Tuesday, 23rd July, 2019

Tuesday, 23^rd July, 2019

The House met at 1430 hours

[MADAM FIRST DEPUTY SPEAKER in the Chair]

NATIONAL ANTHEM

PRAYER

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MINISTERIAL STATEMENT

INTRODUCTION OF TENOFOVIR ALAFENAMIDE

The Minister of Health ( Dr Chilufya): Madam Speaker, I thank you for this opportunity to update the nation, through this august House on the introduction of a new Antiretroviral (ARV) drug in the country called Tenofovir Alafenamide (TAF) for the treatment of Human Immunodeficiency Virus/Acquired Immune Deficiency Syndrome (HIV/AIDS) in Zambia.

Madam Speaker, the Ministry of Health implements a five-year National Health Strategic Plan based on the World Health Organisation (WHO) six core components for building blocks of a health system. This means focusing on delivery of quality health services, human capital development, robust health information management system, health care financing and access to essential medicines, leadership and governance that speak to universal access to essential medicines. Today, I will confine myself to access to a new anti-HIV drug called TAF.

Madam Speaker, the Universal Health Coverage Agenda, to which His Excellency the President of this country, Mr Edgar Chagwa Lungu, has made a political commitment, is on top of the global health policy and it is a smart investment. This will lead to having a healthy and productive population and culminate into a prosperous middle income country by 2030.

Madam Speaker, currently, there are 1,224,017 people living with HIV in Zambia. Out of these, the Government has managed to enrol 1,094,253 individuals on Anti-retroviral Treatment (ART), translating to 89 per cent.

Madam Speaker, 89 per cent of these people know their HIV status. Out of these, 91 per cent are taking life-saving ARVs and among these, 89 per cent have attained viral load suppression. This is a demonstration that Zambia is on track to attaining epidemic control of HIV/AIDS. Through the HIV National Programme, Zambia has now introduced a new drug that is better tolerated known as TAF.

Madam Speaker, this drug has many advantages and key among them is the fact that it will reduce the viral load within ten to fourteen days, compared to other ARVs which would take six months and beyond. By 27^th June, 2019, we had begun enrolling Zambian patients on this new drug. Zambia is the first country in the developing world to use this medicine. In addition to this, we are introducing another drug which is a combination of TAF and emtricitabine and dolutegravir which is called TAFED. This drug has the following advantages:

it does not cause kidney injury, as is the case with many other drugs;

it does not lead to bone mineral loss;

it is available in combination with other drugs;

it reduces the viral load, like I said, within ten to fourteen days;

the dolutegravir component is less likely to lead to the development of drug resistance; and

TAFED, in addition to being given to adults, can be given to children with the weight of 25 kg or more. Therefore, children can also have the benefit of having one tablet per day for HIV treatment.

Madam Speaker, the fact that TAFED will also be given to children who weigh above 25 kg means that there will be harmonisation of the ARV regiment in children and adults as well as better outcomes.

Madam Speaker, now that all HIV infected patients are initiated on ART as soon as their status is confirmed, we are seeing fewer new infections. I would, therefore, like to use this opportunity to discredit the report that came out in the Daily Mail of the United Kingdom (UK) that Zambia was a land of orphans because of HIV/AIDS. Zambia today, has embarked on a very successful HIV programme which has resulted in reduced rates of new infections, mortality and mobility, and HIV being now a chronic, but manageable condition.

Madam Speaker, may I assure the nation that we have adequate stocks of ARVs in the country and commodity security of up to three years. All people who test positive to HIV are given ARV drugs free of charge and this treatment is commenced on the same day that they test positive. Once started on ARV drugs, the patients attain viral load suppression within ten to fourteen days and he/she will not transmit the virus to the next person or to the next client or to their child in the case of a mother. This is, therefore, an opportunity for Zambia to firmly attain epidemic control of HIV/AIDS.

Madam, I appeal to the hon. Members of Parliament to sensitise their constituents to ensure that they all test for HIV/AIDS. Those who are positive should enrol on ART as HIV is no longer a death sentence.

Madam Speaker, I thank you.

Madam First Deputy Speaker: Hon. Members are now free to ask questions on points of clarification on the ministerial statement given by the hon. Minister.

Mr Ng’onga (Kaputa): Madam Speaker, I thank the hon. Minister for the important statement he has just given. Is the new drug, which the hon. Minister talked about and whose name I cannot even pronounce, already available to the people in rural constituencies like Kaputa or they have to come to Lusaka to access it?

Madam First Deputy Speaker: The hon. Minister of Health will also help us to pronounce that properly.

Dr Chilufya: Madam Speaker, the new drug is known as Tenofovir Alafenamide.

Hon. Government Members: Hear, hear!

Mr Sikazwe: Ema doctor aba!

Interruptions

Madam First Deputy Speaker: Continue, hon. Minister.

Dr Chilufya: In short, it is known as TAF ...

Dr Chilufya: ... and if we combine it with Emtricitabine and Dolutegravir, then we call it TAFED. The drug is available countrywide and we are transitioning patients to it in every part of the country and so, all Zambians can access it.

I thank you, Madam Speaker.

Mr Muchima (Ikeleng’i): Madam Speaker, what will happen to those who have already been prescribed with drugs that are to last for six months, for instance? Are they supposed to throw away their old drugs and be introduced to the new one or what mechanism has been put in place? If there is one, how does the hon. Minister intend to disseminate that information throughout the country?

Dr Chilufya: Madam Speaker, the transitioning was planned carefully to ensure that those patients who were on the old regimen were allowed to finish the course and then transition to the new one, except those who required more efficacy in the drugs they were taking. Those were transitioned immediately.

Madam, we ensure that we co-ordinate countrywide with our pharmacists and ART co-ordinators to ensure that there is minimal wastage as we transition to the new regimen.

I thank you, Madam Speaker.

Mr Miyutu (Kalabo Central): Madam Speaker, new as the drug may be, has the ministry taken into consideration or observed any serious side effects on our patients? Are there any risks to those who are going to take this new drug for the first time?

Dr Chilufya: Madam Speaker, Zambia has been participating in leading ground-breaking research in new antigens. As we speak, there is a world conference on HIV/AIDS where one of our young professors is making presentations and giving evidence on how efficacious this drug is and how it has minimal side effects that have not been picked out to inform any disruption. From the research that we have carried out in Zambia, we have not picked out any side effects.

I thank you, Madam Speaker.

Dr Chibanda (Mufulira): Madam Speaker, may I begin by congratulating Hon. Emmanuel Mulenga on his appointment as Minister of Youth, Sport and Child Development.

Madam, it is interesting to note that the hon. Minister has touched a little on some false publication in one tabloid in the United Kingdom (UK). Is the hon. Minister able to confirm whether the Zambian Government intends to challenge that daily tabloid in the courts of law? Further, what is the intake of this drug? It is taken once a day or is it like those that we hear are taken once a month?

Dr Chilufya: Madam Speaker, this drug is taken once a day by both children and adults. Through the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, we intend to challenge our colleagues from the press in the UK. We intend to do this in order to ensure that they do not malign the country and paint it black and that the impression about how Zambia is reforming its health systems and how it is responding to the HIV/AIDS scourge is corrected.

I thank you, Madam Speaker.

Mr Zimba (Chasefu): Madam Speaker, in his statement, the hon. Minister mentioned that Zambia is the first among Third world countries to receive this Tenofovir Alafenamide (TAF). Has there been extensive research to know the side effects or consequences of this medication? Is this not another ploy for the Western world to pick Zambia as a guinea pig to try this medication out? Why should we be the first of the Third world countries?

Dr Chilufya: Madam Speaker, it is true that Zambia is the first to introduce TAF and TAFED among the developing countries. However, this drug has been in use in developed countries and evidence has been adduced to show that the efficacy is as I have said it is. There is a ten to fourteen-day viral load suppression, no kidney injury and much more improved tolerability.

Madam, just to assure the House and the nation, I would like to say that at the world conference that is currently taking place, WHO has recommended a shift in regimen to this new one that Zambia is already implementing. While other countries will be learning from the WHO Conference on HIV/AIDS, Zambia has already made progress. There is adequate information and evidence. This is why the WHO has changed the regimen, and this is what is recommended.

I thank you, Madam.

Mr Mutelo (Mitete): Madam Speaker, allow me to congratulate the hon. Minister, for the first time, for bringing this Tenofovir Alafenamide (TAF) to the market. What happens to those who will be on this drug after the ten to fourteen days period? It suppresses the viral load quite right, but what happens thereafter?

Dr Chilufya: Madam Speaker, I thank the hon. Member for Mitete for the rare congratulatory message.

Madam, the essence of commencing a patient on ART is to ensure that the quantity of the virus in the body, which is the viral load, is reduced. If you reduce the viral load, then you are removing or reducing the ability of this patient to transmit to the partner or from mother to child. The only hope that we have for an HIV free generation is having no new infections. We can only have zero new infections if those who are negative remain negative, and those who are positive are on treatment, attain viral load suppression and despite being sexually active, are not transmitting to their partners or from mother to child.

Madam, if the suppression takes place within ten to fourteen days, then you have a patient in whom you will not notice signs of damage to the immune system because they will not suffer these opportunistic infections of Tuberculosis (TB), meningitis and many others and, therefore, lead a normal life. With the reduced viral load, they will not transmit to their partners or their children, if it involves mothers. After ten to fourteen days, a person attains that viral load suppression and ability not to transmit the virus. However, he/she has to carry on taking the drug daily so that he/she maintains that viral load suppression. The viral load suppression will only be sustained with daily intake. So, compliance is extremely important. A person cannot stop taking the drugs after ten to fourteen days. He/she has to carry on so as to sustain the viral load suppression.

I thank you, Madam Speaker.

Mr Mukosa (Chinsali): Madam Speaker, what is the difference between the cost –

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

Madam First Deputy Speaker: A point of order is raised.

Mr Mwiimbu: Madam Speaker, thank you for according me this opportunity to raise a point of order on the hon. Minister of Mines and Minerals Development and the hon. Minister of Justice.

Madam Speaker, I am aware that on several occasions, you have advised and ruled that matters that are in court cannot be debated on the Floor of this House. I am also aware that there was a Motion that was supposed to have been moved on this issue, and the advice from your office was that the matter was going to be sub judice. However, I have taken note of the Order Paper in relation to the question that has been raised by my colleague, the hon. Member of Parliament for Nchanga. In his question, he has raised issues pertaining to the liquidation of Konkola Copper Mines (KCM), a matter that is in court.

Madam Speaker, with your guidance, are we now going to be free to debate matters that are before the courts of law? Are we not going to be stopped from raising pertinent issues when this particular Motion is debated on the Floor of this House this afternoon?

Madam Speaker, I need your serious guidance on this very important issue.

Hon. UPND Members: Hear, hear!

Madam First Deputy Speaker: My serious ruling is that as the Leader of the Opposition, who is also the hon. Member of Parliament for Monze Central, has indicated, we, as presiding officers have continuously guided the House not to debate matters that are before the courts of law. However, the question that is appearing on the Order Paper is not, in itself, sub judice. When the time comes for the hon. Minister of Mines and Minerals Development to answer this question, he is going to be duly guided.

That is my serious ruling.

Hon Government Members: Hear, hear!

Mr Mukosa: Madam Speaker, what is the difference between the cost of the ordinary antiretroviral (ARVs) drugs that we have been using and Tenofovir Alafenamide (TAF).

Mr Chabi: Ah! Landafye ati TAF naiwe!

Laughter

Dr Chilufya: Madam Speaker, global partners are working closely with developing countries to ensure that the cost of these drugs is reduced. As we speak, the cost of this drug is almost on a par with other drugs, and we are getting to a point where TAF will even be cheaper. We are pushing this agenda, and negotiations are taking place in that regard. With pooled procurement, pharmaceutical companies would take advantage of the economies of scale and sell more drugs. So, the price of TAF is comparably getting better.

I thank you, Madam.

Ms Subulwa (Sioma): Madam Speaker, what side effects does the new drug have on pregnant women? When is the two-day workshop going to be held to sensitise hon. Members of Parliament who are expected to sensitise the people in their constituencies about this drug?

Dr Chilufya: Madam Speaker, when the dolutegravir component was introduced and was given in combination with tenofovir, reports of spinal tube defects in unborn children were recorded in Botswana. A few children were, therefore, born with spinal tube defects, and that led to the suspension of the use of the dolutegravir component in Botswana.

Madam, what then transpired was that the new combination which is now called TAF had a reduced component of dolutegravir. What has been proven today is that this drug is safe for consumption by both adults and children. Further, pregnant women are given full information about this drug. The current combination of the drug has not been seen to produce any neural tube defects as seen in the earlier drug. I, therefore, would like to assure the people that this drug is safe for consumption for both adults and children.

Madam, as regards the workshop, hon. Members will be informed when space is made available and authority has been given by Mr Speaker.

I thank you, Madam.

Mr Lihefu (Manyinga): Madam Speaker, how long has this new drug been on the market?

Dr Chilufya: Madam Speaker, this drug has been on the market since 2018.

I thank you, Madam.

Dr Imakando (Mongu Central): Madam Speaker, thank you for the opportunity to ask the hon. Minister of Health a question. He has delivered a very reassuring statement to the House this afternoon. Before I ask my question, allow me to congratulate Hon. Emmanuel Mulenga on his appointment as Minister of Youth, Sport and Child Development. I hope that he will also give us jerseys and footballs.

Madam Speaker, the hon. Minister said that we have stock for this drug to last three years. Did we pay for this drug or did the donors give it to us as a gift?

Dr Chilufya: Madam Speaker, the cost for drugs is co-funded by donors and the Government. A huge component is from the American Government, through the President’s Emergency Plan for Aids Relief (PEPFAR), and the Global Fund, and a significant component is from the Government of the Republic of Zambia.

I thank you, Madam.

Mr Munkonge (Lukashya): Madam Speaker, allow me to congratulate Dr Bwalya Ng’andu on his appointment as Minister of Finance, and Hon. Emmanuel Mulenga on his appointment as Minister of Youth, Sport and Child Development.

Madam Speaker, are the patients who are successfully receiving this treatment going to remain HIV positive?

Dr Chilufya: Madam Speaker, their HIV status will not change. As we speak today, we do not have a definitive treatment for HIV that can change one’s status from positive to negative. The management of HIV/AIDS today aims at ensuring that the Cluster of Differentiation 4 (CD4) count or the immune system of the body remains intact, without viruses to destroy it and the patient to suffer from opportunistic infections. The status does not change, but one attains viral load suppression and stops transmission of the virus to the next person.

I thank you Madam.

Mr Kundoti (Luena): Madam Speaker, I would like to find out from the hon. Minister if some patients have taken this drug so far. If so, how are they responding?

Dr Chilufya: Madam Speaker, we have had patients who are both on TAF and TAFED. We have been giving both TAF and TAFED, and these patients are responding extremely well. The good thing is that if a person who is HIV positive and who is not feeling sick is put on that drug, he or she will live a normal life and will not succumb to optimistic infections. His or her lifestyle will not be different from the one who is HIV negative. So, there is an incentive in starting treatment. We have seen that those who start ART and use these drugs do not even have those side effects we used to see a long time ago such as fat deposition in certain parts of the body and deformities. We do not see all those side effects in people using this new drug. We used to have cases of people having kidney failure and bone damage in most patients, but we do not see these issues anymore in people using this drug. We have not seen these side effects, and the patients have responded extremely well.

I thank you, Madam Speaker.

Mrs Chinyama (Kafue): Madam Speaker, as we welcome the new drug, is the hon. Minister able to give us an update on our Sondashi Formula?

Madam First Deputy Speaker: That is unrelated to the question, but I will allow the hon. Minister to give a short update, if there is one.

Mrs Chinyama: Hear, hear!

Dr Chilufya: Madam Speaker, the Sondashi Formula is undergoing what we call certain stages which are necessary for us to ascertain its efficacy. First of all, it has to undergo safety trials, and I believe that the safety trials were successful. Now, we are at the clinical efficacy stage. So, trials at this stage are still being conducted. If we reach a stage where we think that there is evidence that the Sondashi Formula has efficacy, the nation shall be informed accordingly. Currently, we do not have evidence that the Sondashi Formula works.

Madam Speaker, I thank you.

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QUESTIONS FOR ORAL ANSWER

KCM LIMITED LIQUIDATION

479. Mr Chali (Nchanga) asked the Minister of Mines and Minerals Development:

whether the Government is aware that of late, residents of Chililabombwe and Chingola are extremely anxious over the liquidation of Konkola Copper Mines (KCM) Limited; and

if so, how far has the Government gone with negotiations with the potential buyers of the KCM assets.

The Minister of Mines and Minerals Development (Mr Musukwa): Madam Speaker, the Government is fully aware of the dictum of “sub judice.” In answering the question, I have diligently stayed away from matters that are active in the Zambian courts and beyond.

