11 December 2008
THE Zambia Congress of Trade Unions (ZCTU) has called for effective dialogue between the Government and opposition political parties saying the planned demonstrations by the Patriotic Front (PF) over the high mealie meal prices are not necessary.
Speaking during a Press briefing at Solidarity House in Kitwe yesterday, ZCTU acting secretary general, Ian Mkandawire said the union believed that inter-party dialogue was the only effective vehicle that could help deliver positive results for the majority of Zambians.
Mr Mkandawire said lack of dialogue among political parties had contributed to the rising political tension and intolerance among political parties, a situation that he said was threatening democracy and economic development.
He called on the Government to initiate the re-establishment of effective inter-party dialogue in order to curb unnecessary suspicions and instead promote an exchange of political and economic ideas.
"The planned demonstrations by the PF over high mealie meal prices are not necessary and as a congress, we are calling for effective dialogue between the Government and the opposition political parties.
"There are many social and economic problems confronting this country today such as shortage of fertiliser, the high cost of fuel and mealie meal, rising unemployment and shortage of electricity, which political parties should be discussing instead of focusing on petty and personal attacks," Mr Mkandawire said.
He said there was urgent need for the Government to put up cushioning measures against the rising cost of food and energy in Zambia, particularly in view of the current global economic meltdown whose full impact was yet to be felt.
Mr Mkandawire said the global economic recession had the potential to reverse the economic gains Zambia had made in the last 10 years and the Government should be engaging stakeholders in order to formulate strategies on how it would protect sectors that were under real threat from the downturn such as labour, manufacturing and mining industries, and the financial sector.
He also urged the Government to tighten laws against employers who took advantage of such economic crises to exploit vulnerable workers by using the threat of unemployment.
Mr Mkandawire said the labour movement was engaged in serious talks with mining companies to help mitigate the effects of the low copper prices and the current global economic recession.
Be the first to Write a Comment!
Copyright © 2008 The Times of Zambia. All rights reserved. Distributed by AllAfrica Global Media (allAfrica.com). To contact the copyright holder directly for corrections — or for permission to republish or make other authorized use of this material, click here.
AllAfrica aggregates and indexes content from over 125 African news organizations, plus more than 200 other sources, who are responsible for their own reporting and views. Articles and commentaries that identify allAfrica.com as the publisher are produced or commissioned by AllAfrica.
