Friday, 18^th November, 2016

 

The House met at 0900 hours

 

[MR SPEAKER in the Chair]

 

NATIONAL ANTHEM

 

PRAYER

 

_______

 

BUSINESS OF THE HOUSE

 

The Vice-President (Mrs Wina): Mr Speaker, I rise to acquaint the House with some idea of the business it will consider next week.

 

Sir, on Tuesday, 22^nd November, 2016, the Business of the House will commence with Questions for Oral Answer, if there will be any. That will be followed by presentation of Government Bills, if there will be any. Thereafter, the House will continue to debate on the Motion of Supply on the 2017 Budget.

 

Mr Speaker, on Wednesday, 23^rd November, 2016, the Business of the House will begin with Questions for Oral Answer, if there will be any. That will be followed by presentation of Government Bills, if there will be any. Thereafter, the House will consider Private Members’ Motions, if there will be any. After that, the House will continue with the debate the Motion of Supply on the 2017 Budget.

 

Sir, on Thursday, 24^th November, 2016, the Business of the House will start with Questions for Oral Answer, if there will be any. That will be followed by presentation of Government Bills, if there will be any. The House will, then, continue with the debate on the Motion of Supply on the 2017 Budget.

 

Mr Speaker, on Friday, 25^th November, 2016, the Business of the House will commence with the Vice-President’s Question Time. That will be followed by Questions for Oral Answer, if there will be any. After that, the House will deal with presentation of Government Bills, if there will be any. Thereafter, the House will consider the Second Reading Stage of the Compensation Fund Bill, 2016. Then, the House will continue with the debate on the Motion of Supply on the 2017 Budget.

 

I thank you, Sir.

 

_______

 

THE VICE-PRESIDENT’S QUESTION TIME

 

Dr Malama (Kanchibiya): Mr Speaker, Articles 33 to 60 of the Constitution establish the Executive, Articles 62 to 90 establish the Legislature and Articles 91 to 99 establish the Judicature. Is the Government going to direct State functions to recognise, in their salutations and order, this dictate of the Constitution? You will note that this House is normally considered third, whereas the Constitution recognises it in the second order in its establishment.

 

Hon. Members: Hear, hear!

 

The Vice-President (Mrs Wina): Mr Speaker, this is a Constitutional provision that needs to be looked at in depth. However, the current practice is that the Judiciary is recognised before the Legislature. This has just been a custom and is not something that is entrenched in the Constitution according to the order of seniority at Government functions.

 

I thank you, Sir.

 

Mr Mwiimbu (Monze Central): Mr Speaker, first and foremost, I would like to congratulate the United Party for National Development (UPND) for overwhelmingly winning three out of four council chairperson elections that were held yesterday and four out of five of the Local Government elections that were also held yesterday.

 

Hon. Government Members: Question!

 

Hon. UPND Members: Hear, hear!

 

Mr Mwiimbu: Mr Speaker, my question hinges on Article 60 of the Constitution of Zambia. You may be aware that Article 60 provides that political parties that have representation in the National Assembly should be funded by the Treasury and that the funding methodology should be prescribed. When will the Government prescribe the funding methodology and start supporting financially political parties represented in this House?

 

The Vice-President: Mr Speaker, there are many provisions in the Constitution that need to be aligned to the current Acts in order to make them operational. This is one such provision we need to put into an Act. That way we will be able to make such a provision work so that political parties are funded by the State.

 

I thank you, Sir.

 

Mr Ng’onga (Kaputa): Mr Speaker, from November to about February, areas like the Luangwa Valley, the Western Province and the Southern Province normally have poor harvests or insufficient food quantities, which causes hunger. Is the relief food distribution mechanism functioning as it was envisaged to do? If not, what measures has the Government put in place to ensure that people in such areas do not go hungry?

 

The Vice-President: Sir, according to the vulnerability assessment undertaken last year, thirty-one districts were severely affected by drought and relief food has been provided to the people in those districts. The relief provisions are still continuing. Hon. Members should also realise that even the districts that are not affected sometimes run into food deficit during the months of November to April before the new harvest. So, the Disaster Management and Mitigation Unit (DMMU) is currently distributing relief food to all the affected areas until the new harvest.

 

I thank you, Sir.

 

Mr Nkombo (Mazabuka Central): Mr Speaker, I would like to refer you to a statesman called John Magufuli, the President of the United Republic of Tanzania, who took over power after the last election. In implementing austerity measures, President Magufuli made many striking changes, including changes to the fleet of vehicles Government officials use. Is it true that our Government, which has just been established, has ordered or intends to order vehicles with big engines, such as the Toyota Land Cruiser GX V8 Model, for forty-five hon. Ministers? If that is true, where do the hon. Minister of Finance’s and His Excellency the Republican President’s pronouncements on austerity measures lie?

 

The Vice-President: Mr Speaker, this Government is committed to enforcing austerity measures and the President was the first national of this country to declare that. Even his salary has been cut in half so that the country can observe that we have to make sacrifices as leaders.

 

Sir, concerning the vehicles that are supposed to be bought for hon. Members of Parliament or Ministers, that is news to me because the Cabinet has not discussed that matter. I am hearing about it for the first time. As for the austerity measures that are being followed in Tanzania, we cannot really cut the formula from and paste it in Zambia. We have our own criteria for effecting cost-saving measures in our country. So, the hon. Member should also take note that we expect even hon. Members of Parliament to observe austerity measures as we move on.

 

I thank you, Sir.

 

Hon. Government Members: Hear, hear!

 

Mr Mwamba (Lubansenshi): Mr Speaker, boarding secondary schools intend to hike boarding fees on the pretext that mealie meal is very expensive. Is there a way in which the Government can persuade the Food Reserve Agency (FRA) to start selling maize cheaply to such institutions so that they can be milling it to cut on the cost of buying mealie meal?

 

Hon. Members: Hear, hear!

 

The Vice-President: Mr Speaker, that suggestion sounds like a hand to mouth sort of arrangement, but it is a very good one in that the ministry responsible for education should engage all stakeholders, including the Food Reserve Agency (FRA), to see how they can make food available to our children in boarding secondary schools.

 

I thank you, Sir.

 

Mr Muchima (Ikeleng’i): Sir, in Zambia, there is a critical shortage of teachers in schools. In some schools, there is only one teacher for Grades 1 to 9, yet we have so many trained teachers. This Government is also known for borrowing money to sort out certain issues. Would it not be prudent for it to borrow money for employing teachers in order to cure the shortage?

 

The Vice-President: Mr Speaker, currently, there is no need for this Government to borrow money from anywhere to recruit teachers because the recruitment of teachers as well as that of nurses, doctors and other health workers for our hospitals is already provided for in the 2017 Budget. So, there is no need for the hon. Member of Parliament for Ikeleng’i to think that the situation is so critical that we need to borrow money in order to employ teachers. That will be done, but it is a process. We cannot approve the Budget today and think that all the teachers will be sent to all schools immediately. The recruitment process has already started.

 

I thank you, Sir.

 

Ms Chisangano (Gwembe): Mr Speaker, my question is on the quality of education in Zambia, in general, and in Gwembe Constituency, in particular. Most of the schools in my constituency lack adequate teaching and learning materials like computers.

 

Mr Speaker, it is disheartening that there are no computers in most schools, yet pupils are expected to write computer studies examinations. The teachers get stressed up moving from one corner of the constituency to another looking for computers. Worse still, there is no electricity in some areas and teachers have to look for places to charge the computers so that the pupils can sit for their examinations. Can Her Honour the Vice-President assure the people of Gwembe that something will be done next year?

 

The Vice-President: Mr Speaker, it is regrettable to hear that schools in Gwembe are operating without adequate provisions.

 

Interruptions

 

Mr Speaker: Order!

 

The Vice-President: Sir, the Government inherited a system of education whose infrastructure had deteriorated over a very long time. Therefore, even the remedies will take long to be put in place because most of our schools, particularly in rural areas, have had no access to the modern equipment being used in urban areas. However, the Government is working on a programme to ensure that all schools in Zambia are provided with the necessary equipment so that our children do not lag behind, especially in science and mathematics. So, the ills in the schools in Gwembe will be addressed as soon as resources are made available to the Ministry of General Education.

 

Mr Speaker, I thank you.

 

Mr Chibanda (Mufulira): Mr Speaker, a 25 kg bag of mealie meal costs over K100 in Mufulira Constituency. What measures does the Government intend to take to stop the price of the staple food from sky-rocketing?

 

Hon. UPND Members: Hear, hear!

 

Mr Speaker: Order!

 

The Vice-President: Mr Speaker, grain traders and other individuals should stop exporting maize to neighbouring countries. The price of mealie meal would go down if we had more stocks in the country. However, the Government is on top of the situation. Next week, the hon. Minister of Agriculture will come to the House with the measures that are being taken by the Government to address the sky-rocketing prices of mealie meal as well as others that concern the staple food.

 

Mr Speaker, I thank you.

 

Mr Kufakwandi (Sesheke): Mr Speaker, in Sesheke Constituency, there is a stretch of the Zambezi River from Kaale to Simungoma where our people cross from either side to go to school, clinics or to look for various commodities. Over the years, many have lost their lives using canoes. Does the Government have any plans to modernise transport systems on our water bodies to ensure the safety of our people when they cross rivers? I am sure that the same applies to Luapula Province.

 

The Vice-President: Mr Speaker, the realignment and restructuring of ministries has been necessitated by concerns of this nature. The Government has realised that there are certain sectors of our economy, such as water transport, that need to be addressed. In view of this, the ministry responsible for the sector will ensure that our water that bodies hold adequate water for different purposes, including irrigation, are passable and can allow for people who live along rivers to use boats instead of canoes.

 

Mr Speaker, it is important that we look at all these aspects that hinder the development of this country and that the Government addresses them squarely to improve our people’s livelihoods.

