By NATION REPORTER
THE decision to import GMO mealie-meal from South Africa may have been predetermined before Government made pronouncements to give permits for the importation of the commodity to satisfy the demand from the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC), National Democratic Congress (NDC) president Saboi Imboela has said.
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Ms. Imboela said the pace at which the GMO mealie-meal had landed on the Zambian market was proof that the product had already been in the country waiting for distribution.
She said the government was being deceitful on the importation of GMO mealie-meal because indicators were pointing to the fact that it had already started allowing the mealie-meal into the country before the official pronouncements were made.
“The question is who brought the GMO mealie-meal and what was the reason for doing so when the Zambian laws do not allow them to do so, and the sad part is that the mealie-meal has already been distributed, it looks like it has been in Zambia for a long time and people have been buying,” Ms Imboela said.
The National Biosafety Authority (NBA) recently seized 19 bags of GMO mealie-meal from South Africa from a shop in Bauleni Township of Lusaka, being illegally sold to the public. The shop keeper revealed that they were supplied with 50 bags of the GMO mealie-meal and 30 had already been sold out.
Meanwhile, Ms. Imboela said the UPND government was in a hurry to make money at the expense of the lives of Zambians.
She said chances were there that the people in power may know who was distributing the GMO mealie-meal and where it was being kept.
And according to former Ambassador to Ethiopia, Emmanuel Mwamba, the importation of GMO mealie-meal was illegal.
He said the Biosafety Act No.10 of 2007 denies the Biosafety Authority from granting authority or permit for the importation of GMO products related to crops or livestock of national importance. Mr Mwamba said Section 14 also obligates the Biosafety Authority to conduct public consultation and public participation of GMO products would be imported for the country or for transit.
He said Section 14(1) of the Act states that it shall consult the public prior to the grant of any authorisation.
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