By NATION REPORTER
LOCAL entrepreneurs must avoid attempts of reinventing the wheel but be willing to collaborate and partner with well-established foreign pharmaceutical companies in order build capacity and experience, President Hakainde Hichilema has said.
Speaking during the European Union Pharmaceutical Forum at the Mulungushi International Conference Centre whose theme was “Strengthening Healthcare through Local Pharmaceutical Manufacturing” President Hichilema said government would deploy a deliberate policy of ‘positive discrimination’ by promoting local entrepreneurship in order to bring economic growth and capacity.
He said government was pleased with the enthusiasm shown by the local pharmaceutical companies to migrate from the disposition and dependency of imported products, to the great initiative of partnering with the European Union, in manufacturing of pharmaceuticals locally in order to leverage on value addition and creation of jobs among many benefits.
“The theme, “Strengthening Healthcare through Local Pharmaceutical Manufacturing” is in tune with our collective effort to finding a resolution in the challenges facing the pharmaceutical industry in our country. In this We advised colleagues in the Health sector against engaging in the scourge of corruption that always disrupted the supply chain and warned that they would be on their own once found wanting,” President Hichilema said.
President Hichilema thanked the European Union for partnering with Government in finding lasting solutions to the challenges in the pharmaceutical industry.
ACC lifts Faith Musonda’s immunity from prosecution
By PRINCE MKABUMBA
THE Anti-Corruption Commission (ACC) has lifted Faith Musonda’s immunity on grounds that she did not make a full disclosure of the properties she had acquired.
Tom Shamakamba, the ACC director general said investigations had revealed that Ms. Musonda did not disclose her properties in full at the time she forfeited some of the properties in new Kasama and the unexplained cash.
Mr Shamakamba said the there was agreement that Ms. Musonda would be protected after she surrendered the properties and the cash to the state but that it had been established that there were other properties that she never disclosed and therefore, her immunity could not sustained.
“At the time she was surrendering her properties to the State, Ms Musonda was not being honest and the immunity agreement cannot stand. She is still under investigation. I am telling you these guys have properties,” Mr Shamakamba claimed.
Mr Shamakamba said that there was dishonesty on the part of Ms Musonda and that initially, the ACC granted her immunity based on the disclosure she had made.
He said that Ms Musonda hide some property which made the deal null and void.
“Wthat property in New Kasama was seized together with the cash, she did not disclose that she had other properties. This means she did not open up in full and that the immunity did not hold water,” Mr Shamakamba said.
And Mr Shamakamba has said that the issue of the Honeybee involving Dr Chitalu Chilufya had been withdrawn but that the ACC was considering to revisit if need arose.
He said that the withdrawal was not guarantee that the matter was closed but that if anything came up, then the ACC would act on the individuals involved in the Honeybee saga.
Mr Shamakamba said this at a Media briefing in Lusaka yesterday.
HH challenges local pharmaceutical companies
