TURNING AROUND ZESCO, NO NEED FOR A CONSULTANT
Dear Editor,
THE UPND government has directed the Industrial Development Corporation (IDC) to borrow a huge loan from the African Development Bank to finance the engagement of a consultant to provide a strategy for the financial and operational turnaround of Zesco
Looking at the terms of reference, this consultant will not be a Zambian firm. For example, the IDC is looking for a consultancy firm with a strong financial position having posted revenues in excess of $3 million for three years, consecutively.
I don’t know of any Zambian consultancy firm that makes that much in any financial year. Borrowing heavily to pay a foreign entity to tell us how to run our own asset cannot be said to be sound financial management.
The issues facing Zesco are well known, In fact they are legacy issues. There is no need to pay a bunch of foreigners to come and tell us how to return it to profitability.
There have been several study reports on Zesco which are gathering dust at the Ministry of Energy and Ministry of Finance and therefore there should be no need to pay hefty fees for another round of consultancy on the power utility company.
Zesco in particular and Zambia in general is not short of people with smart ideas on turning around that company. Zesco has huge human capital, serving and those who have since left the company who have rich institutional memory which could be vital in taking it forward. Let’s utilise that resource for the good of the nation.
One would wonder why the UPND has such a huge appetite for everything western. This administration’s entire economic model is western-driven and it now wants its strategy on Zesco to also be driven by the West.
We will not allow this administration to pursue this path for Zambia and we now call on the IDC to withdraw the advert for the consultancy forthwith.
BOWMAN CHILOSHA LUSAMBO.
Author
