper? Can we just for a moment imagine that Zambia is no longer mining and deriving its value from the mining sector? What will happen?

Mr Speaker, this Government has a duty to ensure that our people do not continue to live in squalor now and not even after forty years. We need to put resources in the sectors that can help to contribute to the GDP.  We need to put money in the agricultural and manufacturing sectors. We need to ensure that the tourism sector is not concentrated in one province only.  
     
Sir, our friends, the PF Government, should be asking themselves, as leaders, whether they have made a difference in the two years that they have been in power. What difference have they made in the lives of the people whom they promised better lives? What difference have they brought in the lives of the women who were dancing for them? What is the difference in the lives of the minibus drivers which the PF has created? Has the PF created any difference in the lives of the marketeers after two years of being in office? Has the PF forgotten about them? Has it achieved levels of success to the extent that it has forgotten that those that were in poverty in 2011 are still in poverty? Has it forgotten that because it has broken its promises, the people have no faith in political leadership?

Interruptions

Ms Namugala: Sir, the PF asked for the people of Zambia to give it an opportunity to make their lives better. Has it seized that opportunity? The answer is no.

Mr Sikazwe: Not yet.

Ms Namugala: Our people are living in worse poverty than they lived in before the PF took office.

Hon. Members: Hear, hear!

Ms Namugala: Mr Speaker, Mafinga, as a district, is very proud …

Prof. Luo: There are no buildings.

Ms Namugala: … because it is one of those districts that did not vote for the PF.

Mr Nkombo: On a point of order, Sir.

The Deputy Chairperson: A point of order is raised.

Mr Nkombo: Sir, Hon. Namugala is making very serious statements at this point. Not long ago, I stood on a point of order when hon. Cabinet Ministers were absent from their seats. Are the hon. Ministers, including the hon. Minister of Chiefs and Traditional Affairs and the hon. Minister of Local Government and Housing, in order to continue heckling an hon. Member who is telling the Zambian people the state of the nation according to her eyes’? Are they in order to do so or are they better off just fleeing like they did two hours ago?

I need your serious ruling, Sir.

Laughter

The Deputy Chairperson: Order!

The Chair was very attentively listening to the focused contribution such that he did not notice what you are alleging.

The hon. Member may continue.

Hon. Government Members: Hear, hear!

Mr Mucheleka interrupted.

Laughter

The Deputy Chairperson: Order!

Hon. Namugala, continue, please.

Ms Namugala: Mr Speaker, the greatest beneficiaries of good leadership are the people of Zambia. The PF Government must listen to what we have to say because we are where they used to be. We are the ones in contact with the people while they are enjoying the trappings of power.

Hon. Opposition Members: Hear, hear!

Ms Namugala: We want to remind them of the promises which they made and have now broken.

Mr Speaker, the PF, before taking office, promised that it would ensure equity in the distribution of land. If you go to the Ministry of Lands, Natural Resources and Environmental Protection, today, you will not find people of any other colour apart from our colour queuing for land. 

Hon. Opposition Members: Hear, hear!

Ms Namugala: It is our God-given land and yet it is being held by foreigners for them to speculate on. We know that the PF Government has failed to redress this situation.

Hon. PF Members: Question!

Mr Sampa: MMD’s fault!{mospagebreak}

Ms Namugala: Mr Speaker, they will continue to claim that all these problems are because of the MMD, which is no longer in power. Can you take up the challenge and correct that which you knew was wrong and still is? Our people are beginning to kill each other over land and yet there is so much of it. What has happened to the Government which promised them the re-distribution?

Mr Speaker, I have heard, on the Floor of this House, people talk about one of our very patriotic neighbours, calling him a dictator. He is not a dictator. He is only trying to ensure the economic emancipation of his people.

Hon. Opposition Members: Hear, hear!

Ms Namugala: He is a patriot.  He wants to leave his country better than he found it. He wants to make sure that the grandchildren of his grandchildren are not squatters in their own country.

Hon. Opposition Members: Hear, hear!

Ms Namugala: Mr Speaker, we demand that this PF Government deals with the issue of land distribution. Why should foreigners come into this country and within four years be able to access the land that we cannot? Some of these people have got land in excess of 100,000 ha each.

Interruptions

The Deputy Chairperson: Order!