Madam Speaker, let me inform you and the House that the Government is fully aware of the anxieties of residents of Chililabombwe and Chingola over the future of the KCM. The House may wish to know that residents of Chingola and Chililabombwe started raising concerns over the future of the KCM way before the commencement of the liquidation process.

Madam Speaker, the action the Zambia Consolidated Copper Mines-Investment Holdings (ZCCM-IH) took was on account of the deteriorating social and economic situation caused by the mismanagement of KCM by Vedanta Resources Limited. If left unchecked, it would have spelt catastrophe for the residents of Chililabombwe, Chingola and the entire Copperbelt. The Government also has a duty to safeguard its citizens, thus action was taken in that context. The ultimate aim of the ZCCM-IH in instituting the liquidation process was to secure an investor who would develop the mine to its full potential and guarantee the much-needed jobs and business opportunities on the Copperbelt, in particular, Chilabombwe, Chingola and other peripheral areas.

Madam Speaker, in recognising the guidance and sanctity of the Judiciary, which is handling the matters concerning the liquidation process of the KCM, the Government has not started any negotiations with any potential buyer of the KCM assets.

Madam, let me repeat. In recognising the sanctity of the Judiciary which is handling the matters concerning the liquidation of the KCM, the Government has not started negotiations with any potential buyers of the KCM assets. However, the Government has been visited by several sections of both international and local entities expressing interest in the mine following the announcement of the divorce process by KCM and ZCCM-IH. There have been no steps to invite effective bids of the sale of the assets. This process will be done, but it has been reserved to ensure that it is done once clearance from the courts of law, which we respect, is given.

Madam Speaker, I, therefore, urge our people to be patient as we await the due process of the law. I am confident that the courts understand the urgent nature of the matter before them. The House may wish to know that the liquidation process is basically the first step in resolving the issues surrounding the KCM. We have taken advice to ensure that the sale is done within the confines of the law and pursuant to court orders. In that regard, no sale that undermines the integrity of the court process will be done. As the Government, we understand that the due process of the law has to be followed and respected, and we are committed to that effect.

Madam Speaker, to this effect, I wish to state that the High Court proceedings which are currently going on are matters that the Government of the Republic of Zambia continues to respect because we are a Government of laws.

I thank you, Madam Speaker.

Hon. Government Members: Hear, hear!

Mr Mwiimbu (Monze Central): Madam Speaker, the hon. Minister, together with the hon. Minister of Justice, has been quoted in the press this afternoon telling the nation that whatever has happened in the court in Johannesburg has no bearing on what the Government is doing in this country, and that it is going to proceed with whatever it is doing pertaining to Konkola Copper Mines (KCM). Is this the position of the Government that the rulings in the international courts …

Dr Malama: On a point of order, Madam Speaker.

Mr Mwiimbu: … will have no bearing on the Government?

Madam First Deputy Speaker: I note that the hon. Member for Kanchibiya wanted to raise a point of order, but allow me to guide on this matter. I will not allow the hon. Minister of Mines and Minerals Development to deal with that question. As you have noticed, I am carefully following the questions and the answers. I am doing this to ensure that we do not start discussing the issues that are before the courts of law, in or outside Zambia. I am carefully following the answers from the hon. Minister. So, I will not allow him to answer that question.

Dr Chibanda (Mufulira): Madam Speaker, it is interesting to note that at some point, the Government issued some statements and the hon. Minister has also confirmed that there have been some groupings interested in Konkola Copper Mines (KCM). Is the hon. Minister able to let the cat out of the bag and give us a briefing on what those interested groupings are?

Madam First Deputy Speaker: Hon. Minister, in your answer, you referred to people who have shown interest in KCM as a result of the divorce. Answer that question on those groupings very carefully.

Mr Musukwa: Madam Speaker, as a Government of laws, we are trying to navigate carefully so that we do not stray into matters before the courts. What is eminent and what I have clearly stated is that that the Government is not negotiating with any company because this matter is before the courts. However, there are companies that have expressed interest in KCM. This is a public matter and some entities expressed interest after KCM was liquidated. The Government has advised the entities which have shown interest in KCM that there is a court process going on. As the Government, we have to wait for the court process to end before getting into serious and eminent discussions.

I thank you, Madam Speaker.

Mr Chali: Madam Speaker, issues that led to the divorce involve the social status of Chingola and Chililabombwe. Could the hon. Minister clearly state what will happen after the court ruling. The residents of Chingola and Chililabombwe are not interested in the outcome of the court case and seeing Vendetta Resources Limited back in operation. What is the Government’s position on this issue?

Mr Musukwa: Madam Speaker, I have indicated that the actions on KCM are emanating from the demands of the people of Zambia whom we represent. The people of Chingola and Chililabombwe were very clear with their demands. The people were not happy with the way our investors were running the mines. The Government is basically running with the demands from the people of Zambia. I am sure that if we care for the people of Zambia, we will be on their side even in this critical time.

I thank you, Madam Speaker.

Mr Nakacinda (Nominated): Madam Speaker, without discussing the substances of the matter in court, whether locally or outside the country, it is reported that a decision has been made in another jurisdiction. However, just as a matter of procedural issues, there are active matters within the jurisdiction of Zambia. In relation to the anxiety that the people of Chingola and Chililabombwe are faced with over this matter, may I know if these issues are enforceable?

Madam Speaker: I will not allow that question.

Mr Muchima (Ikeleng’i): Madam Speaker, the hon. Minister has said that no negotiation processes that have been instituted by the Government regarding Konkola Copper Mines (KCM) are underway. I would like to find out from the hon. Minister about the appointment of Hon. Anthony Mumba and another group of people that will lead the selection process of the would-be investor for the KCM. How is the hon. Minister relating the selection process to the statement he has issued?

Mr Musukwa: Madam Speaker, I would like to make it abundantly clear, especially to this House, that we must be able to make serious distinctions when we talk about the negotiation and expressing of interest in the KCM. This has actually filtered down to our people, especially on other platforms, because of not differentiating these two critical components. At the moment, there are no negotiations because of the court process, which we respect. However, there are several entities that have expressed interest.

Madam Speaker, lawyers should know very well that expression of interest and negotiations are two critical issues that are different. Therefore, the structures that the hon. Member is talking about, in terms of Hon. A. C. Mumba and other issues, have to do with administrative issues that will be started after the court process ends. In short, we cannot have or start a process where we have no well-entrenched procedures. There is nothing of the sort which impedes negatively on the court process.

Madam, it is interesting to note that hon. Members from the Copperbelt, some of whom were mentioned by the hon. Member, petitioned the President to find out what was going on with the mine and what could be done to ensure the process is done in an open and transparent manner. Secondly, we want to ensure a viable investor is found at the earliest convenient time.

I thank you, Madam Speaker.

Madam First Deputy Speaker: I will allow questions from the hon. Member for Chasefu, the hon. Member for Kasempa, the hon. Member for Nchanga and the hon. Member for Nkeyema.

Mr Chali: Madam Speaker, in the few days that the mine has been under liquidation and has been managed by the provisional liquidator, we have noticed liquidation of some debts, especially for labour contractors. Is the hon. Minister able to inform this House whether the debts have reduced or they are still increasing?

Mr Musukwa: Madam Speaker, I thank Hon. Chilombo Chali for that question. Indeed, at the time the liquidator took over the mines, the entire operation of the KCM was in dire straits. In fact, most of the operations, especially key functions of the mine, were not running. What has happened is that the operations under the guidance of the liquidator have been revived and they are posting positivity. To that effect, it has necessitated the liquidator to start dismantling the debts owed to contractors and suppliers.

What we expect is that in the long run, all those who are owed must be paid so as to revive our economy. As the hon. Member of Parliament for Nchanga is aware, most of the contractors and suppliers in these areas had put up most of their assets as collateral against bank loans. As a result of this irresponsible process that has been going on at the KCM, most of our people have become destitute. To that effect, the liquidator has started paying off some of the debts to ensure that life in Chingola, Chililabombwe, Nampundwe and Kitwe is normalised.

I thank you, Madam Speaker.

Mr Zimba (Chasefu): Madam Speaker, the anxiety of the people of Chingola and Chililabombwe is not due to the fact that this matter is in court, but because they do not see this process of liquidation coming to an end in the nearest possible future. What impact does the hon. Minister think the court process has on the running of the mines by the liquidator, since we cannot tell at what point the matter will be concluded? What is the effect on the operations?

Madam First Deputy Speaker: I will not allow that question.

Ms Tambatamba (Kasempa): Madam Speaker, in the same vein, certainly our human capital, the workforce at the KCM, is going through some psychological effects because of the tugging and not understanding or knowing how long this protracted court process is going to take. What measures have been put in place to settle and assure this workforce of job security?

Mr Musukwa: Mr Speaker, I thank the hon. Member for that good question. Our people, the miners in the KCM, Chililabombwe, Chingola, Kitwe and Nampundwe must take comfort in that, number one, the Government of the Republic of Zambia respects the integrity of the court process. As the Government, we are confident that the matters before the courts will be properly adjudicated in due course. Where we are, our people should draw comfort in the fact that the liquidator is in charge of the operations. They should also take comfort in the fact that the effects of liquidator’s prowess, in terms of running the KCM, can be seen by what we have done like restarting the operations which had been halted from 2014 as well as ensuring that our people’s conditions of service continue to be complied with. Apart from that, our people must know that the sustainable process is intended to ensure that the KCM continues to produce its own ore reserves as a matter of urgency.

I thank you, Madam Speaker.

Mr Mbangweta (Nkeyema): Madam Speaker, apart from being politicians, I would like to find out the skill sets Hon. A. C. Mamba and his colleagues bring to the negotiation table and, as a matter of fact, whether they are being paid or not.

Hon. PF Members: Question!

Laughter

Madam First Deputy Speaker: That question will not be allowed. It amounts to our discussing one of the hon. Members of the House.

MANYINGA BRIDGES RECONSTRUCTION

480. Mr Lihefu (Manyinga) asked the Minister of Housing and Infrastructure Development when the reconstruction of the following bridges, which were washed away by heavy rains in Manyinga Parliamentary Constituency, will commence:

Ndunga/Kayombo, connecting Senior Chief Sikufele and Chief Chiyengele’s Chiefdoms; and

Chongo in Chief Sikufele’s Chiefdom.

The Minister of Housing and Infrastructure Development (Mr Mwale): Madam Speaker, construction of the bridges on the crossing points at Ndunga/Kayombo connecting Senior Chief Sikufele and Chief Chiyengele’s Chiefdom and Chongo in Chief Sikufele’s Chiefdom, which were washed away by heavy rains in Manyinga Parliamentary Constituency, will commence in the fourth quarter of 2019, subject to availability of funds.

Madam Speaker, the ministry, through the Road Development Agency (RDA), will carry out an assessment and inspection of the Ndunga/Kayombo and Chongo crossing points in the third quarter of 2019 in order to determine the required scope of works as well as the cost estimates.

Madam Speaker, I thank you.

Mr Lihefu: Madam Speaker, the two bridges mentioned are very important because they connect the district to other districts, especially the Ndunga/Kayombo Road, which connects Zambia to Angola and also connects Zambezi to Kabompo District. Could the hon. Minister give an assurance to the people of Manyinga Constituency that the bridge will be constructed in the fourth quarter of 2019. I have asked this because during the rainy season, the children find it hard to attend school and access medical facilities that are located on other side of the river.

Mr Mwale: Madam Speaker, we understand the importance of these crossing points. As the Government, we are duty bound to respond to the problem to make sure that those people that need to use these bridges to cross can do so and ensure that commerce and trade continues. We fully understand the importance of this bridge. That is why we are committed to dealing with this problem in the fourth quarter of this year.

I think very soon, we will determine the cost and the time that it will take to have these bridges constructed. Like I said, this is dependent on the availability of funds. We will work very hard with the Ministry of Finance to make sure we secure the funding.

I thank you, Madam Speaker.

Mr Muchima: Madam Speaker, I would like to congratulate the hon. Minister for crossing over from the other side of the House to here.

Laughter

Mr Muchima: I have been to this place and I know this river, especially the crossing point to Ndunga. The hon. Minister is talking about doing the works in the fourth quarter of 2019, and today is almost the end of July. You know that in the North-Western Province, it starts raining in September. The hon. Minister has said an assessment will be made and the work will be carried out later, forgetting that this particular area is on the rain belt. The hon. Minister will be the first one to relieve the people of poverty if that bridge is constructed.

Could the hon. Minister assure us that the people to carry out works on those bridges will be there since he is talking about that being undertaken during the August, September, October and November period? Is he sure that this work will be undertaken considering the conditions I have talked about?

Mr Mwale: Madam Speaker, we have made a commitment to deal with this problem. I think that we have to be understood that way. We are actually going to assess and determine the cost. Once we know the costs, we will talk to the Ministry of Finance to ensure that it makes the funds available because we know the importance of this bridge. Yes, if we have the money, we will be able to undertake the works in the fourth quarter of this year. That is a commitment we are making.

I thank you, Madam Speaker.

Mr Lihefu: Madam Speaker, in most cases, especially in Manyinga District, most infrastructure of this nature is in a bad state. How regularly does the ministry check on infrastructure of this nature?

Mr Mwale: Madam Speaker, each time the Government puts up infrastructure of this nature, be it bridges or roads, there is a maintenance plan for them. The Road Development Agency (RDA) always attends to problems with such infrastructure. In addition, the local authorities that are closer to the people are always checking what is happening to the infrastructure in line with the maintenance plans that are put in place. So, we will make sure that we receive periodic reports from local authorities and the RDA regarding this infrastructure. The RDA and local authorities will inform us on the status of such infrastructure on a quarterly basis so that we are not caught unaware of what to expect because we will have known how strong such infrastructure is.

I thank you, Madam Speaker.

Madam First Deputy Speaker: I will allow questions from the hon. Member for Kanchibiya, the hon. Member for Mufumbwe and the hon. Member for Kabompo.

Dr Malama (Kanchibiya): Madam Speaker, this is a very important area for tourists. As you know, when the Kololo invaded, the children of Mulambwa went to Lukwakwa that is in that same area. Many people would like to go there, but to do do they have to cross the bridges. Could the hon. Minister assure this House that these bridges are part of the Acrow Bridges Project which your ministry is working on to ensure that our people are serviced well?

Mr Mwale: Madam Speaker, these bridges are not part of the Acrow Bridges Project. If they were, I would have informed the House. That is why we are going to send people to make an assessment, determine the cost and then procure a contractor to construct these bridges once funds are made available. If they were part of the Acrow Bridges Project, I would have said so because that project has advanced well.

I thank you, Madam Speaker.

Mr Kamondo (Mufumbwe): Madam Speaker, congratulations to the hon. Minister. Mwata Wakalakala means “congratulations.”

Madam, the hon. Minister talked about the Road Development Agency (RDA) checking on these bridges from time to time. I would like to find out whether he has taken stock of all the washed away bridges before the rainy season comes.

Mr Mwale: Madam Speaker, the Disaster Management and Mitigation Unit (DMMU), RDA and local authorities have this information, and the three are working together on this matter. There is a plan to respond to all these bridges. We are aware of all the washed away bridges, and I think responses have been given to either local authorities or RDA or DMMU who will attend to this issue.

I thank you, Madam Speaker.

Mr Lufuma (Kabompo): Madam Speaker, please, allow me to congratulate Hon. Mulenga on having been appointed to the Cabinet post of Minister of Youth, Sport and Child Development. In line with that, I would like to ask him to give us a set of jerseys as his predecessor promised to do. He should not rescind that decision.

Madam, the hon. Minister has been saying that the ministry will work out the cost of repairing the bridges, and do everything within his power to ensure that these bridges are rehabilitated. However, the work is subject to funds being made available from the Ministry of Finance. There is a project funded by the World Bank called Improved Rural Connectivity Project, and the Government is supposed to provide counterpart funding to this project. This project will cover only six provinces, the other four provinces have been left out. I am made to understand that there will be an equal amount of money put aside as counterpart funding to ensure that the remaining provinces are catered for in terms of rural connectivity. Is there a possibility that you would be able to access the funds through this counterpart funding for the Improved Rural Connectivity Project to ensure that this bridge is constructed?

Mr Mwale: Madam Speaker, we may not want to take that route because it may take long for us to find the counterpart funding for the Improved Rural Connectivity Project. Therefore, it may not be possible to do this programme this year. I know that project. However, we want to respond to this issue almost immediately. Therefore, we should find money specifically for these bridges and a few other bridges that are in a similar state to be rehabilitated. An assessment should be made to determine the cost of the work, and we should handle these bridges way before we can handle the Improved Rural Connectivity Project which will take us a little more time.

I thank you, Madam Speaker.

