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MINES Minister Paul Kabuswe has slammed critics of the Mopani Copper Mines take over by IRH saying the move is aimed at improving the lives of thousands of miners whose lives were in limbo.
Mr. Kabuswe told The Scoop that the move was the best for Mopani and that he was sure that IRH would not disappoint.
He said it was unfortunate that people were still trying to create negative perspectives about the takeover even when they knew that the Government was trying to improve their livelihoods.
Quizzed on the calls for the Government to facilitate the takeover of Mopani by locals, Mr. Kabuswe said he would not delve in such matters because the deal was already done.
“People should not listen to critics who do not mean well for the country because the Government had assessed the investor and was confident they were up to task,” he said.
He said that the Copperbelt was now going to be revamped because the New Dawn Government would ensure that the mining towns were back on their feet.
He said that it was too late for the naysayers because the handover had now been concluded and what was just remaining was production, adding that the Government would continue to improve the livelihoods of Zambians despite receiving unnecessary criticism.
Meanwhile Kankoyo Member of Parliament HeartsonMabeta said the shareholders at Mopani given up 51% to IRH so that IRH could start injecting fresh capital to a tune of US$1.1 billion into Mopani.
He said the official handover of Mopani to IRH a subsidiary company to IRC would be done on tomorrow and that the firm had mobilised US$240 billion for investment in Africa and Middle East.
“This is a game changer for the people on the Copperbelt who have been in limbo as they did not know the way forward but the New Dawn Government has shown the way,” Mr. Mabeta said.
THE Mine Workers Union of Zambia (MUZ) should help the Government find a local consortium that will run Mopani Copper Mines rather than opting for foreigners, Zambia Republican Party (ZRP) president Wright Musoma has said.
Mr. Musoma in an interview indicated that the country had enough brain power that could competently run Mopani and that all they just needed was to be given a chance.
He said the Government needed to take a bold decision and ensure that they roped in locals that had the capabilities to run the mine, adding that the problem was that the Government did not have confidence in the locals who were both educated and competent to effectively run the mine.
“I just want to urge the Government to take the bold step of engaging MUZ so that they can identify a local consortium or even individuals that will run Mopani because I am very sure that the country has highly qualified individuals,” Mr. Musoma said.
He said that time and again foreign owned entities have proved to be evasive and that it was only prudent for the Government to learn from past experiences.
He said the UPND Government needed to seriously engage entities like Zambia Consolidated Copper Mines – Investment Holdings (ZCCM-IH) to pin-point credible individuals and even firms that could run the mine.
He said that there was nothing special or hard with locals running the mine as what was just needed was dedication and patriotism adding that the previous regime managed to operate the mine after Glencore ditched Mopani and managed to stay afloat despite the various challenges.
“Mopani was in the past run by Zambians after the Glencore debacle, so I feel this Government should be able to take notes and see how best they can run the mine,” he said.
He said there were a number of benefits that would come as a result of the Government running Mopani compared to foreigners because resources in most cases were externalized.
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