PRIOR to the 2021 general elections, Zambians were told by the then opposition political party UPND that the price of mealie meal was too high for the country.
The UPND then promised that upon getting into power, mealie meal prices would be reduced but the opposite has happened as many Zambians are not able to afford a bag of mealie meal.
This has led to Zambians questioning the current regime over their promises.
In response to these questions, the UPND through its consultant Mark Simuuwe stated that Government cannot fulfill all the promises it made at once noting that the administration has a checklist to follow.
Simuuwe stated that Government was now contemplating reducing the price of mealie meal.
“Watch the space, Government is now contemplating on reducing the price of mealie meal further only when we have enough stock which we can produce ourselves. So we are monitoring the winter maize so we know the way forward. As a way of responding to the drought we are also providing the remedy through irrigation,” said Simuuwe.
“We can’t fulfill all the promises at the same time we have a checklist. We need to meet the demand for fertilizer so we are not going to cry over spilled milk. We have also earmarked 17, 000 farmers to give them irrigation equipment.”
When asked if President Hakainde Hichilema’s trip to China would put an end to load shedding, the consultant stated that load shedding would definitely come to an end but was not a process that would take a day to end.
“When deals are made, the next thing is the feasibility study. They have to conduct a feasibility study and then move on site. Those that do project management do understand. It’s not a process which takes place the same day where you simply switch on, no,” he revealed.
By Catherine Pule
Kalemba,September 10, 2024