By Fred M’membe
Our strategic objective as a socialist party is public ownership of the key means of production.
But achieving this in a world economy dominated by capitalism is not an easy undertaking. It calls for a tenacious, intelligent struggle. And it is this struggle that defines the process of “socialist construction”. It is a process because it is not a one off act or transaction. It’s not a single act of nationalisation and the following day you have a socialist society in Zambia.
The last 60 years of observing nationalisation in the world have taught us something, has made us a bit more wiser about what works and what doesn’t. It has taught us to be cautious and patient.
Moreover, it is said that there are many ways to skin a cat. Similarly, there are many ways to achieve our public ownership of the key means of production without engaging in very complex and unnecessary business and political deals.
Accordingly, the Socialist Party will not nationalise these troubled copper mines with limited economic lives remaining – ranging from 8 to 40 years.
And what is under exploitation now is just about a third of our mining potential – we still have two-thirds of our mining potential to exploit.
Without belittling anyone, we simply don’t have the capacity to run these financially troubled and technologically complicated mines. We don’t have enough mineral scientists, mining engineers, mining economists, lawyers with adequate mining knowledge, the financial expertise to mobilise capital for our mines and market the minerals we have mined.
What the Socialist Party in government will do is to ensure that it collects fair taxes from the mines to pump into education, health and peasant agriculture. And also make the transnational mining corporations pay for the training of our people in various mining skills. With such well trained people we will be able to exploit the remaining two-thirds of our mining potential on our own or under more beneficial joint ventures with others.
We will certainly not do what this government of the Patriotic Front and Mr Edgar Lungu is doing. What is the benefit to our people of the Mopani deal?
The main issue at Mopani has been the cost of production which is around $4,000 per tonne and the high costs of running the mine – ranging between $40m and $60m per month. In the face of low commodity prices, the mine has some challenges. In an attempt to reduce the cost of production, Mopani recently sunk three new shafts – two in Kitwe and one in Mufurila – at a cost of $4.5 billion. They were supposed to invest a further $450 million to take the shaft a bit further down just before government indicated that they would do away with VAT and instead introduce sales tax. Unlike in North Western Province where they do not need to sink a shaft, at Mopani you need a shaft of between 1.5 km to 2 km in order to maximise value for money. The previous shaft was sunk in 1975.
Mopani has copper reserves of between 38 to 40 years before activities come to a close. However, that needs about $1.5 to $2 billion investment in mine development. Why would we commit 80 per cent of our future copper production to pay off this debt when we will need between $40m and $60m on a monthly basis to run by this mine? Which banker is going to give us a credit facility under these circumstances?
We think this Patriotic Front government of Mr Lungu has messed up big time on this issue. They know that they do not have the ability to run this asset to the optimal levels that could bring a reversal of mining fortunes to Kitwe and Mufulira. In a worse case scenario, we would rather have Glencore place the asset under care and maintenance, knowing very well that as copper prices continue to improve, they would eventually begin operations within 8 months. Now, we have lost a credible investor and we are likely to see a decline in production from the mine, like we have seen with KCM, notwithstanding the type of investors we had there. Even if ZCCM-IH manage to run the operation successfully with a strategic partner, they will be constrained to expand production as they have the yoke of paying off the debt of purchase price for at least a decade.
Clearly, the decision to sale Mopani was based on political survival instincts of Mr Lungu and his colleagues in the Patriotic Front government. Understandably, they were scared of the consequences losing 15,000 jobs in an election year. This decision has nothing to do with any strategic business formula – it’s all about political survival and a third term of office for Mr Lungu.
Umuntu wandi ecl
OKAY, then that’s a good deal because workers will retain their jobs, Zambians will be running the mine and eventually all the mines and other major companies, mineral processing to manufactured good in Zambia will retain the billions of jobs exported to other countries were copper and other minerals are turned into finished products (computers, stoves, vacuum cleaners, capital goods, etc). And through local manufacturing of good which will even be exported to where we import from now- we will even control the quantity of copper and other mineral on the market in order to control the prices too. Remember supply and demand?
I do not see a strategic partner for Mopani Mining Company before December 2021 at the earliest. No serious investor would commit huge resources in an African country going to elections in August whose aftermath may not be continued peace. They would rather wait and see. So ZCCM-IH should factor this in their financial plans. Do they hv US$20 million a month required to run Mopani if it is to just break even? This is the immediate future we are facing and it doesn’t look bright.
On Fred M’membe’s insistence that there ought to be public ownership (he means state ownership) of the means of large scale production, I disagree with him. The trouble with M’membe is that he thinks Marxist theory is a science of society comparable to the natural sciences. It is not. Humans in general hv character flaws such as dishonesty, greed, selfishness, etc that make it impossible to make the socialism he believes in to work. This experiment has been tried in Russia, Poland and Maoist China and the results hv been the same. Modern capitalism and social democracy properly regulated are good enough for humanity. A socialist heaven is a utopian concept.
