‘Reckless,’ Musonda claims govt decision on Konkola mines, a handout, not handover

James Musonda, a fierce critic of the United Party for National Development (UPND)’s mining policies says the decision to hand Vedanta Resources back to Konkola Copper Mine (KCM) is reckless.

“We knew all along that this government would hand KCM back to Vedanta. This is not a handover but a handout. This is going against its position while in the opposition,” Musonda said in a statement on Tuesday.

He accused the government of deliberately delaying the controversial handover of KCM to create enough hopelessness, anxiety, and uncertainty while presenting Vedanta as the only alternative.

Musonda said the aim, as he repeatedly argued, was to instigate calls for Vedanta’s return adding that the first organizations to concede were unions.

“Then came some churches and youths who apparently have been given wide coverage by the state media and attention by the government,” he said.

Musonda alleged the anti-Vedanta protestors have been ignored at all costs.

He claimed the decision was bad for Zambia and that the UPND government was responsible for burying the mining future for Zambia and handing it out to a foreigner who mocked the country for selling him a profitable mine cheaply.

“Vedanta retrenched thousands of workers, withdrew ZCCM social benefits for workers, introduced precarious subcontracting, refused to pay taxes and polluted the rivers while refusing responsibility,” Musonda said.

Zambia Monitor reported that Mines and Mineral Development Minister, Paul Kabuswe, announced in Lusaka on Tuesday the handing over of KCM to Vedanta.

Kabuswe indicated that Vedanta pledged to pump in US$1 billion in mine development in the next five years, pay local suppliers US$250 million, K2,500 to each employee one-off and a 20 percent salary hike across the board.

Mosonda is currently Senior Researcher in Energy Policy at the Institute for Economic Justice, Johannesburg and holds a PhD in Politics and Social Sciences from University of Liège, Belgium.

In 2021, he won the Terence Ranger Prize for his work on Zambian Copperbelt miners, and he is a former trade unionist.

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