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COVID-19 pandemic knocks off the Kulamba Traditional Ceremony

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COVID-19 pandemic knocks off the Kulamba Traditional Ceremony

The Kulamba Traditional Ceremony of the Chewa people of Zambia, Malawi and Mozambique has been cancelled due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

Paramount Chief Kalonga Gawa Undi of the Chewa people directed that the ceremony which usually takes place towards the end of the month of August, be cancelled.

The Traditional Leader said due to the prevailing global Corona Virus Desease (COVID-19) pandemic, the ceremony cannot proceed.

Meanwhile, Kalonga Gawa UNDI has thanked the Governments of the three countries, and the Corporate world, for the support rendered towards this prestigious ceremony over the years.

He has urged all the well wishers to continue supporting future Kulamba Traditional Ceremonies.

The traditional leader has advised his subjects to continue adhering to the COVID-19 guidelines.

He said this is the only sure way the pandemic will be defeated.

This is according to a statement issued by the Chewa Heritage Foundation Zambia Chapter National Publicity Secretary Reuben Kamanga.

Meanwhile, the 2020 Ukusefya Pangwena traditional ceremony of the Bemba people which was scheduled to be held on 15th August, 2020 in Mungwi – Northern province has been cancelled.

Ukusefya pangwena organising committee says the cancellation is due to the Covid-19 which continues to pose a great danger to the nation.

This is according to a statement issued to ZNBC news in Lusaka by Ukusefya pangwena organising committee chairperson Geoffrey Musonda and Secretary Colonel Nkunga Mulenga.

Challenges of raising an autistic child

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Challenges of raising an autistic child

In this episode of Studio Ken, two parents – Mainza and Len Kawanu – discuss the challenges of raising an autistic child and how they adapt to their little boy’s different needs.

 

Kamanga Congratuates Champions Nkana

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FAZ President Andrew Kamanga has congratulated newly crowned FAZ Super Division champions Nkana and also given his side of the story on the controversial Forest Rangers appeal that delayed the Kitwe giants August 6 coronation at Arthur Davies Stadium in Kitwe.

FAZ came under-fire when the Appeals Committees verdict came just minutes before Nkana’s crowning in Kitwe as Forest were destined for a runners-up place and finish one point behind the leaders and champions-elect after a 1-0 home win over Napsa Stars to end their visitors interest in the title race.

But a boardroom decision arrived before fulltime that quashed Forest’s 3-0 walkover home loss to Zanaco for their July 18 unplayed game that they failed to host after revealing that they had 28 Covid-19 cases just before kickoff.

However, Forest failed to deny Nkana the 2019/2020 league title in the replay on August 9 following a 0-0 home draw with Zanaco at Levy Mwanawasa Stadium in Ndola to settle for second tied on 50 points with a lesser goal difference to hand the Kitwe side a record 13th league title.

“We wish congratulate Nkana for their 13th title, it was well-deserved,” Kamanga said.

“It was delayed on Thursday but as you would expect destiny delayed, can never be destiny denied, so justice has been seen to be done if it was meant to be.

“Today (Sunday), they have walked away with the trophy and we congratulate them and again they have set a new milestone, a new standard, a 13th title.”

But Kamanga said his hands were constitutionally tied with regards verdicts of independent FAZ bodies.

“Now, what transpired was a few minutes before the conclusion of that Forest versus Napsa game, we just got a report that Forest had appealed the decision of the disciplinary committee where they were docked three points and then the appeals committee had sat that same day Thursday whilst the game was being played,” Kamanga said.

“So, when the Napsa game ended in favour of Forest, unfortunately we couldn’t proceed with the crowning because the appeals committee ordered that this game between Forest and Zanaco should be replayed.

“Of course it wasn’t a welcome decision, but I just want to emphasize is one thing, that it demonstrated was that our independent bodies or our judicial bodies work independently because at that point the decision of the appeals committee could not be overturned by the FAZ executive.

“So we just had to respect that judgment as a consequence, that is how we find ourselves having this game played today (Sunday).

“Of course others would argue and say the league should have concluded at the same time without this game being played but we have to respect the fact that this game was ordered by the appeals committee so it wasn’t a game set by the league committee.

“So it was an exceptional game, it is like respecting a court judgment. So that is the basis upon which this game took place.”

Zesco United Congratulate Successors Nkana

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Outgoing FAZ Super Division champions Zesco United have congratulated Nkana for winning the 2019/20 league title.