CDF ALLOCATION

481. Mrs Kabanshi (Luapula) asked the Minister of Local Government:

whether the Government has any plans to allocate the Constituency Development Fund in an equitable manner based on the needs of each constituency;

if so, when the plans will be implemented; and

what criteria will be used to determine the needs of each constituency.

The Minister of Local Government (Dr Banda): Madam Speaker, the Government is working out a mechanism to ensure that the allocation of the Constituency Development Fund (CDF) is done in an equitable manner in line with Part II, Section 3 of the Constituency Development Fund Act No. 11 of 2018. This Act states that the management, disbursement and utilisation of the Fund shall be done in accordance with the following principles: transparency, accountability, and equity. Equity in resource allocation across constituencies entails differentiating resource allocation based on the differences in constituency needs as assessed by social economic indicators and other criterion that is yet to be agreed upon.

Madam, the mechanism will be implemented as soon as the criteria is developed and issued through regulations.

Madam Speaker, the criteria will be determined after consultations with stakeholders.

I thank you, Madam Speaker.

Mrs Kabanshi: Madam Speaker, could the hon. Minister share with the House how he thinks the equitable distribution of resources is going to deal with the inequalities in gender and development in rural and urban areas.

Dr Banda: Madam Speaker, the answer is in the question the hon. Member has asked in part (a) of the question, which is “Whether the Government has any plans to allocate the Constituency Development Fund (CDF) in an equitable manner based on the needs of each constituency.” This means that the needs to be presented will determine how much money will be given to which constituency, whether it is urban or rural.

I thank you, Madam Speaker.

Madam First Deputy Speaker: What about in terms of gender?

Dr Banda: Madam, those are needs which have to be presented so that they can be catered for.

Madam Speaker, I thank you.

Mr Muchima: Madam Speaker, I would like to welcome the newly appointed hon. Minister to the Ministry of Local Government. I would like to congratulate my colleague, Hon. Emmanuel Mulenga on being appointed Minister of Youth, Sport and Child Development.

Madam, the hon. Minister has mentioned that the ministry is carrying out some consultations with stakeholders before the implementation of equitable allocation of the Constituency Development Fund (CDF). At one time, hon. Members of Parliament agreed that places like Lusaka where there are on-going works should not receive as much money as Ikeleng’i which has not seen any development in years. In Lusaka, everyday, chidibana. Works are ongoing while there is nothing in Ikeleng’i. Further, we had agreed that the equitable CDF allocation mechanism would be implemented as soon as possible. I would like to know when the “as soon as possible” is going to be because we are still waiting.

Dr Banda: Madam Speaker, I would like to thank the hon. Member for the good question. “As soon as possible” means that as soon as we have drawn the framework because we cannot come to you without the framework. We are supposed to present the framework to you, hon. Members, as stakeholders, so that we agree on the way forward. This is where part (c) of the question comes in. The criteria will be determined after consultations with the stakeholders have been made. Firstly, the framework has to be put in place. I am unable to give the hon. Member the exact time when the implementation will be take place. However, it will be very soon because we would like to get over this matter.

I thank you, Madam Speaker.

Mr Lufuma: Madam Speaker, the hon. Minister has affirmed that definitely, the ministry has to develop a criterion through a consultative process and only then will the ministry be able to apply the equity formula. Since we are in the middle of the current year, we are expecting the disbursement of the CDF from the Government anytime soon. Is the ministry going to develop the criteria and then the framework before we receive the CDF this year? Is the framework going to be used to distribute or allocate the CDF we are expecting this year?

Dr Banda: Madam Speaker, we may not guarantee to do it in that fashion. What if we get the money to pay out the CDF next month? I do not think we are going to use such a framework to delay the CDF which hon. Members need so much for development purposes. However, hon. Members should know that the process is making progress whether we use it for the current CDF or for next year’s. We should be able to work on the criteria and the framework very soon. We agreed to it so that in the near future, we follow the equitable distribution of the CDF.

I thank you, Madam Speaker.

Mr Mbulakulima (Milenge): Madam Speaker, we might be asking the same questions by going round and round. I thought this was a straightforward matter. I can assure you that in 2010, I wrote to the then hon. Minister of Finance, Hon. Peter Magande, asking him to make a difference between rural and urban constituencies. It is as simple as that. Therefore, there is no third, fourth or fifth criteria. It is just a matter of drawing a line between the rural and urban constituencies. Why can we not do it within the shortest period of time? What has delayed the programme from the technocrats’ point of view? The politicians are ready. Why are the technocrats delaying this programme which can be done within three or four days?

Dr Banda: Madam Speaker, we need to take into consideration the fact that even in rural areas, constituencies are at different levels. There are those with more needs than others. Even in urban areas, certain constituencies in Lusaka cannot be compared to those in Kabwe. This is the reason we need to come up with something which is going to be workable and acceptable everywhere regardless of where one is. Yes, we know that there are rural and urban areas, but within the rural areas, there are remote areas. Therefore, we have to take that into consideration. The consultation should take on board all types of constituencies in the country. The hon. Member should remember that consultation is not an easy process and that it takes quite long.

Madam, the hon. Member talked about the time Hon. Magande was Minister of Finance. How many Parliaments have passed between that time and now? Yes, it is a long time, and it means that people have been asking for this for a long time. However, we are very serious about the matter and we would like to ensure that this comes to pass as soon as possible.

I thank you, Madam Speaker.

Mr Nanjuwa (Mumbwa): Madam Speaker, I would also like to congratulate Hon. Emmanuel Mulenga on his appointment as Minister of Youth, Sport and Child Development.

Madam, the hon. Minister said that there would be a consultative process with stakeholders. I would like to find out whether the consultative process will include hon. Members of Parliament.

Dr Banda: Madam Speaker, the hon. Member should know that hon. Members are the major stakeholders. After all, they are the representatives of the people. Therefore, they are the ones who are supposed to guide the process.

I thank you, Madam Speaker.

Mr Mutelo (Mitete): Madam Speaker, as we are talking about the mechanism of how to disburse the CDF, could the hon. Minister assure us that the CDF for this year will be disbursed.

Laughter

Mr Mutelo: Could it be that the mechanism is there, but the resources for the CDF are not there?

Madam First Deputy Speaker: Is the hon. Minister able to give an assurance?

Dr Banda: Madam Speaker, I was tasked to discuss the equitable manner of distributing the CDF. Presently, I am not privy so to the financial situation at the Ministry of Finance that I can guarantee that the CDF will be disbursed. However, should resources be available and money released to the ministry, we will disburse it to the hon. Members because it is their money.

I thank you, Madam.

KAUNGA LUETI CLINIC UPGRADING

482. Mr Imbuwa (Nalolo) asked the Minister of Health:

whether the Government has any plans to upgrade Kaunga Lueti Clinic in Nalolo Parliamentary Constituency to a mini hospital;

if so, when the plans will be implemented; and

if there are such plans, what measures the Government is taking to provide health services to the increased number of patients, some of whom come from as far as Shangombo and Sioma.

The Minister of Health (Dr Chilufya): Madam Speaker, the Government has a capital investment plan that looks at planning infrastructure for health in the remote parts of the country as it pursues universal health coverage. Kaunga Lueti is one such area where a mini-hospital has been earmarked for construction. So, there shall be a mini-hospital constructed at the Kaunga Lueti Clinic in Kaunga Lueti area in Nalolo Parliamentary Constituency to create access to hospital services. This is because the people of that area go to a very distant facility for referral services. These plans will be implemented in the fourth quarter of 2019. Therefore, part (c) of the question falls away.

Madam Speaker, I thank you.

Mr Muchima: Madam Speaker, the hon. Minister of Health is one of those hon. Ministers who are touring the country and know the suffering of the people.

Hon. Ministers: Question!

Mr Muchima: He is working and he is everywhere, unlike those who are saying, “Question”. The hon. Minister of Health and hon. Minister of General Education are the ones who are working. I should thank the hon. Minister of Health for promising that the Kaleni Nursing Hospital in Ikeleng’i would also be upgraded, although the contractor has not yet come on site. When is the hon. Minister coming with a chart to show us exactly which hospitals he intends to upgrade like in Nalolo because the information is coming piecemeal? When will he come with a substantial answer for us so that we know exactly when and where we are?

Dr Chilufya: Madam Speaker, there is a capital investment plan and an infrastructure operation plan that is annual. So, we will share that information, this through Parliament, before Parliament rises.

Madam Speaker, I thank you.

MANGA BRIDGE RECONSTRUCTION

483. Mr Mung’andu (Chama South) asked the Minister of Housing and Infrastructure Development:

when the reconstruction of the Manga Bridge in Chama South Parliamentary Constituency, which was washed away by heavy rains, will commence;

who the contractor for the project is; and

what the time frame for the completion of the project is.

Mr Mwale: Madam Speaker, the construction of Manga Bridge in Chama South Parliamentary Constituency will be undertaken once funds for the projects have been secured. An assessment of the bridge was undertaken in March, 2019 and the cost of the required works was estimated at K4 million. The Road Development Agency (RDA) plans to undertake the works under force account in the third quarter of 2019. This is subject to those funds being made available by the Ministry of Finance. The time frame for completing the works is estimated at four months from the date of commencement.

I thank you, Madam Speaker.

Mr Mung’andu: Madam Speaker, Manga Bridge is the only bridge that connects the entire constituency to the rest of the country and to other necessities like health facilities both at Chama Boma and Lundazi Boma. Therefore, would the hon. Minister assure the people that he will discuss with the hon. Minister of Finance and ensure that this bridge is worked on before the onset of the rains? This way, people’s lives will be made easy because this is a matter of urgency.

Mr Mwale: Madam Speaker, we are already in talks with the Ministry of Finance. We have already engaged our colleagues to make sure that they give us priority so that we can deal with this problem because the estimate was already made and the price is known. The time frame for completion is also known and what we are waiting for are funds from the Ministry of Finance.

I thank you, Madam Speaker.

Mr Muchima: Madam Speaker, may I find out how the Government is going to get around its policy that only projects at 80 per cent and above shall be completed. How is it going to carry out the works on this bridge in Chama, which has not even started? How is it going to go around that policy it put in place to only work on projects that are at 80 per cent and above?

Mr Mwale: Madam Speaker, when we talk about 80 per cent and above, we refer to projects that started a long time ago. They are many and we need to prioritise and streamline them because we do not have financing to complete all of them at once. That does not stop us from attending to emergency works. This is referred to as an emergency situation, just like the other ones in Manyinga. These are emergency works that have to be attended to. The lives of people will be made difficult if those bridges are not worked on. The rest of the projects were scheduled and planned, but they were too many and there is no money to finish all of them at once. That is why we are prioritising through the 80 per cent and above policy. We will come down to projects that are at 60 per cent and then finish all of them.

I thank you, Madam Speaker.

INTESTATE ESTATES ADMINISTRATION

484. Mr Ng’onga (Kaputa) asked the Minister of Justice:

how many intestate estates were administered by the Administrator-General in the following years, countrywide, by gender:

2017; and
2018; and

what the total value of the estates was, year by year.

The Minister of Justice (Mr Lubinda): Madam Speaker, I wish to inform the House that in 2017, the Administrator-General administrated 107 intestate cases. Seventeen were new cases opened in 2017 and the rest were estate cases that were active from previous years. The administration process of all the stated cases is still ongoing. In 2018, the Administrator-General administered 116 estates of which fourteen were cases opened in 2018. The distribution by gender of the deceased intestate is as follows:

in 2017, males were ninety-three and females were fourteen, bringing the total to 107; and

in 2018, males were ninety-eight and females were eighteen.

Madam Speaker, the estimated total value of the estates administered in 2017 was K207,334,600. In 2018, the estimated total value of the estates was K216,692,600.

Madam Speaker, I have to state here that this is a very low number of cases that was handled by the Administrator-General’s Office. There should be many more cases that are going without their being attended to by the Administrator-General. This unfortunate situation is as a result of the department only having two offices, in Lusaka and Ndola. This, therefore, means that people across the country find it expensive to travel to these offices. The department’s work is also hampered by a lack of field officers and funding constraints that result in slow delivery of services. The department is currently doing an audit of dormant files to ensure that all the work is completed and all files are closed.

I thank you, Madam Speaker.

Mr Ng’onga: Madam Speaker, I know that many cases are poorly handled by self-appointed administrators of estates. As a result, many children of such families remain victims. What guidance can the hon. Minister give to society and hon. Members of Parliament as we represent the people in most cases on these issues?

Mr Lubinda: Madam Speaker, the first thing is to appeal to all of us citizens to write wills. The hon. Minister of Justice did a little mock survey in a meeting involving professionals. He asked how many in that group had written wills and the number was pathetically low. Less than 2 per cent of the professionals in that meeting had written wills. I can imagine how many would say they have written wills if I asked that question in Parliament. The result is that many Zambians die intestate and because of that, their next of kin end up suffering. That is the first request. My first appeal to Zambians is for them not to fear the obvious.

Madam, it is a well-known fact that sooner or later, we shall all be buried six feet underground. To run away from writing a will for fear that you will bring your death closer by doing so is just declaring your dependents destitute.

Madam Speaker, the second guidance I can give is for all of us, hon. Members of Parliament, and our friends in the press to sensitise people that in the event of their breadwinner dying intestate, they must ensure that there is an administrator. This administrator must be properly identified and registered with a competent court of law because once such an administrator has been identified and registered, he/she will be obliged to follow the provisions of the law in so far as the distribution of the estate is concerned. There are very punitive measures in the law for those who handle estates without following the laid-down provisions of the law.

Madam, let me also hasten to mention that all council secretaries are also bona fide recipients of such complaints. Therefore, those who are suffering at the hands of self-appointed administrators should go and approach the local council secretaries for their assistance if they are not happy with the manner in which the estate has been administered and they cannot go to court.

Madam Speaker, finally let me again appeal, first of all, to all Parliamentarians who may not have written wills. There is a standard will that is available at the Administrator-General’s Office. Probably, in the near future, I will bring a standard form to distribute to hon. Members of Parliament so that all of us can sign wills and use that standard form to go out to our constituencies to sensitise our people and enable all of us to write wills.

I thank you, Madam Speaker.

Hon. Members: Hear, hear!

Mr Muchima: Tomorrow!

Madam First Deputy Speaker: The hon. Minister is encouraged to do just that.

Hon. Members: Hear, hear! Tomorrow!

Mr Ng’onga: Madam Speaker, I thank the hon. Minister for the commitment to help all of us to write wills.

Madam, from the hon. Minister’s answers, especially in responding to part (a) of the question, I noticed that there are fewer cases brought in by females. Out of 107 in 2017, only fourteen cases were about women, as he indicated, and out of 116 in 2018, there were only eighteen about women. What could be the underlying reason? Is it due to the knowledge or is it due to fear of the unknown?

Mr Lubinda: Madam Speaker, the hon. Member has asked a very important question. Again, this, unfortunately, is a demonstration of the very disturbing inequality in our society. The fourteen that I referred to in 2017 are the women who died intestate. For their matters to be brought to the Administrator-General, it means they had some estate of some kind. This means the majority of women die intestate and without any estate or property. This also indicates that most likely, the surviving spouses just grab everything that belongs to the dead woman and claim it as their property.

Madam, again, this is a clarion call to our womenfolk. They also ought to consider writing wills concerning their property and the share of their family property. The women should do it in the same way that the men should do it because it is not true that only fourteen women died in that year. What is true is that of all the women who died, fourteen had something that the families could go and quarrel about and, therefore, brought the matter before the Administrator-General. This is what these statistics speak to.

Madam Speaker, I would also like to encourage those children who are so-called ‘born out of wedlock’. We have had many cases of challenges coming from children who would not have been recorded in the will because they are considered to have been born out of wedlock. The mothers who have children with men, but are not married to them, have the duty to protect the interests and rights of those children. They should do so by ensuring that these children are also adequately and properly registered, otherwise, the children will be subjected to misery at the demise of their mothers and without the recognition of the families of the surviving spouses.

I thank you, Madam Speaker.

Mr Mwamba (Lubansenshi): Madam Speaker, the hon. Minister has touched on a very important topic in his explanation. This point is that the will is very important in the administration of the estate. Are there any means the Government is using to ensure that people in rural areas, including those in Lubansenshi Constituency, are given an opportunity to understand the benefits of having a will?

Mr Lubinda: Madam Speaker, the Ministry of Justice already has a programme in place to sensitise our citizens. Save for the austerity measures that we are engaged in, this programme should have been rolled out starting in January, 2019. I would, therefore, like to appeal to Civil Society Organisations (CSOs) and Non-Governmental Organisations (NGOs), particularly those that are headed by women who have the ability to mobilise resources for all sorts of sensitisation programmes except for this very important one. I would like to encourage them to consider going to their partners, among others, to lobby for support to enable them to join the Ministry of Justice in sensitising our people on this very important subject.

