By ROGERS KALERO
MINE Workers Union of Zambia (MUZ) President Joseph Chewe has said any responsible and patriotic Zambian must support the agenda of forming a federation of mine workers Union to protect and safeguard the interests of mine workers and also ensure that mineral resources in Africa benefit the respective countries and people.
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Mr. Chewe said MUZ and the General Union of Workers in Mines and Quarries and the Navigations (GUWMQN) of Egypt were in the process of forming a federation of mine workers union in an effort to effectively serve the interests of miners and ensure that mineral resources benefit the respective countries in Africa.
In an interview soon after the press briefing where the two unions announced their intentions to form a federation, Mr Chewe said the initiative would see mine workers interests protected as well as mineral resources through adding value to them as opposed to exporting raw materials to other countries
But when asked how the federation would achieve its goals and objectives when some African leaders were puppets and stooges of imperialists who were working hard to deliver to their “slave masters” who want to continue reaping millions from African mineral resources, Mr. Chewe said achieving the goals and objectives must not be left to the federation alone, but to all responsible and patriotic Zambians.
“This issue is not about MUZ and GUWMQN only, but all patriotic and responsible Zambians, in particular, and Africans in general who want to see that mineral resources in Africa benefit Africans. So, I am calling on you, the media and other Zambians in general, to support this agenda,” Mr. Chewe said.
Last week, Mr. Chewe said MUZ was undergoing transformation and so it was imperative that it created networks with other mine unions in other countries to learn how they were operating to advance the interests of workers and minerals in order to foster national development in Zambia.
“We have therefore partnered with an Egyptian mine union counterpart where they are seeking to form a federation of mine unions to advance the interests of workers and protect minerals in the two countries as well as across the African continent.
“We are set to form a federation of mine unions with our Egyptian mine union counterparts called the African Federation of mine workers unions aimed at protecting the interests of workers and minerals across the two countries and the African continent, “Mr. Chewe said.
He said the federation which would be open to all African mining countries intends to tap into the African Union (AU) and International Labour Organisations (ILO) among others towards using the continent’s mineral resources to provide job creation and alleviate poverty.
And GUWMQN President Mohammed Samara said the federation would soon establish structures across Africa in order to improve the living standards of the worker.
“In order for the mining sector to be revamped, it is important that its workforce is taken care of. This federation we want to get into with our mine union counterpart in Zambia will help in advocating for the interests of miners and also the mineral resources for both countries and Africa as a whole. So, we will work together to ensure the mining sector in Zambia and Egypt thrives,” he said.
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