By Francis Chipalo
Democratic Union president, Ackim Antony Njobvu, has criticized the government for prioritizing the passage of Constitution Amendment Bill No. 7 over paying farmers who supplied maize to the Food Reserve Agency (FRA).
The government has however attributed the delay in payments to bureaucratic processes by commercial banks, claims refuted by the Bankers Association of Zambia.
And Patriots for Economic Progress (PeP) leader, Sean Tembo, has requested clarification from President Hakainde Hichilema on why the government borrowed K5 billion to pay farmers when the total amount owed was K3.7 billion.
Tembo also questions why farmers haven’t been paid despite the maize being sold to the Democratic Republic of Congo and Malawi for cash.
Meanwhile, president Njobvu of the Democratic Union says the lack of priority by the UPND government is saddening.
“This is what happens when you have a government that does not care for its people, except for themselves. I am made to conclude that they used money meant to pay our farmers to fund their Bill 7,” Njobvu said during, an interview on KBN TV.
Njobvu further says farmers are now in panic mode as they do not know when they would get their money for maize supplied to the FRA following inconsistencies in government position by agriculture minister Reuben Mtolo Phiri.
Njobvu has since challenged the minister to tell the nation the truth on why farmers have not yet been paid.
“We cannot be playing politics at the expense of our farmers who are crucial in ensuring that Zambia is food secure. The rains are here and our famers have nothing to plant. This government is not serious at all and should be kicked out sooner than later,” he added.