Madam, it is good for them to have all sorts of card campaigns. They are important, but I think this matter of intestate and the Intestate Succession Act is extremely crucial and requires the involvement of all of us. I hope that as hon. Members of Parliament, we can also go out to schools when we adjourn to go and sensitise our children in schools about the importance of writing wills.

I thank you, Madam Speaker.

Mr Kabanda (Serenje): Madam Speaker, the Intestate Succession Act seems to weigh heavily on the side of the female surviving spouses. The same Act does not provide for limitation of inheritance by women. A woman would be windowed more than once and inherit property without limitations.

Interruptions

Mr Kabanda: Surely, hon. Minister, is there no limitation to property grabbing?

Hon. Members: Hammer!

Mr Kabanda: The law should also protect men because we are equally vulnerable. Men rarely inherit properties.

Mrs Chinyama: What is your question?

Mr Kabanda: What is the Ministry of Justice doing to protect men from this imbalance?

Madam First Deputy Speaker: The hon. Member for Serenje is encouraged to file a question specifically for the protection of men, as he himself has indicated.

COMMUNICATION TOWERS CONSTRUCTION

485. Mr Kamondo asked the Minister of Transport and Communication:

when the construction of communication towers in the following wards in Mufumbwe Parliamentary Constituency will commence:

Kalambo;

Matushi;

Kashima West; and

Kashima East; and

what has caused the delay in commencing the project.

The Minister of Transport and Communication (Mr Kafwaya): Madam Speaker, the construction of communication towers in Mufumbwe Parliamentary Constituency in Mufumbwe District was commenced and completed as follows:

at Kalambo Ward, the tower went on-air on 20^th March, 2019.

at Chitoko and Kamabuta in Matushi Ward, the towers went on-air on 22^nd and 23^rdNovember, 2018 respectively.

at Kashima East Basic School in Kashima West, the tower went on-air on 21^st November, 2018; and

at Kamutadi in Kashima East, the tower went on-air on 4^th December, 2018.

Madam Speaker, the project was not delayed. It commenced in the fourth quarter of 2017, and thirteen towers in Mufumbwe District have since been completed and are on-air.

I thank you, Madam.

Mr Kamondo: Madam Speaker, I would like to acknowledge that some towers were constructed. The hon. Minister might be aware that some areas he mentioned are underserved because they are vast and, therefore, no phone network is accessed in most of them. What is the Ministry of Transport and Communication doing to serve the underserved areas which are in the same wards?

Mr Kafwaya: Madam Speaker, the construction of telecommunication towers has not yet been completed. In this particular area, eighteen telecommunication towers were earmarked for construction, and only thirteen have been constructed so far. This means that we are still erecting more telecommunication towers, and so, the unserved and underserved areas will be served as well.

I thank you, Madam.

Mr Kasonso (Solwezi West): Madam Speaker, the issue of communication towers is still a major problem in most constituencies, particularly in Solwezi West. When is the hon. Minister going to update the House on the construction of communication towers countrywide so that we can know when the ministry will conclude this matter?

Mr Kafwaya: Madam Speaker, the ministry has up-to-date information. This is why we are aware that thirteen out of eighteen towers, in this particular case, have been constructed and are on-air. I could bring a comprehensive report on the matter as that is not a big issue. However, the hon. Member should also develop an interest in visiting our office so that he is given the information he needs. That would be more cost effective.

I thank you, Madam.

Madam First Deputy Speaker: Is the hon. Minister undertaking to provide that information to the House?

Mr Kafwaya: Madam Speaker, yes, I can provide that information to the House.

Madam First Deputy Speaker: Will you provide it?

Mr Kafwaya: Madam Speaker, I will provide the information to the House in the course of this Meeting.

I thank you, Madam.

Mr Muchima: Madam Speaker, this issue of communication towers has been with us for some time. First and foremost, I would like to find out which providers have had their communication towers installed. Is it Airtel, MTN or the Zambia Telecommunication Company Limited (ZAMTEL) or have the three companies got interest in installing the communication towers? For example, in Ikeleng’i, there are plenty of communication towers, but 5 km away from the district, there is hardly any network. People still climb trees to access a phone network.

Laughter

Mr Muchima: What is the permanent solution to this issue? Does it have to do with the service providers or the ministry?

Mr Kafwaya: Madam Speaker, I thank the hon. Member for Ikeleng’i for that follow-up question.

Mr Muchima: Your elder brother.

Mr Kafwaya: Yes, my elder brother.

Madam, this problem has been with us for some time now, and it will continue being with us because this is a development matter, and development does not stop. We will continue to develop our country. The communication towers I referred to belong to the Zambia Telecommunication Company Limited, not Airtel and the MTN towers.

I thank you, Madam.

Mr Kamondo: Madam Speaker, could the hon. Minister give me the time frame within which the unserved areas will be served or when the commencement of the second phase of the construction of communication towers will be?

Mr Kafwaya: Madam Speaker, I just responded to Hon. Muchima that development is ongoing. I indicated that thirteen out of eighteen towers have been erected and are on-air. That means we are on the move. I do not have the schedule now, but I can assure the hon. Member that the remaining towers will be erected in due course. Further assessments will be made if there will be a need for additional towers to be erected in those areas. So, this is an ongoing activity.

I thank you, Madam Speaker.

Mr Mutelo: Madam Speaker, the ministry will erect the remaining five towers for the unserved areas in Mufumbwe. In Mitete, there is only one tower. Is the ministry also going to consider Mitete District which has one tower as it erects the remaining five towers in Mufumbwe?

Madam First Deputy Speaker: I will allow the hon. Minister to give a bonus answer to that question.

Mr Kafwaya: Madam Speaker, Mitete District and the other districts in the country where towers have not yet been erected are earmarked to receive towers. These districts will be considered as we erect the five remaining towers in the said district.

I thank you, Madam Speaker.

ELECTRIFICATION OF CHINSALI

486. Mr Mukosa (Chinsali) asked the Minister of Energy:

whether the Government has any plans to electrify the following places in Chinsali Parliamentary Constituency;

Nashinga in Lubwa Ward;

Chibesa in Lubwa Ward;

Cheswa in Chambeshi Ward;

Chilunda in Chilunda Ward; and

Chunga in Chunga Ward;

if so, when the plans will be implemented; and

if there are no such plans, why.

The Minister of Energy (Mr Nkhuwa): Madam Speaker, the Government, through the Rural Electrification Authority (REA), has plans to electrify the following places in Chinsali Parliamentary Constituency:

Nashinga in Lubwa Ward;

Chibesa in Lubwa Ward;

Cheswa in Chambeshi Ward;

Chilunda in Chilunda Ward; and

Chunga in Chunga Ward.

Madam Speaker, according to the Rural Electrification Authority Master Plan (REAMP), the mentioned places in Chinsali Parliamentary Constituency are earmarked for electrification in 2021. However, the actual electrification of the areas will be subject to the availability of funds.

Madam Speaker, in view of the above-given response, part (c) falls away as the Government has plans to electrify the mentioned areas.

Madam Speaker, I thank you.

Mr Mukosa: Madam Speaker, the hon. Minister said that the mentioned areas are planned to be electrified in 2021 subject to availability of funds. Does the ministry have some cost estimates on how much will be needed to carry out this exercise? I am not requesting him to say the exact amount, but just an estimate.

Mr Nkhuwa: Madam Speaker, normally, we first conduct the feasibility studies and assessment of the projects when we still have a year to go. We do so as we plan on the ensuing year. At the moment, for this area, we have not yet come up with any figures. We should be able to do that in 2020 as we plan for 2021.

I thank you, Madam Speaker.

Mr Kasonso: Madam Speaker, two years ago, the Zambia Electricity Supply Corporation Limited (ZESCO) erected poles in Senior Chief Mukumbi’s area and Senior Chief Musele’s area in Solwezi West. To date, no connection has been made. When is the Government going to bring a comprehensive report on the connection of power?

Madam First Deputy Speaker: Restrict your response to that comprehensive plan of electrification.

Mr Nkhuwa: Madam Speaker, to start with, we have prepared a ministerial statement, which will be brought to this House sometime next week. It will be laid on the Table so that people can know exactly when their areas are going to be electrified. I must say that ZESCO is facing financial challenges and that is why it has just put up poles without cables in most areas. As soon as it gets cables or conductors, it will make sure that it services the people of those areas. For now, it is still trying to source the necessary materials.

I thank you, Madam Speaker.

GWEMBE COMMUNICATION TOWERS CONSTRUCTION

487. Ms Chisangano (Gwembe) asked the Minister of Transport and Communication:

when the construction of communication towers which were earmarked for 2018 at the following locations in Gwembe Parliamentary Constituency will commence:

Lumbo Rural Health Centre;

Kole Primary School; and

Lukonde Secondary School;

why the towers were not constructed in 2018 as planned; and

what the time frame for the completion of the exercise is.

Mr Kafwaya: Madam Speaker, construction of the communication tower at Kole Basic School was completed, and the tower is functional or on-air. Construction of towers covering Lumbo Rural Health Centre and Lukonde Secondary School will be completed by the fourth quarter of 2019.

Madam Speaker, the towers were not constructed due to challenges in the supply chain which affected the delivery times of equipment for the project into the country. These challenges have since been resolved.

Madam Speaker, the time frame for the completion of the exercise is anticipated to be the fourth quarter of 2019.

Madam Speaker, I thank you.

Ms Chisangano: Madam Speaker, the hon. Minister said that a tower has been erected at Kole Primary School, but that is not true. I was in my constituency last week, and the people in that area have told me that they are using Econet Wireless, a network company from Zimbabwe, which is very expensive. Can the hon. Minister kindly assure the people of Kole when a tower will be erected in that place?

Mr Kafwaya: Madam Speaker, the information that I have is that we do have a tower in Kole. However, the question that the hon. Member has raised brings in some conflicts. The discordance between the information I have at hand and what she is claiming becomes a subject of investigation. I will wait until after investigations are carried out.

I thank you, Madam Speaker.

Mr Muchima: Madam Speaker, I am sure the hon. Minister read my mind. I realise that the hon. Minister is quite new in the ministry. Is he going to have a deliberate move to tour the whole country to compare and analyse the data for him to come and inform us on what is on the ground?

Mr Kafwaya: Madam Speaker, in serving the Zambian people, we need to provide accurate and verifiable feedback to them. The assessed information and all methods available need to be put into effect. I will consider and ensure that I go on the ground to assess what is happening so that I can be able to respond with certainty.

I thank you, Madam Speaker.

Ms Chisangano: Madam Speaker, in fact, I have been reliably informed that there is another place called Kole somewhere in Livingstone. Should the hon. Minister find that the tower was not erected, will the ministry consider constructing the tower in Kole because the people there are suffering? The only network they use is for Econet Wireless Zimbabwe.

Mr Kafwaya: Madam Speaker, the timing still remains the end of the fourth quarter of this year. It will be erected together with the other towers that I believe were not erected. Clearly, the fourth quarter still remains a reality to me.

I thank you, Madam Speaker.

Mr Mutelo: Madam Speaker, I want to believe that the ministry will soon carry out investigations into the construction of communication towers. Therefore, when will the investigations in Kole start for the project to be included in the fourth quarter?

Mr Kafwaya: Madam Speaker, to carry out investigations to determine the authenticity of the information I have is very simple. In fact, since we are responsible for this communication, we can use communication technology to quickly find out. So, we ought to know within this week and then, we will reschedule its erection accordingly.

I thank you, Madam Speaker.

ORANGE MAIZE SEED

488. Mr S. Banda (Kasenengwa) asked the Minister of Agriculture:

whether the Government is aware that orange maize seed was distributed to Kasenengwa Parliamentary Constituency by agro-dealers under the Farmer Input Support Programmed (FISP) during the 2018/2019 farming season;

whether the Food Reserve Agency (FRA) will buy the orange maize from farmers in the constituency and other areas countrywide during the 2019 marketing season;

if the orange maize will not be bought by the FRA, what alternative market is available for the affected farmers; and

what measures have been taken to ensure that orange maize is not distributed by the agro-dealers in future.

The Minister of Agriculture (Mr Katambo): Madam Speaker, Kasenengwa Parliamentary Constituency in the 2018/2019 Agricultural Season was under the Direct Input Supply System where the Government directly procured inputs for the farmers. The Government is aware that some farmers received orange maize seed in the district. A total of 673 bags of 10 kg of orange maize seed were distributed.

Madam Speaker, orange maize is one of the designated commodities procured by the Food Reserve Agency (FRA). A good number of private sector players are also potential buyers of the orange maize.

Madam, orange maize and other bio-fortified foods are promoted by the Government to enhance food and nutrition security. Orange maize is rich in vitamin A and its promotion is intended to enhance consumption of vitamin A rich maize. Therefore, the Government has no intention to stop promoting the orange maize or other bio-fortified foods in the country.

I thank you, Madam Speaker.

Mr S. Banda: Madam Speaker, being the Government’s policy to actually buy orange maize, through FRA, has the FRA taken the necessary measures to sensitise the farmers that orange maize is permissible to be bought by the FRA?

Mr Katambo: Madam Speaker, the District Agricultural Co-ordinating Officers (DACOs) are sensitising our farmers that there are other companies that are also buying the orange maize and the promotion of growing the orange maize. So, sensitisation by our field officers and DACOs is ongoing. However, there is a mismatch in the thinking of our farmers. There is A need to change their mindsets. It is not only the FRA which buys the orange maize as it distributes to its beneficiaries. Private sector companies are also buying the commodity, like I indicated in response to part (b) of the question.

I thank you, Madam Speaker.

Mr Kamondo: Madam Speaker, the hon. Minister may be aware that in Angola, the orange maize is preferred to white maize. Is the Government considering allowing farmers to export orange maize to Angola, if Zambians are not ready to consume it?

Mr Katambo: Madam Speaker, that is one opinion because, like I said, orange maize is one commodity that the FRA buys, and we are encouraging the consumption of orange maize because its rich in nutrients. It is a source of vitamins. So, when we restrict white maize administratively, we equally do the same with orange maize. If we produce in excess, however, we can export to our neighbouring countries like Angola.

I thank you, Mr Speaker.

Mr Mwamba (Lubansenshi): Madam Speaker, from the way the question is framed, I am encouraged to conclude that the farmers in Kasenengwa were not expecting orange, but white maize. Is the ministry planning to take some measures to ensure that as it delivers the packages under the Direct Input Supply System, it makes the farmers aware of what they are getting?

Mr Katambo: Madam Speaker, I indicated, when answering the hon. Member for Kasenengwa, that the sensitisation programmes are ongoing. Beneficiaries are being informed of the packages they are supposed to access in the programme. So, farmers are sensitised and the packages under the Direct –

Madam First Deputy Speaker: Order!

Business was suspended from 1640 hours until 1700 hours.

[MADAM FIRST DEPUTY SPEAKER in the Chair]

Mr Katambo: Madam Speaker, before business was suspended, Hon. Mwamba, the Member for Lubansenshi Constituency, wanted to know the package for the Direct Input Supply System so that the beneficiaries who access these inputs know the package description. For maize, it is a one 10 kg bag of maize seed, three 50 kg bags of basal dressing and three 50 kg bags of top dressing fertiliser.

Madam Speaker, there are also additional packs. For groundnuts, it is a one 20 kg bag of seed and a 50 kg bag of basal dressing. For soya beans, it is one 50 kg bag of seed and 2 kg bag of basal dressing fertiliser.

I thank you, Madam Speaker.

Mr Ng’onga: Madam Speaker, if I got the hon. Minister correctly, he indicated that other than the Food Reserve Agency (FRA), there are also some private buyers who are interested in orange maize. I would like to find out for the sake of the people of Kasenengwa and those who grew orange maize, what the names of those private buyers are so that farmers can contact them directly without waiting for the FRA.

Mr Katambo: Madam Speaker, like I said, a good number of private players such as millers and other food companies are also potential buyers of orange maize. For instance, there are two companies in Kasenengwa, which are Seba Foods Zambia Limited and Yoyo Foods Zambia Limited, which are buying orange maize.

I thank you, Madam Speaker.

Mr Munkonge (Lukashya): Madam Speaker, in his response, the hon. Minister used the expression ‘bio-fortified’. Just to be sure, is this an implication that orange maize may be Genetically Modified Organisms (GMOs)?

Mr Katambo: Madam Speaker, bio-fortification is increasing the essential micro-nutrients in foodstuffs like vitamins and minerals to enhance health benefits. Of course, some food commodities are allowed to be bio-fortified. For example, sugar is fortified with Vitamin A. Under the Ministry of Agriculture, we do not allow Genetically Modified Organisms (GMOs). Under the Ministry of Higher Education, there is a Bio-Safety Authority that deals with GMOs. However, under the Ministry of Agriculture, we do not deal in GMOs or any certified seed that is GMO related. So, like I have said, bio-fortification is only the increase in the nutrient contents such as vitamins and minerals.

I thank you, Madam Speaker.

