The Immigration Department has urged members of the public to stop keeping illegal immigrants in their homes because these were a threat to national security.

Immigration Department Director General Moola Milomo told ZANIS in Lusaka today that his department was putting in place measures of ensuring that all illegal immigrants were brought to book.

Mr. Milomo observed that it was undisputable that the rising number of crime is linked to illegal immigrants whose businesses were not clearly known.

He regretted that some Zambians were in a habit of only reporting matters of illegal immigrants in their community when their business deals with foreigners fail to work out.

He said this month, the department carried out a number of operations with the recent one being the one where 51 Ethiopian illegal immigrants were arrested in Kabwe.

Mr. Milomo further stated that last week on Friday, the department arrested eight Egyptians who were illegally staying in Bauleni compound in a one roomed house.

He appealed to patriotic Zambians to help the department to deal with the problem of illegal immigrants because on its own, it cannot manage to bring sanity in the country.

He added that there was need for the community to be involved by reporting any suspicious looking residents to relevant authorities.

Mr. Milomo expressed sadness that some Zambians were also supporting illegal immigrants by giving them jobs when they do not have documents that permit them to work in the country.

He said despite the SADC region supporting cross border trade, there was need to find ways of conducting businesses in a common place so that the security of the country is not infringed on.

He added that the department has plans to meet the Cross Border Association for the region to find ways of creating a trading avenue such as COMESA.

Mr. Milomo further stated that the department has since January this year managed to prosecute 213 cases of illegal immigrants involving human trafficking, which saw three vehicles being forfeited to the state.

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The Ministry of Local Government and Housing has released a total of Kr1.6million (K1.6 billion) to Livingstone City Council towards the rehabilitation of the civic centre and the public library as the city prepares for the United Nations Tourism Organisation (UNWTO) conference.

The conference will be co-hosted by Victoria Falls town in Zimbabwe from 24^th to 29^th August, 2013.

Local Government and Housing Permanent Secretary Chileshe Mulenga said government was committed to successfully host the UNWTO conference hence its funding to Livingstone City Council to supplement its efforts.

In a statement issued to ZANIS in Lusaka today, Dr. Mulenga hoped that the financial support from government to the council will greatly help to alleviate financial gaps in the implementation of capital projects the council has embarked on to beautify the city.

He has since advised the council to ensure that the capital projects were undertaken and completed before the conference begins especially with the financial support from government.

The post Livingstone city council gets Kr1.6 million to beautify the city appeared first on Zambia News | Lusaka Voice.

by mitia on 6/27/13

By MAYA NTANDA -
A THIRTY-SEVEN-year-old man has been arrested for allegedly murdering his 50-year-old wife after a drinking spree.
Dickson Jopela of Lima Farm, Misaka B5 in Kamfinsa area is alleged to have murdered Justina Mukolo on Wednesday.
Copperbelt police commissioner Mary Tembo confirmed the incident and explained that Jopela went on a drinking spree with his wife around 14:00 hours and around 19:00 hours, the couple was escorted half way to their house by the deceased’s brothers.
Ms Tembo said around 06:00 hours yesterday the deceased’s brother-in-law named as Joe Zulu discovered Ms Mukolo’s body on the road side, 800 metres from the Kitwe-Ndola dual carriageway.
Mr Zulu informed other relatives and the deceased’s husband who was found sleeping in his house and showed no surprise over the death of his wife.
“Kitwe Central Police went to the scene and found the body of Ms Mukolo and on close observation, the body had no visible signs of injury apart from a slight bruise on the left side of the leg below the knee,” she said.
Jopela is currently detained in police custody while the body of the deceased is in Kitwe Central Hospital mortuary awaiting postmortem to ascertain the cause of death.
And police have launched a manhunt for two suspected dangerous criminals who robbed five people at Kasumbalesa border yesterday.
The suspected criminals armed with AK47 rifles robbed five people of various amounts of money and shot a Mr Teddy Lubansa in the leg.
The incide

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ly-mail.co.zm” class=”f”>Zambia Daily Mail by Online Editor on 6/28/13

Former US President George Bush arrived in Livingstone yesterday for a private visit. Above, from left, former US First Lady Laura Bush, Southern Province permanent secretary Bernard Namachila, Mr Bush and Livingstone Town Clerk Vivian Chikoti. – Picture by NANCY MWAPE.

