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Zambia on Thursday ended their three-year wait for a COSAFA U20 Cup final appearance following a 3-0 semifinal victory over Angola at Nkoloma Stadium in Lusaka.
The result handed Zambia its first final since 2016 when they went on to lift the title away in South Africa.
Zambia secured their place in the final thanks to goals from midfielder Patrick Gondwe who struck a brace in the 31st and 76th minutes.
Striker Francisco Mwepu added the final goal in the 80th minute to stay on course for the 2019 COSAFA U20 Cup Golden Boot after taking his tally to four goals for the tournament.
The result ended Angola’s unbeaten run in the tournament and they came into the penultimate round match as the most prolific side on 13 goals while Zambia were a close second with nine goals.
Zambia will face defending champions South Africa in the final on December 14 at the same venue.
South Africa reached the final following dramatic comeback in the lunchtime kickoff at Nkoloma against Madagascar when they rallied from two-down at halftime to level 2-2 in stoppage time and subsequently win 5-4 on post-match penalties.
Interestingly, the final will be a repeat of the 2016 decider when Zambia beat hosts South Africa 2-1.
Meanwhile, Madagascar and Angola will meet for Bronze in the curtain-raiser this Saturday.
Namvula released the video for her single “Njishe“.
She had this to say on social media: “I’m excited to be sharing this heart-work with y’all soon, about a rain-soaked night in my grandma’s village, about our elders and the rivers of knowledge they hold within their beings, about being a girl who grew up everywhere but home – such a sexy title : “globetrotter”, but what bridges does that leave unbuilt? What gaps did that leave in my being, in my feeling of rootedness, in what I know? Njishe, teach us, teach me…”
Directed by: Jerome Arab
Co-produced by: Jerome Arab, Namvula Rennie, Biggie
President Edgar Lungu says there is need to expedite the implementation of the inter-governmental agreement to build electricity interconnection to the national grids of Zambia, Kenya and Tanzania.
President LUNGU says Kenya and Zambia should expedite the implementation of the agreement to facilitate power trade within the region.
The President called on newly appointed Kenyan High Commissioner to Zambia, Flora Igandu Karugu to ensure urgent implementation of the 5 agreements signed when Kenyan President Uhuru Kenyatta visited Zambia in 2015.
He said this at State House when he received letters of credence from newly appointed Ambassadors and High Commissioners to Zambia.
And President Lungu called on Ambassadors and High Commissioners accredited to Zambia to intensify closer collaboration at regional and multilateral platforms in a bid to promote sustainable development.
These include Japanese ambassador to Zambia Ryuta Mizuuchi, Kenyan High Commissioner, Flora Igandu Karugu and Somalia ambassador Hawa Hassan Mohamed.
Others are Russian Ambassador, Aleksander Vilovich Boldyrev, Ethiopian Ambassador, Addisu Gebreigzabhier Abera and Mohamed Ould MekhallE from the Islamic Republic of Mauritania.
President LUNGU also reaffirmed government’s commitment to continue promoting cordial relations with other countries.
He said Zambia values the warm relations shared with other countries which are based on mutual respect, trust and cooperation.
And President Lungu hailed the Japanese Government for coming up with the Tokyo International Conference for African Development -TICAD- which he said serves as an effective platform to drive cooperation with African countries.
The much-anticipated bye-elections in Milenge in Luapula Province and Ilambo ward in Lupoposhi constituency in Northern province came and went.
The dust has hardly settled down due to the exciting but shocking results in Ilambo. The English say the ‘devil is in the detail’. Unfortunately, in our society there is hardly any attention to the detail of an election. All players simply celebrate the end of another election; in same cases ‘just one of those elections’. For political parties the endgame is simply about whether or not they won or lost the contested seat. So, they either celebrate or commiserate with themselves for the ‘loss’. I say ‘loss’ (in inverted commas) because within some ‘losses’ there are hidden gains. But I will come to that later.