_______

MOTIONS

REPORT OF THE COMMITTEE ON LOCAL GOVERNMENT ACCOUNTS ON THE UTILISATION OF CONSTITUENCY DEVELOPMENT FUND AND LOCAL GOVERNMENT EQUALISATION FUND IN ZAMBIA

Mr Muchima (Ikeleng’i): Mr Speaker, I beg to move that this House do adopt the Report of the Committee on Local Government Accounts on the Utilisation of the Constituency Development Fund and Local Government Equalisation Fund in Zambia, for the Third Session of the Twelfth National Assembly, laid on the Table of the House on 10^th July, 2019.

Madam First Deputy Speaker: Is the Motion seconded?

Mr Chisopa (Mkushi South): Madam Speaker, I beg to second the Motion.

Mr Muchima: Madam Speaker, during the period under review, the Committee undertook a study of the utilisation of the Constituency Development Fund (CDF) and Local Government Equalisation Fund (LGEF) in Zambia. One of the objectives of the study was to understand the monitoring mechanisms that have been put in place to ensure prudent utilisation of these funds and to appreciate the challenges faced by local authorities in accessing and utilising these funds.

Madam Speaker, both the CDF and LGEF are part of the fiscal support rendered by the Central Government to local authorities to help finance service delivery and facilitate the discharge of local authorities’ functions. I must also mention from the outset that the CDF and LGEF are close to the hearts of the hon. Members of Parliament, as they are critical tools for community development.

Madam, the prudent utilisation of these funds could enhance service delivery by local authorities and potentially transform the lives of local people, especially if the projects are completed on schedule.

Madam Speaker, the Committee is of the opinion that whereas the intention by the Government to allocate the CDF to all constituencies is well intended, the current method of allocating the fund equally to all constituencies should be revised.

The majority of hon. Members in this august House will agree with me that the needs of constituencies are dynamic and vary from one constituency to another. To be specific, constituencies in rural areas lack even the most basic necessities, while urban constituencies have access to some basic necessities and benefit from various development opportunities availed by the Central Government. In light of this, the Committee strongly recommends that the Government should review the criteria of disbursing the CDF to take into account other parameters such as the rural nature of some areas, poverty levels and population size, among other things, in order to meet constituencies’ needs.

Madam Speaker, as the House may be aware, in 2014, the Government established the Local Government Equalisation Fund to supplement local authorities’ revenue through an amendment to the Local Government (Amendment) Act No. 12 of 2014. However, the Committee notes with great concern the tendency by some local authorities to divert the capital expenditure component of the Local Government Equalisation Fund to pay salaries. The Committee finds the practice of diverting funds from capital expenditure to salaries unacceptable and recommends that stern disciplinary action be meted out to erring officers for failing to follow the applicable legal provisions. The Committee further recommends that the Government should make it mandatory for all local authorities to maintain a separate capital expenditure account in order to secure the capital project funds.

Madam Speaker, related to this, the Committee is aware that in some cases, the Government has granted authority to local authorities to procure utility vehicles for operations using the 20 per cent capital allocation. Notwithstanding the importance of utility vehicles in the daily activities of councils, the Committee is disappointed that some local authorities have gone to the extent of committing the capital expenditure component of the Local Government Equalisation Fund as collateral to secure their motor vehicles’ loan obligations. The Committee urges the Government to immediately institute investigations on the matter in all local authorities and ensure that stern disciplinary action is instituted against all erring officers.

Madam Speaker, the legal provisions on the use of the capital component of the Local Government Equalisation Fund are clear. The local authorities are required to utilise the whole 20 per cent on capital projects while the 80 per cent can be utilised on operations and payments of salaries if need be. The Committee emphasises that all councils must adhere to these legal provisions without exception.

Madam Speaker, the Committee visited some local authorities that appeared before the Committee. Regrettably, the Committee found that while a cordial working relationship existed among hon. Members of Parliament, councillors, council chairpersons and other stakeholders in some councils, this was not the case in others. The poor working relationship was clearly evident during the stakeholders’ meeting and the public hearing held during the Committee’s local tour. The Committee finds this state of affairs unacceptable as it negatively affects project implementation and service delivery. Therefore, the issue of a poor working relationship should be addressed as a matter of urgency.

Madam Speaker, in conclusion, I commend the Government for establishing the Directorate of Local Government Finance under the Office of the Accountant-General and a corresponding unit under the Controller of Internal Audits. It is the hope of the Committee that these key institutions will prioritise and invest in capacity building of officers in local authorities in order to enhance prudent utilisation of the CDF and the Local Government Equalisation Fund as well as other funds in local authorities.

Madam Speaker, finally, allow me to thank the stakeholders who made both written and oral submissions before the Committee, and the hon. Members of the Committee for their co-operation and dedication to duty during the deliberations. The Committee also wishes to place on record, its indebtedness to you, Madam Speaker, and the Office of the Clerk of the National Assembly for the guidance given to it during its deliberations.

Madam Speaker, I beg to move.

Madam First Deputy Speaker: Does the seconder wish to speak now or later?

Mr Chisopa: Now, Madam Speaker.

Madam Speaker, in seconding the Motion, I wish to highlight some of the observations made by the Committee over the utilisation of the Constituency Development Fund (CDF) and the Local Government Equalisation Fund in Zambia.

Madam, during its interactions with the stakeholders, the Committee noted some submissions. One of the issues that came out was the frequent transfer of key personnel. The frequent transfer of key personnel creates a gap in terms of project implementation as it becomes somewhat difficult for the new key personnel to acclimatise quickly to the system and processes that have already been put in place. The transfer of key personnel is also a form of punishment, but the stakeholders submitted that transferring erring officers is as good as transferring a problem. Therefore, it is better for the Ministry of Local Government or the Local Government Service Commission to institute serious disciplinary measures to deter erring officers.

Madam, another issue is that the vastness of districts and constituencies makes it very difficult for communities to appreciate the importance of the CDF and the Local Government Equalisation Fund (LGEF). You will find that some areas do not get the benefits that come from the implementation of these funds.

Madam Speaker, another issue submitted by the stakeholders was the failure to share activity reports with hon. Members of Parliament. The Ministry of Local Government wrote a circular, instructing local authorities to inform hon. Members each time the LGEF was utilised and each time a project was selected so that hon. Members of Parliament are aware of the projects being implemented. Alas, the information is still not shared with hon. Members of Parliament. As hon. Members, we appeal to the Ministry of Local Government to take up this matter and ensure that local authorities in the districts and constituencies submit activity reports to hon. Members of Parliament so that there is no duplication of work and that hon. Members are aware of the projects being implemented using the LGEF.

Madam Speaker, the other issue which came out is that of ineffective auditors in respective local authorities. The Committee would like to appeal to the Central Government to come up with a system to empower auditors in local authorities with skills so that the mismanagement of funds, which seems to be one of the key issues in local authorities, can be resolved. If anything, it takes the Auditor-General’s Office to discover that there was misapplication and misuse of funds. This can be controlled if reports by auditors in local authorities are enhanced. Therefore, your Committee would like to appeal to the Government to enhance skills development for auditors in local authorities.

Madam Speaker, during its local tours to the Copperbelt Province and the North-Western Province, your Committee observed serious concerns. One of the concerns which came to our attention was the failure to secure completed projects. It was discovered that although some projects were completed, local authorities did not put measures to secure such projects in place. For instance, a water reticulation project in Ndola was completed, but its surrounding was not secured, therefore, thieves broke into that place and stole the water pump. Your Committee would like to appeal to local authorities to ensure that they engage security personnel to prevent vandalism and theft.

Madam, the other observation that was made during our tour was failure to complete contracted projects within the contract period. It was discovered that although some projects were contracted, they were not completed within the required period. One example of such projects is the Makulungwe Multi-Purpose Hall. This project started a long time ago in Ndola, but the contractor has since abandoned the project, yet he was paid the money. The Committee would like to appeal to the Ministry of Local Government to ensure that once these projects are funded, they are completed within the specified time. Another example is in Ikeleng’i where a certificate of completion was issued, a contractor was paid the money, including the money held for the defect liability period even when the defect liability period had not yet elapsed. These are some of the lapses and carelessness of local authority officials. The Ministry of Local Government should ensure that the stipulated procedure of disbursing funds is followed.

Madam Speaker, the other element which was discovered is poor workmanship. In some cases, it was discovered that the correct amount of money was allocated, but the quality of works carried out could not be compared to the amount of the money which was allocated. In addition, there is overpricing of some projects at local authority level. A water reticulation project in Mufulira was pegged at K99,583, which is not the market price. This project would have cost far less. The Committee observed that overpricing in local authorities is a source of concern. Therefore, the Committee would like to appeal to the Ministry of Local Government to come up with standard prices, especially when it comes to the drilling of boreholes.

Madam, with those few highlighted issues, I beg to second the Motion.

Hon. Members: Hear, hear!

Madam First Deputy Speaker: Hon. Members, the Chair would like to give an opportunity to every hon. Member indicating to speak to do so. However, as you can see, the screen is full. Therefore, for that to happen, I urge you to be brief in your contributions.

Mr Samakayi (Mwinilunga): Madam Speaker, I would like to thank you for giving me the opportunity to make comments on the theme “Monitoring Mechanisms to Ensure Prudent Financial Management in the Local Authorities or Councils.” The study could not have come at a better time than now because the Report of the Local Government Accounts is awash with reports of financial mismanagement, leakages and pilfering.

Madam, I followed the Chairperson of the Local Government Accounts Committee. He bemoaned that the Constituency Development Fund (CDF) is given across the board without regard to various considerations such as the size of the constituency, population, and a lack of service facilities. I think these factors should be taken into account with regard to the CDF to ensure that there is equity in the distribution of resources across the country.

Madam Speaker, I am aware that the Government recognised this fact many years ago, and a proposal was made to ensure that the unfair distribution of the CDF is removed. The proposal was to introduce an inter-governmental fiscal architecture which would take into account various variables which disadvantage rural areas. One such variable is the lack of services in some rural places. For example, there are no filling stations in some rural areas, yet they have to implement projects which would require fuel. They have to get the fuel from places which are about 300 km to 400 km away from where the project is sited. In Lusaka, fuel is just 5 km away, but the same amount of money is given to rural districts and districts in urban areas such as Lusaka. Obviously, the rural areas are disadvantaged.

Madam Speaker, I am also aware that the inter-governmental fiscal architecture is squarely under the Ministry of Finance. I, therefore, believe that the Ministry of Finance can take the challenge to ensure that the Government implements the inter-governmental fiscal architecture working in liaison with the hon. Minister of Local Government so that there is equity in the distribution of resources to our people across the country.

Madam Speaker, the other issue the report has brought out is the Local Government Equalisation Fund (LGEF). It is stipulated that 20 per cent of this fund should be used to fund capital projects, but that is not what it is used for.

Therefore, my observation is that in most of these councils, the LGEF actually goes into an account where there is already an overdraft. The funding is swallowed by the overdraft and it goes to the implementation of capital projects as per regulation or the law.

Madam Speaker, looking at the theme, which is, “Monitoring Mechanisms to Ensure Prudence in Financial Management”, including revenue mobilisation in local authorities, I would like to indicate that the report fell short in coming up with certain proposals that would meet the theme of the study. Therefore, one of the issues that I would like to put on the table is that the Committee has bemoaned the misuse of resources. However, what should we put in place to curb the mismanagement of these resources? I would really like to propose that minimum conditions of access to grants be introduced in order to curb the mismanagement of resources. What this means is that if a council is given a grant, that grant should have conditions attached to it. One of those conditions could state that 20 per cent is for capital projects and 80 per cent is for salaries or personal emoluments and other operations. This means that if the resources that have been given in the month of May, for instance, have not been applied according to the regulations or rules, then, the following month’s grant should not be given until a satisfactory explanation is provided by the council.

Madam Speaker, the other problem that we have in the Public Service and the Local Government Service is the poor culture of enforcing disciplinary rules. If people are misusing resources year in and year out, and you fold your arms and just watch them and continue giving them resources, then what are you telling them? You are telling them that it is fine to misuse the resources and they can go on doing it. So, we have a poor culture of enforcing the rules. The rules are written, but we do not enforce them. I do not know if they are just a decoration. I do not understand this culture. So, I am proposing that the Government should enforce the rules if it is to improve the financial management and revenue mobilisation in the local authorities.

Madam Speaker, one other proposal I would like to make is to monitor the costs. I have heard the complaint on inflating the prices for the imports that we use in projects. How do we curb this? We can curb this by having a list of unit costs. For instance, if you are constructing, you should know the cost of a building block. If it is K3.50, it should be just that. No one should inflate the price because it is already known. Likewise for various other services that we provide, for instance, we should know the cost of cement. Those that are engaged in the project must be told that we know the cost of cement, building blocks or the cost of sand per tonne, including the cost of tarring a kilometre of a road. These are unit costs. They must be known before hand and that is how you can monitor the implementation of these projects, be it at national level or local government level.

Madam Speaker, there was a proposal when we were looking at decentralisation. We found it inevitable to have unit costs for all the services that we provide so that we can manage the resources prudently. If you do not know the cost, the contractors can dribble you. This is why we are being dribbled by the officers in local authorities, including those in Central Government.

Madam Speaker, one other traditional practice in terms of transparency in local government management is to ensure that we are transparent in our dealings is town hall meetings. Management should host the interested members of the community on a particular day of the month for meetings in the town council hall. This would enable management to explain how much money has been generated by the council on its own and how much of the grants it has received from the Central Government. It would also explain how that money has been applied or utilised. That must be encouraged because you cannot talk about transparency without putting in place, mechanisms that encourage the practice of transparency.

Madam Speaker, I am aware that the Local Government Act of 2019 actually talks about town hall meetings and management making available the audited accounts to members of the community. This is meant to allow the members of the community to go through the accounts and satisfy themselves in terms of revenue mobilisation capacity or the financial management capacity of the council. Therefore, they would know what services have been provided and what development has taken place in their area. The people would be able to see the amount of money that comes in and the projects that have been implemented using these resources. They can correlate the activities with the resources that were received either from the Central Government in terms of grants or the revenues that were generated locally.

Madam Speaker, one other thing is that we ignore the issue of whistleblowers, be it at national or local government level. Many people are discouraged and they do not report issues because even when they talk about them, no action is taken. As a result, we are discouraging those that are supposed to help us to prudently manage the resources that are secured. If we do not use the resources properly, we will have a problem in terms of service delivery and development.

Madam Speaker, I thank you.

Mr S. Banda (Kasenengwa): Madam Speaker, thank you for giving me this opportunity to debate the report of your Committee. In debating this particular report, I will focus on the district councils.

Madam Speaker, I am cognisant of the fact that there are various stakeholders in the initiation, planning, implementation and monitoring of the CDF and the Local Government Equalisation Fund (LGEF). However, my focus will be on the district councils because they are the implementing agencies. My focus will be on three thematic areas. I will look at the issues to do with the adequacy of the local government framework governing the management and utilisation of the CDF and LGEF. I will also look at the disbursement of both the CDF and LGEF. I will then skip to look at the challenges of local authorities in managing the LGEF.

Madam, the report sufficiently highlights adequacies and inadequacies within the thematic areas as relates to specific stakeholders within the initiation, planning, implementation and monitoring cycle of the CDF and LGEF.

Madam, allow me to specifically interrogate the valuables which hinge on the district councils’ ability or the lack thereof to effectively manage the CDF and LGEF. Firstly, I would like to look at the adequacy of the legal framework governing management and utilisation of the CDF. If you look at page 5 of the report, the Committee acknowledges that:

“While a few stakeholders submitted that the legal framework governing the implementation of the CDF was adequate, a few others were of the view that the current provisions were inadequate.”

However, more importantly, at the end of that particular paragraph, it is proposed that there is a need to ensure that the disbursement of the CDF ensures equity.

Madam Speaker, I could not agree more with that. Even in the medical field, although I may not be a doctor, if a father and son go to the clinic suffering from malaria, the medical personnel will give varying doses to ensure that there is efficacy in how medical resources are used.

Madam, that said, the report acknowledges that there is a need to factor in other aspects to ensure that there is equity in how the CDF is disbursed. However, I would like to go further by indicating that there is a need to qualify whether the constituency is predominately urban or rural. There is also a need to factor in the issue of population size. This will ensure that there is proportionate development and that development is not skewed. It will also ensure that those who need development the most are given adequate resources.

Madam Speaker, allow me to also talk about the LGEF. Your Committee, in its report, acknowledges that the amended Local Government Act No. 2 of 2019 provides guidance on how to apportion, manage and utilise or account for the CDF. This includes, for example, the Public Finance Management Act. However, your Committee does acknowledge that there is a lack of regulation or mechanism which should ensure that there is optimal utilisation of 20 per cent of the LGEF for capital projects. This is where the leakage is and the opening that local authorities use to abuse resources which have been appropriated to them.

