British Airways says it will respond to Patriotic Front (PF) President Michael Sata’s allegations of inhumane treatment of their passengers once the company has officially received his letter.

Public Relations officer Andre Makulu said British Airways is aware of the letter from Mr Sata to British High Commissioner to Zambia Alistair Harrison over their alleged inhumane services to passengers.

He said this in a stament released to ZANIS in Lusaka today.

Mr. Makulu added that British Airways is concerned with the issues raised by Mr. Sata and will respond to the concerns once the letter has been received.

He disclosed that British Airways has been flying between Zambia and UK for 70 years
and remains committed to its operations in Zambia.

Mr. Makulu further said British Airways is proud of the relationship they have with
the Zambian government and is pleased with its  performance on the Zambian market.

Last week, Mr. Sata wrote to British High Commissioner protesting  that prospective
passengers were served on a pigeon hole meant for a cashier and alleged that the Airline had a ‘take it or leave it’ attitude because it is the only air line serving
the Lusaka-London route.
ZANIS

Kabompo West member of parliament Daniel Kalenga has urged leaders in the opposition political parties ton partner with the New Deal administration in taking develoment to the people.

Mr. Kalenga says time for politicking is gone until 2011 wheen the country goes to
the polls.

Mr. Kalenga who is also agriculture and cooperatives deputy minister said this when he addressed two separate public meetings at Kavungu and Pakasa basic schools in
Kabompo yesterday.

The area member of parliament said people in the district should refrain from tribalism because it was the major social evil derailing development in the region

He said time has now come for people in the province to develop by educating their
children to  take up challenging jobs  in the new mines of Lumwana, Kasanshi and
also the oil and gas industries that the government intends to set up on the Zambezi
west bank.

President Mwanawasa has arrived in the Tanzanian capital Dar Es-Salaam to join other SADC heads of state and government for an extra ordinary summit designed to thrash out a number of outstanding political and security issues in the region.

Briefing the Zambian press ahead of the president’s arrival, Zambia’s High Commissioner to Tanzania Professor Royson Mukwena said the meeting arises from a recommendation of a SADC foreign ministers’ meeting held in Maseru on March 21 and
22 this year.

Professor Mukwena said the two-day summit to be chaired by Tanzanian President Jakaya Kikwete at Kempiski Kilimanjaro hotel, starts tonight with the Double Troika meeting to prepare the agenda for the main summit tomorrow.

The double troika is a combination of the sub-committee of the SADC responsible for defence, security and peace under the chairmanship of Tanzania. The other members of the Troika are Namibia and Angola.

The High Commissioner explained that the main Troika comprises Lesotho, Zambia and Botswana.

Professor Mukwena said the political situation in Zimbabwe is expected to feature prominently on the summit’s agenda.

Meanwhile, the local media here have praised President Mwanawasa for being the only head of state in the region who has spoken openly on the Zimbabwean situation so
far.

A columnist in the citizen newspaper has described Mr. Mwanawasa as a true friend of Zimbabwe and that Zimbabwean leader Robert Mugabe would do well to listen and appreciate what Mr. Mwanawasa has said about his country.

On arrival at Julius Nyerere International Airport, Mr. Mwanawasa was warmly received by Dr. Batilda Burian who is minister of state in the office of the Prime Minister.

Also on hand to welcome the Zambian leader who is accompanied by foreign affairs minister Mundia Sikatana, was Zambia’s High Commissioner to Tanzania Professor Mukwena and other senior embassy officials.

ZANIS

President Mwanawasa is tomorrow expected to launch a national policy on information communication and technology (ICT).

Ministry of Communications and Transport Permanent Secretary, Peter Tembo, announced this yesterday at a media breakfast meeting at Taj Pamodzi Hotel in Lusaka.

“In order to create awareness on the importance of ICTs in national development, the launch will be preceded by an ICT exhibition by local and international exhibitors,” Brigadier-General Tembo said.

The launch would be held at Mulungushi International Conference Centre (MICC).

Brig-Gen Tembo explained that Government involved stakeholders during the development of the policy.

“With support from partners such as Japan, United Nations Development Plan (UNDP), local and international experts, Government embarked on the process of developing the policy.

This also included consultations with other Government agencies and industries,” he said.

Brig-Gen Tembo said this was followed by extensive meetings at national and provincial levels.

The permanent secretary added that the process was augmented by consultations with regional and international organisations and experts.

Meanwhile, Barclays Bank Zambia has said that information and communication technology plays a key role in the fight against poverty.

Barclays Bank head of corporate affairs, Augustine Seyuba, said this yesterday in Lusaka when his institution donated 26 computers to four schools.