 

Mr Speaker, I thank you.

 

Mr L. N. Tembo (Kaumbwe): Mr Speaker, first of all, I would like to thank His Excellency the President of the Republic of Zambia, Mr Edgar Chagwa Lungu, for his initiative of putting up solar milling plants across the nation, ...

 

Hon. UPND Members: Hear, hear!

 

Hon. PF Members: Hear, hear!

 

Mr L. N. Tembo: ... which aim at providing the commodity closer and cheaply to the consumer ...

 

Interruptions

 

Mr L. N. Tembo: ... as opposed to the unpredictable prices on the market, as well as providing employment for citizens, especially the ng’ombe ni matole of this nation.

 

Hon. PF Members: Hear, hear!

 

Hon. Members: Meaning?

 

Mr L. N. Tembo: Mr Speaker, there are reports that the Food Reserve Agency (FRA) has failed to meet its target for the purchase of maize in the 2015/2016 Farming Season. What is the Government doing to avert a shortage of maize should the FRA fail to purchase it for national consumption?

 

I also want –

 

Mr Speaker: Order!

 

 That is all.

 

The Vice-President: Mr Speaker, the FRA has not failed to buy the required maize. At the moment, there are 250,000 metric tonnes of maize for strategic reserve in stock. Only last week, the FRA advertised a tender to purchase more maize to make up the 500,000 metric tonnes. The tender is ongoing and the FRA will purchase the extra maize that is held, in some cases, by grain traders, commercial farmers and small-scale farmers in their backyards. There will be no hunger in this country ...

 

Mr Livune: Question!

 

The Vice-President: ... because we have the reserve stocks and expect, hopefully, a good harvest this season. 

 

Mr Speaker, I thank you.

 

Mrs Mazoka (Pemba): Your Honour the Vice-President, given Her Honour the Vice-President’s admission on the Floor of this House that District Commissioners (DCs) are party functionaries appointed by the Patriotic Front (PF) President to strengthen his party in all the districts across the country, can she tell us why taxpayers should continue paying the salaries of those party functionaries?

 

Mr Livune: Hear, hear!

 

The Vice-President: Sir, I do not remember telling this House that the President has appointed party functionaries to positions. So, I do not know what the hon. Member is referring to.

 

Hon. Opposition Members: The DCs!

 

The Vice-President: The District Commissioners (DCs) are not party functionaries.

 

Interruptions

 

The Vice-President: The word I used –

 

Mr Lubinda: Ni Boma!

 

Mr Speaker: Order!

 

Let us have some order.

 

The Vice-President: I remember very vividly, Mr Speaker, saying that the DCs were the contact persons between the President and the district. I will not back away from that pronouncement. It does not mean that these are party functionaries. The DCs are doing Government work and whichever President will be in State House will have to use them to for Government projects to be implemented at the district level.

 

I thank you, Mr Speaker.

 

Mr Kalobo (Wusakile): Mr Speaker, the population in Wusakile has grown to over 200,000 people and many people in the constituency have lost jobs due to retrenchments in the mines.

 

Hon. Opposition Members: Hear, hear!

 

Mr Kalobo: The ex-miners are not entitled to use the Wusakile Mine Hospital.

 

Hon. Opposition Members: Hear, hear!

 

Mr Kalobo: Instead, they have to pay dearly to access medical treatment and mortuary services at Kitwe Central Hospital.

 

Hon. Opposition Members: Hear, hear!

 

Mr Kalobo: I would like to find out from Her Honour the Vice-President if the Government has got plans to build a hospital in Wusakile and, if so, when?

 

Hon. Opposition Members: Hear, hear!

 

The Vice-President: Mr Speaker, that is a new question.

 

Mr Nkombo: Eh!

 

The Vice-President: I know that the Government will engage the mining companies to address issues of social welfare, health and education for the miners on all the mining entities on the Copperbelt Province and the North-Western Province.

 

I thank you, Mr Speaker.

 

Mr Jamba (Mwembezhi): Your Honour the Vice-President, climate change is a reality and the Paris Agreement is in place. However, I heard the President-elect of the United States of America (USA) say that it is a hoax. What is the Government doing to mitigate the impact of the phenomenon, especially with regard to the rainfall pattern between now and January, 2017?

 

The Vice-President: Mr Speaker, Zambians cannot just wish for rainfall and, then, it rains. Climate change is real even if presidents in other countries say it is a hoax. I am not privy to that the information that others are saying it is a hoax. What I can say is that Zambia is taking its own route to mitigating the impact of climate change on our communities. The Government is in tune with the global community on the need to put in place mechanisms that will help the people to be resilient as we experience this phenomenon.

 

I thank you, Sir.

 

Mr Mukumbuta (Senanga Central): Your Honour the Vice-President, good morning.

 

Laughter

 

Mr Mukumbuta: About two months ago, the people of Mangambwa in the Barotse Plains …

 

Mr Speaker: Order on the right!

 

Mr Mukumbuta: … were visited by bush fires. About twenty-eight houses where gutted by the fires and levelled to the ground. I had the opportunity, a few weeks ago, to meet you and I brought the issue of the fires to your attention and you advised me to go and see the Senanga District Commissioner (DC). However, the answer I got from the DC was not favourable. I was told that the Disaster Management and Mitigation Unit (DMMU), a department under your office, had stopped giving out tents. My question is: Why has the DMMU stopped giving out tents to people who face such calamities, especially since we are in the rainy season?

 

Hon. Opposition Members: Hear, hear!

 

Mr Mukumbuta: I ask this question because the people of Mangambwa …

 

Mr Mutaba: You are running out of time.

 

Mr Speaker: Hon. Member, you have asked your question. Look at the time.

 

Mr Mukumbuta: … are still in the sixties and seventies.

 

The Vice-President: Sir, there is a need for tents to be provided to people whose houses were burnt down. Many people have benefitted from the DMMU’s services. I am surprised that the hon. Member says that the answer was negative. Had this matter been pursued, the DMMU in Lusaka would have provided the requisite tents. Perhaps, the Senanga District Disaster Management Committee (DDMC) did not have those tents. However, it could have gone further, with your co-operation, hon. Member, to ask for tents from elsewhere, including from Lusaka.

 

Mr Speaker, allow me to use this chance to advise hon. Members to encourage our people to look into the issue of using corrugated sheets for roofing our houses in the villages because fires will never stop especially if the houses are grass thatched. I think Zambia should move a step forward in the manner we build our houses especially in the rural areas. Some of the people who are affected by these fires can afford to buy malata because some of them have a lot of cattle, they can sell two herds of cattle and be able to buy corrugated sheets to roof their houses instead of using grass which is susceptible to fires every so often.

 

I thank you, Mr Speaker.

 

_______

 

QUESTIONS FOR ORAL ANSWER

 

FOOD RESERVE AGENCY MAIZE EXPORTS

 

6. Mr Miyanda (Mapatizya) asked the Minister of Agriculture:

 

1. how many metric tonnes of maize the Food Reserve Agency (FRA) exported from May to September, 2016;

 

1. to which countries the maize was exported;

 

1. how much money the FRA raised from the maize exports; and

 

1. whether the countries at (b) had paid for the maize.

 

The Minister of Agriculture (Ms Siliya): Sir, the Food Reserve Agency (FRA) did not export any maize between May and September, 2016. As such, the next three questions fall off.

 

I thank you, Mr Speaker.

 

Mr Ngulube: Hear, hear!

 

TOWNSHIP ROADS IN CHINSALI

 

7. Mr Mukosa (Chinsali) asked the Minister of Local Government:

 

1. whether the Government was aware that the contractor engaged to tar township roads in Chinsali District had abandoned the project;

 

1. if so, what measures the Government had taken to ensure that the project was completed; and

 

1. what the time-frame for the completion of the project was.

 

The Minister of Local Government (Mr Mwale): Mr Speaker, the Government is aware that the contractor engaged to upgrade the township roads in Chinsali has stopping working.

 

Sir, because of the challenges and difficulties encountered with the contractor, the ministry has started the process of terminating the contract so that another contractor can be engaged.

 

Mr Speaker, the time frame for completing the project is expected to be eighteen months from the commencement date once another contractor is engaged.

 

I thank you, Mr Speaker.             

 

Dr Kalila (Lukulu East): Mr Speaker –

 

Mr Nkombo: On a point of order, Sir.

 

Mr Speaker: A point of order is raised.

 

Mr Nkombo: Mr Speaker, I apologise for interrupting my colleague’s line of thought.

 

Sir, this is a people’s Assembly and it is supposed to operate as transparently as possible. This morning, around 0700 hours, a platoon of police officers in riot gear assembled outside this Assembly. Generally, in the last few years, the police have been associated with intolerance and brutality. So, their presence of its officers outside has unsettled many hon. Members, especially those on your left. My point of order is on the Leader of Government Business in the House in the absence of the hon. Minister of Home Affairs. Is she in order to remain silent about the riot police patrolling the people’s Assembly without explaining the reason they are here?

 

Mr Speaker: Indeed, the hon. Minister of Home Affairs is not in the House. However, I still direct him to address this point of order together with the one raised by the hon. Member for Monze Central.

 

Continue, Hon. Dr Kalila.

 

Dr Kalila: Mr Speaker, was the contractor paid in full?

 

Mr Mwale: Mr Speaker, the contractor was not paid in full. He was paid according to the works done. However, it appears he was paid more money compared to the work he had done before he abandoned the works. For that reason, we will terminate the contract.

 

I thank you, Sir.

 

Mr Muchima (Ikeleng’i): Mr Speaker, is this project the only one on township roads that has been abandoned? Are there are not many others in other districts that have abandoned?

 

Mr Mwale: Mr Speaker, there are several others and, in situations where the contractors have abandoned the works, we terminate the contracts.

