By Isaac Zulu
Patriot Front national chairman Davies Chama has urged the UPND administration to apologise to the Zambian people for failing to distribute subsidised farming inputs on time.
And Chama charged that the distribution of farming inputs is being distributed on tribal and regional lines, saying this was the first time he was seeing such a thing happening.
Speaking with Daily Revelation, Chama said that the UPND government has placed a high premium on politics, as opposed to addressing the numerous challenges facing Zambians and delivering on their campaign promises.
He observed that Vice President Mutale Nalumango has been making assurances in Parliament that government will soon start distributing subsidised fertiliser to farmers, but todate those assurances have not materialised.
Chama said that the UPND government should not take the Zambian people for granted by giving empty promises to the citizens that gave them the mandate to govern.
“My brother the rains are with us and yet this UPND government is giving assurance after assurance on the distribution of subsidised farming inputs to small holder farmers. People will not eat assurances… they will need food,” Chama explained. “As a matter of fact, they should apologise to the Zambian people for failing to distribute fertiliser on time. They should admit that they did not plan properly. The problem with this government is that they have placed a high premium on politics than attending to the challenges facing Zambians and delivering on what they promised the people who gave them the mandate to govern.”
Chama said that the UPND administration has no excuse for failing to distribute farming inputs on time because they have been in government for more than a year and, as such, they should have done their home work.
“By this time farmers should have their seed and fertiliser in their homes and storage facilities had government done their home work. For the first farming season of them being in government we can forgive them because they found that the Patriot Front had done its home work. We had distributed farming inputs before the August 12, 2021 general elections. But for the 2022/2023 farming season they have no excuse for failing to honour their obligation as government because they have been in government for more than a year and they should have done their home work,” Chama said. “The challenge that they have is that they have no clue on governance. There is circus and chaos in whatever they are doing. The problem is that they over promised. Unfortunately it is now dawning on them that they will not be able to actualise most of the promises that they made before forming government. Lies have short legs.”
He predicted that the cost of mealie meal would be high in the next few months, saying what people are consuming is a carry over stock from the Patriot Front government.
“Brace yourselves for the high cost of mealie meal next year, in the next few months. What people are currently consuming is the carry over stock from what the Patriot Front government’s proper planning,” Chama said, who is also former defence minister.
And Chama has charged that the UPND administration is distributing subsidised farming inputs on “regionalism and tribal lines.”
“The information we are now getting is that they are now distributing subsidised fertiliser in selected regions. There is regionalism and tribalism in whatever they are doing. They are bringing tribalism in food production. I have never seen this before,” said Chama.
Efforts to get the position of government over the matter failed as the lines for both Agriculture minister Reuben Phiri’s line and that of UPND spokesperson Cornelius Mweetwa went unanswered.
