MINISTERS MUST RESIGN

Wed, 16 Aug 2017 10:22:41 +0000

…for letting CEC toy with mines at a crucial time

By BENNIE MUNDANDO

The failure by Government to resolve disputes over legally binding contracts governing the supply of electricity to the Mines should be blamed on the appropriate line Ministers who should resign on moral grounds, ZRP president Wright Musoma has charged.

He said massive loss of production and jobs on the mines as a result of the electricity impasse should be blamed on the appropriate line Ministers who have failed to act expeditiously to resolve the problem. It was not correct, Mr Musoma said, for the Ministers to apportion blame when they were fully aware of the genuine disputes that were before the courts of law.

Instead of passing the buck the Ministers should have worked towards an amicable solution that would have allowed for continuity of production.

Meanwhile, former Copperbelt Energy Corporation (CEC) employee Kelvin Chulu has appealed to the government to immediately review a deal between ZESCO and CEC.

Mr. Chulu disclosed that the root cause of the standoff between the two institutions was their contract.

“CEC is not only exploiting Mopani but sucking its profit because it is buying electricity at an exorbitant price of less than 50 ngwee per unit,” he said. Mr Chulu said CEC board chairmen were the only ones benefiting from the profit the institution was sucking from the mines.

He appealed that the contract must be reviewed or allow ZESCO to be directly supplying the mines at cheaper price than CEC.

And NUMAW asked CEC to rescind its decision of restricting power supply to the mining companies in the Copperbelt Province.

NUMAW president James Chansa said the power utility company should first consider engaging the affected mines before it effects the move to restrict power supply.

And Mr Musoma has subsequently called on the Ministers of Mines and Energy to resign for their laissez faire which has seen the degeneration of a situation that was well within their ability to resolve.

“The matter between CEC and the mines is not new. It is in court and both sides have cogent explanations

Commenting on the shutdown of Mopani after an electricity tariff adjustment dispute with CEC, Mr. Musoma said the behaviour of Energy Minister David Mabumba and his Mines counterpart Christopher Yaluma left a lot to be desired and a clear testimony that they were toying around with the economy.

He said it was disappointing that Mr. Mabumba could issue a statement which did not give hope to the plight of MCM and its employees by siding with CEC without realising the economic implication of the continued closure of the mine.

“In 2015, we had a problem on the mines as nearly each firm was downsizing its workforce. People on the Copperbelt lost jobs and Governmnet spent more time trying to save these jobs. It even became a political issue as other people rode on the unfortunate situation and we know the knock-on effect that situation had on our economy.

“As if they are schoolboys experimenting on a new substance, the two ministers are watching the situation from their comfort zones as if the closure of Mopani is a small issue. To add salt to injury, Mr. Mabumba even had the audacity to tell Mopani to just pay the new tariffs and to us, this is carelessness of the highest order from the ministers and we demand that they resign on moral grounds because they have failed,” Mr. Musoma said.