..kiki ki .Russians, Chinese ,Cuban and others have abandoned communism and socialism..this idi.otic Mmembe is sick. He lives a capitalistic life style and cheats pipo that he is a socialist.
He reminds me of a French politician and former IMF Managing Director Dominique Strauss-Kahn.He was living large in Manhattan and back home in France claiming to be a staunch socialist.
Cu has hit about $7,800 per tonne and going up…Fikaisova…. just invite chinamen 4 strategic partners. Kawalala HH sold Hotel Inters Lstone to himself..amelela mata ma mine. Wenyo
Even Russia has abandoned Karl Max and Vladimir lennin thought as untenable.
Thru this Deal ECL is buying votes on the CB at great cost to the National Treasury. Whatever ECL does will not give him an illegal Third Term. The fact is ECL has been elected and sworn in twice in 2015 and 2016 and therefore doesn’t qualify to stand for a Third Term on August 12, 2021. ECL can steal the Third Term but the consequences will be dire. A violent and disputed Election in August 2021 will make Zambia ungovernable. ECL will be held accountable for the Social Strife that will ensue. The writing is on the wall for ECL.
Ba Hazimba ubupuba muleke,politics will not put food on your table and inciting violence will not make your small god sail into state hse,he has been rejected so many times and this year won’t be different and life will continue with or without HH, THE PEACE we enjoy should never be taken for granted
“…What the Socialist Party in government will do is to ensure that it collects fair taxes from the mines…”
Do you honestly think these mining companies are here to better this country?? They are here for profit, that’s why they have been using vices like transfer pricing, misinvoicing, etc. Those are just fantasies, Fred. Why do you think the Saudis opted to own Aramco or the Chileans Codelco?? Like Putin scoffed, Africans are the only race that can be exposed to and trained in modern technological and professional skills yet they fail to develop their lands. It’s characters like Fred he was pinpointing. Shameful.
The Mopani Deal will not guarantee ECL a Third Term in August 2021. The man is desperate to retain Power but facts are stubborn. ECL has been elected and sworn in twice in 2015 and 2016 and is therefore Constitutionally disqualified to stand for a Third Term. ECL constitutionally is not allowed to serve as President of Zambia for more than 10 years. Period.
Mmembe in your paper The post, no one could respond to your misleading tactics and articles. On social media, the new dawn, we put your daily tantrums to test.
First off, Mopani pulled out and Government is not repossessing but simply taking over to mitigate and ensure that the investment at Mopani and its resources remain secure. The socialist agenda doesn’t apply here because Government has shared that some investors have expressed interest. I am also interested in buying shares there. Government is not pushing the socialist agenda as you seem to be suggesting. Besides Zambia is not ready for purely socialist government. We own some and reasonably sampwisha some.
I thought this capitalist turned socialist did not want to pay tax but today he is talking about fair taxes. His post news paper was closed because he did not want to pay tax. As party of the Zambian airways group they even collected the Revenues on behave of Zambian airports which they did not pay to the rightful owners. Today this, this brother in- Law to HH has the guts to lecture to us on tax collection and third term issues does he understand them? I doubt.
Dear failed Lawyer, Journalist and Politian, satirical Mmembe there is nothing “Deal for Political Survival and Third Term Bid for President Lungu” here. You’re just afraid that the recognized gentleman HE POTROZ ECL CICOTAFs looks set to carrying the day this August. You see ugh, we will give him the ‘massiviest’ support you have never witnessed; infact he will sweep votes from all orders of this land. Toddlers and u5s like you are no match. What third term are you trembling and yapping about? You will learn what makes the rooster crows in the coop every morning, infact udzamudziba yesu sadist iwe.
Ise its:
Zed 100%
ECL 100%
PF 100%
Unity 100%
Zambia development overdrive 100%
As usual m’membeliciously socialist wrong.
It’s amazing how with the passage of time some individuals become increasingly irrelevant.
“Every d.o.g has it’s day”, they say.
M’membe surely had his day. Not any more unfortunately. Reading this, is like watching one of those boring movies.
We will see how this ends.
Show me one mine in the world which has a strategic partner who is a minority shareholder in a mine owned by a government…..
The problem with Africans is you want to create things which do not exist…
The is no private investor who will put $400m in Mopani and let the Government be a major shareholder and manage the mine and profit goes to another provide shareholder…
Fred Mmembe reminds me of a mad scientist from that famous fifth grade story.
