COLLUM Coal Mine operations in Sinazongwe District will temporary remain suspended until the Government and the directors of the mine thoroughly address all pressing issues, Home Affairs Deputy Minister, Stephen Kampyongo has said.
Police arrested 12 suspects in connection with the killing of a Chinese national, Wu Shengzai, 50, at the mine following a riot earlier in the week.
The riot was sparked by what the workers termed as Collum Mine management’s delay to effect the recently announced minimum wage. Five suspects appeared in the Choma Magistrate Court on Wednesday.
On Thursday, two Deputy Ministers of Home Affairs, Mr Kampyongo and his counterpart, Nixon Chilangwa; Southern Division Police Commissioner, Charity Katanga and other senior Government officials undertook a tour of the mine to assess the security situation.
Speaking when he addressed more than 50 workers, Mr Kampyongo said his ministry would recommend reopening of the mine after all issues were addressed.
The mine has more than 800 employees stationed in different mining shafts.
He said all relevant ministries and the directors of Collum Coal Mine would have to meet soon to iron out misunderstandings.
“As a ministry, we want to ensure there is security for investors and workers. We need to find lasting solutions and put strategic mechanisms to prevent future incidences of riots and loss of lives,” he said.
His ministry, along with Labour and Mines, Collum Coal Mine directors and Mine-workers Union of Zambia (MUZ) officials were scheduled to hold a caucus meeting yesterday.
During the meeting, it was discovered that the mine had two workers’ unions, MUZ and the Gemstone Allied Workers Union of Zambia.
And Mr Chilangwa complained to some Chinese officials during an earlier meeting at their offices for failing to employ an interpreter to provide effective communication between employers and workers.
He wondered how Chinese and their workers related to each other when employees had difficulties in understanding Chinese language.
MUZ Southern region senior organising secretary, Bernard Dolopo said the union had always been engaging the mine management in dialogue and was saddened that workers resorted to rioting.
Sinazongwe Constituency Member of Parliament, Richwell Siamunene thanked the Government for exhibiting leadership in resolving the impasse at the mine.
TEMPORARILY. That’s what spell check and dictionaries were invented for.
The MMD led government facked this one up big time. Aquital by a court of law for shooting employees was an outrage which forced the workers to take the law into their own hands.
Real question is, WHO IS GOING TO TAKE THE GOVERNMENT OR THE PEOPLE WHO LET CHINESE MURDERERS GET AWAY TO TASK??????
It didn’t matter when Zambians died. Now that a fackin foreigner has died, they want to sort things out? Blaaly basket !!!
This is big news in Beijing and other international business websites they are watching developments closely…PF was highly critical of the previous regime and this should have been the first issue to address on day one…how much are these people paid?
However you look at it there is no justification in taking another life, government should encourage these Chinese investors to incorporate an active human resource dept headed by a Zambian to act as a mediator between the investor and the native staff.
Eeh let’s not refer back to ‘native’ staff that has connotations. They’re most likely not all native to Sinazongwe Why not local staff?
So finally we have one Chocholi to twelve Zambians? what a ratio, Wish these ministers could just take time and get the views of blacks in china on how bad black people are treated in china, these Chocholis dont even believe in business partnerships only want to trade with africa, almost all Chocholi companies in Zambia have zambian partners, they are only after everything africa have, when I mean everything, not only copper, but also, they including wildlife species, because their so called great land has nothing, everything is copied/fake stuff, it time we review this friendship!
Am quite surprised one well known blogger, a China lover, he of ‘enterprise, enterprise’ has been uncharacteristically mum on the goings-on of his great Chinese in Southern province!
As long as operations remain suspended No pay for no work
This one is tricky, PF should investigate which corrupt minister in MMD got the kick back after those chps where shot by a chinese man, because it is suprising that after the chinese man misbehaved , the mine continued operating under pathetic conditions. So what u have showed us in the picture is the mine shaft ? hahahahahaha kwena ni pa ZED. MTSRIP of the chinese man
But what happens at this mine, every time problems? I remember MMD minister going there and crying about the conditions, miners wearing pata-pata and no helmets. Nothing happened. Then 14 miners shot, nothing happened. Now what is the story? It’s very sad someone died, but if people simply cannot communicate with workers they should just go away
Imagine 2 deputy ministers in the same ministry travelling together to address the same issue!!!!!
Check them out at immigration and at a coal mine in Maamba! What is going on mwebantu
Koma we have money to waste….
since thoz so calld infestors (nt investors) do nt want to employ interpreters, its their fault coz mayb the guy ws usin ching ching language n the poor tonga miners thot he said they slide the trolley towards him…. ‘no haleluya today, if go haleluya, cut kwacha’ bullshit
Who uses that coal in Zambia anyway? People use amalasha = Charcoal. Juts close that mine forever.
The mines use coal for smelting…
No I revise my comment, please open the coal mine, people needs those below-minimum wages. It keeps those Southerners busy and sitimulates local economy, wives sell local chibwantu, mapopwe, sour milk, masau, and of course Chibuku for the well paid. Open their mine please.
I thought the SI was meant for non-unionised workers and the last time I checked, there was union for miners. MMD weakened the unions to the extent that their members get below one million, what a pitty. Hikaumba is just busy eating membership fees. He has not even made any statement on these issues
These fools who killed an innocent China man are just barbaric and stinking racists. Why cant someone put it in their heads that the minimum wage is for no-unionised workers and that they do not deserve it. If their unions failed to get them decent salaries it is not the China man to die for their inadequacies and stupidity. After all is said and done those chaps should have their balls crushed for being stupid and learn to pressurise their several unions including MUZ on how to bargain properly. Just close that mine forever so that we see who has more cash in his backside. I rest my case!
Pay the workers the days the Mine will be closed. If u dont, a RIOT is brewing. The Chief there warned a long time ago when Innocent zambians were shot at. Ukwa once went there for campaign and promised the pipo after exiting them of sending the Chinese away. he is chief Suspect. Solomon “Musician” Jere arrest UKWA.
The Collum Coal Mine riot master minder and chief murder suspect codenamed ‘NO SOIL’,’NO SOIL’ is on the run. No soil meaning no burial in Chinese. Truly such wild interpretation results in miners using trolleys as AK 47
China has announced on CCTV1 here in the great nation of china that zambians killed a chinese investor and government has ordered a thourough investigation into the matter before critical decissions can be made. Now because of one foolish tonga UPND man killing a chinese will jeopardise china zambia relations shit elo lyanya nomba
Every human being is made in the image of God. We may have our economic differences but killing each other should not even be mentioned in our mouths let alone thought about in our minds.
I find this attitude of Chinese killing Zambians and Zambians killing Chinese so-Godly especially for us whose constitution clearly states that we are a Christian nation!! A spirit of killing is called the Kaino spirit, it is a demon spirit that pushes one to kill. Most chinese do not believe in God. I wonder what controls those particular non-believers not to kill. I find these people to be our responsibility to teach God’s love as it is written in Math28:19-20
God bless Zambia and forgive us for supporting murder as I have read from some here
ELDER
No killings. Life is from God and we have no reason to kill anyone. This is satanic ans since Zambia is a Christian nation why should we support drawing of blood?
Repent and remember love conquers all
Elder