By NANCY MWAPE
FORMER United States President George Bush and his wife Laura have arrived in Livingstone on a private visit to support the Pink and Red Ribbon campaign on curbing deaths among women resulting from cervical and breast cancer.
The couple arrived in Livingstone to continue their commitment to helping people in Africa through their global health initiative at the George W Bush Institute.
The couple was welcomed by Livingstone Town Clerk Vivian Chikoti, Southern Province permanent secretary Bernard Namachila and other senior government officials, American officials and a cultural dance troupe.
Cervical cancer and breast cancer are the two leading causes of death among women in the world.
While in Livingstone, Mr Bush and his team will work with Zambian officials, US Embassy officials, volunteers and staff from the Bush Institute to renovate a health clinic in the tourist capital.
It is hoped that this will strengthen Zambia’s ability to detect and treat cervical cancer.
Work on the Mosi-oa-Tunya Clinic began this week.  It is being done by volunteers from Dallas and a group of students from Southern Methodist University in Dallas, Texas, where the George W Bush Presidential Centre is located.
This is the second time President Bush and his wife are in Zambia for this purpose.
Last year in July, they renovated and opened the Ngungu Health Centre in Kabwe, which is now one of the busiest in Zambia.
Many health workers have been trained and are serving at 10 new “screen and treat” health facilities, eight of which offer procedures of diagnosing and early treatment invasion of cancers.
With the launch of the Pink and Red Ribbon initiative in Zambia in December 2011, more than 40,000 Zambian women have been screened for cervical cancer.
The goal of the Pink and Red Ribbon campaign is to reduce deaths from cervical cancer by an estimated 25 percent among women screened and treated through the initiative.
Zambia’s First Lady, Christine Kaseba-Sata, a practising obstetrician and gynecologist, helped launch the Pink and Red Ribbon  Initiative.
The initiative is further aimed at significantly increasing access to breast and cervical cancer prevention, screening and treatment to create innovative models that can be scaled up and used globally.
In Zambia, the Pink and Red Ribbon campaign is an innovative partnership involving the US President’s Emergency Plan For AIDS (PEPFAR), the George Bush Institute, the Zambian Government, the Susan Komen for the Cure, the Joint United Nations Programme on HIV/AIDS as well as corporate and non-government partners.
Mrs Bush will also visit the Nsongwe Women Farmers Association, which has been funded by the United States Agency for International Development (USAID) to produce vegetables.
The Nsongwe Women’s Association has 23 members who have 121 dependants.  Prior to the establishment of the association, there was little or no economic activity in the area.

ss=”f”>Zambia Daily Mail by Online Editor on 6/28/13

By TEDDY KUYELA
GOVERNMENT says it will seek further tests abroad to establish whether imported Zambeef products that have since been pulled out of shelves can be consumed.
Minister of Health Joseph Kasonde said Government will decide what action to take once the results are in  its (Government’s) hands.
Dr Kasonde was speaking in a ministerial statement in Parliament yesterday following a request for a statement on the matter.
Last week, Zambeef obeyed a Government order to recall all its imported offals that were trucked in frozen below 18 degrees after some concerns were raised.
Francis Grogan, the company chief executive officer, told the Daily Mail in an exclusive interview that the company is now trading solely in local beef products in line with a government directive.
Dr Kasonde said in this regard, Government has since sent all imported Zambeef meat products to the Regional Food Safety laboratories in South Africa to ascertain the levels of contamination of the chemical on the meat products.
He said Government will examine some Consumer Competition Protection Commission concerns about Zambeef products.
Zambeef employs directly, some 5,500 people making it the largest employer in Zambia after the mines and the public service.
It is listed on the London Stock Exchange (AIM) and has been extolled as flag-carrier by the influential Economist magazine.
It is Zambia’s largest agri-business company that has subsidiaries in Ghana and Nigeria.

Residents of Mpulungu have questioned the procedure being employed by the Citizens Economic Empowerment Commission (CEEC) in selecting applicants for business loans to boost the fishing industry in the area.