Contrast our casual approach to election detail to advanced democracies. In those societies the political parties, researchers, pundits, the media, etc all analyse elections to the bone, not just about the final winner and loser. They sift through data to profile who voted for whom among the various demographics: for instance, by sex, age, race, social status, religion, including sexual orientation (controversial as it could be in Zambia).
This level of analysis maybe be taxing and requires more data capturing by the electoral system but it is worth every penny. Parties use it for targeted campaigns and communication. They call it ‘smart’ campaigning. Campaigns that are sent ‘to whom it may concern’ often end up on a rock; ‘the birds of the air’ just devour such campaigns (as posited in Luke 8:4-18). Anyway, that’s a story for another day.
Back to election analysis; going forward, Zambian electoral players should aim for detailed analysis of the electoral results. The Electoral Commission of Zambia (ECZ) should be concerned about, say, trends and patterns in voter turnout, ‘spoilt’ ballots, etc. It can not be business as usual when you have 85,795 (2.6%) ‘spoilt’ ballots as was the case with the 2016 elections at national level. By the way, the rejected votes accounted for more than the 74,486 polled by all the seven smaller parties: FDD, PAC, Rainbow, UPP, UNIP, Greens and DA in that descending order.
“With these few opening remarks”, below are some analyses of the Milenge and Ilambo results in a bit of detail, based on the little available data;
Milenge: PF Wins, UPND Makes Marginal Gain
The PF candidate for the Council Chairperson, Fidelis Chanda, won the election by 4,409 votes against 1,237 of the UPND candidate Gibson Malambo. Statistically the PF got 78.09% of the eligible votes compared to 21.9% of the UPND. For the UPND this represents a marginal gain of 1.3% from the 20.6% it got in 2016 compared to the PF’s 79.39%.
Ilambo:UPND Wins and Gains
The UPND won the council or ward seat with 809 (55.98%) of the vote compared to the PF’s 636 (44.02%). In 2016 the PF candidate beat the UPND’s. Unfortunately, there are no data on the 2016 ward results on the ECZ website to enable comparison of the magnitude of the gain for UPND and loss for PF between the two elections.
Two-Horse Race Continues
The two centres – Milenge and Ilambo – remain a battle ground for only the two main parties: PF and UPND. This must be a surprise to many who thought the entry into the ring by Chishimba Kambwili’s NDC and Harry Kalaba’s DP would broaden the basket of options for the voters. Understandably NDC is in a partial electoral alliance with the UPND. Many are asking when Kalaba will ‘test the waters’ (‘Kwipima’).
Apart from the MMD in 1991, all the other post-1991 splinter parties worth their salt had had to launch themselves and gather momentum through bye-elections. The UPND, for instance, boosted its launch in December 1998 by participating in and winning the Mazabuka bye-election within a year, on 30 November 1999, courtesy of its candidate and first MP Griffiths Nang’omba. Similarly, within a few months of formation, the PF participated in the 2001 general election and inspired itself by winning its first seat in Lupoposhi. In recent times the NDC was energised and boosted its image by participating and winning the Roan seat in 2019.
The MMD was unique in that it was a product of a mass uprising to get rid of UNIP after 27 years of single-party rule. So, if Kalaba’s DP wins the 2021 general election without throwing ‘test-punches’, it will grab a lofty place in the annals of history.
Less than 50% Decide Fate:
In Milenge, against 18,466 registered voters, only 5,646 successfully cast their vote, representing only 30.57% of the electoral college. In 2016, at least slightly over half (52.95%) of the registered voters casted their vote and had a say in the selection of the council’s top leadership. The is no doubt voter turnout also dropped in Ilambo, though there are no data. The scourge of low voter turnout mirrors the national picture of 56.45% in the 2016 general election. It should be a cause for concern for the nation.