The Engineer: u hv put it beyond doubt. Now get ready for their insults for exposing their infantile thinking. Apart from that, any prospective equity partner in Mopani will examine ZCCM-IH’s agreement with Glencore and will surely walk away. Here’s my prediction, there will be no equity partner with government in Mopani Mining Company any time soon. I foresee a situation where ZCCM-IH will be begging Glencore to come back.
@Engineer show me one developed country that has given up control of all it’s mines into the hands of foreigners. We need to believe in ourselves and be bold enough to do things OUR way. The real problem with Africans is the inability to do things on their own. A lazy man will always find an excuse for not doing the job. He would rather give the responsibilty to others than risk failure.
Again, Mmembe is magnifying obstacles instead of looking at the possibilities. Telling us that we have no capacity, not enough mineral scientists, engineers, economists etc. but I’m pretty sure that if we had to look around the continent, we will definately find enough Africans with mining expertise to help us successfully manage our mines.
There’s nothing that KBF and the opposition can do to stop Edgar Lu gu, nothing. He has it sewn up and they had better accept it. I don’t like saying this but it’s the truth and some truths are not pleasant.
Zambia has no money to run the mines PERIOD. This was the reason ZCCM collapsed. ZCCM had the best trained mining engineers, geologists, mineral scientists, accountants, artisans etc who could compete anywhere in the world. Some of them are now running mines in South Africa, and others are top executives in mining companies around the world. Why did they fail with ZCCM? I find that this is one question no one is prepared to answer. A government running the mines is not the same as Zambians running the mines. This is the problem. What GRZ should have done to sell ZCCM to Zambians as private individuals. There are 17 million Zambians. Perhaps half of them could raise on average $1,000 a year to buy shares. This would work out to $8 billion straightaway! The British government sold British…
Who even takes this gay party seriously? The problem we have in Zambia is that opposition create parties out of personal anger rather than to serve the people. This gay boy mmeembe only created this party after what happened to his post newspaper. It angered him a lot and now he seeks revenge through gaining power. Useless yeye man
MMEMBE YOU DISPLAYS ABYSMAL IGNORANCE ABOUT MINING.
AND ZAMBIANS HAD A BITTER EXPERIENCE OF SOCIALISM UNDER KK. TO HELL WITH THE NONSENSE.
EVEN CHINA AND RUSSIA DISCARDED THE IDEOLOGY FOR STATE CAPITALISM. AND SO MANY BILLIONAIRES HAVE BEEN MADE AT THE EXPENSE OF THE MAJORITY IN THOSE COUNTRIES. THE GREED OF MAN KNOWS NO BOUNDARIES
Sinking shafts again ???
Though I support Zambians running the mines , but honestly , This lungu lead GRZ cant even organise a sustained garbage collection in our capital city , ?
Or even rebuild the markets they burned down to justify 42/42 ….
I think this is beyond them….
The problem in Zambia is that we do not take advice seriously. You may hate Meembe now but he has a point. This is a political ploy by ECL and PF to win back votes on the CB. Remember this is an election year and PF and Lungu will do everything in their power to silence anyone any opposition so they can be voted again for a third term. Ubupuba bwalifulisha…. just look at Ghana, Tanzania and even Malawi to learn how things are progressively being done for all citizenry. On LT it just takes one stupid ***** to comment otherwise and that’s it every one else follows suit. Why should our country be lagging behind in development and sustainability and why should the country continue to be ruled by thugs and empty heads…?? Another curse on us is the ability to want to do corruption to…
Another curse on us is the ability to want to do corruption to benefit a few individuals while the majority of the Zambian population is in dire straits. Why why why I ask. PF were given a mandate and they blew it up. Vote wisely in August. Vote PF out at all costs. Ghana has done it and we can do it too.
Vote PF out vote PF out….. do not let anyone tell you otherwise.
Fred M’membe has a point. Socialist Party too, has the best social economic programmer for Zambia. But the man biggest the has too big elephants within his closet.
Firstly, there are very few people who will take him seriously, because of the contradictions around his life and having the Post Newspaper closed, because of defaulting on taxes. It’s not good reputation, for Presidential image.
Secondly, socialist party needs a lot of time, to invest in educating the masses and our illiterate voters, in order for people to start believing in their ideals. International finance capital monopoly, will seriously fight them, to the bitter because then, they pose a threat to capitlist existence.
…’We don’t have enough mineral scientists, mining engineers, mining economists,lawyers with adequate mining knowledge,the financial expertise to mobilize capital for our mines and market the minerals we have mined.’
M’membe’s socialistic thinking makes him Africa’s most dangerous man economically,socially and politically.If Zambia did not have the trained personnel to handle the mining operations (which is NOT the case cos Zambia has a lot of skilled graduates,some even roaming the streets),Zambia is part of the global economy with a flourishing labour market where such skills can be sourced with ease.The problem with socialism lies in the inefficient use of the markets be it labour,capital or resource marktets.