Madam, there is a need for the powers that be to come up with clear guidelines to ensure that equalisation, as it relates particularly to capital expenditure, spells out mechanisms to avoid that leakage of resources.

Madam Speaker, allow me to briefly talk about disbursements, untimely disbursement in particular. Every project is planned and when resources do not come on time, there is a time lag on project implementation. Secondly, it has an impact on the cost of projects. I know that the hon. Minister of Finance is here and he is listening. There is a need to ensure that equalisation funds are disbursed on time.

Madam, there is also the aspect of partial disbursements. The report talks about a particular outlier of the equalisation table and the CDF budget status for 2016, where only 0.7 per cent was actually disbursed. However, I wanted to contextualise that aspect by explaining what necessitated that. There is an explanatory note to that effect. The Committee has indicated what necessitated that 0.7 per cent on page 8 under the table that was provided by the Ministry of Finance. The Committee states:

“The Committee was informed that the underperformance in disbursement in 2015 was due to pressure on both the external and domestic front that the economy experienced. On the external front, the reduction in copper prices resulted in lower tax collection than the projected tax collections, particularly from the mining sector.”

Madam Speaker, this particular explanatory note contextualises why there was that reduction in terms of disbursement, but that does not take away the fact that the Government needs to appropriate enough resources to the district councils in terms of the CDF.

Madam, the other aspect I would like to speak to regards the challenges, particularly those to do with community and the lack of community and co-ordination of participation by stakeholders. In any project implementation, stakeholder participation is key. This goes to show that the council lacks the latitude to effectively engage stakeholders. If stakeholders have to actively participate, they must be involved in the initiation, planning and implementation and that will ensure that they also participate in monitoring the projects because they own them.

Madam Speaker, the other aspect mentioned in the report is inadequate monitoring of projects. Project monitoring is a key component of project management. How can councils know that the set objectives have been attained if they cannot monitor projects? How can they mitigate risks and learn lessons on best practices if they do not monitor project implementation? The Ministry of Local Government needs to put in place a thorough monitoring and evaluation framework to provide effective monitoring and evaluation of activities in relation to the CDF and LGEF.

Madam Speaker, the other aspect is frequent staff turnover. Obviously, this is a thorny issue. The fact is that frequent transfer of staff has an impact on the bottom line performance of councils. It affects their performance. The Ministry of Local Government needs to have a thorough succession plan in terms of human resource in councils.

Madam Speaker, the other issue the report has brought out is that of inadequate funding for administration. The K20,000 allocated to councils is not adequate to cover activities such as project appraisal meetings, procurement procedures, audits, and project monitoring. A legal framework must be put in place to ensure that this yearly allocation is revised.

Madam Speaker, I do not want to belabour these points. One of the specific measures or interventions the report of the Committee has recommended for councils is training. Item number one, two, three and four emphasise the need for skills training or human resource development. There must be guidelines on how to implement the activities highlighted in the report because if they are not there, there will be misuse of funds. These activities must be informed by a result-based management system factored into the human performance management system.

Madam Speaker, councils also need to have a paradigm shift in how they apply themselves in relation to the CDF and LGEF. It must not be business as usual. Councils must promote prudent utilisation of resources. The Government has been appropriating resources, little as they might be –

Interruptions

Madam First Deputy Speaker: Order on my right!

Hon. Members: Hammer!

Mr Mwale: Waisiliza kudala twenty minutes.

Madam First Deputy Speaker: Continue with your debate, hon. Member.

Mr S. Banda: Madam Speaker, councils need to be prudent in the management of resources. As a Member of Parliament, the only conventional way I can bring development closer to the people is through the CDF and LGEF. If bottlenecks exist and issues arise in the implementation of these programmes by the council, I am held accountable as a Member of Parliament.

Madam Speaker, I beg to adopt the report.

I thank you, Madam.

Hon. Members: Hear, hear!

Madam First Deputy Speaker: You are supporting the report.

Mr S. Banda: I am supporting it.

Madam Speaker, I thank you.

Dr Chanda (Bwana Mkubwa): Madam Speaker, firstly, I would like to thank your Committee for the great work it has done. I had the opportunity to interact with the Committee when it came to Ndola to look at the Constituency Development Fund (CDF) projects. A number of challenges with regard to the CDF that the Committee has brought out in the report are in Bwana Mkubwa Constituency. Some projects were started years before I became area Member of Parliament, but they are still incomplete, and money allocated for those projects was not accounted for. I just would like to commend the Committee for the exhaustive work it did.

Madam Speaker, from the very beginning, I want to point out that the work of local authorities is very important. In my language, the local Government is called “Ubuteko bwa cikaya,” which means “The familiar government.” This is the Government which is closest to the people. In communities, the first form of Government people see is the local authority. Sadly, now, the familiar Government in the community is the Member of Parliament. The Member of Parliament is more recognisable in a community than the local authority. When things are not done, or when a CDF project is not funded, abandoned or vandalised, for example, the blame is put on the hon. Member of Parliament, not the local authority.

Hon. Members: Hear, hear!

Dr Chanda: Nowadays, we have social media and call-in radio programmes. When callers phone in, they point fingers at the Member of Parliament and lament that he has failed to complete a clinic or he has abandoned a certain project, among others. The hon. Member of Parliament is the face of the community, not local authorities. I do not know how we could mitigate the two. I think the biggest mistake that was made in all this was to remove Members of Parliament from councils when the Constitution was amended in 2016.

Madam, how do you remove Members of Parliament from the councils when they are custodians of development in their constituencies? When you are elected Member of Parliament, you sign a social contract with the constituents, yet when it comes to developmental issues, you are excluded from them.

Madam Speaker, in this report, there is a complaint that there was interference by Members of Parliament and that is why they were removed from councils. How does someone interfere in his own issue? It is like interfering with the management of your own salary. We should educate people that the C in CDF does not stand for “council’’ but “constituency” and, therefore, the CDF stands for “Constituency Development Fund,” not “Council Development Fund”. Councils are just fund and project managers, but implementation is done in the constituency. The role of the Member of Parliament is thus cardinal. The Member of Parliament cannot be removed from the equation. In fact, the Member of Parliament should be at the center of the CDF. In other jurisdictions such as Kenya, Philippines, and Ghana, the CDF is not even given through the Ministry of Local Government, but through the national assembly constituency offices.

Madam Speaker, since the Constitution already states that Members of Parliament should work with the local Government, we just need to harmonise and work together. There is no interference. For example, a project has been delayed in my constituency for one year, and we are still struggling with procurement and other issues. When I raise issues, it is because I have to give an answer to my electorates, but that is called interference.

Madam, the report also talks about the constituencies’ lack of capacity to absorb the CDF. That is far from the truth. A constituency cannot fail to absorb K1.2 million when needs are huge. When procurement processes are prolonged for one year and the contractors are using delaying tactics until a year ends, the report will definitely indicate that such a constituency could not absorb the CDF. Typically, in Bwana Mkubwa Constituency, the 2017 CDF was delayed for one year because of excessive bureaucracy. That should not even be termed as a lack of capacity to absorb the CDF. It is just inefficiency due to red tape processes.

Madam Speaker, I am thankful that last year, the Government brought the Constituency Development Fund Bill to Parliament, which is now the Constituency Development Fund Act of 2018. This Act gives a lot of power to Members of Parliament and communities. The Act says that the projects are community based. Surprisingly, most local authorities are not aware that we have a new Constituency Development Fund Act of 2018 and the Local Government (Amendment) Act. The local authorities have not read these new Acts due to a poor reading culture, and that is why they have termed the interaction with hon. Members of Parliament in this matter interference.

The new Constituency Development Fund Act has clear timelines: By March, project proposals should be submitted to the Community Development Committee (CDC) and others, and then sent to the hon. Minister. The hon. Minister of Local Government should approve that project proposal within a month. When the money is available, the Ministry of Local Government should disburse it in the first quarter. The timelines are very clear.

Madam Speaker, I wish to congratulate the hon. Minister on his appointment as Minister of Local Government. I think we need to strengthen the Constituency Development Fund Act whenever we amend it. We have timelines on when the Ministry of Local Government should disburse these funds and when projects should be implemented. It is stipulated that if the proposal is submitted in March, the money should be released in the first quarter. However, there is no timeline for when the Treasury should release money to the ministry. So, basically, it is a promissory note. For example, the hon. Minister of Local Government was asked today when the CDF will be released. He does not know because he relies on the Treasury. How can we compel the Treasury to ensure that the CDF is released in a timely manner? That is the missing part. The other missing part is that there are no timelines for implementation of projects. How do you start constructing a clinic when you do not know when it will end? That is a problem that your Committee has brought out clearly. Councils have poor project management and technical skills. That is very clear in your report.

Madam, with regard to project management in my constituency, the K1.6 million CDF which the Government gave us in December last year is still in the account. A project was budgeted for and approved, yet when I went to my local authority and asked the Director of Engineering when the clinic to be constructed will be completed, he said he did not know. “I do not know” is not an answer. Project management should inform us that with the money and the human resources we have, the timelines will be this and that. I urge the hon. Minister of Local Government to put billboards or posters showing the start and end dates for all the CDF and other projects in the ministry. He should also be able to hold people accountable to those timelines. Otherwise, once a project takes long, the chances of being abandoned and vandalised are high. The cost will keep rising because the workers who are working on the project are not paid. So, we are going to have all these issues going on.

Madam Speaker, I wish to break the record by being very brief. Let me talk about the Local Government Equalisation Fund (LGEF). The LGEF is the brainchild of the Patriotic Front (PF) Government because it is pro-poor. That is why it brought up this idea. What is concerning about the LGEF is that even big and fat councils like the Lusaka City Council (LCC), Ndola City Council and Kitwe City Council have all become addicted to this fund. If you were to ask these councils why some things are not being implemented, they would say it is because the LGEF has not been given to them. Hon. Minister, the big councils should not receive this Fund.

Hon. Opposition Members: Hear, hear!

Dr Chanda: They should be raising their own resources. They are better off mobilising their resources domestically. They have been signing some Public-Private Partnerships (PPPs) where they are losing money when they should actually be generating a lot of money from these partnerships. So, the LCC, Ndola City Council and Kitwe City Council should not survive on the LGEF. This Fund should be for smaller councils that have no capacity to pay for services. I have heard that 20 per cent of the Local Government Equalisation Fund has to go to capital projects. I have been three years in Parliament, but in my constituency, I am yet to see a capital project implemented using the LGEF. I propose that those big councils that cannot account for that 20 per cent of the LGEF transfer that 20 per cent to the CDF, which is clearly implemented at community level?

Madam Speaker, I wish to conclude by thanking your Committee once again. I also pass the appreciation of the people of Bwana Mkubwa Constituency for the CDF. For the first time, we are seeing clinics being built in the constituency. From 1967, there has been no clinic in Kantolomba, but we now have a CDF-funded clinic there. In Mwenya Township, we have had no clinic from 1963, but today, we have a CDF-funded clinic. We are even doing bigger projects using the CDF. The first police station in Bwana Mkubwa, this year, will be built from the CDF.

Madam Speaker, I thank you.

Hon. Members: Hear, hear!

Dr Malama (Kanchibiya): Madam Speaker, King Henry the 8^th said to his six wives, “I will not keep you long.” I also want to say that I will not keep the House long.

Laughter

Dr Malama: Madam Speaker, when I hear my hon. Colleagues make a lamentation to the hon. Minister of Local Government, time and again, over the failure by the councils to efficiently utilise the Constituency Development Fund (CDF) and the Local Government Equalisation Fund (LGEF), I wonder. When I hear people and councillors in particular in constituencies, especially in rural areas, lament over the failure by councils to prudently utilise the CDF and the LGEF, I begin to wonder. I start looking to superior audit institutions such as the Office of the Auditor-General and the Ministry of Local Government.

Madam Speaker, by the way, I would like to congratulate the new hon. Minister of Local Government. He has taken up a ministry that was once headed by our former President, His Excellency, Dr Kenneth Kaunda, and the late President, Mr Michael Chilufya Sata. So, the hon. Minister can do a lot in this ministry. He performed well at his former ministry, the Ministry of Tourism and Arts. He made Zambia the Chair of the United Nations World Trade Organisation (UNWTO) and I believe he can do well in this ministry too. I hope the hon. Minister will superintend over these local authorities.

Madam Speaker, when you talk about corruption, you do not have to look far in the books or in practice to find it. When the CDF is released, and one goes to the local shops, one sees prices inflated. When that happens, one realises that the cost of doing business by the Government becomes excessive. In the end, it is our poor people who suffer. In Kanchibiya, for example, where we are putting up six rural health centres, we could have done slightly more with the local materials that are available. However, due to the human element and the weakness called corruption, the services provided are not to the expectation of our people. The hon. Minister of Local Government, working closely with the Auditor-General’s Office and the internal auditors at his ministry, needs to help our country.

Madam Speaker, countries that have developed have done so because they utilised their resources for their intended purpose. In Israel, even the utilisation of water is monitored. They do not just use water anyhow. They use drip irrigation. Our resources come from a few taxpayers in places such as Lusaka Province, the Copperbelt Province and the North-Western Province who pay taxes from their hard-earned money. They want to keep the money in their pockets, but do not do that as they have to pay taxes. When money is released as the CDF or LGEF, someone seated somewhere, whether in a rural or urban area, abuses it because he sees that no one is truly watching him. Even if he is followed up, it will be found that he was transferred to another station. That should not happen in this country which we want to see prosper. We want to see Zambia prosper, not in rhetoric but in reality. The Patriotic Front (PF) Government is a pro-poor Government elected by poor people. It is a Government that has aspirations. The people have aspirations that this Government will move them in a boat to development. Mubwato, mubwato, Madam Speaker!

Hon. Government Member: Hear, hear!

Dr Malama: The people are saying, “We are in the mukolo.”

Hon. Government Members: Mwa mukolo!

Dr Malama: Mwa mukolo! This means “In the boat.” They will move from underdevelopment to development. When local Government officers are incapable of understanding what our people want, then the Local Government Commission should not keep them.

Madam Speaker, I promised not to keep you long, so I end here.

I thank you, Madam Speaker.

Hon. Government Members: Hear, hear!

Mr Mwila (Chimwemwe): Madam Speaker, allow me to agree with the Committee’s observation that the current Constituency Development Fund (CDF) of K1.6 million per year that is given to constituencies is not enough. In this regard, two proposals were made by the Committee. The first proposal is that K5 million should be allocated to rural constituencies and K3 million to urban constituencies.

Madam Speaker, I support the K5 million which was proposed by your Committee across constituencies.

Madam First Deputy Speaker: Order!

Business was suspended from 1810 hours until 1830 hours.

[MADAM FIRST DEPUTY SPEAKER in the Chair]

Mr Mwila: Madam Speaker, before business was suspended, I was about to say that I agree with the Committee’s recommendation that the CDF allocation be increased to K5 million per constituency. However, I do not agree with the recommendation that rural constituencies should get K5 million while urban constituencies get a lesser amount. In my view, the concern on equitability must be addressed by the Local Government Equalisation Fund (LGEF) because that is why it was created. The CDF must be given equally across the board.

Madam Speaker, the other option of equalising is to split big constituencies in two. For example, on the Copperbelt Province, there is Kalulushi and Chambeshi constituencies that need to be split in two. Mitete, Kanchibiya and other constituencies also need to be split. However, we can only achieve this by agreeing to amend that clause on the delimitation exercise in the Constitution.

Madam Speaker, the second observation I would like to make is the issue of transfers of chief and principal officers. The Committee has recommended that transfers of chief or principal officers are not good. I agree that transferring problematic chief or principal officers to other local authorities would create problems. However, people should not fear transfers because transfers are normal. People should not be encouraged to overstay in their positions. It is a standard world practice that people are transferred and we have seen this happening at various levels such as at Executive level.

Madam Speaker, just a few days ago, there was a transfer. Allow me to talk about this one because it sparked jubilation in Kitwe, specifically at the Copperbelt University (CBU). When people got news that there was a new Minister of Higher Education, they were happy because there was a tweet that the new hon. Minister had pledged to re-open the CBU. So, there were wild celebrations that the installation of the Closed Circuit Television (CCTV) would not stand in the way of re-opening the CBU. Some students were heard saying that there was CCTV inside and outside some bank at Longacres, but one person by the name of Pamela Gondwe managed to walk away with K5 million in the face of CCTV. Therefore, CCTV alone cannot be an issue to block the reopening of the CBU.

Madam Speaker, the other issue is that the Committee has made an observation that there is inadequate allocation for administrative expenses on the CDF-funded projects. At the moment, K20,000 per constituency is being deducted from the yearly allocation as administrative expenses. I am a little bit behind. I do not seem to know where the increment, as proposed by the Committee, will come from. Is the Committee saying that the increment should be deducted from the K1.6 million allocation and local authorities should manage the CDF-funded projects or that the Central Government, through the Ministry of Finance, should provide more money to local authorities to manage the CDF-funded projects?

