Rainbow party president Wynter Kabimba says it is unfortunate that some Cabinet Ministers are involved in the illegal cutting down and exportation of Mukula tree.

Speaking when he featured on ‘Environmental chat’ programme on Live radio, Kabimba also said the PF government is fond of making pronouncements which lack follow-up action.

“You cut down a small tree in London or in Washington DC, you will go to jail or you will have to pay a sum of US$3,000. And here we are allowing foreigners to come and cut down the Mukula tree and take it out to go and make profit. Sadly, even some of our Minister are involved in that saga. So how can such a Minister formulate good policy? A Minister who is in collaboration with a foreign businessman whom he know very well as Minister of this government that they are doing a de-service,” Kabimba said.

“They are plundering the resources of his/her country, and they have become business partners in order to make a profit by degrading the environment, by decimating the Mukula tree and hence bequeathing nothing to his or her children. How can a Minister like that be a responsible public officer? He/she cant! He is the problem that you have. There are others that have been able to offer bribes including some foreigners have been told ‘you can get your Mukula tree’ we know about this. This is what is creating a problem in our country, corruption, bribery by those that are in government.”

Asked to comment on how far the 7th National Development Plan which was recently launched by government had integrated the green issues in Zambia, Kabimba said he had not read the plan because it was merely one of the pronouncements by government which lacked follow ups.

“I must confess that I have not read the 7th National Development Plan. I didn’t see what the 6th Development Plan did, and what the 5th one did, and what the 4th did. So really its academic to read the 7th one. Because I know that there is no political will, that is important. Because I know that these are pronouncements made by the government without any follow up action. So it is one thing to make a pronouncement, dish out the document and another thing to be serious about the implementation of what is in that document. What is missing is action not words. Words tool much, we have got the words, but action, Kafwako, zero. Political will is predicated on nationalism and patriotism. You cant have political will where those in authority are not patriotic, and are not nationalistic,” said Kabimba.

“For example it is lack of patriotism for any Minister or government official to partner with a foreigner to decimate our natural resources. Capitalism is about consumerism. You cannot have capital where you have no consumers and vice versa. So this is insatiable appetite to consume, to accumulate; which is not in line with environmental protection.”