Lusaka Province Minister Bowman Lusambo has warned that the government will confiscate mealie meal from traders selling the commodity beyond the recommended price of K136.
Mr Lusambo said all mealie meal produced by millers who are on government tripartite list should not sell beyond the recommended K136.
The Lusaka Province Minister is happy that the supply of the commodity on the market by millers accessing maize from the Food Reserve has stabilized but regretted that some traders have continued exploiting consumers.
He said some retailers are selling mealie between K170 and K200 instead of the recommended K136 for a 25kg bag of breakfast mealie meal.
Mr Lusambo has warned that government will not tolerate abuse of citizens by traders adding that the mealie meal that will be confiscated from them will be donated to vulnerable people.
And Mr Lusambo said the distribution of mealie meal to far flung Districts in the Province among them Chirundu, Rufunsa and Luangwa will commence soon to enable residents access the commodity at a cheaper price.
He said District Commissioners from the said Districts are in direct contact with the milling companies among them Champion, Nyimba and African Milling to facilitate for the transportation of the commodity in the said areas.
CITIZENS, LET US ALSO CONFISTICATE OVERPRICED FIRE TRUCKS, TOLL GATES ETC
People are selling at k180 already Mom told me yesterday
Was Lusambo given a job description when he was appointed Lusaka Province Minister? He seems to be every where. Lusambo need to be reminded that he is no longer in Katondo.
Why doesn’t this guy do us a favour by donating say 10,000 bags of mealie meal instead of just yapping about prices. Ngati ali that passionate asegule ka grocery pa corner just for mealie meal, or he can just open a chigayo.
Excellent! Hardworking proactive approach is what we like. Not just quoting economics textbooks from Birmingham university in 1984 like hh does.
This lost soul still has the energy to post. We should have caged Bill Banda when they went out of power, then this mangwamu would have learnt
THIS MAN IS A MORON. HE DOESN’T KNOW HIS JOB DESCRIPTION. FOOLISH MINISTER
That’s the problem of opposition especially those with short site like you won’t rule Zambia
He carries himself as though he was the king.
Some one explain to him how a free market economy works.
No such thing as free market economy when it comes to staple food.
Simple demand and supply principal eludes the minister! Does that mean he should be fired or should we fire his technocrats?
Before we demonize the retailers, maybe we should find out at how much they are buying a subsidized bag of mealie meal from millers which they have been ordered to sell at K137 as retail price, when we factor in the order price, transport and other bills, if they are able to get a profit in this K137 then we shall know if indeed they are heartless as people want to portray them.
It is not a question of heart or heartless. Price is a supply and demand issue. There are no price controls in this country. Don’t fall into the ignorance trap of some people.
Can someone take this heap of cow dung to court the moment he does that…shop owners do not be afraid of this ignoramus he has no powers whatsoever to do that if he did that to my shop I would report him for shoplifting…Zambians wake up from your docility!!
Ka tarino you don’t own a shop let alone kantemba. Just continue being used as slaves uko ku englandeee. We hope you you will return one day and contribute to your own home country for a change. There are not many Africans there who own shops or assets of that nature unless the asians.
Those 1984 economic text books are reason why HH is a decent and purely successful business man.
Am not UPND but I would rather emulate HH than you know who.
MAMA SITA SOME PEOPLE ARE FOOLS ALL THERE LIVES LIKE KZ.NIKUMUSULANKO,BUT TIME WILL TELL
School is very important. If there was school here, this embarrassing scenario couldn’t arise. Price is a supply and demand issue.
Any person who qualifies their comment by saying I am not upnd supporter is in the same bracket as those who say I am not racist but…
A taste of your own medicine. This is what has been happening all along. Farmers do all the hard work growing tomatoes, cabbages, green maize, etc for months. Once you take to soweto, first the cadres get a cut for free for doing nothing but allowing you to sell in soweto. Than the marketeers will all form a cartel and wont buy from you and offer you a lowest price. Once you start getting desperate as your produce is about to go bad, they offer you a below cost price. Out of desperation as you want to recover whatever comes, you decide to sell. Now they sell your produce at an exorbitant price. They end up making more money than the farmer. Farmers cried but nobody was there to listen. So your turn to cry now.
This thing also! Imagine he was the President of Zambia!! But so possible with PF!!! Which is why even Chimbwili or GBV of all people think that we should make them His Excellency the President!!!!
Bowman has an osession for Mealie Meal, he should be made Minister of Mealie Meal affairs. He is quite dull.
Under what law is he going to confiscate. He only has powers to confiscate from millers who have a contract with government who are given subsidized maize from FRA and are supposed to sell at the price set by government as per the contract but once it is sold to other people like retailers then it’s out of their hands and subject to market forces.
This is what we wanted. Ukutekwa kubashasambilila when the country is full of educated people. I still blame judge Chulu for giving out fake numbers during the elections. Umulandu taubola
Life shouldn’t just be about business only, let’s think about others. The Maize was bought at a very low price from our hardworking farmers and subsidized by tax payers money. Then, here comes the selfish ones, who wants to make abnormal profits by hiking the mealie meal price beyond the affordability of many of our Zambian people. How do you even enjoy money obtained through the pain and sweat of others? Have a conscious.
all That the government should do is open outlets and sell at “their stipulated prices”. Bang soon all will stop buying from others and force others to be competitive.
Free market. Lesson for ka zezulu
The government of Zambia must consider having a parastatal company under the auspices of the Industrial development group of companies, which indeed will play a great role in; growing, buying and milling maize. The maize and mealie meal can then be sold locally for value addition and exported. We shouldn’t have privatized key companies like National Milling. Government should have retained a big stake in all the parastatal companies that were privatized. Food for thought.