 

I thank you, Sir.

 

Mr Miyutu (Kalabo Central): Mr Speaker, since the Government intends to terminate the contract with that contractor, how long will it take for that termination to come into effect? Further, what is the procedure for terminating such a contract?

 

Mr Mwale: Mr Speaker, I cannot give the exact time frame. However, we are trying as much as possible to expedite the long process. I can avail that process to the hon. Member, but I cannot, at the moment, state, step-by-step, what happens when terminating the contract.

 

I thank you, Mr Speaker.

 

Mr Mukosa: Mr Speaker –

 

Mr Ngulube: On a point of order, Sir.

 

Mr Speaker: A point of order is raised.            

 

Mr Ngulube: Sir, in 1994, the Zambia Consolidated Copper Mines (ZCCM) shut down its Kabwe division and retrenched thousands of employees, leading to starvation and suffering amongst the people of Kabwe Central Constituency. My point of order is on the hon. Minister of Finance, although I know he is not in the House today. Nothing has been mentioned about the dues of the retrenchees, and the people of Kabwe Central are wondering why even after the presentation of the Budget, there seems to be no indication of hope when they will get their dues.

 

Hon. UPND Members: Hear, hear!

 

Mr Speaker: My ruling is that, given the nature of the question, I think it does not qualify to be treated as a point of order. I know this is a new Parliament. The exceptions that we allow are for matters that are of extreme urgency and compelling. However, there is another mechanism available and that is just filing in a Question. When that is done, we will forward the Question to the hon. Minister of Finance, …

                                                                                                                        

Mr Mutati entered the Assembly Chamber.

 

Mr Speaker: … not as he walks in, but in due course.

 

Laughter

 

Mr Speaker: He also needs to consult. The hon. Member is talking about events that took place in 1994.

 

Interruptions

 

Mr Speaker: Order!

.

Continue, hon. Member for Chinsali.

 

Mr Mukosa: Mr Speaker, considering that the hon. Minister of Local Government said the Government will terminate the contract with that contractor, how soon should we expect a new contractor on site so that he can start working on the township roads in Chinsali Central?

                                                                                                         

Mr Mwale: Mr Speaker, I cannot specify the number of weeks or months it will take. However, we will ensure that it is done as soon as possible so that we can get another contractor. I cannot specify because we have to take a lot of care before engaging another contractor. We have seen situations in which missing one step in the process of terminating contract can lead to one finding oneself paying the contractor even when what one intended to do was in good faith. So, we do not want to miss any step and we are taking care of everything. I think that we should be able to complete the process before March, next year. However, we will not take a lot of time.

 

I thank you, Mr Speaker.

 

Mr Chisopa (Mkushi South): Mr Speaker, I would like to congratulate the councillors who have just won –

 

Mr Chibanda: On a point of order, Sir.

 

Mr Speaker: A point of order is raised. I think this is the last one for today. Otherwise, we will not make progress.

 

Mr Chibanda: Mr Speaker, my point of order is based on what has been reported in today’s Daily Nation Newspaper that the country has expired Anti-Retroviral (ARVs) drugs worth K13.7 million. Could the hon. Minister of Health inform the nation whether that is true or not.

 

Mr Speaker: Hon. Members, points of order –

 

Interruptions

 

Mr Speaker: Order!

 

Let me explain this. Points of order are meant to assist the Presiding Officers in ensuring that the procedures and rules of the House are observed. That is the function of points of order. For those who attended the seminar, last weekend, you will recall that we had a resource person from Australia, and the hon. Member for Lukulu East put a question to him regarding points of order. Just to give you a flavour of what a point of order is all about, he said that in Australia, if an hon. Member raises a point of order, he or she is invited to point in the Standing Orders a rule that has been violated. Here, instead of filing a question, which you can forward to the hon. Minister of Health, you interrupt the scheduled proceedings. Instead of considering Questions for Oral Answer, we are talking about the mines, anti-retrovirals (ARVs) and I do not know what else.

 

Laughter

 

Mr Speaker: When are we going to dispose of our agenda? In other places, they have simply abandoned this facility altogether. There are no points of order. I am not suggesting that we should go that direction. So, for those matters that can be processed in the ordinary way, through questions, please, do not interrupt the proceedings. That is the unfortunate effect of points of order. We deviate from our order of proceedings. Of course, we have said there are certain matters of extreme urgency, and I have used the expression ‘When Zambia is on fire’. Then, it might be necessary for me to allow interventions. We should not stop the proceedings to attend to an event that took place in 1994.

 

Laughter

 

Mr Speaker: Now, I do not even know who was on the Floor.

 

Laughter

 

Mr Chisopa: Mr Speaker, before the point of order was raised, I was saying I would like to join the hon. Minister of Local Government in congratulating councillors from Kafulafuta, Luapula Province, Central Province, the Western Province, Masaiti District and the Council Chairperson from Senga Hill.

 

Hon. Government Members: Hear, hear!

 

Mr Chisopa: Sir, I say congratulations to them.

 

Hon. Government Members: Hear, hear!

 

Mr Speaker: Order!

 

Mr Chisopa: Mr Speaker, now that we are talking about cancelling the contract that was awarded to the contractor, what is the Government going to do about the extra money that was collected from it?

 

Mr Mwale: Mr Speaker, the money will be recovered through the bonds that were made as the contract was being awarded. There are always measures put in place to make sure the Government does not lose money. Therefore, the money will be recovered through those means.

 

I thank you, Sir.

 

Prof. Lungwangwa (Nalikwanda): Mr Speaker, if I got the hon. Minister clearly, he said that Chinsali was not the only council or township where the Government was considering terminating contracts. This is very worrying. How can contracts that have been signed properly in accordance with all the procedures be terminated like this? Is this not a case of not following laid-down procedures in awarding contracts? Further, what is your ministry doing to look into such problems of delivery of services?

 

Mr Mwale: Mr Speaker, while we are considering terminating many contracts, there are also many cases where contractors have performed very well. So, this is not about how we signed the contracts, but how contractors are performing. Some are new and still learning. They need to build their capacity. Sometimes, some of these contractors are awarded contracts as a way of empowering them. Unfortunately, some end up disappointing while others perform very well. That is what leads to this. Therefore, the recently created Ministry of Housing and Infrastructure Development has programmes to deal with matters of contractors who are underperforming. We are still in the process of shifting the department that deals with infrastructure from the Ministry of Local Government to the Ministry of Housing and Infrastructure Development. From what the hon. Minister of Housing and Infrastructure Development has told us, we know that the ministry has put up programmes to work with contractors and strengthen their capacities. So, this is about contractors disappointing and the Government taking the necessary steps once that happens.

 

I thank you, Sir.

 

CONSTRUCTION OF ADDITIONAL TEACHERS’ HOUSES AT MUKANDO HIGH SCHOOL IN CHITAMBO DISTRICT

 

8. Mr Mutale (Chitambo) asked the Minister of General Education:

 

1. whether the Government had any plans to construct additional teachers’ houses at Mukando High School in Chitambo District;

 

1. if so, when the plans would be implemented; and

 

1. when the school would be provided with piped water.

 

The Minister of Higher Education (Dr Wanchinga): Mr Speaker, the Government has no immediate plans to construct additional teachers’ houses at Mukando High School. The current focus is to complete the various structures that have been started countrywide. The issue of new structures is one that will be picked up by the Ministry of Housing and Infrastructure Development in the near future.

 

Sir, with regard to when the school will have piped water, I wish to inform the House that the ministry has put up two big tanks with a 70,000 litres capacity at the school. It is my hope that the process of reticulating water at the school will be completed early next year.

 

Sir, for the benefit of the House as well as the hon. Member for Chitambo, allow me to add that we are working on six classrooms, one toilet block and three teachers’ houses at Nabonde and Mpelembe schools in Chitambo District. That will be at a cost of about K1.4 billion.

 

I thank you, Sir.

 

Mr Mutale: Mr Speaker, I am aware that the number of houses at Mukando High School is inadequate for the number of teachers at the school. I would like to find out from the hon. Minister what plans have been put in place to accommodate those teachers.

 

Dr Wanchinga: Mr Speaker, like I said, there is now a ministry responsible for housing and infrastructure development. I will sit with my colleague and see how we can push the agenda of housing for teachers at the school. We are aware of this problem and Mukando High School is not the only school facing it. We are trying to make a national master plan to address the problem of teachers’ houses.

 

I thank you, Sir.

 

Mr Speaker: Hon. Member for Mazabuka Central, you ask your follow-up question.

 

Interruptions

 

Hon. Opposition Members: Mic!

 

Mr Nkombo (Mazabuka): Thank you, hon. Minister, for switching off your microphone.

 

Mr Speaker, the hon. Member of Parliament for Chitambo is very concerned about the welfare of teachers at Mukando High School. Further, the hon. Minister’s counterpart, the hon. Minister of Finance, mentioned that in the coming fiscal year, the health and education sectors will provide only for employment. 

 

Sir, I recognise the hon. Minister’s comment that the problem of accommodation for teachers is a countrywide one. Just to assist, it has been a trend, since the Patriotic Front (PF) Government came into power, for hon. Members of Parliament to use the Constituency Development Fund (CDF) to help schools with accommodation for teachers. Going by the hon. Minister of Finance’s statement that only the education sector will recruit this year, what stop-gap measures have been put in place to accommodate the teachers who are going to be employed this year so that they impart knowledge to pupils in an effective manner?

 

Dr Wanchinga: Mr Speaker, the ministry recognises the importance of properly housing teachers and there are many measures that it is looking at. The Government has replaced various housing policies that we could, perhaps, allow teachers to access. Like I have said before, we are putting in place a programme to build teachers’ houses at various schools. My ministry and the Ministry of Housing and Infrastructure Development will work together to ensure that the programme is rolled out in the very near future. We know of schools where teachers sleep in unfavourable conditions. That is very regrettable, but the ministry will work to ensure that every teacher at every school is properly housed.