The concerned residents have accused the commission of going against promises made on how the loans would be granted to citizens.

CEEC Director General, likandoMukumbuta, could not be reached for comment by press time as he was said to be locked up in a meeting whilst his mobile phone was off.

The complaints came after rumours that the commission had on Monday summoned five   loan applicants from Mpulungu whose applications were said to have been approved out of the over 400 applicants.

Mpulungu District Loafers’ Association Secretary, Peter Sikazwe, said many applicants had been left with a lot of questions because the commission was allegedly going against its promises.

‘’We have information that only five people were called to Kasama and given acceptance letters after which they were told to develop business plans……but the procedure was that after the selection, a final list of those to be chosen was going to be stack at the notice board at the civic centre for transparency. So, why is there a sudden change?’’ Mr Sikazwe asked.

Mr Sikazwe wondered what type of citizens’ empowerment the commission was talking about if only five people could be picked out of over 400 applicants.

‘’There is a lot of unemployment around here, especially among the youths and women, and the soft loans could have helped the youths and boost the fishing industry in a way….Now if they pick just five, who is going to finish the KR 3 million?…Let us have some answers from the commission,’’ said Mr Sikazwe.

Sikazwe said the feelings of residents were that the ‘new CEEC’ would not be manipulated as was the case during the MMD government, saying the issue was serious and could make the PF government unpopular, especially among the youths and women.

And some of the beneficiaries spoken to said they were equally surprised by the ‘sudden secrecy’ by the commission, saying they only received phone calls to collect their acceptance letters in Kasama.

‘’It was a pleasant surprise! We were just called to Kasama and given the acceptance letters and we were told to engage people to develop our business plans even when the commission had promised to engage Business Plan Developers (BPDs) on behalf of citizens and they emphasized to keep this as confidential as possible. We also suspect that things are not well here, ‘’ said one beneficiary.

On March 13, 2013, CEEC Director General, Likando Mukumbuta, addressed Mpulungu residents where he explained that the commission had set aside KR 3million to give out as business loans to eligible citizens for investment in the fishing industry in Mpulungu.

‘’Zambia is among the top 20 countries in the world with abundant natural resources……but, sadly, our nation is also among the top 20 poorest countries in the world! So the government has said enough with the poverty, it’s time to empower the citizens,’’ Mukumbuta had stated.

He said the ‘new CEEC’ would strive to empower as many citizens as possible especially the youth, women and disabled.

‘’For Northern Province alone, we will give KR 3 million each for Mpulungu, Mungwi and Kasama to support citizens go into areas of fishing, groundnuts production and soya bean growing respectively….40 per cent of these monies will go to the youth, 30 per cent women, 20 per cent to support the disabled/physically challenged while the men will share the 10 per cent in each district,’’ Mr Mukumbuta said.

Mr Mukumbuta advised people to apply for the loans in line with the industrial clusters identified in each district.

He said the commission would only fund the districts for 2013 after which they would move to other districts the following year (2014).

By  April, 15, 2013, the deadline for submission of applications, over 400 Mpulungu residents had pushed in their applications for the business loans.

The post Mpulungu residents question CEEC application procedure appeared first on Zambia News | Lusaka Voice.

—Government has commended the Zambia National Broadcasting Corporation (ZNBC) for upgrading television signals across the country.

Information and Broadcasting Services Deputy Minister, Mwansa Kapeya, says President Michael Sata is worried with the poor television signal that most parts of the country, especially rural areas, have been receiving.

Mr Kapeya said President Sata is highly passionate about the effective dissemination of information to the citizenry and hence wants to see improved delivery of information for people to make sound judgment on matters of national interest.

The Information Deputy Minister said the President wants people to be made aware of what government is doing and that is why he has directed the ministry to see to it that there is improved delivery and quality of information.

He was speaking in Luangwa district after touring the ZNBC transmitter in the area.

Mr Kapeya said his ministry will, therefore, spare no effort to ensure that the quality of picture that citizens are receiving is of the highest quality.

And ZNBC Principal Engineer for Southern region, James Phiri, said the national broadcaster will this week install a 3.7 meter receiving dish in Luangwa district in order to improve the television reception in the area.

