Metro

Zimbabwe: President Mnangagwa under fire for criticising Russia’s support for Zambia

Published

2 weeks ago

June 10, 2024

Zimbabwean President, Emmerson Mnangagwa, has been under fire for allegedly criticizing Russia’s support for Zambia.

Leading the plethora of criticism is a former Special Assistant to the President on Policy & Project Implementation and Monitoring, Jack Kalala, who described Mnangagwa’s remarks about Zambia as undiplomatic and cheap.

Mnangagwa had incurred the wrath of Zambians during a recent visit to Russia where he complained to President Vladimir Putin about how Western countries were favoring Zambia and Malawi.

“You see, the West has just begun consolidating its power in Zambia, our next neighbor,” the Zimbabwean leader was quoted as saying.

“There was a time when Zambia and Zimbabwe were one; it was called Northern and Southern Rhodesia. It was made one by the British, but they are now separate.

“And the Americans are consolidating their power in that country, both in terms of security and financial support to Zambia to make sure that we feel lonely.”

The video of the comments which went viral on social media, prompted Kalala to criticise Mnangagwa for his “undiplomatic behavior”.

In a statement where he registered his displeasure, Kalala said it was unbecoming and cheap to speak ill of a fellow president to another while begging for help.

Kalala noted that the fact that Russia leaked the video of the private conversation indicated that President Putin did not agree with Mnangagwa’s conduct.

“The release of the video was a way to show his disgust and to expose President Mnangagwa’s indecent and deplorable behavior,” Kalala said.

Kalala also responded to a statement credited to Zambia’s former Minister of Foreign Affairs, Harry Kalaba, who suggested that President Hakainde Hichilema should send an emissary to Zimbabwe to mend strained diplomatic relations.

“Mr. Kalaba should have done some reading before issuing his inappropriate statement. He would have discovered that many Zimbabweans vehemently disagreed with their President’s embarrassing and demeaning misconduct.

“They found him wanting in statesmanship for speaking ill of a fellow President while begging for food and military aid. It smacked of bad manners on the part of President Mnangagwa,” Kalala said.

Click to comment

Metro

Zambia: Agency denies granting incentives, land allocation to Vietnamese investor

Published

12 hours ago

June 24, 2024

Isaac Dachen

The Zambia Development Agency (ZDA) has debunked claims that it granted lands as incentives to a Vietnamese investor who pledged a $72 billion investment over a 20-year period.

The denial by the agency came following widespread criticism over an allegation that the ZDA had secretly provided incentives and six million hectares of land to the investor.

In a statement issued on Monday in Lusaka by ZDA Board Chairperson, Biemba Maliti, the agency said no incentives have been or will be granted beyond what is prescribed by law. Maliti also denied any approval of six million hectares of land for the investor in question.

The ZDA Board Chairperson further clarified the allegations, stating that the agency operates strictly within the provisions of the ITBD Act, and that any requests outside the law were invalid.

“For the avoidance of doubt, we wish to advise that ZDA has not granted any incentives to the investor in question and has no intention of granting any incentives outside what is prescribed in the law,” Makiti said.

“ZDA encourages all investors and the general public to contact the Agency for accurate information regarding investment matters,” said Maliti.

He stated that regarding land allocation allegations, Maliti emphasized that ZDA did not have the authority to approve or issue land to investors.

“The correct position is that ZDA facilitated a consultative meeting on June 18, 2024, between Viet Zam and stakeholders where the investor presented his proposal.

“Various investment scenarios were discussed, ranging from one hectare to six million hectares, with an indicative investment amount of US$72 billion over 20 years.”

Maliti added that the role played by ZDA was to facilitate sectoral meetings at the investor’s request without discrimination or bias.

“ZDA and stakeholders guided the investor to apply for a smaller piece of land in line with the existing farm block concept, where a domestic or foreign investor can apply for one to 20,000 hectares of land for their project.

“This guidance is not an approval of six million hectares of land. ZDA has no legal mandate to allocate land of any size, let alone the purported six million hectares,” he stated.

Metro

Minimum Wage: Labour warns Tinubu against transmitting bill without negotiation

Published

19 hours ago

June 24, 2024

Isaac Dachen

The Organised Labour in Nigeria has warned President Bola Tinubu against transmitting a proposed minimum wage bill to the National Assembly without further negotiations and reaching a satisfactory deal with its leadership.

The leadership of the Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC) and the Trade Union Congress (TUC) have been locked in a battle with the federal government on its demand for an increase in the minimum wage of Nigerian workers.

While the two parties have not arrived at an agreement, there have been rumours that Tinubu will soon transmit the bill to the National Assembly, but labour has urged the President to consider consulting and reaching an agreement with its leadership before transmitting the proposed bill.

In his Democracy Day broadcast, the President had announced that a consensus had been reached between the Federal Government and Labour on the new minimum wage, a claim both the NLC and TUC promptly debunked.

Tinubu had also stated that an executive bill would soon be sent to the National Assembly to formalise the agreement, emphasising his administration’s preference for a democratic approach over dictatorship in dealing with labour matters.

While speaking with journalists in Abuja on Sunday, a top executive of the NLC who spoke on the condition of anonymity, said the labour leaders were disappointed with the government over its delay tactics in handling the wage crisis.

“As things stand, we cannot really do anything until we are aware of what they are trying to do.

“The delay in sending the bill to the National Assembly is even the reason we have yet to call for our NEC meeting.

“The President is supposed to decide on the impasse and then forward the bill to them. They need to come up with an official statement before we can decide on what to tell our people.

“If President Tinubu singlehandedly takes a decision, you know it can’t be the same as the decision of the National Assembly.

“He needs to send the bill so the lawmakers can amend whatever he is sending and call for a public hearing. So we are waiting for him to make his move.

“But if he is wise as we believe, he will not make that move without consulting us directly before even sending the bill.

“If he sends the minimum wage bill based on the position of his government, it means he has taken sides. The wiser thing is for him to intervene since there is a stalemate with the people he sent to negotiate with us.

“But again, we know the Presidency has no idea of what to do and they don’t consult. You only need to sit with some of these people in government to know they are empty. That is the situation at the moment.”