Nkana were on Sunday crowned league winners of the chaotic shortened season due to Covid-19 and are now record 13-time Zambian champions.

Zesco captain and goalkeeper Jacob Banda said Nkana have won the league on merit despite the season being shortened due to Covid-19

“We congratulate Nkana, they are champions for this season,” Banda said.

“Even us if we had taken our games accordingly we could have been champions but this is how God prepared it for us,” he said.

Zesco Chief Executive Officer Richard Mulenga said his team acknowledges that Nkana are champions.

“You know some time ago I did some banter regarding Power and Nkana. And it was not well received, especially by Nkana fans. We will recognise Nkana as champions,” said Mulenga.

Nkana are now five titles above Zesco.

Ndola Lime Company not sold-ZCCM-IH

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Ndola Lime Company not sold-ZCCM-IH

The ZCCM-IH has denied signing a memorandum of understanding Global Human Benefit Zambia Limited for the sale of a 65% stake and the takeover of Ndola Lime Company Ltd by GHBZ at the end of August 2020.

ZCCM-IH Public Relations Manager Loisa Kakoma says the information on the Organisation Website is false.

Mrs Kakoma said the ZCCM-IH has not signed any MOU with GHBZ or any other company for the sale of any stake in Ndola Lime.

She has urged all stakeholders to ignore the article, and to treat it with the contempt it deserves as it is false.

“We have since engaged GHBZ, who have taken down the said false article from their website, and ZCCM-IH reserves its right to take appropriate action should it deem fit”, she said.

Mrs Kakoma said ZCCM Investments Holdings is aware of an article that appeared on the Global Human Benefit Zambia Limited website http://ghbzglobal.com purporting that a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) has been signed between GHBZ and ZCCM-IH for the sale of a 65% stake and the takeover of Ndola Lime Company Ltd by GHBZ at the end of August 2020.

Cabinet Approves Introduction of Bills to Provide for Economic Processing and Exportation of Cannabis

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Cabinet Approves Introduction of Bills to Provide for Economic Processing and Exportation of Cannabis

Cabinet has at its 18th meeting today approved, in principle, to the introduction of Bills in Parliament to provide for cultivation, processing and exportation of cannabis for economic and medicinal purposes in accordance with the United Nations Single Convention on Narcotic Drugs, 1961.

Cabinet has further approved the incorporation of relevant pieces of legislation aimed at domestication of the United Nations Single Convention on Narcotic Drugs by the introduction of an Agency which shall designate land for cultivation and issue licences to cultivators and the definition of cannabis to provide for medicinal cannabis and industrial hemp, separately.

Chief Government spokesperson Dora Siliya says the Government has identified cannabis as an economic commodity that has the potential to contribute positively to the development of the country.

She however said that currently, the legal framework to facilitate the cultivation, processing and export of medicinal cannabis and industrial hemp is inadequate.

Ms Siliya said Cabinet also approved the appointment of the full membership for the Council of the Zambia Institute of Advanced Legal Education in accordance with the Zambia Institute of Advanced Legal Education Act, No. 19 of 2009.

She said under Section 4(2) of the Act, the Council is mandated to among other things, set minimum educational entry qualifications for persons seeking enrolment as students of the Institute, provide minimum educational qualifications for students who wish to be admitted to the legal bar, accredit law schools at private and public universities and set the criteria for accreditation and issue certificates to persons who are successful candidates in examinations conducted by the Council.

Further, Ms Siliya said cabinet also approved the appointment of a five member Valuation Surveyors Registration Board in accordance with Section 4 of the Valuation Surveyors Act, No. 34 of 1976, Chapter 207 of the Laws of Zambia.

She said the tenure of office of the members of the Valuation Surveyors Registration Board ended in December, 2019.

Ms Siliya said in a statement that one of the responsibilities of the board, is to issue practicing licenses to its members.

She said Cabinet, therefore, felt the need for the appointment of the members of the Valuation Surveyor’s Registration Board in order to effectively regulate the practice of valuation in the country.

HH Donates a 37 Passenger Seat Rosa bus to Pilgrim Wesleyan Church

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HH Donates a 37 Passenger Seat Rosa bus to Pilgrim Wesleyan Church

UNITED PARTY FOR NATIONAL DEVELOPMENT President Hakainde Hichilema this morning fulfilled his pledge of a 37 Passenger Seat Rosa bus to Pilgrim Wesleyan Church, John Howard congregation in Lusaka’s Chawama constituency.