Mr Phiri said the equipment has already been procured and the team that will install the dish will be in the area after the long weekend.

Meanwhile, Luangwa District Commissioner, Eunie Mumba, thanked government for improving television signal in the area.

Mr Mumba lamented that Luangwa residents have been deprived of news and current affairs because of the poor picture quality that it has been receiving.

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class=”f”>Zambia Daily Mail by Online Editor on 6/29/13

NELSON Mailoni

By CHAMBO NG’UNI
THE notorious Mailoni brothers have been buried at a secret location in Kabwe, a senior government official revealed yesterday.
The blood-thirsty brothers have been buried in a manner that befitted them (as criminals), said Kabwe district commissioner Patrick Chishala at a media briefing yesterday.
Mika Mailoni, 35, Stephen Mailoni, 31, and their ring leader Fabian ‘Tunda’ Mailoni, 27, murdered at least 12 people since 2007 using bows and arrows.
“I want to inform the nation that the infamous Mailoni brothers, who were killed on Monday June 24 around 15:00 hours, have since been buried here in Kabwe,” Mr Chishala said. “We have accorded them a burial befitting their status as criminals, they murdered more than 12 people in the interior of Luano Valley.”
Mr Chishala said the burial arrangements for the trio were made at a meeting also attended by their mother Janet, their brother Nelson and some members of security and defence wings.
During the meeting, Mrs Mailoni and Nelson agreed in principle that they would not attend the burial because they had already viewed the trio’s bodies and they only wanted government to help them with the burial.
Mr Chishala said the burial took place on Friday between 17:00 hours and 18:00 hours at a location he did not disclose.
Mum, bro shun Mailonis burial
“This means that the chapter about the three Mailoni brothers is now closed”, Mr Chishala said.
“It was a quiet arrangement because we didn’t want to attract the attention of the public,” Mr Chishala said.
He urged people who had fled Chief Chembe’s area to return to the area.
“As for the government, I want to mention that since Luano Valley is under the new district, Luano, we will ensure that development reaches this area and the officers who will go there will work freely without any disturbances,” Mr Chishala said.
He called on the people of Luano and other people not to demonise Mrs Mailoni and her remaining children for the “sins of others” because they were also victims of the trio.
He said they should be accepted and helped to live normal lives.
Mr Chishala also took a swipe at some human rights organisations which are condemning the gunning down of the Mailoni brothers, saying they should also take into account the number of people who died at their hands and the terror they caused in Luano Valley.

The post Mum, bro shun Mailonis burial appeared first on Zambia News | Lusaka Voice.

zm” class=”f”>Zambia Daily Mail by Online Editor on 6/29/13

ZAMBIA Information and Communication Technology Authority director for support services Mofya Chisala (right) receiving the chairman’s award from Minister of Commerce, Trade and Industry Emmanuel Chenda at the Zambia International Trade Fair in Ndola yesterday. – Picture AGGREY BANDA.

