Ministry of Lands and Natural Resources Public Relations Officer Diniwe Zulu explained that the vehicle which was en-route to the District Forestry Office is a government utility vehicle assigned to the Forestry Department for forest operations.
Ms. Zulu stated that the Ministry sought to clarify the matter as it has been highly published on social media.
She explained in a statement released to ZANIS in Lusaka yesterday, that the vehicle was being driven by a Forestry Officer based at Ndola office who has a government competence driving license and was on routine forest patrols in Ndola’s industrial area.
Ms. Zulu stated that during the patrol, the officers came across illegal charcoal producers who were moving illegally produced charcoal to Masala for sale and as empowered by the Forests Act No.4 of 2015, the officers apprehended the offenders, impounded the charcoal and loaded the produce in the vehicle to take to the forest station at Dola Hill.
She further observed that the officers were performing their duties and the vehicle was being used for the function it has been allocated.
Ms. Zulu indicated that it is important to note that sometimes officers are left with no option but to use the available vehicles during operations due to the high rates of illegal forest activities that are happening especially with regard to illegal charcoal and timber exploitation.
She however stated that the Ministry will endeavor to procure appropriate vehicles such as trucks for such operations.
Here we go again, how much will the appropriate tracks cost?
Naikosa, now PF government start surviving on charcoal sales?
IMF please be kind.
That’s the question.
Does this officer making the statement have any morals or sense? A forestry dept using charcoal and she even has the audacity to say so???? Why not use gas canisters or even environmentally friendly fuel briquettes instead for cooking purposes? Early this year hypocritical African leaders where crying crocodile tears over the the US refusal to sign the Paris Climate agreement! Do you see Americans going around cutting their trees left right and centre to make charcoal which then pollutes the environment with CO and CO2??? Africa, oh my Africa!
Lies coated with sugar, why cant these iidiiots learn to accept their misdemeanors?
Where are the arrested suspects ??
And being corrupt as they are, they will then hire out the “appropriate” trucks to the Kamalasha.
The approach taken by the Forestry Officer was wrong! The correct way is to impound both the charcoal and the means of transportation being used to transport the commodity e.g. bicycles or vehicles! Without that then it raises questions whether the commodity was really impounded or it was just being transported for use by the officers at the forestry office! So ba Diniwe, we know you are implementing according to the act but please do it in the correct way!
Of course she is lying. Very shameful indeed that she can take zambians for fools
At 2020 vision you missed the point.
i will only accept their explanation once i see the culprits prosecuted; for now i tend to believe that the vehicle has been used partly for such activities; refuges in Tanzania are using gas for cooking; why can’t people in Zambia use other forms of cooking than charcoal;
Arrest the kamalasha, they are the ones who vote for HH.