MATERO PF member of parliament Miles Sampa says the 2022 budget is on the verge of collapse, because the expenditure side has outweighed the actualised revenues for the first quarter.

In a statement, Tuesday, Sampa said as long as the government was failing to tax mines, the Zambian people would remain in poverty.

“I think the 2022 Budget was the best ever pronounced (verbal declaration) in the history of Zambia. It is however at the verge of collapse post Q1 (January to March) as the Expenditure side has far outweighed anticipated and actualized revenues. This more so given that the bigger income lines heavily depended on external loans. One wishes ZRA and MOF well on this avenue. My take before and now. For as long as we don’t tax our Mines fairly and we don’t know what is underground, dug out and exported, our people shall remain in poverty while our minerals are being used to develop the west,” he said.

“In 2012 while at MOF, I coined the S1 55 that would have sealed all revenue leakages and tricks from our mines. Lobbyists and economic mercenaries got it reversed. Only when a similar legislation is re-introduced shall Zambia get something for its people out of the God given massive Copper deposits beneath. Concessions to allow the ‘mines to expand production’ is a dream while mine owners mint and maximize the externalizing of Copper funds untaxed. As it is, We just have to wait for them (mine owners) to feel sorry for us and decide to declare a bit of profits so we can get a bit of our money.”

He said unless the country adopted home grown economic solutions, it was bound to remain a “weeping” nation.

“I can predict that despite the current surge in Copper prices ($10,350/mt), all the foreign owned mines in Zambia will have their end of year profit and loss statements show huge losses. Their new opportunistic reason will be the Ukraine Russia war despite not selling our copper to either nation. Until we implement and not just pronounce the ‘home grown economic solutions’ we bound to remain a ‘weeping’ nation in the world we were and still being told is ‘Global’. Posted for the records and reference end of this year, next year and many years after,” said Sampa.