By JERRY MUNTHALI
PRESIDENT Sata says Government is determined to promote high levels of investment in value addition to trigger increased trade of goods and services.
Speaking during the official opening of the 49th Zambia International Trade Fair in Ndola yesterday, Mr Sata said in a speech read for him by Minister of Commerce, Trade and Industry Emmanuel Chenda that it is Government’s desire to promote a variety of linkages in the economy such as technology transfer, human capital formation, creation of new industries and greater integration into the global economy.
“I, therefore, wish to challenge Zambians, especially our youth, to become innovative in business and contribute to the development of the economy,” Mr Sata said.
He said in a changing world, Zambia cannot be complacent about future success.
“As the global economy recovers from the worst crisis in many years, value addition to our natural resources is crucial to achieving sustainable and balanced economic growth and employment creation,” Mr Sata said
The President commended Zambian enterprises that are producing quality products and setting up new businesses outside the country.
He also said the theme for this year’s trade fair ‘Value addition through global partnerships’ is timely because it comes at a time when Zambia and other African economies continue to depend on commodity production and exports.
Mr Sata said his administration is committed to creating an enabling environment for continued and strengthened global partnerships in areas of finance, investment, trade and technology.
“Bringing about economic transformation through value addition requires concerted efforts. Ensuring that Zambia is fully integrated into the global economy is central to my Government’s policy of driving growth and poverty reduction  as well as diversifying the economy as much as possible away from supplying natural resources,” Mr Sata said.
He also said he is impressed with the range of products and great potential for value addition that micro, small and medium-scale entrepreneurs are offering at the trade fair.
“I would like to encourage them to continue using their drive and passion to grow,” Mr Sata said.
He also said he is aware of the challenges that the trade fair is facing and called on the board, management and exhibitors to double their efforts in redeveloping infrastructure and showcasing the latest innovations in products and services.
ZITF chairman Emmanuel Hachipuka said the trade fair can draw valuable lessons from the Zimbabwe Trade Fair.
“The Zimbabwe Trade Fair does have better infrastructure than ours and their local participation both from public and private institutions is significant. We need to upgrade the infrastructure to that of other comparative countries both in the region and beyond. We need to bring all inside roads and the boundary road to bituminous standards,” Mr Hachipuka said
He also said Government’s support to international trade fairs is not unique to Zimbabwe but is common practice in many developed and developing countries.
“We will be forwarding a report through our ministry on our findings and recommendations,” Mr Hachipuka said.
He said although the number of companies exhibiting at this year’s trade fair is less than last year’s.
Mr Hachipuka also said ZITF intends to restructure the trade fair and Mukuba Hotel so that they can operate as a single entity under Zambia Industrial and Commercial Show Society.
He said there is great need to make a meaningful investment into the Zambia Industrial and Commercial Show Society, which at the moment has more liabilities than assets.
The Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) won the best international exhibitor award while South Africa was second best followed by Kenya.
Power supply company, Zesco scooped the best overall exhibitor award while Zambia Sugar Company won the second prize.
Copperbelt University (CBU) won the best interpretation of the theme award.

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lass=”f”>Zambia Daily Mail by Online Editor on 6/29/13

By CHARLES MUSONDA
FORMER President Rupiah Banda has for the third time failed to travel out of Zambia, this time to Tanzania for the Global 2013 Smart Partnership dialogue after State agencies could not release his passport on Friday.
This followed a latest court order allowing him to be out of the country for four days.
On Thursday Lusaka High Court judge Anesi Banda-Bobo ordered the State to release Mr Banda’s passport after the former president filed inter parte summons to vary bond conditions, and for an order for release of the passport pursuant to Section 126(3) of the Criminal Procedure Court.
Justice Banda-Bobo’s ruling read: “The application to vary bail conditions is hereby granted, and the State is directed to release the passport to enable the applicant (Banda) to travel to Tanzania from 28th June to 2nd July, 2013.  The passport is to be released into the custody of Mikatazo Wakumelo, one of the sureties who shall accompany him so that he surrenders the passport immediately upon return to the State.
“The government joint investigative team (GJIT) is ordered to release the passport for a period of four days only, from 28th June to 2nd July, 2013.”
But yesterday, Mr Wakumelo, who is also administrative secretary in the Office of the Fourth President, told the Sunday Mail that the passport has not been released.
“We are not travelling because the passport has not been released. He was supposed to travel yesterday [Friday] but when I went to the government joint investigative team, they told me to go to the Registrar General where I was told to go to the Chief Passports Officer. There I was told to go to the Ministry of Home Affairs but the permanent secretary [Willies Manjimela] was not there in the afternoon.
“So we are not travelling. We have not been given the passport and the former President won’t travel to Tanzania,” Mr Wakumelo said.
Last week the government cancelled Mr Banda’s passport because of the on-going investigations against him.
In her ruling, Mrs Justice Banda-Bobo noted that Mr Banda is a former President of Zambia and has roots embedded in the country as he deposed that he has properties.
“He has young children in Zambia. He has, on the basis of the above, not struck me as a flight risk. Further; the invitation is from a serving head of state of Tanzania [Jakaya Kikwete] who is hosting the Global 2013 Smart Partnership dialogue.
“According to the letter of invitation, the dialogue, being what it is, requires personal participation of the applicant. The applicant is on bail. All he is asking for is the variation of the bail conditions by the release of his passport..,” Mrs Justice Banda-Bobo said.
She said she has taken cognisance of the fact that even though Mr Banda is seeking variation by the release of his passport, the holding onto the passport by the GJIT was not one of the bail/bond conditions, the fact which was not disputed by the State.
This is the third time Mr Banda has been blocked from flying out of the country. In June this year, immigrations officers stopped him from leaving for South Africa to attend the 2013 African Presidential Roundtable at the invitation of the Boston University African Presidential Centre.
He has since commenced contempt of court proceedings against the immigration officers, contending that they acted against the court order that allowed him to travel out of the country.
Earlier in April 2013, Mr Banda was stopped from attending the inauguration of Kenya President Uhuru Kenyatta.