 

Mr Kambwili’s phone rang.

 

Laughter

 

Mr Speaker: Order!

 

Dr Wanchinga: Let me also mention that in this year’s Budget, out of the K9 billion that has been given to the Ministry of General Education, about K638 million, representing 7 percent or thereabouts has been allocated to infrastructure development. Further, you may recall that the hon. Minister of Finance was kind enough to allocate to the Ministry of General Education an additional K300 million to pay contractors. So, we are working on this issue and, in collaboration with the Ministry of Housing and Infrastructure Development, we should be able to adequately address it in the near future.

 

Mr Speaker, I thank you.

 

Mr Muchima: Mr Speaker, the problem of housing for teachers has been with us for a long time. What measures has the hon. Minister put in place to pay teachers adequate housing allowance for them to seek decent alternative accommodation?

 

Mr Speaker: Let us make progress, hon. Minister. The earlier question by the hon. Member for Mazabuka Central was on stop-gap measures and the one by the hon. Member for Ikeleng’i is on housing allowance. The statement by the hon. Minister of Finance was that recruitment will be undertaken almost immediately. How will you deal with the question of housing? Please, address that, hon. Minister. 

 

Hon. UPND Members: Hear, hear!

 

Dr Wanchinga: Mr Speaker, I will meet with the hon. Minister of Finance to see how he can help us to roll out this housing project countrywide.

 

I thank you, Sir.

 

Mr Jere (Livingstone): Mr Speaker, one of the challenges that schools face is that of high water tariffs. They are unable to settle bills because of the Government’s directive that not more than K1,000 should be charged as school fees. Does the ministry have any intention to sink boreholes in schools?

 

Dr Wanchinga: Mr Speaker, we recognise the importance of water at every school. It is the wish of the Government to ensure that there are water and sanitation facilities at every school if possible. We recognise this as an integral part of our development programme for schools.

 

Mr Speaker, let me also mention that the Ministry of General Education has many partners working with it in water reticulation at various schools. The partners have helped in many parts of the country and we hope that with their continued help and the response of the Government, we will ensure that there is water at every school.

 

Mr Speaker, I thank you.

 

Mr Mukosa: Mr Speaker, the hon. Minister said that his ministry will work together with the Ministry of Housing and Infrastructure Development to look into the housing deficit for teachers. To me, this sounds like a long-term measure. I would like to find out what the ministry intends to do, in the interim, to provide decent accommodation for teachers at Mukando High School as well as other schools, where teachers may not have decent accommodation.

 

Dr Wanchinga: Mr Speaker, although I recognise that this is an important issue, we are going back to the same question. The only way we can solve this problem in the interim is to provide housing allowances to the teachers so that they can afford reasonable accommodation within the vicinity of the schools.

 

I thank you, Sir.

 

Hon. Government Members: Hear, hear!

 

Mr Mwiimbu (Monze Central): Mr Speaker, the hon. Minister might not be aware that his predecessors had given all hon. Members of Parliament the Infrastructure Development Plan for all the constituencies pertaining to the teachers’ houses, but that has not come to fruition. Taking into account the statement by the hon. Minister of Finance that no new projects will be undertaken, what measures has the ministry put in place to ensure that the projects already given to us in the Yellow Book are implemented?

 

Dr Wanchinga: Mr Speaker, we will undertake a countrywide assessment of the needs for teachers’ houses. To that effect, we are going to prioritise within the budgetary allocation to us in attending to these needs.

 

Mr Speaker, I thank you.

 

Mr Lufuma (Kabompo): Mr Speaker, the hon. Minister is talking about future programmes that will not immediately solve the problem of accommodation for the teachers who are going to be employed tomorrow. The stop-gap measure that he mentioned is the provision of the housing allowance. Given the austerity budget that was presented to this House last Friday, is the allowance funded in the Yellow Book?

 

Dr Wanchinga: Mr Speaker, there is a provision for the housing allowance in the conditions of service for teachers. Like I said, if we fall short of the needs of the housing allowance for teachers, we will go to our colleagues in the Ministry of Finance to see how we can address the issue.

 

I thank you, Mr Speaker.

 

Interruptions

 

Mr Speaker: Hon. Minister, the hon. Member wants to find out if there is any provision for housing allowance for teachers in the budget that we are about to begin considering.

 

Dr Wanchinga: Sir, there is always housing allowance as an integral part of the conditions of service for teachers. Perhaps, we are talking about the scale of the housing allowance. This is why I said that if there will be a shortfall, we will go to the Ministry of Finance for assistance.

 

I thank you, Mr Speaker.

 

Hon. Government Members: Hear, hear!

 

Mr Ngulube (Kabwe Central): Mr Speaker, I would like to ask a follow-up question on Mukando Secondary School, which is in Chitambo Constituency, and Gombe Secondary School, which is in Kabwe Central Constituency.

 

Sir, the two schools appear to have operated without running water since their inception. I would like to know when running water will be connected to the schools. In addition, I would appreciate it if the hon. Minister could also consider Kapiri Mposhi Girls Technical School, which is also facing the same challenge.

 

Dr Wanchinga: Mr Speaker, I assured the hon. Member for Chitambo that we have installed two tanks at Mukando Secondary School …

 

Interruptions

 

Mr Speaker: Order!

 

Dr Wanchinga: … with capacities of 70,000 litres each. Those were the priorities that had been outlined earlier. So, if there are any additional needs at the new schools, we will attend to them.

 

I thank you, Sir.

 

Mr Mukumbuta (Senanga): Mr Speaker, there is a policy statement in the latest Yellow Book on the provision of free education from Grades 1 to 7. Head teachers at most schools come with many terminologies, such as user fees, which they charge poor pupils. Could the hon. Minister define for me what free education is?

 

Mr Speaker: Order!

 

Before the hon. Minister responds to that question, I would like to inform the House that we are dealing with Questions for Oral Answer. I know many of us are here for the first time. So, we need to move together. We are now at a point where we are asking supplementary questions. By definition, a supplementary question should arise from and be incidental to a Question for Oral Answer.

 

Mrs Mwanakatwe: Correct!

 

Mr Speaker: Order!

 

Hon. Minster of Commerce, Trade and industry, can I have your attention.

 

Hon. Members, do not raise a new subject under a supplementary question.  It will not qualify for a response.

 

Hon. Government Members: Hear, hear!

 

Mr Speaker: Order!

 

If you have a new issue, you should file in a question and it will be presented at an appropriate juncture just like the questions that we have considered this morning. So, it is not an opportunity to bring sundry questions as long as they are to do with education. That is not the purpose of supplementary questions.

 

In short, the hon. Minister of General Education is not obliged to respond to that question.

 

Mr Chabi (Chipili): Mr Speaker, the hon. Minister of General Education knows very well that Mukando Secondary School is in Chitambo, which is a newly created district. It is also a rural area. The nearest town to the school is Serenje, which is 45 km away. We are also aware that teachers who are not accommodated are given housing allowances. Therefore, we expect them to rent houses where they are available, which is 45 km away in Serenje Town, because around that school, there is no housing infrastructure conducive for a teacher to rent. Does the hon. Minister not think that if teachers rent houses 45 km away from the school, it can affect the education service delivery and, eventually, the performance of the pupils at that school?

 

Hon. Government Members: Hear, hear!

 

Dr Wanchinga: Mr Speaker, indeed, it is very regrettable that the nearest town where teachers can find decent accommodation is about 45 km away. This is why the ministry has taken this situation seriously. Come next year, and in consultation with our colleagues at the Ministry of Housing and Infrastructure Development, we will put up decent accommodation at schools that are badly affected by accommodation shortages. So, we are aware of the problem.

 

Mr Mung’andu (Chama South): Mr Speaker, the hon. Minister talked about carrying out an inventory of services offered in schools. In Chama South, for instance, there is a school called Pondo Basic, which has classes from Grade 1 to 9. The school has no roof and I think it has only two teachers. Since we are in the rainy season, classes at the school have been suspended. This has gone on for the past three years. Does the ministry have staff at the office of the District Education Board Secretary (DEBS) to check and give updates on the status of education infrastructure in our country?

 

Dr Wanchinga: Mr Speaker, indeed, we have staff at various District Education Board Secretaries’ (DEBSs) offices who can be sent to do on-the-spot checks on the situation at every school. However, that report has not been given to my office. Since the hon. Member of Parliament has mentioned it, I will follow up this matter.

 

I thank you, M Speaker.

 

CIVIC CENTRE IN NYIMBA

 

9.    Mrs Mwansa (Nyimba) asked the Minister of Local Government:

 

1. whether the Government was aware that the construction of the Civic Centre in Nyimba District had stalled and, if so, what the reasons were;

 

1. when the construction works would resume;

 

1. what the time-frame for the completion of the project was; and

 

1. what the total cost of the project was.

 

Mr Mwale: Mr Speaker, the Government is aware that the construction of the Nyimba Civic Centre has stalled. The reason for the current state of affairs is the non-availability of funds. The construction will resume as soon as funds are made available. T

 

Sir, the time frame for the completion of the project is nine months after the resumption of construction works.

 

The total contract sum of the project is K7,102,983.35.

 

I thank you, Mr Speaker.

 

_______ 

 

BILL

 

THIRD READING

 

The following Bill was read the third time and passed.

 

The Securities Bill, 2016.

 

_______

 

MOTIONS

 

BUDGET 2017

 

(Debate resumed)

 

Mr Kundoti (Luena): Sir, thank you for according me this opportunity to present my maiden speech in this august House. First and foremost, let me give thanks to my gracious and loving father in heaven, who upholds and sustains me all the time, and is the giver of all good gifts, for giving me this opportunity to represent and serve the wonderful people of Luena Constituency in Limulunga District. May I congratulate you on your re-election as Speaker of the National Assembly, and the First and Second Deputy Speakers on their election to their positions.