Lusaka District Pilgrim Wesleyan Church Overseer, Richwell Mudenda when receiving the donation said the Congregation is happy that President Hichilema has fulfilled the pledge he made during one of his visits to the church.

“I do remember mentioning the need for the Church to move and preach the word of God within our communities despite transport challenges. When President Hichilema stood up to greet the congregation, he pledged to get us a bus to help us resolve the transport problems we were facing that time. Today that pledge has come to fruition and we thank God for the donation,” said Pastor Richwell Mudenda.

Pastor Mudenda said he now believes that indeed President Hichilema was brought up in a family whose tradition is to give charity for a just cause.

“Wait patiently upon the Lord who has your destiny, we are really grateful for the genuine gesture. We really appreciate the donation. To the family of Mr. and Mrs. Hichilema, we say thank you,” he said.

And in a speech read on his behalf by UPND Religious Affairs chairperson, Pastor Kelly Mukonka, Mr. Hichilema said UPND attaches great importance to the church as it has a great role to play in politics through its Prophetic Ministry.

President Hichilema said the government should not interfere with the work of the Church but allow it to operate as a body of Christ because it has its own agenda of making a difference in this world, through the holy spirit.

Meanwhile, President Hichilema said it is more important at this moment for the Church to engage government on issues bordering on leadership, corruption, morality, economic debt, safety, and security as part of its mandate to serve the interests of the lowly in society.

“I request all Church mother bodies and their affiliates to continue demanding freedoms that will create room for sustainable justice in our beautiful land. Our thorn issue is freedom of assembly and expression, the Public Order Act (POA) and total abuse of human rights and we humbly request the church to continue standing in the gap and create a beacon of hope and guidance to the nation,” said President Hichilema.

He said the church leadership should be determined, in speaking for the voiceless and the vulnerable in society, in order to realize a safer and prosperous country.

Pastor Mukonka was accompanied by UPND Lusaka district Chairman, Savious Ndaba, Chawama Constituency chairperson, Andrew Zulu and 2021 UPND Chawama Constituency aspiring candidates, Potipher Tembo and Nchimunya Chimbulu.

Learning from doctors who have successfully handled COVID-19 cases

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Learning from doctors who have successfully handled COVID-19 cases

South Africa has the fifth-highest number of confirmed COVID-19 infections in the world and accounts for the highest number of cases in Africa. Despite this South africa has a very low death rate or Covid-19 case fatality rate. This signifies the number of people infected with the coronavirus who die of COVID-19 complications.

Although questions have been raised as to whether these statistics are correct due to the fact that between May and July there were about 17000 excess deaths from natural causes according to the South African Medical Research Council (SAMRC).

Various possible explanations were given for this phenomenon such as people dying from Covid-19 before they get to the health care facility, or people dying from Covid-19 but the death not being reported as such, and/or people dying from non-Covid-19 conditions because the health services have been re-orientated to Covid-19.

However, as of 8 th August, the recovery rate out of a cumulative total of 553 188 confirmed COVID-19 cases in South Africa , 73% have recovered.Part of this can be owed to the good treatment protocols implemented by Health Care system.

Below is an outline of the Treatment Protocols being used which we can learn from

Here’s what we know now about COVID :

Lung Disease:

Not all cases in respiratory distress have pneumonia or lung infections. A significant proportion of people who would have been placed on ventilators are now recognized as having a clotting disorder that blocks the blood vessels feeding the lungs, thereby causing shortness of breath. We also have a whole new generation of anti-clotting drugs that can help these patients as well as those whose clots are affecting other organs.

Monitoring:

We have pulse oximeters readily available that can be used to monitor any decline in a patient’s oxygen levels at home. This means that we can cheaply action more advanced treatments much sooner than before. We have learnt that laboratory tests such as LDH, CRP and D-Dimer are useful tools that can help us monitor how our patients are faring. .

Oxygen:

The provision of Oxygen to severely ill patients remains the cornerstone of advanced patient care. Mass nursing facilities have been prepared for this purpose. ICU treatment is no longer routinely putting patients on ventilators as a high mortality rate has been shown. Rather, we now have new alternate ways of oxygenating the severely sick: prone nursing (face down) and high flow techniques of oxygenation which can perfuse compromised lungs without ventilators.