The post RB denied access to passport appeared first on Zambia News | Lusaka Voice.

of Zambia by mitia on 6/30/13

LAST week saw one of Zambia’s sensational ‘gospel’ singers and rapper perform at the controversial African reality show, Big Brother Africa, eviction live show.
The move that Chaka Nyathando, aka Pompi, took to go and entertain more than three million viewers that watched the live show had many people talking.
Big Brother Africa reality show is one of the most watched in Africa and is rated 18for language, nudity and sometimes scenes of sex leaked on the Internet.
Many people have condemned the show, saying it is immoral.
The social media had Pompi’s name trending as users engaged in heated debates on the decision that Pompi made to perform or rather “minister” to the viewers and not the housemates because they don’t watch what happens on that stage.
Pompi has enjoyed a good share of support from many youths as his righteous pursuit in music has attracted even people that don’t take spiritual matters seriously to know the Word of God.
His debut album Mizu (Roots) has sold a good number of copies while receiving good reviews even from this author.
Pompi’s live performances have also been superb with the recent one being at the Celebrate Africa concert where he shared the stage with South Africa Afro Jazz starlet Zahara at the new Government Complex in Lusaka.
The move to perform at the Big Brother Africa might be classified as another milestone in the artiste’s career as he excels in his music career having moved from secular to what he calls inspirational.
The music that Pompi does has been categorised as inspirational although many people think he does gospel but the singer, leaving no room for imperfection, said his music was inspirational.
There is a thin line between gospel and inspirational music with people always mixing the two in one – gospel.
But what does it mean for the singer to perform at such a controversial show?
Here is what Reverand Walter Mwambazi had to say on this:
“My take on Pompi’s performance in the Big Brother House…The best way to answer this question is to quote scripture instead…Philippians 1:17-18 (NKJV) 17 – but the latter out of love, knowing that I am appointed for the defence of the gospel. 18 – What then?
Only that, in every way, whether in pretence or in truth, Christ is preached; and in this I rejoice, yes, and will rejoice.
So there is a dust storm over this performance, and those of you who follow me know my take on such issues. However, the last time we spoke about this it turned so UGLY that I repented and prayed to God that we will maintain INTEGRITY in the Kingdom!
So, here’s the situation as it stands…
PROS (FOR)
A door was opened, a brave minister (Pompi) went and entertained the BBA show people and 30 million viewers and mentioned “Jesus” somewhere in the middle of all this. Perhaps a seed has been sown and someone may come to know Christ later (maybe even after the show – who knows)?
CONS (AGAINST)
This was a direct ENDORSEMENT of the show by a Christian artiste. The show is questionable, to say the least, and its participants are fame-seeking, self-glorifying individuals. An appearance by the likes of my brother further APPROVES and gives prominence of that show to a new audience (the church folk).
CONCLUSION
I am stumped. So I haven’t got one… Only that I am more leaned toward the AGAINST view above. I would never go on that show but like in the words of POMPI himself, “someone reached out to me this way, I am also gonna reach out to someone the same way”.
So I pray for him and that God may continue to guide him in his ministry, perhaps stepping into grounds I would never dare go myself.”
That’s what one of the men of God had to say. Mwambazi is known to speak critically on issues that border on Christian values and morals.
What is your take on Pompi’s performance at the Big Brother Africa live show?
For comments and contribution; email –

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In a historic move by the UK government, Britain has asked to hold a memorial service for former president Nelson Mandela at Westminster Abby when the time comes – the first for an African and non-British citizen.

The queen has also requested to attend such a memorial service should South Africa agree, reported the Sunday Independent.