 

Mr Speaker, I thank my lovely family for the great support it gave me, especially my father, who is over 100 years old, for showering his blessings upon me, and my brothers and sisters for their encouragement. I also want to thank my friends who supported me morally, spiritually, materially and financially. I say thank you so much to them all and may the good lord bless them.

 

Mr Speaker, on behalf of the loving people of Luena and the great United Party for National Development (UPND), allow me to thank our great leader and fighter, Mr Hakainde Hichilema, popularly known as HH; his great Vice-President, Mr Geoffrey Bwalya Mwamba, known as GBM; and the entire leadership of the UPND for giving me the opportunity to contest the 11^th August, 2016, General Elections from which I emerged as the elected Member of Parliament for Luena.

 

Sir, I thank the people of Luena for putting their trust in me to serve them as their representative in Parliament. I would also like to thank my campaign manager, Mary Mukubesa; our district, constituency, ward and branch leadership; and, indeed, the entire campaign team for working tirelessly to deliver this victory. To the people of Luena, I say thank you for their trust in me and that I will not let them down. Instead, I will work tirelessly to take the much-needed development to them.

 

Interruptions

 

Mr Speaker: Order on the right!

 

Mr Kundoti: I know that if we work as a team, we will accomplish our goal for, indeed, divided we fall, but united we stand.

 

Mr Speaker, despite Limulunga District being a tourist attraction, the road from Mongu to Limulunga is in a deplorable state and needs urgent attention. The newly constructed gravel road from Limulunga to Kate, the administrative centre of the district, is impassable and needs to be worked on.  Luena Constituency does not have roads, but only bush tracks opened up by oxcarts used by the villagers.

 

Sir, I urge the Government to open up Luena for development by constructing feeder roads in the area. I also request that the road to Nangula be extended to Kate. At the same time, construction works at the administration centre have stalled due to non-availability of funds.

 

Mr Speaker, in terms of education, Luena Constituency needs more schools nearer to the people, as there are children in lower grades who walk for two or three hours to the nearest schools. How do we expect such children to perform well when they are already tired by the time they reach school? Limulunga District only has one day secondary school, which is not adequate to cater for all the children in the district. The pupils who pass to Grade 8 at the school have to rent houses, which makes the girl child more vulnerable to pregnancies and falling pregnant. My request to the Government, therefore, is that it turns the new secondary school under construction into a boarding school, though works there have also stalled due to a lack of funds. The same should apply to Nangula Basic School, which has been turned into a day secondary school. The schools in Luena do not have learning aids, let alone computers. Some of our children in those schools have never seen a computer. Therefore, it is imperative that learning aids and computers are bought for our schools.

 

Mr Speaker, fifty-two years after Independence, there are still challenges of the sick walking long distances to access medical attention and our mothers giving birth in their homes or in Scotch Carts while being transported to health centres. This is unacceptable and the Government must change this situation by taking healthcare facilities nearer to the people. The whole district does not have a hospital apart from clinics that do not even have medicines. Neither, does it have an ambulance, as it relies on an ambulance that belongs to a non-governmental organisation (NGO) called Centre for Infectious Disease Research in Zambia (CIDRZ). I, therefore, ask the Government to provide an ambulance to the people of Limulunga District.

 

Mr Speaker, there is a need for clean water in Luena. Hence, I ask this Government to provide clean water to the people of Luena, as they are entitled to it just like anyone else. I ask the Government to sink boreholes in our villages in Limulunga District.

 

Mr Speaker, Luena Constituency is a rice-growing area where you will find super rice, a rice variety that is very tasty and has an appetising aroma. Despite the effort our farmers put in, the result of their labour is not impressive as they have not been given modern rice farming skills. There has been little attention paid to farmers growing other crops compared to farmers growing maize. If the rice farmers of Luena could be helped in their efforts, they could contribute to the food basket of our country. I, therefore, call upon the Ministry of Agriculture to pay attention to the rice farmers in Luena and equip them with modern farming skills, as doing so will help boost rice farming in the constituency.

 

Sir, it is unfortunate that fifty-two years after Independence, we still see development concentrated in urban areas. How will we stop the urban drift if rural areas do not have clean drinking water, improved healthcare facilities, schools and electricity? The teachers, health workers and other Government workers in rural areas should enjoy what their counterparts in urban areas enjoy, such as being able to drive cars. I, therefore, urge the Government to spread development evenly to all areas of the country. I would like the people of Luena to see modern health facilities and schools like those in urban areas in their area. I would also like the Rural Electrification Programme (REP) to spread to all rural areas of the country.

 

Mr Speaker, let me comment briefly on the Budget presented to this House by the hon. Minister of Finance.

 

Sir, it is now public knowledge that our economy is in a bad state. For sure, it needs attention. The increase in taxes and removal of subsidies in the 2017 Budget will trigger job losses and the majority of the citizenry will have to endure suffering, as there are no safety valves in the Budget to protect the poor. Already, I know some foreign-owned shops that were doing very well in the past, but are now winding up business in Zambia because they are not making any profit. That, in turn, will bring about job losses.

 

Sir, Zambia is endowed with massive tourism attractions that could earn it a lot of money. However, due to the bad governance in this country, foreign tourists are scared to come. Let us stop arresting our people and live as one as we did in the past. Then, more tourists will come into this country.

 

Mr Speaker, allow me to comment on the planned establishment of a cordon line from Kalabo to Jimbe in Barotseland. I suggest to the hon. Minister of Finance that the US$50 million targeted for that project be used for cattle restocking in the Western Province, as that will cheer up our people.

 

Sir, the much-talked-about creation of 1 million jobs is not feasible, looking at the state in which our national economy is. Following the fuel price hike, the country has experienced high transport costs that have triggered a price hike in all commodities nationwide, making life hard for our people. Business houses are laying off workers or closing down due to the high cost of doing business in Zambia coupled with the daily power load-shedding.

 

Mr Livune: Shame, shame!

 

Mr Kundoti: How, then, does this Patriotic Front (PF) Government expect to create 1 million jobs in such a hostile economic environment?

 

Mr Speaker, it is disheartening to see the way the PF Government is dealing with the media in this country.

 

Hon. Opposition Members: Hear, hear!

 

Mr Kundoti: It is clear that the PF Government has embarked on a path of instilling fear in the media houses. There are several moves it has made to instil fear in the media, including the closing and liquidation of The Post newspaper; the closure of Muvi Television, Komboni Radio and Itezhi-Tezhi Radio, though the two radio stations have now been reopened; the arrest of the entire newsroom staff of Radio Mano in Kasama on Tuesday, 15^th November, 2016; the detention of Iris Mwale, the News Editor for Chipata Television, together with a UPND official by the name of Michael Chuzu in Chipata; and the warning and cautioning of Mutinta Mazoka M’membe over the publication of The Mast newspaper over an alleged infringement of copyright laws. We demand that the press people be left to operate freely, as that is their right.

 

Mr Speaker, two weeks ago, a Muvi Television camera person in Kasama was arrested and put in police cells for filming police officers who had sealed off Radio Mano in a bid to stop President Hakainde Hichilema of the UPND and his Vice-President, Mr Geoffrey Bwalya Mwamba (GBM), from featuring on a paid-for radio programme. That is unacceptable.

 

Mr Livune: Hear, hear!

 

Mr Kundoti: Let the media houses do their job freely.

 

Mr Livune: That is right!

 

Mr Kundoti: Mr Speaker, surely, the police have much work to do other than harassing innocent journalists doing their work of giving information to the people. Whoever is behind this harassment of our journalists will, one day, answer to the people of Zambia.

 

Hon. Opposition Members: Hear, hear!

 

Mr Kundoti: This has not happened in this country, except under this PF Government.

 

Hon. Government Members: Question!

 

Mr Kundoti: This we all know. We have not had a time in this country when we have seen these kinds of arrests of journalists. I am a journalist, and ...

 

Mr Livune: That is right!

 

Mr Kundoti: I have not seen this kind of thing happen in Zambia before. Which is unacceptable.

 

Hon. Opposition Members: Hear, hear!

 

Mr Kundoti: Can we let the journalists operate freely. All of us here need information. We need to know what is happening in the country.

 

Mr Speaker, closing down television and radio stations and harassing journalists is not good, as it is very retrogressive for our young democracy.

 

Interruptions

 

Mr Speaker: Order!

 

Mr Kundoti: All this harassment of journalists is a result of their giving coverage to the Opposition, particularly the UPND.

 

Mr Livune: Hear, hear!

 

Mr Kundoti: Were they giving coverage to the Ruling Party, they would not be arrested.

 

Hon. Government Members: Question!

 

Mr Kundoti: We have not heard of journalists from the public media houses being arrested. The Zambian people want this commodity called news and no one has the right to deny the citizens of this country the right to information.

 

Hon. Opposition Members: Hear, hear!

 

Mr Kundoti: They want to know how their country, Zambia, not a PF country,

 

is being governed and how their money, not the PF money, is being used.

 

Hon. Opposition Members: Hear, hear!

 

Mr Kundoti: It is public knowledge in Zambia that the public media covers only negative stories about the Opposition with a view to portraying them in a negative light to the public. The Government knows that the Opposition exists to provide checks and balances. Therefore, it is imperative to let the media houses cover the Opposition as they see it fit without intimidation. The media needs to be allowed to operate freely. I call upon the Government to stop the harassment of the press, especially the private media.

 

Mr Speaker, today, Zambia is divided into two. This is something we have not seen in the past. The division has been brought about by the way the PF Government is running the affairs of this country and the way the national cake is being shared. There seem to be regions that are benefiting while others go without.