The schools are SOS Children’s Village, Kabulonga Boys High School, Rhodespark High School and Lusaka High School.

“With that in mind, the bank has embarked on a programme to support local school initiatives aimed at providing additional facilities for developing skills of young people in science and technology,” he said.

Mr Seyuba said although ICT was a relatively recent innovation, the tool would continue to grow in importance in the future.

He said there was need to empower the education system in the country with ICT tools.

And speaking for the beneficiaries, SOS Children’s Village chairperson, Jitesh Naik, commended Barclays Bank for the gesture.

He said computers would enhance the quality of education.

Visiting Danish minister for Development Cooperation Ulla Toernaes has called on African leaders to speak out and condemn
attacks on opposition leaders in Zimbabwe. 

And Ulla Toernaes has described the meeting with Zimbabwean civil society groups as fruitful. 

Ms Toernaes told ZANIS in an interview at the Livingstone international airport soon before departure that African leaders were not helping what she called
deteriorating political conditions in Zimbabwe by choosing to remain mute. 

Ms. Toernaes said Zimbabwe's political instability led to the closure of the Danish embassy in Zimbabwe in 2002.

However, Ms Toernaes said her government is working closely with non governmental organisations in Zimbabwe in  the provision of humanitarian aid. 

"The Danish government is not in favour of Mugabe's government and its attacks on opposition leaders but it will continue speaking out, supporting the people, and
putting pressure on African leaders to help liberate Zimbabweans from Mugabe's dictatorial rule." She said.

On the closed door meeting with Zimbabwe's civil society groups, Ms. Toernaes described the meeting as fruitful saying she decided to meet the civil society
groups from Zimbabwe to discuss the present and future political situation standing of Zimbabwe. 

Ms. Toernaes was in Livingstone to acquaint herself with various Danish funded development projects.

ZANIS

The Forum for Leadership Search, FLS, has described as disastrous the current trend of funding and leadership selection in political parties in the country.

FLS Executive Director Edwin Lifwekelo regretted most political parties have
resorted to selecting leaders on the basis of wealth as apposed to leadership qualities.

Mr. Lifwekelo attributed this to the move by political parties to entirely rely on individuals for funding of party operations.

He told ZANIS in Lusaka that the trend by parties to depend on individual politicians to fund parties has to a greater extent compromised the quality of political leadership and democracy in the country.

Mr Lifwekelo said the state of affairs has made politicians, who assume leadership
on the basis of wealth, to become reluctant to be challenged at national party
conventions.

Meanwhile , Mr Lifwekelo challenged the Bankers Association of Zambia, BAZ, to publicly condemn the move by some banking institutions to compromise the client
confidentiality principle, through revelation of personal bank documents to the public.

 Mr. Lifwekelo made the challenge in apparent reference to recent revelations of
President Mwanawasa’s bank account details to the public by Finance Bank.

He urged BAZ to censure financial institutions that breach banking ethics by
undermining the confidentiality of individual clients.

“We wonder how confidential information regarding a private account was availed to
third party if not for the purposes of embarrassing the president” he said.

ZANIS

Government says it will consider assisting towards funerals of the victims of the CR bus road accident that claimed 14 lives and left several others injured on Friday.

Luapula Province Minister, John Chinyanta, said government regretted losing several
lives of people in such circumstances and would do everything possible to prevent
future occurrences of such accidents.

Mr. Chinyanta was speaking when he visited twelve accident victims last night, who
are admitted at Mansa general hospital.

He said government will soon summon the CR management in an effort to establish the
cause of the fatal accident.

The minister, flanked by Luapula province permanent secretary, Alfred Kalumba and
other senior provincial government officials said government would not allow lives
of the citizens being claimed by preventable causes.

He said government would ponder speed limiting on the Tuta High-way to prevent
further loss of lives as the road as claimed many lives due to over speeding by
motorists.

And Mr. Chinyanta has commended the Luapula province police command for their prompt action to rush to the scene of accident.

He said the quick action helped prevent further loss of lives of people that were
trapped in the wreckage of the mangled Marcopolo CR bus.

Meanwhile Mansa general hospital executive director, Dr. Francis Bwalya, has
appealed to families who are still missing their relatives to go to Mansa general
hospital and help identify bodies that are currently lying at the mortuary.

Mansa general hospital mortuary received 11 brought in dead bodies from the fatal
accident on Friday.

And Dr. Bwalya has described the condition of the 12 accident victims admitted to
the hospital, as stable, saying many of them suffered fractures and cuts apart from
one who is in a critical condition and had to be rushed to the theatre.

14 people and several others were injured after the bus they where in careered off
the road and overturned along Tuta Road on Friday.

ZANIS