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The President, Edgar Lungu has pronounced that the Government in collaboration with Zambia Cooperative Federation are milling and selling a 25 Kg bag of mealie meal at K 45 in Solwezi and Kasama.
To begin with I and the residents of Kasama, in particular are not aware of any solar milling plant that has been commissioned in the area.
It is a known fact that the Food Reserve Agency has set a floor price of K 75 a 50 kg bag of maize. It is also common knowledge that maize prices from farmers and commodity brokers are within the FRA price or even higher.
It then leaves one to wonder, the source of the maize that ZCF are supposedly milling and selling at this price. It also makes you wonder whether, there has been policy shift that Government has decided not to inform the nation.
I say this, because, it does not make any economic or business sense whatsoever. ZCF is supposed to operate as some type of revolving fund agency for its members, to grow the Cooperative movement so that members achieve self sustainability and grow their business, mostly agricultural based.
The question is where has ZCF sourced cheap maize? Are they buying below the market price or taking advantage of the small scale farmers, whom they are supposed to assist to increase their current production levels.
ZCF has for sometime now operated as a one man show and has been manipulated by Government.
Government should also state, whether the subsidies on maize have been restored publicly, and if that is the case, this policy change should affect all millers, so that the price of mealie meal would be reduced for the consumer.
My view is that this Government with its failed policies and chipante pante approach to peoples livelihoods, are using this for political expediency. This pronouncement has been made to hoodwink people, particularly in Kasama, because they wish to increase or enhance their chances as PF in case of a parliamentary By Election. However, this is not sustainable over a long period, especially in a broke economy such as ours.
The people of Kasama and Zambia have seen through your lies and know to what extent you would go to just cling to power and the total disregard for the use of tax payers money.
Mr Lungu is living in cloud cuckoo land and employing short term solutions that will just selfishly enhance his position for elections without thinking through the long term impact on society.
My advise is for them to reflect seriously for a while and work out solution for the current multitude of problems, removing politics and stay on in power attitude, then they may start getting things right. Right now they are lost.
Geoffrey Bwalya Mwamba
UPND Vice President Administration