According to the newspaper, Westminster Abbey officials have contacted South Africa with the request while acknowledging the sensitivity of the matter given that Mandela is still alive in hospital. It is understood the officials were motivated by a request from the queen.

Westminster Abbey has been the coronation church of the British monarch since 1066 and the resting place of 17 royals.

Duncan Jeffery, head of communications at Westminster Abbey, confirmed that the church has had preliminary discussions with the South African High Commission regarding such a service.

MORE  ON [SOURCE]

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—-The Unga people of Lunga district in Senior Chief Nsamba’s area have celebrated the second edition of the Musubila Mpemba traditional ceremony which is held every year on the last Saturday of the month of June.

Hundreds of people, mainly from Samfya, Mansa and nearby chiefdoms in the wetlands of Lake Bangweuru turned up at Nsama Primary School to celebrate Musubila Mpemba which took place yesterday.

And government has hailed the role of traditional and cultural ceremonies in the country and has since reaffirmed its full support to traditional ceremonies in the country.

The newly introduced Musubila Mpemba ceremony of the Unga people of the newly-created Lunga District was first held last year in remembering the wars the Unga people fought with the Bisa and Bemba before they could settle at the Island.

The ceremony has been introduce to also honour and worship the spirits of the ancestors of the Unga people for having guided their people to many successive wars with other tribes who wanted to invade and displace them from the island where they are currently settled.

On the eve of the ceremony, senior chief Nsamba, who is the host, and his fellow traditional leaders spend the night at the shrine at Musubilwa Mpemba river where they worship the spirits before emerging at the ceremony the following day in accompaniment of the Unga warriors armed with bows and arrows as they jeer and sing songs to signify that they are conquerors and owners of the land.

As they enter the main arena, where the ceremony is held, drums are sounded as women and men ululate and sing along with them as they demonstrate how they conquered the Bemba’s three times before they could finally displace them to the main land where they are currently settled.

Clad in white rob and special head gear made of various colours, Chief Nsama anoints his warriors amidst singing to appreciate them for winning the battle, an activity which also signifies the decrescendo
of the ceremony.

Local Government Minister, Emerine Kabanshi, was guest of honour at the ceremony and praised the Unga people and their traditional leadership for organizing and successfully holding the ceremony which attracted
hundreds of people from both the islands and the mainland.

Mrs Kabanshi noted that besides their economic importance, traditional ceremonies are also of great importance in teaching and shaping people’s morals and values that were left by ancestors.

She said the Patriotic Front Government is alive to that fact that traditional ceremonies are uniting factors in chiefdoms, hence the government’s resolve to support them.

The traditional ceremony was attended by 12 chiefs from Lunga District that included Senior Chief Mukoso, Senior Chief Mwewa, Senior Chief Kalima Nkonde, Chief Lunga, Chief Bwalya Mponda and Chief Mulongwe.

Others were Chief Chitembo, Chief Matanda, and Chief Chisamamba, the host, Chief Nsamba and several other sub-chiefs and village headmen from wetlands.

The post Unga people celebrate Musubila Mpemba appeared first on Zambia News | Lusaka Voice.

———A traditional ruler in Luano district in Central Province has appealed to government to take full responsibility of the construction of a school in his chiefdom.

Chief Kanyensha of the Swaka speaking people said once the Chitambo Shimoko Primary School in his area was constructed, it will carter for school children who were currently covering a distance of about 15km to the nearest school, Lusenfwa Hydro School.

He said he has already started the project with KR150, 000 from Mkushi South Constituency Development Fund (CDF) part of which went to pay the contractor while the other money would be spent on drilling a borehole.

The traditional leade said the area where the school is being built is surrounded by about 7, 000 families whose children are in dire need of education.

He explained that villagers had already started mobilising sand, stones and other required building materials and labour as their contribution towards the project.

Chief Kanyensha also appealed to government to consider constructing a secondary school in the newly established district, saying the only secondary school  from the   is Mkushi secondary school in Mkushi district which is far away.

He said Luano district was composed of six chiefdoms which include Senior Chief Mboroma, Chief Chikupili, Chief Chembe, Chief Kaundula, Chief Mbosha and himself who needed a secondary school.

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