Zampalm to get IDC cash injection
By KETRA KALUNGA IT IS nonsense for Bishop John Mambo to suggest that President Edgar Lungu abrogated the constitution by not handing over power to the Speaker when his election was petitioned because there is no such provision.
The 3rd Liberation Movement Party has also said the Kenyan situation where the incumbent President Uhuru Kenyatta was still in power even after the nullification of his election was a case in point.
Party president Enock Tonga said “we need to move on as a country and focus on issues that are going to bring development to the nation and not waste time on nonsensical matters that are done and dusted.”
Mr Tonga said the election petition, which Bishop John By SANDRA MACHIMA THE Industrial Development Corporation (IDC) will inject funds to develop the Zampalm palm oil plantation project for the long-term, to expand production in Mpika.
This is in partnership with Zambeef Products in a publicprivate partnership that sees the government’s investment arm take a 90 percent stake in the Zampalm palm oil plantation in Mpika.
Zambeef chairman Dr Jacob Mwanza said IDC’s shareholding Mambo of Civil Society Constitution Agenda (CiSCA), was talking about, was over and it was nonsensical to keep rehashing the subject.
Mr Tonga said the issue has been talked about over and again and if as a nation people continue debating it, that will be pushing the country backwards.
Speaking to the Daily Nation in an interview, Mr Tonga said the statement issued by Bishop Mambo was disappointing because President Edgar Lungu did not abrogate the constitution.
Mr Tonga said institutions that are busy pushing what he described as a “pull him down” agenda should be told clearly that there is a government in place, adding that there was no abrogation of the constitution even at the time when President Lungu continued to be in in Zampalm complements the investment in Zambeef by the National Pension Scheme Authority (NAPSA), which was the largest Zambian shareholder in the company, giving every Zambian citizen a stake in the food processing and retailing giant.
Dr Mwanza disclosed that under the agreement, IDC investment would invest US$16 million in equity capital, with a further US$2 million dependent on production milestones over the next five years.
“IDC invests in projects for office after the election petition by the UPND.
“These are a team of people that are there to speak on behalf of the cartel. These institutions must be told clearly that we have a government in place and that at the particular time when the UPND petitioned the elections of 2016 we had the government in place and the leader was President Lungu and there was no abrogation of the constitution,” Mr Tonga said.
He has warned Bishop Mambo to stop using his organisation to push his political agenda and instead jump into politics through the right channel.
As 3rd Liberation Movement Party, we won’t allow people being funded to issue statements to push the development agenda of this nation backwards, Mr Tonga said. the long-term benefit of the country, and so this partnership with Zambeef on the expansion of the Zampalm project in Mpika makes sense for both parties.
“We look forward to working with the IDC team to build on Zampalm’s strengths to develop the nation’s homegrown edible oils industry, create employment and develop the area around the plantation,” Dr Mwanza said.
He said the funds would develop the project, plant an additional 900 hectares of palm and expand production with a modern 10 tonne-perhour self-powering palm oil mill to process fruit from the plantation, and also aiming the developing the full potential of the 20,000 hectare plantation. Dr Mwanza said so far, the 2,911 hectares was already planted, and build an outgrower scheme for local farmers. He said Zambeef would retain a 10 percent shareholding in Zampalm following the investment and would continue to supervise and develop the palm project under a management contract overseen by a joint board comprising IDC and Zambeef representatives, along with Senior Chief Kopa, in whose chiefdom the plantation was situated.
“Zampalm was incorporated in 2009 to provide a source of crude palm oil following Zambeef’s acquisition of edible oil processing company Zamanita as a continuation of its strategy of vertical integration.
IDC represent the ideal partner given its mandate of working with the private sector to deliver long-term economic transformation,” said Dr Mwanza. The transaction also ensures continuation of the social responsibility contribution agreement entered into in October 2009 between Zampalm and the Kopa Community Development Trust.
The production and processing of crude palm oil is expected to drastically reduce the country’s dependence on crude palm oil and edible oil imports, and once at full capacity, the plantation will contribute to substituting 70,000 tonnes of cooking oil imported into Zambia, saving the country around US$70 million (K511 million) in foreign exchange outflows every year.