‘Spoilt’ Ballots on Increase:
The proportion of so-called ‘spoilt’ ballots is another phenomenon that stakeholders ought to but not paying attention to. In Ilambo, for instance, 365 votes were counted as ‘spoilt’, representing 6.46% of the total eligible votes or 6.07% of the total (6,011) votes cast. Arguably 6.07% is too huge to simply gloss over when you consider that the difference between the winning and losing Presidential candidate since 2001 has ranged between 1% and 7%. The exception is 2006 when the difference between Michael Sata and Levy Mwanawasa was 13.61%.
In 2001 Anderson Mazoka lost to Levy Mwanawasa by 1.93%; in 2008 Michael Sata lost to Rupiah Banda by 1.98%; in 2011 Rupiah Banda lost to Michael Sata by 6.56%; in 2015 Hakainde Hichilema lost to Edgar Lungu by 1.68% and by 2.7% in 2016.
So, the electoral players better start paying attention and find remediation to ‘spoilt’ ballots. They could be the difference one way or the other.
The Author is a Media and Communication Scholar, Research Fellow and PhD Candidate Based in South Africa.
Former Lusaka Catholic Archbishop Telesphore Mpundu at a media briefing
Former Lusaka Archbishop Telesphore Mpundu has labelled the PF administration as a government of thieves.
Archbishop Mpundu observed that corruption has become rampant under the PF and those stealing public funds go unpunished.
The Clergyman who resigned as Archbishop of Lusaka on January 30th 2018 was speaking on Tuesday when he featured on Frank on Hot radio programme on Hot FM.
“Corruption is rampant and is not been punished, haven’t we heard about all these fire engines that cost us huge amounts of money and ambulances that cost so much. Zambia is the only county that has 48 houses that built themselves without owners,” Archbishop Mpundu said.
He added, “The people are not being told the truth. I am sure the ACC knows and the Council knows it. There is something that is going on and it is not right.”
Archbishop Mpundu added, “This country is afflicted by rampant corruption which has permeated all facets of our lives so much so that so citizens not so jokingly refer to our democracy as Kleptocracy which is defined as a government of thieves by thieves and for thieves. This is what they are saying jokingly but surely is that joking? There is a good amount of truth in that.
He said, “everywhere one goes, one meets public officers or personnel in private business and they are demanding a cut for the services which they must render to the public by virtue of their position.”
“This is just one area but in general when it comes to infrastructure especially road infrastructure. This is in the public domain, the amount of money we are spending on infrastructure development, it’s much more, they say as much as six times more as our neighboring countries and they say Zambia is not so rich. Who is collecting the money? It is overdone, who is collecting the balance?”
Archbishop Mpundu charged that institutions are not being made to work by the Executive.
“The Executive must be firmly in charge. If they are given the freedom to operate without interference they are going to perform but they are told who to investigate and how to investigate and this is the truth, the whole truth and nothing but the truth.“
Nkana star Ronald ‘Sate-Sate’ Kampamba is looking forward to Saturday’s big Copperbelt derby against FAZ Super Division leaders Zesco United set for Nkana Stadium in Kitwe.
The two giants will be meeting for the first time in the 2019/20 Super Division campaign.
Champions Zesco are leading the table with 28 points from 10 matches played while fifth placed Nkana are seven points behind after playing 11 matches.
‘The game is not going to be easy but as Nkana we are looking forward to a positive result. We must work hard as a team to beat Zesco,’ Kampamba said.
‘We will respect Zesco because they are champions and they must repect us because we are also a big team,’ Sate Sate said.
Striker Kampamba said Nkana are in the race to win the 13th league title.
‘We want to finish on top and win the league,’ Kampamba said.
Nkana are beginning life with acting head coach Manfred Chabinga after the resignation of Beston Chambeshi earlier on Sunday.
Ex-Chipolopolo coach Sven Vandenbroeck has resurfaced in Tanzania as Simba SC coach on a one year deal.
The Belgian takes over at Simba from compatriot Patrick Aussems who oversaw Nkana’s elimination form the 2018/2019 CAF Champions League pre-group stage exactly a year ago.