Thrombosis:

Anti-clotting treatments and steroids (such as Dexamethasone) are now a regular part of the ICU doctor’s weaponry to combat the Cytokine storm. Another old drug, Colchicine has recently been trialled as it may help to prevent micro clots in the lungs. General Practitioners are now able to apply these treatment principles for patients at home in order to prevent the need for hospitalisation.

Drugs old and new:

Many drugs have been tried to treat Covid-19 and we now have experience of what does and does not work. Quinine based drugs and Zithromax in high doses have not been shown to be effective in ICU’s. New drugs such as Avigan and Remdesivir have been proven to shorten ICU stays by up to four days. Anti-inflammatories such as Ibuprofen and ACE inhibitors, originally considered dangerous, have now been given a clean bill of health. Observational studies have suggested that certain drug categories such as PPI’s may be associated with worse outcomes. Recent evidence has demonstrated that the hormone, Melatonin, may be beneficial in high doses. Knowledge changes daily in this epidemic as new information evolves.

Home treatment:

Community resources such as General Practitioners (GPs) have collaborated to share knowledge and experience in order to provide the latest in care for an overburdened health system. Casualties and hospitals are scary places for patients and our GPs have risen to the challenge; these doctors constitute the primary interface with patients. Virtual forums and webinar lectures actively keep GPs abreast of new information and treatments. GP’s have developed effective preventative strategies that are readily available and they bravely deal with Covid-19 patients face to face. Some have already succumbed to the infection themselves.

Symptoms:

We are recognizing early specific symptoms peculiar to Covid-19 such as loss of taste and smell, Covid toes, rashes, conjunctivitis and cold sores. This knowledge gives us a head start in recognizing, testing, treating, isolating and quarantining our patients.

Shorter Quarantine:

New evidence suggests that the virus is not shed beyond day eight of an infection. If confirmed, this will be good news and will shorten the duration of isolation and quarantine. Amended guidelines are expected to be released soon.

Better Tests:

New rapid tests have just been approved in SA that will soon be available to test for antibodies; this will help to confirm who has already been infected.. A new instant breathalyser type test is starting production which will give instant results in acute infections.

The unknown, conspiracy theories, flaky news and the media hype have all helped to fuel significant human fear for the past few months.
Anxiety, stress levels, rumours and unhelpful personal theories have all shot up proportionately. But the information vacuum is being filled with more and more dependable and positive scientific information from trustworthy sources – as well as personal experiences of the virus as it increasingly hits closer to home. Most GP’s are knee -deep in the fray and are now far better equipped to diagnose and treat Covid cases than a few months back.
…and the chances of beating Covid now are much better than they were in March.

Source: Gauteng General Practitioners Collaboration

Some Civil servants are forcing Farmers to sell maize to FRA-Farmers Union

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Some Civil servants are forcing Farmers to sell maize to FRA-Farmers Union

The Zambia National Farmers’ Union has discovered a scam where some civil servants; including Camp Officers and District Commissioners have been threatening farmers of being blacklisted from accessing FISP if they do not sell their maize to the Food Reserve Agency.

ZNFU President Jervis Zimba says the Union is also investigating reports where millers have been instructed not to buy maize at a price beyond what the FRA is offering of K110 maize for a 50kg bag at farm gate.

Mr Zimba says this is detrimental to a free market economy and amounts to indirect price controls.

He has challenged the Ministry of Agriculture and the FRA to come clean and state their position on this matter.

Mr Zimba said although FISP is a social cash transfer meant to help vulnerable but viable farmers with inputs, what the FRA is doing is injecting more poverty in farmers with their pricing mechanism as farmers are being forced to accept a poor price.

“We know that the FRA is having challenges to buy commodities from farmers. We also know that the Agency will not meet its target to mop up 1 million metric tonnes because of its pricing regime, but using streetwise methods to bully farmers into taking a derisible price offer is unacceptable”, said Mr Zimba.

He said the Food Reserve Agency and the Ministry of Agriculture should realize that not all farmers produced maize using a FISP system.

Mr Zimba said based on the projection of 3.3 million metric tonnes expected to be produced this season, it shows that 2 million metric tonnes was grown under FISP while 1.3 million metric tonnes was produced by farmers with own resources.

“We risk pushing these independent small scale farmers into bankruptcy if there is insistency and unwritten directive to force a bad price on farmers. What should be known is that to cultivate a hectare, a farmer uses 4 bags of urea, 4 bags of D Compound or basal dressing and 25kg of seed. Which means a farmer will need about K5, 000 to meet this input cost while there will be other operational costs”, he added.

