12 November 2009
editorial
THE looting and destruction of property by striking KCM miners in Chingola yesterday were misplaced acts, which will not yield the desired results.
The rampaging miners lost their cool and fair judgement as they engaged in destructive acts at the time mine management and the unions are yet to conclude negotiations for better salaries and conditions of service.
Mind-boggling is the fact that the miners stormed Nchanga Trust School where they disrupted grade 12 examinations when the pupils, who could be their children, had nothing to do with their grievances.
Even after police dispersed them, the miners, who naturally should have by then realised their mission was illegal, went on to destroy two trucks and two other vehicles belonging to a contractor engaged to erect housing units meant to alleviate their own accommodation problems.
We urge police to investigate the rioting thoroughly because the pattern in which the destruction was carried out, indicates that it was influenced by overtones from the miners' union leaders.
For how could the strike degenerate into large-scale violence a few days after a Mineworkers Union of Zambia (MUZ) senior official issued a statement denouncing President Rupiah Banda over miners' welfare?
Union representatives are expected to guide their members on how to air their grievances.
In particular, labour leaders should educate workers on the provisions of the Industrial and Labour Relations Act and what their constitution says.
The union representatives should avail adequate information about their discussions with management at appropriate intervals without pre-emptying the final contents of the agreement.
It is also the duty of the labour leaders to initiate education programmes, such as workshops, to enable their members to understand labour laws and regulations.
It is unacceptable and embarrassing for parents to have misconducted themselves in the manner they did, even if they had a genuine cause.
The level of destruction and loss of man hours should be compensated either through surcharge or other means while law enforcement officers should prosecute the suspects to avoid recurrence of ugly and uncalled for acts.
While the Government is working hard to attract sustainable investment, other elements are working to undo development initiatives. They should be dealt with ruthlessly!
Be the first to Write a Comment!
Copyright © 2009 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.