Vandenbroeck returns to the bench after his six month spell with Chipolopolo was not extended in March following a poor 2019 AFCON qualifying run in which he won one, lost two and drew one Group K matches.
Overall, Vandenbroeck had two wins, two defeats and one draw in his Zambia tenure.
Vandenbroeck first mandate will be to retain the Tanzanian league title that Aussems won.
The Belgian will be reunited at Simba with Chipolopolo midfielder Cletus Chama.
The Bank of Zambia’s decision to increase the Statutory Reserve Ratios (SRR) applicable on commercial banks’ kwacha and foreign currency deposits liabilities to 9 per cent from the current level of 5 per cent is a desperate measure to curb inflation.
We have a brilliant team of very good economists at the Bank of Zambia but they have been stretched to the utmost. They are being pushed to do the impossible, to square a circle.
The measures the Bank of Zambia is taking will help secure financing for government and channels funds into financing the budget deficit.
However, this will lead to contracted lending in the open market due to reduced liquidity. It will also raise the cost of funds, which will further lead to an increase in interest rates and cost of borrowing.
Most banks are likely to reduce lending to meet these increased statutory reserve requirements.
Ultimately, it’s the borrowers who will bear the increased cost of funds.
Clearly, these are desperate measures.
And these desperate measures remind us of Shakespeare’s works. Those who think Shakespeare’s works are useless, outdated and shouldn’t be taught in school should think twice. In our opinion, Shakespeare’s works, particularly ‘Romeo and Juliet’, provide extensive insight into human behaviour.
The story provides a good lesson about the consequences of desperate behaviour, which can help us make the right choices in our governance, in our own lives.
So what does Shakespeare teach us? What is clear from ‘Romeo and Juliet’ is that desperation gives us irrational thought processes which usually have a potential for severe consequences. I’m sure you have heard someone say: “desperate times call for desperate measures”, a phrase which explains the sometimes detrimental result of decision making while in an irrational state.
If we could write a letter to Shakespeare, we would thank him for his timeless insight into the human psyche.
Desperate measures can be destructive. Some leaders become desperate when they are losing, and out of options. Leaders in desperation grasp at anything they think might ‘rescue’ them. We have plenty of examples today.
Desperate measures are born out of fear, fear that they are actually not performing well.
Actions taken out of desperation and hopelessness are unlikely to work: it’s that simple.
Desperate times call for bold measures but not desperate measures.
Decisions made out of hopelessness or despair are likely to turn out bad. It can create much larger problems.
As we have repeatedly advised, what is required is confidence building, addressing the many unresolved issues facing our country today.
United Party for National Development(UPND) leader Hakainde Hichilema has said that he has a 3 phase plan to end the phenomenon of cadres in Zambia.
Posting on Social media, the UPND leader said that the cadre phenomenon is connected to high youth unemployment, the absence of sound leadership and lack of mentorship.
Mr. Hichilema concluded his post by telling people to mark his words saying the culture of cadres will be over when UPND comes to power.
Below is the full post
By Hakainde Hichilema
I’ve been asked on numerous occasions, “HH, what will you do about cadres?”
My answer is straightforward. The cadre phenomenon is connected to high youth unemployment, the absence of sound leadership and lack of mentorship.
Phase 1
We will begin by ensuring that our youth are provided with assistance in their enrolment in skills and vocational training, in addition to our University financial aid scheme. As I have mentioned before, we have numerous investors who are keen to enter Zambia and develop industries alongside Zambians. This will be a driver for job creation where newly trained youth will be employed.
Phase 2
We will bring in the capital that will be channeled to youth-owned enterprises. These Youth-led enterprises will be given preferential procurement status to supply the government. We will guarantee them a market, even with large private sector companies, by offering incentives for them to source their supplies from these youth-led enterprises. This will enable youth-owned businesses to grow and employ fellow youth.
