By ROGERS KALERO
THE UPND has no solution to the problems and challenges facing Mopani Copper Mines (MCM) and Konkola Copper Mines (KCM) as evidenced by its silence over finding an equity partner for the two giant mines, Kasonde Mwenda has said.
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Mr Mwenda, the president of the Economic Freedom Fighters (EFF) says after making several unfulfilled promises and assurances that it would find equity partners for the two giant mining companies, the UPND government had since ran out of lies, hence the silence on the matter.
Mr Mwenda said after making a lot of unfulfilled promises and assurances over the issues of MCM and KCM, the new dawn administration of President Hakainde Hichilema had suddenly gone quiet because it had realized that it had failed to find solutions to the problems.
He said during the press briefing at Parklands Lodge in Kitwe yesterday that government had lamentably failed to find solutions to the challenges facing the two copper mines that the pledge of finding new investors had turned out to be yet another unfulfilled promise.
‘It is now two years since the UPND formed government but no solution has been found regarding MCM and KCM. After making a lot of unfulfilled promises and assurances regarding finding equity partners, the new dawn administration has now gone quiet because it has no solutions.”
“No one, no government official including the republican President is talking about which way forward regarding the two giant mines. They were speaking with a lot of confidence that they will find a solutions to the problems at the two giant mines , but they are now quiet and cannot even tell the nation how far they have gone,’’ Mr Mwenda said
Mr Mwenda said the unresolved issues surrounding KCM and MCM had only served to compound the struggles faced by citizens and businesses on the Copperbelt where the two mining companies had been contributing monumentally to the economy of the province
He said the decline in economic activity in the region had torn through crucial aspects of the society, shaking the Chisokone market in Kitwe to its core.
Mr Mwenda stated that the absence of a vibrant mining sector on the Copperbelt had fueled a cycle of non-payment, escalating levels of poverty, and limited economic opportunities that continue to suffocate the communities
“The consequences of such mining sector and economic mismanagement go beyond mere numbers on balance sheet. They have birthed a wave of crime and poverty, ruthless, ruthlessly intensifying the hardships already endured by our citizens”
“As the backbone of our nation’s economy, the mining sector should be a beacon of prosperity and stability, not a vortex of turmoil that suffocates the hopes and dreams of our people,’’ Mr Mwenda said
Mr Mwenda said the EFF was condemning in the strongest terms the mismanagement of the mining sector, for it had ushered in a dark era of economic decline
“Since our arrival on the Copperbelt, our eyes have been opened wide to witness the detrimental effects of non-payment of suppliers or limited activity for contractors in the mining sector. It has caused a never-ending torrent of economic hardships for suppliers and contractors alike,’’ he said
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