Mr Zimba said to be able to invest in another season, a farmer will have to sell 45 to 46 x 50kg bags of maize on the FRA price.

He has questioned the whether it is new policy that if a farmer gets FISP support, a social cash transfer, then it is mandatory that that farmer sells their produce exclusively to the FRA or risk being blacklisted.

Mr Zimba said the Ministry of Agriculture should state its position on this matter because the Union has evidence where some Camp Officers and DCs have been telling farmers that this is the situation.

“We strongly feel that someone ill-advised Government on the price the FRA is offering. What should be realized is that next year, the country will have a reduced production of maize”, he said.

Mr Zimba said statistics and historic trends have shown that when farmers are offered a poor price in a season, the next season production slumps.

Police Officers who have received their retirement benefits immediately vacate Police houses

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Police Officers who have received their retirement benefits immediately vacate Police houses

Home Affairs Minister Stephen Kampyongo has directed that retired Police Officers who have received their retirement benefits immediately vacate Police houses.

Mr Kampyongo said the Police Command and his Permanent Secretary Masiye Banda should work together to identify the said retirees to pave way for the accommodation of officers that are not accommodated.

He said this should be done expeditiously and should not be treated as business as usual.

Mr Kampyongo regretted that some Police Officers are being forced to rent houses in residential areas when police quarters are being occupied by fully paid retired officers.

The Minister who recently commissioned 40 newly built Police houses in Kafue District, also announced that the government will embark on the rehabilitation of old police quarters to make them habitable.

The Shiwang’andu lawmaker said as the Government is constructing more police houses, the old ones will not be abandoned but rehabilitated to accommodate more officers.

Mr Kampyongo also directed the Kafue District Council to ensure that police officers benefit from the 1,000 plots that have been advertised in order to empower them to construct houses.

Go for COVID-19 Test at Designated Centres, Avoid Rapid Test, Health Minister Urges the Public

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Go for COVID-19 Test at Designated Centres, Avoid Rapid Test, Health Minister Urges the Public

Health Minister Dr. Chilufya urged citizens to ensure that they go for tests in designated government and private laboratories to avoid being duped with false-negative COVID-19 results, adding that false-negative COVID tests will not prevent you from COVID

Speaking at a COVID-19 Briefing yesterday, the Minister said: “We have noted the emergence of some facilities that are purporting to be doing COVID tests and issuing false-negative results,”

The Minister further added that the designated centres where they test for COVID-19 are well known, the COVID facility at Levy, the COVID centre at UTH, and a number of sites that will be running.

The Minister further said that the Ministry will do community screening and its staff are well known.

The Minister urged the public to avoid the rapid tests that are being peddled and that there was room for antibody tests within our research and within our practice but that is within our technical realms.

The Minister urged the public to avoid being duped by unscrupulous individuals who are peddling COVID antibody tests and releasing them quickly because those false negative tests are going to give people a false negative assurance and they will still get ill.

The Minister further said that not knowing your status cannot change your status and that getting a false negative will also give a person a false sense of assurance and urged the public to get covid tests from designated sites.

The Minister said also dispelled assertions that there is a blood group that is immune to COVID-19.

“No blood group is known to be protected from COVID-19, yes there has been data showing that blood group O could have some protective effect, this has not been confirmed and so the position today is there is no proven blood group that confers protection,” said Dr Chilufya.

Meanwhile, Dr Chilufya revealed that a mental health specialist and a doctor in the mental health department died of COVID-19.

The two – mental health specialist Mr John Mayeya and Dr Anthony Zimba of the mental health department who was managing epilepsy – were not frontline responders in the COVID-19 fight but have been working in the health sector for over 30 years, he revealed today and expressed his heartfelt condolences on their passing.

“Today, we mourn two of our very senior colleagues in the health profession. These are not Frontline responders in the COVID-19 outbreak but have been working in the health sector for more than 30 years,” Dr Chitalu announced at yesterday’s briefing.

The Minister said that in the last 24 hours, Zambia recorded 182 new cases of COVID-19 and this is out of 651 tests conducted and that three patients were lost in the COVID-19 facility.

The Minister further said that the country continues to see very ill patients and that currently, there are 79 patients in our admission and out of these, 26 remain on oxygen and two are critically ill in the intensive care unit.

