By Isaac Zulu
Mwenya Musenge claims that if given an opportunity to form government, his new party would ensure that every Zambian has at least one decent meal per day.
Musenge said he has formed a political party, Advocates for People’s Prosperity (APP) whose focus he says is to address the high poverty levels in the country, saying the promise for every Zambian to eat one egg per day has not been realized.
“It is government’s responsibility to look at the welfare of vulnerable people in society. Government has money to execute this responsibility, it’s just that there’s financial mismanagement and misplacement of priorities. And because of that the vision of every Zambian eating one egg per day has not been realised. And if given the opportunity to be in government APP would ensure that citizens have at least one decent and nutritious meal, even in the midst of high unemployment levels. It is a fact that people are dying due to lack of food and from diseases.”
He also argued that most people that are running sustainable businesses are foreigners, which he said “has led to huge sums of money being externalised.”
Musenge said that government should formulate a policy or legal framework that would compel foreign investors to partner with the locals in running sustainable businesses.
“I can tell you that 80 per cent of people who are running well established and sustainable businesses in the country are foreign investors. The Somalians are now the ones operating oil marketing companies in Zambia. The Rwandees are running supermarkets all over the country and have now gone in the distribution of beverages for Zambian Breweries. You go to Chachacha road, most of those shopping malls belong to Kenyans who are bringing products from Kenya to sell in Zambia. The Lebanese and the Chinese are the ones running block making plants. And because of that huge sums of money are being externalized,” Musenge explained. “In future we will might come to realise that this country we proudly say is our own is no longer in our hands. Government should come up with a policy or Act of Parliament that will compel foreign investors to partner with Zambians in the running of businesses. If it means 50/50 percent, let it be so.”
And when asked how different the Advocates for People’s Prosperity from other opposition political parties, Musenge said that the APP would always engage in issue based politics anchored on objectivity.
“We are not coming on board to engage in politics of insults, mudslinging, character assassination and name calling. We will engage in issue based politics. We want to be objective in all that we do,” said Musenge.
And Advocates for People’s Prosperity interim secretary general Felix Bwalya said that the APP would soon embark on a countrywide mobilisation exercise aimed at popularising the party manifesto and recruitment of new members.
He said that this will be done after the official launch of the Advocates for People’s Prosperity within the next few weeks.