If the Committee is of the view that more than K20,000 should be deducted from the K1.6 million CDF given per constituency, then I would disagree with it. Since we are talking about the introduction and increase of the LGEF, the K20,000 which the ministry deducts from the K1.6 million given to each constituency should come to an end. This is because we have another avenue of the LGEF that the Government should increase and allow councils to manage the CDF-funded projects. If K1.6 million is given to constituencies, they must be allowed to plan for the entire K1.6 million since there is provision of the LGEF.

Madam Speaker, the other point is failure to complete projects within the contract period. Chimwemwe Constituency is a victim of this issue. We have one project in this constituency which is being financed under the CDF, that is, the completion of a 1 x 3 classroom block at Twatasha Secondary School. The contractor was given three months to complete a structure that was constructed by the community and was already at roof level. Three months was given and the three months ended last week Friday. When we checked on the project, we found that in three months, the contractor had only managed to plaster the outside of the 1 x 3 classroom block.

Madam Speaker, these are the issues that need to be addressed. I do not know what happened and how that contractor was picked by the local authority, but three months down the line, the contractor had just managed to plaster the outside of the 1 x 3 classroom block. Therefore, I would not be surprised if started hearing stories or petitions that the contractor has been kicked out of site and somebody else has come in. The CDF was already sitting in the account. We have told the local authorities that we will only be able to allow payment to the contractor or claims for works done. We will not allow big down payments to the contractor. So, these are the issues that must be addressed.

Madam Speaker, the last issue is the observation made by the Committee that the LGEF has less impact as compared to the CDF. In fact, it is in this report that I have learnt that there was a circular instructing principal and chief officers to update hon. Members on the activities of the LGEF, which has a 20 per cent capital project component.

In the three years that I have been Member for Chimwemwe Constituency in Kitwe, I have neither seen any project being carried out in my constituency using the LGEF nor am I aware of any single project implemented in Kitwe District as a whole. Therefore, I would agree with the recommendations of the Committee that Article 153 of the Republican Constitution be amended to include hon. Members in councils so that together, we can champion inclusive development in our local authorities and the districts we come from.

Madam Speaker, with these few remarks, I would like to agree with the Committee’s report and thank it for the good work done.

I thank you, Madam Speaker.

Mr Munkonge (Lukashya): Madam Speaker, I will try not to repeat what others have already said. I will focus on some of the practical problems that we have had with the utilisation of the funds, especially with regard to my own constituency. As I point out some of these shortcomings, I am aware that the councils are working under very difficult conditions.

Madam, one of the obvious challenges that councils are facing is understaffing. Even as we talk about staff transfers and all the issues related to staff welfare, understaffing has been a huge hindrance to us utilising the Constituency Development Fund (CDF). For instance, we have situations where the planning department only has one engineer for the whole of Kasama District which has nine wards in Lukashya and eight in Kasama Central. When faced with even the most basic challenges, how is this individual going to carry out project assessments for all these wards? One ward is, maybe, the size of Kabwata Constituency. Then, this person does not even have fuel. The issue of the K20,000 becomes challenging because the distances he has to cover to make assessments on projects are immense.

Madam Speaker, the other challenge we faced was that even these understaffed councils wanted to give themselves more work of buying materials for all the projects in Kasama District. To date, I do not understand why they moved away from the old system where the person doing the work also bought the material and the council officials just checked on the quality of the material. However, they gave themselves the assignment of not only buying the material, but of delivering the same as well. Then aspects of poor transportation and inability to provide transport came in when the contractor could have included that in the quotation for delivering the material.

Madam Speaker, another challenge that came up was on who was to report who? Where there was poor quality, who was going to report the other? Could it have been the Planning Department reporting on the Procurement Department. I do not know how effective that was going to be.

Madam, allow me to go into the issue of the LGEF. In this instance, we have a very unique situation. I do not know about other provinces, but with the design of Kasama Town, one can see a clear divide of where the administrative blocks for the town are. One would not be mistaken if one thought that Kasama Town comprised only one half of the defined town.

Madam Speaker, in resolving such issues, I would expect the council to be interested in the whole of Kasama Town. However, one side of Kasama Town has no tarred roads while the other has an abundance of tarred roads. It brings to mind this question: Is there a way of forcing an equitable use of the LGEF so that it can impact the whole town equally? The main issue is that one half of Kasama is considered to be under traditional land. I think the council, using the LGEF can come up with solutions that can benefit the people who control traditional land by expanding the town on the other side.

Madam Speaker, we have had instances where places which were previously traditional land converted into commercial land. However, the developers want to convert land from traditional to commercial without benefitting the person who controls the traditional land. That approach has caused problems. Like my counterpart from Chimwemwe Constituency, I have never seen a report on the usage of the LGEF by the council. I do not know whether one has to be a member of the council for him/her to access the fund. I also do not know if one has to be a Member of Parliament or a citizen of Kasama Town to have access to the fund. I have no idea.

Madam Speaker, it is as if the 20 per cent of the CDF meant for developmental issues is set aside at the discretion of a few individuals who have their own vision for Kasama which they have not shared with the rest of us. Perhaps, there is a need to come up with guidelines on how this fund should be used. The guidelines should spell out exactly how the community can participate in deciding how this fund should be used. This would ensure that even as we go to take on these ‘masters of the equalisation fund’ we are armed.

Some of the answers one gets sometimes leave one wondering if one is on the same side with them. Let me put it that way because the side we are on is trying to develop our area. The councils should also be interested because, like in our case, there is going to be a delimitation exercise. However, there is no engagement by the council to see how best we can come up with new demarcations. The proposal is that at the end of the day, there is a possibility of having four new constituencies in Kasama District.

Madam Speaker, the council has not engaged anybody on how we can take advantage of this situation. On the other hand, I would like to believe that we should have an opportunity to try to make those four constituencies, if it will happen, of equal size so that the impact of the CDF can be felt more by the people. I appreciate that it may not be possible because the population in some areas is higher than in others. However, let us find some logic which we can all agree upon.

Madam Speaker, in order not to repeat what others have already said, I thank you for this opportunity and I end here.

Hon. PF Members: Hear, hear!

Mr Jere (Livingstone): Madam Speaker, I thank you for the opportunity to debate on two topical issues that are close to our hearts. These are the Constituency Development Fund (CDF) and the Local Government Equalisation Fund (LGEF).

Madam Speaker, indeed, the CDF was initiated in 1995 with the sole purpose of providing social services. Sadly, twenty-four years down the line, our people still do not have the required social services. For example, our people do not have clean drinking water and our children are still sitting on the floor as they learn. This fund was supposed to respond to such issues.

Madam Speaker, to me, the CDF was a sure way of implementing development in all parts of this country, bearing in mind that hon. Members of Parliament are representatives of the people. Therefore, twenty-four years down the line, we were not going to see the rural-urban drift, where people leave the countryside to come into town in search of good health facilities, education and many other social services that town dwellers enjoy.

Madam Speaker, indeed, with regard to the LGEF, it is good that the Patriotic Front (PF) came up with this idea after establishing many districts in this country. However, these newly created districts do not have sources of income. You may recall that councils have numerous responsibilities as enshrined in the Local Government Act. However, they have very limited resources. Some time back, councils used to have houses, and people used to pay rentals to councils. They also used to collect taxes like the road tax and they would use that money to deliver the much-needed services to the local communities. Nonetheless, that was taken away from them, and from that time, many councils have been limping financially. Worse still, the newly created councils are limping. If the LGEF is used in a prudent and efficient manner, it would help the communities to have the much-needed services.

Madam Speaker, the issue of the relationship between council officers and councillors has caused councils not to perform. Council officers are employed by the Local Government Service Commission. The commission sends employees to various councils with the view to having them perform, but when they get there, they waste their time paying allegiance and loyalty to the commission. The elected leaders at local level, the councillors, are supposed to be their immediate supervisors, but it is the other way round. It is the councillors pay allegiance to council officers who cannot perform. The trousers and skirts of the councillors are torn from kneeling before officers who cannot perform. It is sad that the Local Government Service Commission has highlighted in the report that the only punishment that is meted out to the erring officers is a transfer. Why should we transfer problems from one council to another instead of looking for replacements, especially that we have vast field of human resources in this country? If there are vacancies, let councils advertise those positions so that people can apply for jobs. They should interview people and employ them on merit so that wherever they are taken, they will perform well.

Madam Speaker, city councils have well-established departments. They have the Planning, Engineering, Legal, and Administration departments. However, these councils still produce uncompleted structures all over the country when it comes to projects funded via the CDF. One wonders whether these council officials are really employed on merit. As my colleague said, the CDF projects are community-driven. This means the community should fill the forms. I urge the hon. Minister of Local Government to review the part in the form which says that when one proposes a project, one should add the amount of the project. How can a layman be expected to quantify a project when he does not know the nitty-gritty of the project? I propose that the hon. Minister should revise that form so that the community can agree on projects to be undertaken. If a community wants a dip tank, a clinic or a police post, let the technocrats at the council help the community to come up with the bill of quantity. This should indicate how much will be required for the project so that when money is allocated by the CDF Committee, the projects are completed.

Madam Speaker, most of the time, the proposed amounts for projects are either lower or higher by 50 per cent. When the council officers realise that the amount is overpriced, they take advantage of that and approve it. This is why we are talking about overpricing. Some councils even purchase second hand equipment. For example, the Constituency Development Fund Committee approves that the council should purchase computers for a school, but because of the same issue of overpricing, it ends up purchasing second hand computers. This is a scandal. This issue must be taken very seriously when it is reported by auditors. The ministry came up with integrity committees in all councils which would check on how public funds would be spent in councils, but we have seen no results because of the allegiance and loyalty to the LGSC.

Madam, internal auditors are there to audit the transactions of the council, including the CDF accounts, but many times, funds have been diverted from the CDF account to other projects that are not in line with the guidelines on implementing the CDF. This misappropriation of funds should be taken very seriously because at the end of the day, people should benefit from the CDF.

Madam, we need to begin to spend money on capacity building. When councillors are elected, they should be told their roles. Councillors are like a board of directors which is supposed to supervise the day-to-day activities of councils, but alas, what is happening is something else. Councillors do not know what they are supposed to do. They are more in interested in the benefits they will get and not in providing services. Like my colleagues stated, councillors are the direct contact between the community and the council. As such, they are supposed to be a bridge between the Members of Parliament and the people. The Members of Parliament are supposed to get reports from councillors and, in turn, hon. Members must bring the views of the people into this House. However, that does not happen because they are more interested in the benefits.

Madam Speaker, when it comes to contracts, there is bureaucracy. We need to give councils a threshold regarding contracts they can award. Beyond a certain amount, a contract should be taken to the tender board. I do not know what it is called. There is bureaucracy in awarding contracts. We need to ensure that contracts are awarded on time so that councils can perform to people’s expectation. Many times, contracts have been turned into labour-based contracts. What does that mean? A council purchases materials such as cement and then does not secure them. When the rains come, the materials get spoiled. A lot of taxpayers’ money in the form of the CDF goes to waste because of not securing the materials that are bought by councils. The ministry should give a directive that projects costing a certain amount of money should not be contracted using a labour-based contract. A full contract to a contractor should be given, and somebody should be assigned to supervise the project on a daily basis so that the contractor does not compromise the quality of work to be produced. We have seen many CDF-funded projects fail because probably people diverted cement elsewhere. Sometimes, a building which is just completed already has cracks. So, you can tell that the quality of work carried out was poor.

Madam Speaker, I would like to conclude by saying we shall continue knocking on the doors of the ministry so that these issues can be attended to. This way, the situation can be improved and the lives of our people made better using the local authorities in this country.

Madam Speaker, I thank you.

Ms Katuta (Chienge): Madam Speaker, I would like to thank you for giving me this opportunity to debate your Committee’s report. Much has been said by my colleagues regarding Constituency Development Fund (CDF).

Madam, I would like to make a few suggestions. I have listened to both the mover and the seconder of the Motion. From what has been said, I realise that all of us are talking about the same problem. My prayer, therefore, is that this House will one day come up with strict laws which will send a strong warning to council executives.

Madam Speaker, for instance, there are some projects that were paid for in Chienge, and certificates of completion of works were issued. However, when one looks at the projects, one will find that the projects are not completed. One wonders who sanctioned the projects to be undertaken. In addition, one wonders who approves the release of funds to allow the council to make payment to the so-called contractors. Contractors have taken advantage of this situation. As a result, hon. Members are not respected by councils because council officials feel that they are the custodians of the money, yet the money belongs to hon. Members of Parliament. The mistake which has been made by this House is to allow the CDF to be channelled through the councils. It would have been better for the funds to be channelled through the constituency offices where people go to suggest the kind of projects that they would want to have in their constituency.

Madam Speaker, there are projects such as the maternity wing at Mwabu in Chienge which was started seven years ago using the CDF. Looking at the structure, one would think that somebody just got sand, one pocket of cement and started building. The only role hon. Members play in the CDF-funded project implementation is to sit in the Constituency District Committee (CDC) and recommend the project to be carried out using the CDF. The project proposals are then sent to the local government for approval. How I wish the local government would be in touch with hon. Members of Parliament and inform them about the projects that have been approved and then ask them if those are the projects the hon. Members would have wanted to prioritise. However, what is happening now is that the hon. Member sits in the CDC and once projects are approved, they go to the Ministry of Local Government. Thereafter, they are handled only by the local government and the councils, leaving out the Members of Parliament. So, the hon. Members only receive a copy of the approved projects. At the end of the day, the projects carried out by an incompetent contractor would be carried over by the same incompetent contractor because there are some connections here and there between councils and contractors. This is happening because we do not have the right laws which can send a serious warning to council officials. If people carrying out shoddy works were arrested, we would not see the certificates of completion of works flying around when the works are incomplete. My grandson can put up a proper clay structure unlike what some councils are constructing.

Madam Speaker, hon. Members have a challenge with the CDF. For that reason, I would like to urge this House to revisit the Constituency Development Fund Act so that the CDF should start going to constituency offices. That way, erring hon. Members of Parliament will get arrested for mismanaging the CDF. As it is, it is very difficult for hon. Members to manage the CDF because the councils carry out the procurement for the CDF-funded projects. When they are carrying out the procurement process, the hon. Member is not consulted. The hon. Members just approve the projects. Further, when awarding contracts, hon. Members are not in attendance, yet they are supposed to be the owners of the fund. I find this quite abnormal. At the end of the day, hon. Members are told to approve the project. They can approve projects, but they are not allowed to approve the contractors.

Madam, in rural areas like Chienge, people who are not competent contractors go there and say that they can undertake any work, when they only have a Grade 7 School Leaving Certificate and a certificate from the National Council for Construction (NCC).

Madam Speaker, I would like to beg the House to change the law because this will send a very strong warning to every council that the CDF belongs to the public, the people who elected hon. Members of Parliament. The only thing we are asking councils to do is monitor or inspect the projects we want undertaken because we are busy, especially when Parliament is in session. However, at the moment, it is the other way round.

Madam, when we try to tell councils that they cannot do certain things or when we propose what should be given to the people, the Council Secretary or the Town Clerk will say that the projects are selected by councillors. Meanwhile, a caucus meeting is called for councillors and they are told what to propose. So, the poor councillors have to submit what they were told, yet it is not what the people in their particular wards want. Therefore, it is important to revisit the Constituency Development Fund Act because it would be helpful to the current and would-be hon. Members of Parliament in the near future. This is because individual hon. Members of Parliament will be responsible for the CDF. Currently, the CDF process starts from the CDC. The local Government or the council will sit with the council chairperson, Mayor or whoever before they begin to talk. They might even say that even if the project is approved, they feel the useless contractor should be given the contract.

Madam First Deputy Speaker: Withdraw the word “useless.”

Ms Katuta: The not useful contractors.

Laughter

Hon. Members: Incompetent!

Ms Katuta: The incompetent contractor. Thank you.

Madam, they are not useful because they do not provide a proper service. This is very painful. For instance, a maternity wing at Mwabu has been under construction for years. Somebody still wants to continue doing the same work because of the current laws. I have been told that the Public Procurement Act gives power to incompetent contractors to carry on. It cannot be like that because this is taxpayers’ money which is given to the incompetent contractors. I believe there are terms in the contracts. A contractor can be given 80 per cent of the money, but he still wants to continue working on the same project even when the building is about to collapse because of poor quality work.

Madam Speaker, let me just say that the CDF should be married with the 20 per cent LGEF. For instance, Chienge Council bought a grader, but it cannot afford to buy fuel. So, where is the 20 per cent? Is there a law or by-law that councils should report to hon. Members of Parliament on how they use the 20 per cent? We need to marry the 20 per cent to the CDF. Further, the CDF should be channelled through the constituency offices of the hon. Members of Parliament.

