Christian Democratic Party leader, Pule, advocates scrapping of tax holidays to foreign mining firms

Christian Democratic Party (CDP) president, Danny Pule, has said lack of a clear mining policy continued to encourage a lot of illegal mining activities in the country.

Addressing a media briefing in Lusaka on Friday, Pule said this situation in most cases had favoured foreigners who were carrying out illegal mining activities.

He said people being offered mining licences were foreigners and Zambians with connection to those in government at the expense of other genuine Zambians.

“We note with concern that people to be or being offered mining licences are foreigners and Zambians with connections with those in government at the expense of other genuine Zambians,” Pule alleged.

Pule also called on government to scrap off tax holidays which have been granted to foreign mining investors in order for the country to generate the needed revenue for the already seriously stressed treasury.

He said tax holidays in the mining sector have had a negative impact on the economy as they only favoured multi-national companies while local businesses in the same sector are sidelined.

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Pule claimed that over US$600million was also being lost in tax holidays given to foreign mining firms which could help government in the debt service burden as well as providing the necessary revenue for investment.

“As Christian Democratic Party, we promise to remove tax holidays that the United Party for National Development (UPND) government has offered to the foreign mining investors,” he said.

Pule said Zambia was endowed with rich mineral wealth and government cannot afford to continue giving tax holidays because the country was losing the desired revenue which should contribute to the development of social sectors of the economy.

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