The Minister appealed to the public to present early to health facilities when they are sick because the outcomes are different in early presentation cases.

Lusambo recounts his time ICU, as another MP recovers after being on Oxygen

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Lusambo recounts his time ICU, as another MP recovers after being on Oxygen

Lusaka Province minister Mr. Bowman Lusambo yesterday recounted his time in the Intensive Care Unit (ICU) at Levy Mwanawasa Teaching Hospital where he was battling COVID-19, warning that the disease is real and people must not take it as a joke.

Mr Lusambo, the Lusaka Province minister and Kabushi PF member of parliament who is expected to return to work today, further narrated that while he was being treated in ICU, the patient who was next to him died.

He said COVID-19 is capable of killing within a short period of time and advised Zambians to take it seriously as it is a disease that one can smile at.

Mr Lusambo said this yesterday’s during the daily COVID-19 briefing in Lusaka where he gave an account of his experience as a Coronavirus survivor after spending more than seven days.

“My experience at Levy Mwanawasa, COVID-19 is real, people are dying. At the time I was in ICU, the patient who was next to me died the following morning. I want to urge the people out there that COVID-19 is not a disease which we can play with, tebulwele bwaku chenselako ameno iyo. COVID-19 bubwele ubwingakwipaya within the shortest period of time,” Mr Lusambo said.

“As I go for work tomorrow, the business on the table will be how do we protect the people of Lusaka from COVID-19 with a multi sectoral team? And I can assure you that as a Province, we are not going to leave any stone unturned because it’s cheaper to prevent and it’s very expensive to treat COVID-19 patients.”

Hon Dr Anthony C.Mumba
Hon Dr Anthony C.Mumba

And Kantanshi Member of Parliament Dr Anthony C.Mumba has recovered from COVID-19 after being put on a ventilator.

” Today 9th August 2020 I have woken up giving praises to Jehovah God for seeing me through my Covid-19 sickness. I cannot believe that I had to be connected to the Oxyginator to support the flow of Oxygen 24- 7,” the MP wrote

“To you my collegues in kantanshi….Covid-19 is real please Mask Up and Stay Safe. Let me thank my Mother Juliet for her prayers my elder brother MJ Mumba for the various interventions my wife and kids for being there for me as well as my other syblings…my friends thanks for showing me love at a time I was totally incapacitated”

“To Kantanshi Constituency your phone calls, prayers and love saw me through. I love you All. To Jehovah God this has been a tough year for me from a Road Accident that almost took my life in Feb this year to being on Oxygen Support”

“Thank you for keeping me God and I believe it is for a purpose. I will continue to work for the People of Kantanshi…..
Kantanshi am back in the field in the next 7 days…..may God continue to Bless You Even More.”

The Hour has come for the Youths to Save Zambia

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The Hour has come for the Youths to Save Zambia

By Gregory Mofu

Over 2 months ago the National Executive Committee of the New Hope Movement for Multi-party Democracy (MMD) elected me as the Deputy National Secretary of the party.

My election is beyond personal victory. It is a testament that the youth can save Zambia. The hour has come for all the youth to stand up and have their voice heard.

The New Hope MMD is a political party of choice with a clear agenda to ameliorate the hardships facing the youth across Zambia. Taking up this new responsibility firmly places me in the political records of Zambia to be among the few youth that will have held senior political party positions in Zambia.

Over 30 Years ago, due to the economic mismanagement of the Economy and lack of tolerance to divergent views, a movement was launched. This movement was a loose alliance of trade unions, student unions, young technocrats and a few of the Old Guards’. This movement came to be known as the Movement for Multi-party Democracy (MMD).

My late father Capt. George Mofu was one of the people behind this Movement. After this movement was registered as a political party the following year, he helped campaign for then MMD Vice President Dr. Levy Patrick Mwanawasa as he stood for the Chifubu parliamentary seat. The word I learnt first as a child was Hour. It is fulfilling to uplift the legacy of my late father as the New Hope MMD he tirelessly fought for is today Zambia’s most honest political party.

Three decades into the future, I am today the Deputy National Secretary of the political party that my late father not only helped form but selflessly campaigned for to form Government in 1991. The baton of leadership has been passed from one generation to another in the Mofu family. My fellow youth, we all can make a meaningful impact in the governance of our country if we positively apply our energy to a good cause. Let’s save Zambia. The hour has come for change. We must be in charge of this historical transformation of Zambia. The New Hope MMD has demonstrated beyond measure that it believes in the Zambian youth. I implore you to stand up and join the New Hope MMD.