Mr Sampa: Why did you not correct it?

Ms Namugala: Mr Speaker, remarks such as why did you not correct it, are reckless. 

You have the opportunity to correct it.

Mr Mucheleka: Emphasise that point. 

Ms Namugala: Emancipate us. Give us what we did not give our people. Give us our land back so that we can use it as a factor of production.

Hon. Opposition Members: Hear, hear!

Ms Namugala: If anyone should derive value from land in this country, it should be an indigenous Zambian and I have no apology to make. On this, I would rather be racist. This is the only country we have and it is worth 750,000 square kilometres. We will not get an extension. It is the only land that our great grandchildren must come and occupy.

Mr Livune: Uli mwaume sana, iwe.

Laughter

The Deputy Chairperson: Order!

I heard a comment that you are mwaume sana. What does that mean?

Laughter

Anyway, hon. Member, you may continue.

Ms Namugala: Mr Speaker, the land issue in this country cannot wait for constitutional amendments. I have heard the Government say that it needs to amend the Constitution first. There is no need to amend the Constitution in order to deal with the Land Act. 

Mr Speaker, all of us have grown up in this country and we have seen how much land foreigners have amassed. None of us here, even as legislators, has got as much land as some of the foreigners out there.

Hon. Opposition Members: Hear, hear!

Ms Namugala: Sir, they have used this land to make money and enrich themselves. None of us, here, is as rich as those non-Zambians that have acquired masses of land at our expense and we have allowed it.

Sir, we have allowed it because we are irresponsible leaders.

Hon. Opposition Members: Hear, hear!

The Deputy Chairperson: Order!

Ms Namugala: All of us, collectively.

Mr Lubinda: Now, you are talking.

Ms Namugala: Sir, we have allowed it because we are irresponsible and not thinking of future generations. Now is the time.

Mr Sikazwe: Mama President.

Ms Namugala: Sir, now is the time for us to correct what we all know is wrong.

Mr Speaker, as a leader in Zambia, I want to say that we have not served our electorate well. Even the little space that Zambians should occupy at markets, for instance, has been taken over by foreigners. If you go to Soweto Market, you will find that foreigners are the ones selling chicken and yet they came here as refugees and investors. Where is the Government? Where is the dignity of our people?

Mr Speaker, I do not have enough time, but I want to say something that is very important for us, as Zambians. The mention of tribalism makes me worry about the future of my country. Whether in the PF or in the Opposition, we must never entertain tribal talk.

Hon. Opposition Members: Hear, hear!

Ms Namugala: Some of us come from very small tribes.

Mr Sikazwe: On a point of order, Sir.

The Deputy Chairperson: A point of order is raised.

Mr Sikazwe: I thank you, Mr Chairman, for giving me this chance to raise a point of order.

Hon. Opposition Members: Mr Speaker!

The Deputy Chairperson: Order!

Mr Sikazwe: Mr Speaker, I first would like to apologise to my sister, …

Mr Mucheleka: Your wife!

Mr Sikazwe: … my wife …

Laughter

Mr Sikazwe: … who is debating very well ...

The Deputy Chairperson: Order!

There are no wives here. We only have hon. Members of Parliament.

Laughter

Mr Sikazwe: … and giving us facts on the current situation.

What she is saying is correct. Personally, I concur with what she is …

The Deputy Chairperson: Order!

Make your point of order, please.

Mr Sikazwe: Mr Speaker, the land that foreigners own must have been acquired in one way or the other. The law states that for us to re-possess land …

The Deputy Chairperson: Order!

Can you raise your point of order, please.

Mr Sikazwe: Mr Speaker, is the hon. Member in order not to give us the details of the people that have acquired land dubiously? We cannot repossess any land that someone got genuinely. Only if we have the information that a particular piece of land was acquired dubiously or corruptly, can we re-possess it.

Hon. Government Members: Hear, hear!

The Deputy Chairperson: Order!

I have followed the debate very carefully and attentively. She is very much in order.

You may continue.

Ms Namugala: Mr Speaker, I was talking about tribalism and the fact that it is a dangerous route for us to take as leaders.

The Deputy Chairperson: Order!

(Debate adjourned)

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The House adjourned at 1255 hours until 1430 hours on Tuesday, 8th October, 2013.