ZAMBIA’S ASSETS BEING STRIPPED

…Harry Kalaba says the secret selling of the Mufulira black mountain and the gifting of 51 percent Mopani shares to IHR is nothing but asset stripping by the UPND government

ZAMBIA is being stripped of its assets by President Hakainde Hichilema and the UPND government through opaque transactions such as the sale of 51 percent shares in Mopani and the secret sale of the Mufulira Slug Dump to Jubilee Metals of South Africa, Harry Kalaba has said.

Mr Kalaba, the president of Citizens First (CF) says Zambia’s assets were being stripped because the people elected President Hichilema who had never believed in transparency in all his undertakings.

Mr Kalaba said in an interview yesterday that it was clear that the Mopani transaction lacked transparency and that was why the Minister of Finance and National Planning, Dr Situmbeko Musokotwane, Paul Kabuswe, the Minister of Mines and Minerals Development and President Hichilema had all issued conflicting statements over the deal.

Mr Kalaba, a member of the United Kwacha Alliance (UKA) said it was the first time in history that Zambia has had a President who was determined to strip the country of its assets to gift them to foreign friends.

“There is no doubt that Zambia’s assets are now being stripped and by the time President Hichilema and the UPND will be leaving office, our dear country shall be a shell.

Zambians should be asking why the Mufulira Slug Dump has been sold secretly to a company called Jubilee Metals which is highly linked to the powers that be.

We are essentially having our assets stripped by the UPND government because this (Mr Hichilema) is the President we elected to come and strip our assets and gift them to his friends. There is nothing transparent in the transactions Mr Hichilema is involved in,” Mr Kalaba said.

He explained that government had given 51 percent of Mopani shares to International Holdings Resources (IHR) without any money hitting Zambia’s treasury. “Mopani is valued at US$7 billion and if Zambia had sold away 51 percent of the shares, the transaction should have translated into US$3.6 billion into the treasury. With that amount, Zambia would have dealt with its credit bondholders as well as its multilateral partners,” Mr Kalaba said.

He said it was shocking that President Hichilema had trivialises the stripping of assets by claiming the government had entered into joint ventures with the new owners of Mopani.

“Why is it that President Hichilema is so determined in taking away our assets and gifting? It is because President Hichilema loves foreigners much more than Zambians.

President Hichilema has demonstrated his love for foreigners when he reduced the mineral royalty tax from six percent to three percent. The President has not shied away from demonstrating his love when he gave tax holidays of five years. The country is in trouble with Mr Hichilema as President,” Mr Kalaba said.