I have targeted manufacturing, agriculture, and tourism as key sectors that will drive our diversification program and employ millions of Zambian youth.
Phase 3
We will empower the police to be professional and independent and arrest anyone engaged in political violence or lawlessness in the name of being a party cadre. I will not tolerate it!
The youth will have access to jobs and business opportunities. Why would they desire to be cadres when there will be better alternatives? The cadre phenomenon will end when the UPND assumes office. Mark my words, Ifya bu cadre fika pwa.
Tourism and Arts Minister Ronald Chitotela says his Ministry will seize the opportunity of the visit to Zambia by 10,000 black Americans in 2020 to create more investment in the tourism sector.
And the Minister said Government wants the best partnership deal for Kafue National Park; better than that which was signed for Bangweulu and Liuwa National Parks to benefit the treasury, local communities and all citizens.
Speaking at his office when the United States of America Ambassador to Zambia Daniel Foote paid a courtesy call on him, the Minister said his Ministry wants to take the Americans returning to Africa to all parts of the country so that they see where the best opportunities lie in terms of tourism investment.
He said according to the Economic Association of Zambia who are organizers of the program, the first activities are expected from June to July 2020 followed by a bigger conference on 4th December 2020 to 4th January 2021.
The Pambashe PF Lawmaker also said investments in tourism should be of benefit to both the investors and local communities hence the need to get the best deal from the Kafue National.
Meanwhile, Ambassador Foote said the US Embassy wants continued and strengthened partnerships that will help conservation efforts and increase American tourist arrivals into Zambia.
He said there are already 40,000 Americans visiting the country each year but that can be increased with good partnership.
Mr. Foote said the Zambian national parks landscapes are beautiful and many US citizens would appreciate some of the tourism activities like angling and safari experiences.
This is according to a statement issued to the media by Sakabilo Kalembwe, the Ministry of Tourism and Arts spokesperson.
Mr Mwamba meeting Zambian teachers deployed to Seychelles,
ZAMBIA’S Ambassador to Ethiopia and Permanent Representative to the African Union, Emmanuel Mwamba has said the diaspora community contributes significantly to the growth of the economy.
Speaking when he met Zambian teachers deployed to Seychelles, Mr. Mwamba stated that recorded annual contributions to the economy by the diaspora community has risen to $93 million.
He said it was for this reason that the Ministry of Foreign Affairs established a Diaspora Policy which was adopted and recently launched by the Vice President of the Republic, Inonge Wina.
He said the framework provided positive interaction between Zambia and the Diaspora Community in coordinating skills transfer, sharing of knowledge, and best practices, and the formal recognition of their contributions to the economy.
Mr. Mwamba urged the teachers to uphold a sense of discipline and responsibility as they were representing the country in Seychelles.
He said Zambia had sent about 90 expatriate teachers to Seychelles and this formed a source of international pride to the country as it was exporting skilled labour.
Mr. Mwamba is in Seychelles for an Ambassdors’ Retreat for strategic annual planning for the United Nations Economic Commission for Africa(ECA).
This is according to press statement issued by Mrs. Inutu Mupango Mwanza, First Secretary (Press &Tourism), Addis Ababa, Federal Democratic Republic of Ethiopia.
Mr Mwamba meeting Zambian teachers deployed to Seychelles,
President Edgar Chagwa Lungu (centre) accompanied by Northern Province Minister Bwalya Chungu (left) and Kasama Member of Parliament Kelvin Sampa (right) at Kasama Airport in Northern Province on Tuesday,
President Edgar Lungu has called for the overhaul of the party structures in Northern Province.
President Lungu says overhauling of the structures should start from the lowest organs of the party.
He said this when he addressed party officials at the Provincial Planning Unit in Kasama.
Meanwhile, President Lungu has challenged the party in the Province to redeem itself following the loss to the opposition of a local government seat in Lopososhi district.
He said the party leadership should learn from the mistakes in Ilambo and prepare adequately for the Chilubi parliamentary by election.
