Foreign traders: DC, Chisokone traders dialogue
By ROGERS KALERO
KITWE district commissioner (DC) Binwell Mpundu says he will ensure a win-win situation over calls by some Chisokone marketeers to chase foreigners trading in the market.
“I value my job so much and I would not like to be irresponsible and careless by making hasty decisions which would make me get fired,” Mr Mpundu said.
Mr Mupundu’s remarks come in the wake of plans by Zambian traders at Chisokone market to chase foreigners from the market.
Speaking during a meeting to find an amicable solution to the demands by some of the Zambian traders at the weekend, Mr Mpundu said he would tread cautiously on the matter and ensure a win-win situation was achieved.
Some local traders at Chisokone market have been demanding that foreigners who were trading at the market should be chased because they were selling goods at a lower price, and hence grabbing business from locals.
But, the district Commissioner, said chasing the foreigners was not the solution, saying foreigners who are mostly Congolese and Masai, should be informed about the regulations to follow regarding the kind of business they were dealing in.
Mr Mpundu also said government wings such as the Immigration Department, Drug Enforcement Commission (DEC) and the Zambia Police Service will ensure that foreigners who were coming to trade at the market had valid and genuine documents, allowing them to trade in Zambia.
Mr Mpundu, who was scheduled to meet foreign traders at Chisokone market yesterday, said he would not do things to impress some people, but would follow the law and ensure that a win-win situation was achieved.
“We are here to dialogue and find a solution to the problems you are having with foreigners at Chisokone market, but let me be frank and honest with you, the issue of chasing foreigners from Chisokone market is out. I will not do things to impress certain individuals. No!
“I have a job to protect and safeguard and so I will not like to be irresponsible and careless by making haste decisions which would make me get fired,” Mr Mpundu said.
He cautioned Zambians against chasing foreigners from the market, saying if that happened even Zambians living or working outside the country would equally be chased.
“We are in a global village where people move from one country to the other either to work or do business,” therefore, you should not chase foreigners from this market, but you should tell them about the laws they should follow when doing business in Zambia.
"If you chase these foreigners from this market, even your brothers and sisters who are working or doing business in other countries, will be chased. So be careful with what you want to do,” Mr Mpundu advised.
At the same meeting, Copperbelt Cross Border and Integrated Business Association (CCBIBA) Publicity Secretary Poster Jumbe advised Zambians to be careful with the stance they had taken of chasing foreigners from Chisokone market because it could bring problems.
Mr Jumbe said he was grateful that the DC had decided to intervene in the matter to give guidance and hoped that both parties would approach the matter with maturity and objectivity. “Right now, people are passing comments so that others laugh, but to tell you the truth, this is a serious matter which needs to be addressed in a mature and objective manner," Mr Jumbe said.
A check by the Daily Nation revealed that the two market associations, the Association of Vendors and Marketeers (AVEMA) and the National Traders and Marketeers of Zambia (NATMAZ) had differed over calls to chase the foreigners from Chisokone market.
Some leaders within AVEMA are alleged to have instigated calls to chase the foreigners from Chisokone market, while their counterparts from NATMAZ were against the idea.