 

Hon. Government Members: Question!

 

Hon. Opposition Members: Hear, hear!

 

Mr Kundoti: Mr Speaker, the application of laws in Zambia seems to be selective, favouring one side while the other side is being hounded. It seems that PF cadres who break the law of the land are not be punished.

 

Interruptions

 

Mr Speaker: Order!

 

Mr Kundoti: There are a number of examples of this. There are a number of UPND cadres who are languishing in prisons right now.

 

Mr Speaker, police brutality against UPND members has been going on unabated. This is unacceptable and it must come to an end. We call upon the powers that be to ensure that this comes to an end.

 

Hon. Opposition Members: Hear, hear!

 

Mr Kundoti: Let us live as one..

 

Ms Kapata: Law-breakers!

 

Mr Kundoti: Even the PF has a lot of law breakers who need to be caged.

 

Hon. Government Members: Question!

 

Hon. Opposition Members: Like Jean!

 

Mr Speaker: Order!

 

Mr Kundoti: Sir, I, therefore, call upon our colleagues on your right to stop looking at us in the Opposition as if we were their enemies because we are not.

 

Mr Livune: We love them!

 

Mr Kundoti: We love them and they must love us.

 

Hon. Opposition Members: Hear, hear!

 

Mr Kundoti: They must care for us just like we care for them.

 

Hon. Opposition Members: Question!

 

Mr Kundoti: Let their pronouncements of uniting this nation match with their actions. It is said that actions speak louder than words.

 

Sir, I urge the PF Government not to hide behind the ‘One Zambia, One Nation’ Motto while their acts are divisive to the nation. Please, listen to the silent cries of the people of Zambia irrespective of their political affiliation, tribe or the region where they come from. I, therefore, urge the PF Government to start working on uniting this nation and stop brutalising all those perceived to be members of the UPND.

 

Hon. Opposition Members: Hear, hear!

 

Mr Kundoti: I say this because I would like to see a Zambia that is united. I would like to see the Zambia that President Kaunda, President Chiluba, the late President Mwanawasa and President Banda built, and the Zambia that the late President Sata wanted to build.

 

Hon. Government Members: What about now?

 

Laughter

 

Mr Livune: Edgar is dividing us.

 

Mr Speaker: Order!

 

Mr Kundoti: Sir, may the good Lord unite our country and bless it.

 

I thank you, Sir.

 

Hon. Opposition Members: Hear, hear!

 

Mr Speaker: Order!

 

Business of the House was suspended from 1045 hours until 1100 hours.

 

[THE FIRST DEPUTY SPEAKER in the Chair]

 

Mrs Fundanga (Chilubi): Madam Speaker, I feel provoked, but also encouraged to contribute to the Motion on the Floor.

 

Madam Speaker, first and foremost, I would like to congratulate our hon. Minister of Finance on a well-presented Budget.

 

Hon. Government Members: Hear, hear!

 

Mrs Fundanga: What comes to your mind when you look at this copy of the Budget? I heard that some corners of our society were even trying to criticise the theme of the Budget.

 

Mr Livune: Question!

 

Hon. Government Members: Hear, hear!

 

Mrs Fundanga: The theme, which is “Restoring Fiscal Fitness for Sustained Inclusive Growth and Development”, is no regular theme. As the hon. Members who have debated before me rightfully stated, there were issues in the past, but that is why our new hon. Minister of Finance found it necessary to encourage us and catch our attention by coming up with this theme for the Budget.

 

Madam Speaker, this is not the first time that Zambia has fallen, but together we have managed to stand up and start walking. We may limp, but we will stand. We may crawl, but we will eventually walk. That is what I see in this year’s Budget. I see a lot of hope.

 

Sir, most hon. Members will say that most of the Budget is going to debt servicing, but if we do not service that debt, what will our tomorrow be?

 

Interruptions

                 

Mrs Fundanga: Madam Speaker, at the same time, maintenance is key to development and that is what creates sustainability. If you do not maintain what you owe, you are not going to be sustainable. If you are not going to be sustainable, you are going to kill yourself. This is why I see the honour in the hon. Minister’s approach in this Budget. It is one of the most encouraging Budgets I have seen in recent times.

 

Hon. Government Members: Hear, hear! 

 

Mrs Fundanga: Madam Speaker, in fact, it gives me great pride to see that the Budget is anchored on the speech of the President, which is pro-poor. The speech of the President is trying to harness and create linkages among ministries. This is what I see in this Budget and it gives me hope. If you look at the Ministry of Finance, as the policy director and finance provider, linking with agriculture as a priority, as tabled in this Budget, is important. Further, looking at industry and trade, to harness from the produce of agriculture so that we can start implementing mechanisation, industrialisation and job creation in most of our areas, especially in the rural and peri-urban areas, is important.

 

Madam Speaker, there is no country in the world that has developed without small-scale industries. Small-scale industries can only come up if we mechanise and industrialise, and that is what is emphasised in this Budget. Most of you are quick to criticise and say, “Why are you giving examples of the South-East Asian countries?” There is no country that has developed without copying. Even education is copying. Let me tell you, South Korea, a country where I spent five years studying for my masters and postgraduate certificates, developed because of copying. I remember very well when products used to come from South Korea. The first time some televisions were made, nobody could look at them. However, because the Koreans continued to copy and improve on their technology, today, they have the Samsung of yesterday and, now, the Samsung Gold Star. Is it not so?

 

Hon. Government Members: Yes!

 

Mrs Fundanga: Madam Speaker, when our President refers to Singapore and South Korea, and our hon. Minister of Finance takes advantage of that, we can learn from those countries. However, we refuse and say we should have our own model instead of copying. I think that is not the way globalisation works today. You can copy and improve.

 

Madam Speaker, the hon. Minister of Finance was very clear. One thing I admire about this Budget is that it is not just ambitious, but also very cautions.

 

Hon. Government Members: Hear, hear!
 

Mrs Fundanga: Madam Speaker, it is very important to be ambitious, but not over-ambitious. There is still a need to be cautions. Many of our people criticised the hon. Minister for being cautious enough to say that we are only going to have a growth rate of 3 per cent. Had he been over-ambitious and said we are going to have a growth of 6 per cent, the same people were going to criticise him, would they not? So, this is a very good indicator that we have a very good hon. Minister of Finance who is focusing on being cautious instead of being too ambitious. Since he knows that we can concentrate on agricultural production and diversify the economy, let us not forget that in this country, only seven years ago, we used to earn more than US$3 billion just from non-traditional exports. This time, it has fallen to US$1.6 billion, but we can still improve.

 

Madam Speaker, if we just holistically follow what is in this Budget and own it, as hon. Members of Parliament, run with it and avoid saying it belongs to the Ministry of Finance or the hon. Minister of Finance, we can recover within a year. All we need to do is concentrate on agriculture and value addition, especially in our rural areas. Yes, the Budget is only going to receive about US$200 million from our donor countries, but that is not unique to Zambia. There was a time when we got absolutely nothing from donors. Some corners of our society get very excited when they see the International Monetary Fund (IMF) because they think the IMF officers have come here because we have done something wrong or that they have come to monitor us. However, the IMF is a partner. It works with developers, countries and the private sector. So, when its officers come, they come not to give policy direction, but to simply help us so that we can move together, as partners. So, some corners of our society should not get very excited and see that as an indicator of failure of the country. It is not supposed to be like that.

 

Madam Speaker, the other key issue I would like to touch on concerns copper. I have seen that the hon. Minister of Finance is very passionate about value addition because it is very important. I have also seen that we have been exporting our jobs to China by exporting raw materials. In this Budget, I have seen that the hon. Minister is very keen on industrialisation and value addition. I heard somebody say that it is not possible for Zambia to add value because we do not have the capacity. The capacity we have are the ministries that already exist and this Assembly. Let us own this Budget. If we say this Budget belongs to us, then, we will work together. We will also advise our policy makers and the ministries on how to move forward and how to create linkages so that we can have a sustainable future for our children and the world.  

 

Madam Speaker, when I was reading this Budget, I remember telling myself that that it did not have too many figures although the person who wrote it is an accountant.  Some Budgets look very polished and attractive but, at the end of the day, they are not.

 

Hon. Minister, through the Chair, even as I congratulating you, I must say that the most important thing we should look at is the implementation of the Budget. Many a time, the Budget is very well set out and presented, but its implementation becomes a challenge. How are we going to implement this Budget and make sure that what is in this Budget reaches the intended target? How are we going to create linkages? Like I mentioned earlier, the Ministry of Commerce and Industry should play a key role at this point in time. I suggest that, if possible, we bring back the Small Industries Development Organisation (SIDO) and through it, manage the value addition very well because there will be monitoring. There will be experts on the ground, not only in Lusaka. There will also trainers who are going to be extension workers.

 

Madam, even in agriculture, we need to have extension workers. Yesterday, I heard somebody from the Western Province ask why someone from Lusaka went to make a dip tank, which is not relevant to the Western Province. So, let us use the extension workers in our respective areas. Even in rural areas, we can train them. We did that during the Presidency of Dr Kaunda. If we do not implement project from the ground up, our people will feel left out. Development should not be from up down. It should be bottom-up so that our people can feel that they also own the Budget. They will also understand what it is saying and know what the hon. Minister of Finance has taken to their area. They will also know that he is telling them to train so that they can add value to rice, cashew nuts, maize and potatoes. They will also know that, better still, they can even process fish. Our base of the pyramid will feel that they are part of this Budget.

 

Madam, the Budget wonderful and well-presented, but the biggest problem is implementation. We should make sure that it is implemented and that it reaches the targeted groups. There are three key ministries, namely the Ministry of Agriculture, the Ministry of Commerce, Trade and Industry, and the Ministry of Higher Education, which is responsible for science and technology. If they can create linkages by re-establishing the much-needed SIDO and enhancing the production capacity in agriculture from the bottom up, we can reach the threshold.