The Head of State further called on the party to start preparing itself for 2021 general elections by embarking on party mobilisation exercise.
Speaking at the same function PF National Chairperson, Samuel Mukupa challenged party officials to unity and work for the party.
Earlier, Northern Province PF Chairperson Chungu Bwalya regretted the party loss in the Illambo ward which is also in his constituency.
Meanwhile, the ruling Patriotic Front -PF- says it will not impose a candidate on the people of Chilubi constituency for the forthcoming parliamentary by-election.
PF Secretary General Davies Mwila says the party will only consider a candidate who will be accepted and adopted by the lower organs.
Mr. Mwila said this when he met party officials in Chilubi District.
He advised party officials to scrutinize individuals that have offered themselves to contest the Parliamentary seat on the PF ticket.
Meanwhile, Mr. Mwila has urged the PF members in Chilubi constituency to bury their differences and work as a team.
He further instructed Northern Province PF chairperson Lazarus Chungu to quickly visit Chilubi district and help resolve any misunderstandings.
Mr. Mwila was accompanied by PF Western Province Chairperson, Kafuka Kafuka and PF deputy media director Antonio Mwanza, among others.
The Chilubi Parliamentary seat fell vacant following the death of area MP Rosaria Fundanga.
Power Dynamos left Sunset Stadium in Lusaka with a swagger on Wednesday following a stunning 3-0 away victory over Zanaco.
The result again asked questions about Zanaco’s disposition in the 2019/20 campaign who are unbeaten in their comfort zone of the CAF Confederation Cup.
However, Zanaco have struggled on the domestic front this season and are stuck in unfamiliar territory on the fringes of the bottom four relegation zone at number 14 following their second successive league defeat after losing 3-2 in their Lusaka derby away clash to second place Napsa Stars on November 23.
Power midfielder Larry Bwalya struck twice in the 37th and 47th minutes and Fredrick Mulambia scored his third goal of the season on the hour-mark.
But Power crawl just one spot from ninth to eighth on 17 points, eleven points behind leaders Zesco United after twelve and ten matches played respectively.
The result also saw new Power coach Perry Mutapa extend his one hundred percent start after making his debut with a 1-0 away victory over Lumwana Radiants on November 30.
Meanwhile, 2019 transitional season runners-up Green Eagles are up from fifth to fourth following a 2-0 home win over newcomers Kansanshi Dynamos.
Tapson Kaseba ended his league drought today with a brace in the 38th and 73rd minutes.
Eagles swap places with Nkana in fourth and fifth on 23 and 21 points respectively.
But Kansanshi’s free-fall continues from 12th to 11th and are now winless in their last eight games with four draws and as many defeats.
Minister of National Guidance and Religious Affairs, Hon. Mrs Godfridah Sumaili
Government has implored Zambians to defend the legacy of Late President, Frederick Chiluba’s declaration of Zambia as a Christian nation.
Minister of National Guidance and Religious Affairs Godfridah Sumaili says Zambians must rise in numbers and defend their Christian nation heritage.
ZANIS reports that Reverend Sumaili said late President Fredrick Chiluba has a special place in Zambia’s history because he committed the country to the Lordship of Jesus Christ.
Reverend Sumaili added that Dr Chiluba laid a foundation for Zambia’s Christian based national values, adding that it is now incumbent upon the Zambian citizenry to uphold the values and live up to them.
She said as the country celebrates 28 years of Christianity, it is paramount that Zambians appreciate their Christian heritage and renew their faith in God as the country commemorates the Christian declaration later in in the month.
The Minister revealed that government is working round the clock to ensure that Dr Chiluba’s legacy is forestalled through projects such as the Frederick Chiluba University in Luapula Province, currently under construction.
Reverend Sumaili said Dr Chiluba’s vision has been actualized through various projects such as instituting the National Day of Prayer, creation of the Ministry of National Guidance and Religious Affairs and Construction of the National House of Prayer.
