Q FM Africa's Modern Radio
Government has been reminded to invest borrowed funds accrued from the latest issued Eurobond in areas that will deliver returns if repayment obligations are to be met.
UPND president Hakainde Hichilema has advised government to realize that such loans are only sustainable if and when they are invested wisely and not merely used to cover general expenditures.
Hakainde Hichilema
Mr. Hichilema finds it absurd that government is instead telling the people that the country is borrowing to finance consumption.
He notes that PF government is showing its lack of understanding in managing the economy by revealing that the latest Eurobond will be used to finance the 2016 budget.
Mr. Hichilema has told Qfm News in a statement that he thinks that the PF government must and should invest the Eurobond in productive sectors.
He states that a productive sector is a sector that has capacity to grow and pay taxes to government.
The UPND leader is of the view that presently Zambia needs to be investing in strategic areas that will create jobs and in programmes that provide business start-ups with access to finance, or training of community healthcare workers.
He has wondered why the PF government has not reorganized the Development Bank of Zambia to make it the conduit of industrial development.
Mr. Hichilema also thinks that if the Country can eliminate waste at the heart of government there will be no need to use this money to cover recurrent expenditures like the ones that are going to be spent on the newly created Ministries.
He notes that a great deal of money can be saved if the size of government is reduced, heavy Presidential travel schedules are limited, and by-elections are minimized or completely done away with.