 

Madam, regarding non-tradition exports, at one time, Zambia was the largest exporter of wheat in this region. Let us re-visit those areas and see where we have gone wrong so that we can improve upon them. I am very encouraged by this Budget because the theme encourages everyone to come on board and be proud in the realisation that we need to do something different this time around. If we do not look at things this way, then, we are lost because we will simply be politicking subjectively.

 

Hon. PF Member: Bauze!

 

Mrs Fundanga: Madam Speaker, I congratulate, once again, our President, through Her Honour the Vice-President, for the holistic approach he has taken to dealing with climate change, which encompasses almost everything we are talking about. That is why the hon. Minister of Finance talked about irrigation, although some people thought he was joking. The commercial farmers have been irrigating and earning a lot of foreign exchange since 1964. When will we start to emulate them? Why can we not emulate the positive things our neighbours are doing?

 

Madam, the President is on a quest to co-operate with the rest of the world in supporting efforts to combat the effects of climate change, as the country cannot have a stand-alone mentality. We need to take advantage of the carbon credit initiative and come up with a policy direction that manages it well for the benefit of all of us. Recently, there has been an influx of local and foreign investors trying to form companies in the area of harnessing our carbon credit because we have a high carbon emission footprint. It might not be competitive globally, but what we have can still benefit many people, including those in our rural set-ups, the ones who have a lot of vegetation, if we manage it properly.

 

Madam Speaker, we should be weary of who is running with this Budget and how because we are all proud of it. Let us all be watchdogs and not let it fail. As the French say “laissez passé” or let it be. Let us not say things like, “It is not for me. It is for the hon. Minister of Finance”, “I am not a Patriotic Front (PF) member” or “I do not work for that ministry”. Let that come to an end. We are doing this for the good of the people of Zambia.

 

Hon. PF Members: Hear, hear!

 

Mrs Fundanga: If something is good, we should all stand together and do it for the good of the people. At the end of the day, when we get out of this House and go on the street, the first questions we are asked are: “Who are you?” and “Where are you from?”

 

Hon. PF Members: Hear, hear!

 

Mrs Fundanga: The one thing we can never get rid of is where we come from. So, we should be proud of where we come from. Our friends in the Far East, where I was educated, are proud of where they come from no matter what, and it is that pride that makes them work. When one is proud of what they have, they look after it. So, let us be proud of this country and of our policy makers. We can criticise them, but let us be proud of some of the things that they are doing, such as this Budget, and support them so that they realise the potential in this Yellow Book. This document lying here is not good for us all. So, we all have to be a part of it and ensure its success implementation.

 

Mr Speaker, I thank you.

 

Hon. PF Members: Hear, hear!

 

Mr Kafwaya (Lunte): Madam Speaker, I am thank you for giving me the opportunity to add the voice of the people of Lunte to the debate on the Motion that was moved by the hon. Minister of Finance. The Motion is very important in that it breaks down the vision of His Excellency the President for this country in attainable goals of diversification and industrialisation. 

 

Madam Speaker, the Budget, which was very skilfully crafted and eloquently presented, has achieved sufficient alignment with the President’s vision. I thank the hon. Minister of Finance for his skill and eloquence. I also thank you for the amount of information that you keep giving me, in particular, through my pigeonhole. I think that you have given a lot of information, and I will draw a bit from it in my debate this morning. Let me also thank the hon. Members who have taken their time to debate this Motion. I think that I will also draw a little from their contributions.

 

Madam Speaker, allow me to quote from the United Nations Economic Commission for Africa (UNCA) Country Profile, 2015, which I received through my pigeonhole.

 

“Over the last decade, Zambia has recorded steady economic growth surpassing the region average. Its average growth rate in the last five years, 2010 to 2015, was over 6 per cent which is above the region average for the countries of the Southern African Development Community (SADC) at 4 per cent.”

 

Madam Speaker, I have with me the Central Statistics Office (CSO) 2013 report on selected socio-economic indicators, in which there is a clear demonstration of the steady growth of our gross domestic product (GDP) over the period covered by the UNCA’s country profile.

 

Madam Speaker, sometimes, when we debate the indicators on the Floor of the House, we alarm the nation as though the economic slowdown has only happened here. I am not more of an authority than those who studied economics or those who compiled this report. However, the way some of those authorities speak worries me a lot because they tend to project this country as though it has collapsed when, in fact, regional and international bodies are recognising that it has grown its GDP at a higher rate than the regional average.

 

Hon. PF Members: Hear, hear!

 

Mr Mwale: Ema debate aya!

 

Mr Kafwaya: Madam Speaker, the Budget presented by Hon. Felix Mutati, the man who took care of Lunte for fifteen good years before he allowed me to take over, has grown to K64.5 Billion from the K53 billion for 2015, representing an increase of over K11 billion. I know that there might be a temptation in some people to convert the K64 billion into dollars, in which case it is smaller than the 2015 Budget. My question to those who want to convert the amount into dollars is: What model of conversion are you using when we are not yet in 2017? What rate are you using? Even if we use purchasing power parity or take it into commercials, this is a profit-and-loss figure. You cannot use one number to prove the Budget good. It has to be the average of the whole year. So, how have you projected the figure?

 

Mr Mwale: Wamvera Jack Mwiimbu?

 

Mr Kafwaya: You must be able to make assumptions and tell us the basis upon which you are making the conversions. Let us not alarm the nation.

 

Madam Speaker, let me speak in kwacha, not in dollar, terms because this Budget is in Kwacha and it is a projection of a period that has not yet come. For those who are converting, if they have used K10 per US$1, the exchange rate might be K5 per US$1 in the middle of next year and they will have trouble explaining to their people.

 

Mr Mwale: Ku Dundumwezi.

 

Mr Kafwaya: As I see it, the Budget seeks to align itself with the President’s Speech because it has proposed to increase the allocation to agriculture from the 6.5 per cent for last year to 9.4 per cent. In absolute numbers, we are talking about an increase from K3.4.billion to K6 billion. I think that this demonstrates the will to develop the agricultural sector. I also know that the sector has been categorised into two, namely livestock and fisheries, and crops. Of the total allocation to the sector, 77 per cent is for crops while 23 per cent is for supporting the livestock and fisheries sub-sector. There is an argument that the allocation to fisheries is insufficient. However, where I come from, we say, “baikuta ubwali. Te munani iyo”, which means that one must provide more nshima than relish.

 

Mr Kabanda and Mr Sikazwe: Yes!

 

Hon. Opposition Members: Ah!

 

Mr Kafwaya: That is what we say where I come from. I do not speak for the other places where the thinking could be different.

 

Mr Sikazwe: That is true where he comes from.

 

Mr Kafwaya: So, if we focus more on the relish than on the nshima, I do not know if that is being pro-poor.

 

Laughter

 

Mr Kafwaya: I would not understand that.

 

Madam Speaker, these arguments are really burning in my heart. How can somebody wake up and say that this Budget is not pro-poor when I see the hon. Minister proposing the removal of subsidies and increasing the allocation to the Social Cash Transfer (SCT) Scheme? What does that tell you?

 

Hon. Government Members: Hear, hear!

 

Mr Mwale: Ndiye pro-poor iyo!

 

Mr Kafwaya: The hon. Minister wants the poor people of our country to benefit because the subsidies that he is proposing to remove benefit those who drive Land cruiser GX or VX vehicles. Those who are in manufacturing, for them to set up a manufacturing plant or mining company, they have to already be rich.

 

Hon. PF Members: Hear, hear!

 

Mr Kafwaya: So, the hon. Minister of Finance would like us to share. When he says that he is going to increase the Pay as You Earn (PAYE) threshold to more than K6,000, it is in order to make sure that those who earn more contribute more to those that have almost nothing. I would like to be very specific in congratulating the hon. Minister of Finance on taking these measures.

 

Madam Speaker, industrialisation, which was well-articulated by His Excellency the President, is one way in which we are going to diversify our export portfolio to mitigate the risk of frequent copper price fluctuations. I have read from the UNCA’s Country File 2015 that Zambia has no influence on copper pricing. It is important to note that when we talk about diversification, it is not for the sake of talking, but because we want this country to be able to export more so that when copper prices fall, we are able to lean on agricultural exports. In order to be competitiveness in the industrialisation, the President talked about our need to compete with other countries. So, there is a need for every well-meaning Zambian to support the Budget.

 

Madam Speaker, to simplify things for everybody, I think this Budget is pro-poor and that it has achieved sufficient alignment with the vision of the country. The hon. Minister of Finance has done a great job of addressing the concerns of many who want our economy stabilised. So, I call upon all of hon. Members of Parliament to rally behind the implementation of this Budget.

 

Madam Speaker, allow me to debate certain issues that some hon. Members raised.

 

Madam, sometimes, it is important for the hon. Minister of Finance to listen to people when they speak. The people of the Western Province have said very strongly and clearly that they do not want the cordon line. So, I propose that the hon. Minister shifts that money from the cordon line to the construction of bridges at Kalungwishi and Luangwa because that is where the money is needed. You cannot force people to have what they do not want.

 

Mr Kabanda: Bwekeshapo!

 

Mr Mukata: Iwe!

 

Hon. Government Members: Hear, hear!

 

Mr Kafwaya: Clearly, we need that money for the construction of two mentioned bridges in Lunte. I plead with him to move the money for the cordon line to Lunte so that we can use it.

 

Mr Musukwa: Since he is the former Member of Parliament for Lunte.

 

Mr Kafwaya: I hear from the hon. Members that the hon. Minister still has a big stake in Lunte Constituency.

 

Mr Mutati indicated assent.

 

Hon. Members: Hear, hear!

 

Mr Kafwaya: Madam Speaker, let me not say more than I have spoken.