Madam Speaker, before I take much of your time, I would like to talk about the CDF amount given to constituencies. I know this issue has been talked about, but I need to emphasise it. The needs of the people of Chienge are not the same as the needs of the people in urban areas. For instance, in urban areas, there are some projects that are implemented by the Central Government. As a result, the urban constituencies receive more projects than the rural constituencies. It will only help us to develop our constituencies if we are given more funding.

Madam Speaker, there are a lot of community schools in Chienge and some have now been turned into Government schools. These are all grass-thatched schools. How do you spend the K1.4 million on one project or three projects only? The people would start questioning the Member. The money is not enough. Therefore, one is forced to get the small amount every year so that you it can be spread out in a different manner year by year. As a result, the people think as if a Member of Parliament is not doing anything for them and he/she not helping them. May I urge the Government and us, the lawmakers, to revisit the Constituency Development Fund Bill? The fund has to go through the constituency office.

I thank you, Madam Speaker.

Mr Kabanda (Serenje): Madam Speaker, most of my colleagues have spoken at length on this particular subject, save for the fact that development does not hang in the air. Development takes place at local level. All of us here come from a particular local authority and at the end of the day, the Government has to show for what it has achieved. There is no need to send money to institutions that are misapplying resources. What is the Government going to show for their five years in power, from 2016 to 2021? All of us have to sonta. All of us have to point at something which has been done at that level. I think that the whole issue of a lack of prosecution of perpetrators strikes at the very basis of the leadership which we have put in those places.

Madam Speaker, if the leadership lacks the necessary skills to undertake certain responsibilities, we do not expect much to be done at that level. Indeed, it is very important that we take stock of the staffing levels in these institutions. These institutions are very important because they host a number of responsibilities. Whatever you may think of is the responsibility of the council. Talk of the air, health, education or whatever you may think of under the sun is the responsibility of the local authority. You cannot do anything without consulting the council. These responsibilities the councils have are enormous.

Therefore, for them to undertake these responsibilities, they require people who have specialised skills. A person coming directly from the University of Zambia (UNZA) or Copperbelt University (CBU) is not expected to do anything in the local authority, with his/her Master’s degree or Doctor of Philosophy (PhD) because that is a specialised field altogether. Local government per se is a specialised field requiring specialised skills. The chief executive officer (CEO) of a local authority requires to have certain qualifications. One does not need to be an engineer to be a CEO of a local authority. No. It is just as good as having Lionel Messi manning a goal post.

Laughter

Mr Kampyongo: Ema example ayo.

Mr Kabanda: It is just as good as having Moo Mohammed as a goalkeeper. Local authorities require trained local government administrators with hands-on skills for the job. We have qualified Association of Chartered Certified Accountants (ACCA) in these councils, but because there is a problem at the top, this person cannot perform to the satisfaction of the community that he/she is meant to serve.

Madam Speaker, the Committee on Local Government Accounts has reviewed very glaring mistakes in the usage of the Local Government Equalisation Fund (LGEF) and Constituency Development Fund (CDF). The CDF is meant to provide communities with some projects which can be executed by the locals themselves. For instance, a K150,000 is allocated for a 1 x 2 classroom block. In Serenje, Chienge or Kaputa, that K150,000 can build a number of 1 x 2 classroom blocks. However, this is the money which is given to a contractor and to a tender process. How much is going to remain at the end of the whole process to undertake the core project? If the contractor is paid K70,000 from the K150,000, how much will remain? If it is on a 50-50 basis, the contractor gets K75,000 and the money for the core project remains at K75,000. Whereas if local people such as bricklayers and carpenters were identified in the community, they would undertake that job at the cost of K15,000 to K20,000. The remaining money can be used to buy materials.

Madam Speaker, I think that the hon. Minister of Local Government must revise the conditions. We do not want to abuse this process, but then, there must be checks and balances to ensure that these works are properly carried out by people who have the necessary skills to build a school or clinic. If we do not do these things, all these moneys will be going to waste. The Government has been allocating resources to these local authorities, but on the ground, what is happening is something else.

Madam Speaker, the only council that I have seen in this country that is trying its best to perform is Kapiri Mposhi Council. The rest of these councils leave much to be desired in terms of performance. They are not even able to collect local resources. They are all looking to the Government to provide the LGEF and CDF. What are they able to do on their own? At some point, these councils were operating without the Government’s support. They were made to fend for themselves and they were able to deliver. I do not know what has changed today that with all this Government support, councils are not able to deliver much to the chagrin of the people they are intended to serve.

Madam Speaker, misuse of resources in local authorities has become the order of the day. If you look at the Report of the Auditor-General or the Report of the Committee on Local Government Accounts, you will discover, as a matter of fact, that a lot of resources are being misapplied. What is going to happen to us hon. Members of Parliament at the end of the day because the people are looking to us to ensure that we deliver development?

Madam Speaker, we do not sit in the councils where resources are being shared, yet the people expect us to deliver. The LGEF is shared in the council chambers where the hon. Member of Parliament does not sit. There is not even a link between the council chairperson or the council as an institution and an hon. Member of Parliament. Where do we come in to supervise the works? First of all, we do not even know how much was allocated. We only know about the CDF and, more often than not, councils are more active when they receive the CDF than when they receive the LGEF.

Madam, when councils receive the LGEF, they are quiet. The hon. Member of Parliament will not even know that the LGEF is seated in the district.

Hon. Members: Hear, hear!

Ms Tambatamba: Hammer!

Mr Kabanda: It is when the CDF arrives that they start making calls asking when we are calling the CDF Committee so that they can come and apportion the money.

Ms Kucheka: Can you imagine?

Mr Kabanda: However, when they receive the LGEF, do they call me? We are supposed to be intertwined because we are there to provide development for the people in the constituency. The council and the hon. Member of Parliament are supposed to work in tandem.

Madam Speaker, here is a situation where the hon. Member of Parliament is actually alienated from council activities. We do not understand what goes on in the council. Even when you go to address meetings in the constituency, you are better off talking about development taking place at national level because you understand what is going on at national level. At the base, however, you do not know anything and you are in the dark. A Member of Parliament will not even know that there will be a small bridge in that ward where he/she is addressing a meeting because he/she is lacking the basic information. It is high time we found common ground where the councillors and the hon. Member of Parliament can sit to share information on the development of a particular council area or constituency.

Madam Speaker, today, we are operating in isolation, especially that the council chairperson may also have some ambitions. So, he/she wants to kill the Member of Parliament’s initiatives.

Madam Speaker, these are the challenges we are facing on a daily basis, and the newly appointed hon. Minister of Local Government should take note of these issues. He is an hon. Member of Parliament, so I am sure that at some point, he has come across these challenges in his constituency. We need to streamline issues so that we can deliver to the people we are privileged to serve.

Madam Speaker, I support this report.

I thank you, Madam.

Hon. Members: Hear, hear!

Madam First Deputy Speaker: Hon. Member for Zambezi East, are you interested to debate?

Hon. Members: No, no!

Mr Kambita (Zambezi East): Madam Speaker, yes, for five minutes only.

Laughter

Mr Kambita: Madam Speaker, thank you for allowing me to add the voice of the people of Zambezi East to the Motion that is on the Floor of the House, which is the Report of the Committee on Local Government Accounts that is considering the utilisation of the Constituency Development Fund (CDF) and the Local Government Equalisation Fund (LGEF) in councils.

Madam Speaker, I will not waste time debating elaborately, but I will go straight to the points that I would like the hon. Members of this august House and the nation at large to understand.

Madam Speaker, one of the most important indicators of strong controls in any system, especially an internal system, is the existence of a clear organisational framework. We have a challenge, so far, in terms of –

Mr Mukosa: On a point of order, Madam.

Madam First Deputy Speaker: A point of order is raised.

Mr Mukosa: Madam Speaker, thank you for allowing me to rise on this very important point of order. Is the hon. Member on the Floor in order to come to this honourable House dressed in party regalia?

Laughter

Mr Mukosa: The shirt he is wearing has a party symbol at the back.

Mr Sikazwe: Fumyako jacket tumone. Chosa jacket.

Madam First Deputy Speaker: From where I am sitting, I cannot see any symbol of a political party. Therefore –

Interruptions

Mr Kambita removed his jacket and turned round to show the House that his shirt had no party symbol at the back.

Laughter

Madam First Deputy Speaker: The hon. Member for Zambezi East is in order. Please, continue with your debate, hon. Member.

Laughter

Mr Kambita: Madam Speaker, I do not want to delve into unnecessary comments on the point of order because it will eat into our time.

Madam, I mentioned that one of the indicators of the existence of controls in any system is the way an organisation is structured. I seem to have a problem with the existence of the Local Government Service Commission and the role that the councils play in terms of placement of staff, especially those who manage the accounts under debate. There seems to be a weakness, and that is why whenever we have a problem, we seem to rush to transferring staff. I have seen the transfers that have rightly been mentioned in the report of the Committee. The reason for these transfers is that councils seem not to have the teeth to discipline erring staff. I will give an example of my own council, Zambezi Town Council. This council had a very serious issue of misappropriation concerning the CDF. In short, fraud was committed with regard to the CDF.

Madam Speaker, I reported the matter to the Anti-Corruption Commission (ACC). To-date, that matter has not been investigated. The only thing I have seen is that the erring staff was simply transferred. We do not seem to be solving the problem. We cannot solve a problem when we do not know what is causing it. The problem could be perpetuated by the Local Government Service Commission. It seems like a moribund institution to me, so far, because it is not serving the aspirations of the people of Zambezi East.

Madam Speaker, let me come to the CDF management. The CDF committees allocate funds. One good thing in the guidelines of implementing the CDF is that members of the CDF committee are signatories. However, we still have a very big challenge in the procurement system. The procurement system is solely managed by the same council employees who keep embezzling these funds. That alone means that the CDF committee members are simply used as tools to move the funds to where council workers intend to move them. That is why the CDF funds are misused.

Madam Speaker, the other issue I would like to talk about is the supervision of projects. Yes, I do agree with the Committee’s recommendation to increase the portion that is used for administering these funds. We need these projects to be supervised. It is a different case, of course, for a town council or a council which is in a city such as Lusaka. My colleague, the hon. Member for Chimwemwe said that amount for administering these funds should not be increased. His constituency is a different case because it has short distances. However, in places such as Zambezi, people need to move from Zambezi Township to Mpidi, which is about 90 km from the council. Further, the technical person from the council or the director of works has to physically go and check on these projects regularly. That is part of administration. I really support the issue of increasing the amount allocated to administration of these funds. I would love to see more funds allocated for supervision.

Madam Speaker, I promised not to take too long in debating this Motion. I just wanted to bring out those very important points which are related to the town council I come from.

I thank you, Madam Speaker.

The Minister of Finance (Dr Ng’andu): Madam Speaker, I thank you for this opportunity to debate this Motion. The report before the House is appreciated as it has identified a number of weaknesses in public finance management as regards the management of the Constituency Development Fund (CDF) and the Local Government Equalisation Fund (LGEF). It has also brought out the major challenges which we are faced with regarding institutionalising a culture of accountability in our councils.

Madam Speaker, the Ministry of Finance has taken note of the cardinal weaknesses identified, and it will undertake the following measures to address them.

With respect to the timely funding of the CDF, funds permitting, the Treasury will endeavour to ensure that the CDF is released within the first quarter of each financial year so as to allow the procurement of projects to be completed ...

Hon. Members: Hear, hear!

Dr Ng’andu: … within the financial year.

Madam Speaker, with respect to the accrued CDF or the CDF not disbursed from previous years, the current Budget process only allows for funds appropriated by the House to be disbursed and utilised within that financial year. For any carry-over funds, ministries are encouraged to apply for supplementary funds before utilisation of funds that are mopped and secured within the Treasury.

Madam Speaker, the Ministry of Finance, together with the Ministry of Local Government, shall review the amounts allocated for administration costs in order to enhance monitoring of projects by local authorities.

Madam Speaker, as regards the weaknesses identified in the LGEF in local authorities, the Treasury has set up a team to develop guidelines which shall address misapplication of funds which will have punitive measures in line with the Public Finance Management Act No. 2 of 2018. These guidelines will not allow local authorities to use the LGEF to guarantee the acquisition of loans.

Madam Speaker, as noted during the submissions from hon. Members of the House, there was concern about the fact that we have the laws, yet we do not seem to apply them. That is a culture that has to change. When we enact laws, we must apply them. In order to address the weaknesses, the newly enacted Public Finance Management Act No. 1 of 2018 has incorporated stringent measures to enhance compliance by office holders and sensitisation of all office holders, including those under local authorities. I wish to end by stressing the point to the House that we will enforce the law, going forward.

I thank you, Madam Speaker.

Hon. Members: Hear, hear!

The Minister of Local Government (Dr Banda): Madam Speaker, allow me to thank the mover and seconder of the Motion and all the ten hon. Members who have passionately debated the report.

Madam Speaker, the ministry has carefully studied the report and takes note of the issues raised therein. In this regard, I wish to respond to some key issues highlighted in the report. The Committee expressed concern on the impact of the Local Government Equalisation Fund (LGEF) on the community compared to the impact of the Constituency Development Fund (CDF).

Madam Speaker, much as both the CDF and LGEF are grants and communities are involved in their utilisation, it should be noted that there is a difference in the way the two operate and how they are administered. The LGEF is meant to be a supplement of the local authority budget and covers projects for the entire district and not just one constituency. This means that the grant takes into account all the functions of the local authority. Only 20 per cent of this grant is reserved for capital projects. These could be new or on-going projects.

Madam Speaker, on the other hand, the CDF is used for micro-projects within the constituency, and is usually initiated by the host communities. Unlike the LGEF, the entire CDF amount is reserved for capital projects. Therefore, the fact that the LGEF is a supplementary budget allocation, which is shared by the entire district and not just one constituency, entails that it is likely to have less direct impact on the community compared with the CDF which is restricted to a constituency.

Madam Speaker, to guide the utilisation of the LGEF, the Ministry of Finance in consultation with the Ministry of Local Government, is developing regulations in line with the provisions of the Local Government Act. These regulations will emphasise the prescription for utilising 20 per cent of the grant on capital projects to ensure that communities benefit.

Madam Speaker, the regulations will also prescribe how stakeholders will participate in the selection and implementation of projects. The involvement of all stakeholders, including hon. Members, will be prescribed. This means that the issues raised by the Committee on the inadequate participation of stakeholders in the LGEF projects will be addressed.

Madam Speaker, one other concern that the Committee raised is on the misapplication of the LGEF. The Committee cited the use by the local authorities of the LGEF as collateral for borrowing purposes. This matter is also of great concern to the ministry. To this effect, the Government is actively investigating the matter of using the 20 per cent capital component of the LGEF for collateral. Further, to address the issues of misapplication, the Government, through the Local Government Service Commission (LGSC), has commenced disciplinary action against the erring officers.

Madam Speaker, I wish to mention that of all the issues that have been mentioned, I have captured about twenty-five. We are going to find remedial measures to ensure that we bring the culprits to book. We will also put in place corrective measures to ensure that the right thing is done.

Madam Speaker, key on most of the issues include the failure to share activity reports with Members of Parliament and other stakeholders. We are, therefore, saying that the Government is ready to discipline all erring principal officers failing to comply with the directive to share activity reports with the parliamentarians and others stakeholders.

Madam Speaker, the hon. Member for Kasenengwa talked about the untimely disbursement of the CDF and LGEF. The Ministry of Local Government will continuously engage the Treasury on the disbursement of the CDF and LGEF, and I am glad that the hon. Minister of Finance has already spoken to that issue.

Madam Speaker, I also heard an issue on the failure to secure completed projects. I would like to say that the Government has taken note of the concerns and recommendations of the Committee and so, the local authorities shall be directed accordingly.

Madam Speaker, on poor workmanship, the Government notes the concerns raised by the Committee. It shall direct the local authorities to ensure that all certificates issued are in accordance with the contract provisions and that any erring officers who mislead council management to pay contractors are disciplined.

I thank you, Madam Speaker.

Mr Muchima: Madam Speaker, I would like to thank the seconder of the Motion, the hon. Members for the following constituencies Mwinilunga, Kasenengwa, Bwana Mkubwa, Kanchibiya, Chimwemwe, Luanshya, Livinsgtone, Chienge, Serenje, and Zambezi East and, indeed, the hon. Minister of Finance and the hon. Minister of Local Government for responding positively to our queries.

Madam Speaker, I sincerely thank you too for according me this chance to deliver the report of your Committee to the House.

I thank you, Madam.

Hon. Members: Hear, hear!

Question put and agreed to.

Hon. Members: Hear, hear!

______

ADJOURNMENT

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

Question put and agreed to.

_______

The House adjourned at 1943 hours until 1430 hours on Wednesday, 24^th July, 2019.

__________

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