Today, more than 6 million youth in Zambia find themselves at a crossroad. Their search for Hope is met with a reality of despair. The youth in Zambia are highly demotivated. Sadly, the current Government is clueless and desperate. They stand as a direct threat to the sustainable future of the Zambian youth. It is recklessly borrowing and shocking our shrinking economy into perpetual debt. We have a Government that threatens to break the bones of the youth that dare voice out their grievances. We have a Government that does not respect the youth.

I am calling on my fellow YOUTHS to stand united as we save Zambia. We have a vehicle in the name of the New Hope MMD. Become a Member of the New Hope MMD, Register for the New Hope Young Leaders Institute and position yourself to actively participate in the 2021 general elections.

The hour has come for the Youths to Save Zambia!!

MP Siwanzi was not Elected to build the Great North Road, Provincial Minister defends MP

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MP Siwanzi was not Elected to build the Great North Road, Provincial Minister defends MP

Muchinga Province Minister Malozo Sichone says people in Nakonde who are against the Member of Parliament Yizukanji Siwanzi must openly declare that they are opposition or that they don’t like him for other reasons and not the state of the Great North Road.

“The people who are putting the MP in that situation are not being genuine. There is a lot of pressure from the opposition, I know and they can’t tell me that if today the contractor abandoned everything and started working from Nakonde, they won’t tell me that anything will change about how they view the MP,” Mr. Sichone has told Chete FM news.

He says people should understand the Mr. Siwanzi was not voted to build the Great North road.

“We have constituencies like Shiwang’andu where there’s no contractor and the road is bad, they are not saying they’ll do away with Honourable Kampyongo…because the Great North Road is not a baby of the MP, it was there before the MP was elected,” he says.

The provincial minister who is also Isoka Member of Parliament has dispelled claims that he instructed the contractor to start works from his constituency but because the worst part of the great north road was in Isoka.

Mr Sichone is confident that by August next year, “Nakonde will have good roads ready.”

He added that works on the side of Nakonde have delayed because there was change in the design on the project. This means that from the customs to Nakonde-Mbala Junction there will be a dual carriageway.

He has advised Nakonde resident to pressurize Mr Siwanzi on projects like water and feeder roads.

DRC announces that Zambian troops have been withdrawn from their territory

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DRC announces that Zambian troops have been withdrawn from their territory

Zambian troops occupying two villages in the southeast Democratic Republic of Congo have withdrawn after regional mediation led to a breakthrough in a long-running border dispute, the Congolese government has announced.

Fighting broke out in mid-March between the Zambian and Congolese armies when the Zambian soldiers took control of the villages at Muliro-Kibambe in Tanganyika province.

One soldier was killed on each side.

“On the date of August 4, 2020, our competent services and all Congolese and foreign officials observed the effective retreat of the Zambian troops,” government spokesman David-Jolino Diwampovesa Makelele, declared Thursday.

The pullout was made possible by the work of a joint diplomatic mission from the Southern African Development Community (SADC), which visited DR Congo on July 22-29, the spokesman said.

The team effort “led to the recognition by Zambia that the border territories of Kalumbamba and Kibanga, which it had occupied, belonged to DR Congo,” he added. “This was the result of a misunderstanding.”

“At this time, the Congolese population concerned is jubilant, particularly in Muliro. People are starting to move back on to the territories formerly occupied by the Zambian army,” the minister added.

The joint commission sent by the 16-nation SADC ordered the installation of temporary border posts while waiting for the manufacture of permanent and durable markers, Makelele said.

Zambian Defence Minister Davies Chama said Friday he would travel to DR Congo’s capital Kinshasa next week, but declined to comment on the troops’ withdrawal.

“Very soon we will be in the DRC handling those matters,” the minister told AFP.

A treaty signed in 1989 by DR Congo and Zambia resolved a dispute inherited from the colonial era concerning the delimitation of land and lake borders between Lake Mweru and Lake Tanganyika, a distance of about 200 kilometers (125 miles).

Border clashes broke out nonetheless between the Zambian and Congolese armies in 1996, in 2006 and in September 2016. The disputed area is easily accessible from the Zambian side, but on the Congolese side, access is made difficult by a swamp.

Source AFP

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