 

I thank you, Madam Speaker.

 

Hon. Government Members: Hear, hear!

 

Madam First Deputy Speaker: Order, hon. Members!

 

Mr Mbangweta (Nkeyema): Madam Speaker, I would like to congratulate the hon. Minister of Finance on the way he has handled this budgeting process. This is because before presenting the Budget, he told this House the exact state of the economy. So, if we had different assumptions, from that day, we know the truth that this country is in trouble.

 

Hon. UPND Members: Yes!                           

 

Mr Mbangweta: That is the reason the people who are usually vociferous have not been this time. It appears that they, too, agree with the hon. Minister of Finance.

 

Madam Speaker, last week, the hon. Minister of Finance and his colleague, the hon. Minister of Health, went to the University Teaching Hospital (UTH) to have a first-hand account of the issues the general citizenry have been complaining about. The reason was that reading about something in a newspaper is different from experiencing it. Thereafter, the hon. Minister of Health took action, which I believe the people appreciated. That is the reason we have been urging hon. Ministers to listen to us, the Backbenchers. When we complain, they should visit our constituencies to see that our complaints are genuine and empathise with us.

 

Madam, I have a few concerns about this Budget. The first relates to equity in the distribution of resources, the second to fiscal discipline, the third to the factors underlying this Budget, the fourth the creation of employment and the last to the plight of the middle class in Zambia.

 

Madam Speaker, with respect to equity in the distribution of resources, I have a challenge with this Budget because on page 1, the hon. Minister indicates that the resources have been allocated to the promotion of equitable development across the country. That is the underlying policy of the Budget. However, I am concerned with the measures suggested on page 12, which place a restriction on new capital projects and major equipment procurements until all on-going projects are completed. I find this to be a contradiction because in Nkeyema, there are no projects this year. So, it means that even next year, we will not have any projects.

 

Madam, the hon. Minister indicated the economic roads that will be constructed in 2017. However, he did not talk about the Lusaka/Mongu Road. I mentioned earlier that the road, which also passes through Nkeyema, is in a bad state. He recognised that the bridge being built will improve transportation between Zambia and Angola. However, that will not work if the Government does not work on the stretch of the road in Nkeyema.

 

Madam, since all citizens pay the taxes the Government uses to develop the country, we expect development to be spread equitably. Even though I am being presumptuous, when I was reading the Yellow Book, I did not see any projects in Nkeyema. That could be the same for the other new constituencies that are still counted under the areas under which they initially fell. On this basis, I would like the hon. Minister to revisit the Budget. Let me also urge the hon. Ministers that as they look at the twenty irrigation schemes, eighteen insemination centres, 144 prefabricated bridges and eleven small water schemes they want to implement, they should consider Nkeyema. We would like to see something done in this regard.

                                                                                                                

Madam, another concern relates to fiscal discipline, yet another challenge that I saw last week when the hon. Minister was presenting the Supplementary Budget. He struggled to explain things here while the people who had spent the money were quiet.

 

Hon. UPND Members: Yes!                           

 

Mr Mbangweta: They did not assist him. This is a problem because if his colleagues do not share his vision, they will still not comply with what he wants to do. During the breakfast meeting held at the Intercontinental Hotel, the hon. Minister said that:

 

“Credibility has been hampered by accumulation of arrears by unplanned expenditures. Unplanned expenditure has been one of our biggest Budget challenges. Sometimes, the variation from what has been budgeted for is as much as 25 per cent. Now, if you have a variation of 25 per cent, you are actually having a new Budget. So, you have a budget within a budget.”

 

Madam, he further explained the measures the Ministry of Finance had put in place to prevent overrides on the Integrated Financial Management Information System (IFMIS). However, the bureaucrats and the line hon. Ministers claimed that there had been power failures and that they had used manual processes to incur additional expenditure. If that attitude continues, what is in the Budget might not necessarily be realised.

 

Madam, I am also concerned about the factors that underpin the Budget, which is anchored on five pillars. We would have loved the hon. Minister to explain a bit more on the measures that will be taken to, for example, ensure that there is prudence in the management of the resources. The Government still wants to keep District Commissioners (DCs) in addition to the mayors and council chairpersons. If we are talking about prudence, surely, this duplication could not have been maintained. However, there is nothing that the hon. Minister of Finance can do, and this is a typical example of the problems we will have. Maybe, that is why he did not explain what he meant by prudence in the management of public resources. Equally, we expected him to talk about the practical measures regarding the Farmer Input Support Programme (FISP) because the Government spends a lot of money on the programme. Even in this Budget, more money has been proposed for it. However, some re-targeting and re-engineering of the programme would have helped us to understand what the Government intends to do with this Budget.

 

Madam Speaker, the target of creating 100,000 jobs in 2017 is unrealistic and unattainable because that has never happened before, as confirmed by the 2014 Labour Force Survey. In his submission, my colleague, Hon. Kafwaya, also referred to a 2013 report which means that we are not current with our statistics. So, how can we help this ministry? Maybe, this House can pass legislation to compel the Government, through the Central Statistical Office (CSO), to report on employment opportunities created on a month or quarterly basis like it happens in other countries. That way, we would not argue about how many jobs are actually created because the collection of statistics would be self-regulating. So, if the Government is willing, then, we should enact that legislation and help the Government to hold itself accountable for the numbers it puts in the Budget, including the inflation figures. We will also hold it accountable.

 

Madam Speaker, the creation of 100,000 jobs is also not attainable because the operation environment in this country is very hostile and companies are closing down. Yesterday, we read in the newspapers how a company on the Copperbelt is pressuring its employees to go on voluntary separation. That is not job creation. One organisation in the neighbourhood was also closed, meaning that people are being thrown onto the streets. The other thing that will make it impossible for the 100,000 jobs to be created are some of the suggested revenue measures. For example, because of some of the strategies that the hon. Minister wishes to employ, the cost of employment on the part of the employer is likely to go up. The intention to reform the pension schemes so as to raise the contribution rate for the employer is what will lead to the increases. Secondly, the training levy that is proposed at 0.5 per cent of the total emoluments the employer pays is going to create a challenge on the part of the employers, especially if they feel that the money might not necessarily be going to the intended purpose. What is going to happen is that employers will feel constrained to get more people because the wage bill is going to go up. Further, it is very difficult for any investor to come into this country because we are our own worst enemies. Today, I found police officers all over the place. That is the rule of law that is not necessary. You are infringing on the freedom ‒

 

Madam First Deputy Speaker: Order, hon. Member for Nkeyema!

 

Let us not go there. Mr Speaker has already ruled on that issue.

 

Please, proceed with your debate without talking about the police officers.

 

Mr Mbangweta: Madam Speaker, maybe, I should state that the Ministry of Foreign Affairs is working to bring tourists and investors into the country. The Ministry of Tourism and Arts; the Ministry of Finance and Ministry of Commerce, Trade and Industry are also trying to do the same. However, the Ministry of Home Affairs is deducting from the efforts of the other ministries. It must find a way of harmonising that scenario because if left unchecked, the country will not attract investment.

 

Madam Speaker, let me, now, talk about the plight of the middle class in Zambia, the people who have no representation. The people at the top have everything. So, even an increment in airtime and in fuel prices will not affect them. Similarly, an upward adjustment of electricity tariffs will not affect them because the institutions they work for pay for those services on their behalf. Therefore, such people have no idea what is happening. However, all the measures in the Budget are targeted at the middle class people who have no union or representation to speak on their behalf. So, how is this country going to develop? It is the middle class with no representation and no voice to speak with that should develop the country. Look at how the prices of fuel, electricity tariffs, road tolls, road tax, water tariffs and airtime prices are all going up. The Pay As You Earn (PAYE) has been increased from 35 per cent to 37.5 per cent. What does that mean? It means that the take-home pay for the people has fallen. How does the Government improve the levels of productivity in this country? From next year, people will need to have tuntemba in order to feed their families and survive. It will be very difficult to –

 

Madam First Deputy Speaker: Order, hon. Member for Nkeyema!

 

What is tuntemba?

 

Mr Mbangweta: Madam Speaker, tuntemba are small shops or kiosks.

 

Madam, we should be thinking about the middle class. One way the hon. Minister and his predecessor could have employed in lessening the tax burden is to increase the burden for the informal sector so that we do not make only very few people to carry the rest of the population on their shoulders in terms of paying taxes. There are more people in the informal sector than in the formal sector. The formal sector is defined as people who contribute to a pension scheme and earn leave days. That is why I started by saying, maybe, we should agree on what the formal sector is and what a decent job is. In this document, the hon. Minister talked about decent jobs. What is the definition of a decent job? Without a general agreement on that, one can say anything. The number of people in both informal and formal employment depends on what time or period one takes stock. For instance, if one carried out a study at a time when people are harvesting, it would show that the informal sector has more people. However, if one went deeper, one would find that the majority of those in the informal sector are not even salaried while some of them are being looked after by their parents or relatives. That is very important.

 

Madam, if the Frontbench is well-disposed, let us agree to pass legislation that will enable us to know the employment statistics. However, I know the statistics will not be to positive because even when Zambia was doing very well, and new factories and companies were being created, the numbers targeted were not achieved. Where will these things come from when the environment is so hostile even among us? Who will come here? There is no reason for anyone to come to Zambia. Investors will go to countries where things are stable and the policies are amenable to doing business, not where they have to always look over their shoulders and where they do not know whether they can use a particular street or not.

 

Madam Speaker, I thank you.

 

Hon. Opposition Members: Hear, hear!

 

ADJOURNMENT

 

The Vice-President: Madam Speaker, I beg to move that the House do now adjourn.

 

Question put and agreed to.

 

_______

 

The House adjourned at 1152 hours until 1430 hours on Tuesday, 22^nd November, 2016.

 

____________