UNZA PROFESSOR BACKS NEW MINE TAX REGIME

Copperbelt University School of Business associate Professor Biemba Maliti says government should derive maximum benefits for the people from the mining sector.
Professor Maliti says this is because mining is the mainstay of the Zambian economy.
He has since urged government not to be blackmailed by threats over possible job cuts once the proposed hike in mineral royalty tax is effected.
Professor Maliti was speaking in an interview with ZNBC news in Kitwe.
And mines minister Richard Musukwa has maintained that government will not fall prey to the arm twisting tactics by the mine owners following the proposed 2019 taxation regime for the extractive industry.
Mr. Musukwa says the chamber of mines has over the years objected any maneuvers by government to increase taxes with a cohesive and well calculated resistance plan portraying government as irresponsible and uncaring.
He told ZNBC news in a telephone interview that it is immoral and irregular for the chamber of Mines to dictate to government how they want to be taxed.
Government plans to increase mining royalties by 1.5 percentage points across the board but the Chamber of mines wants zero point five.
They also want government to increase cobalt royalty by zero-point five percentage points, rather than the government planned 8 percent.
The Chamber has also indicated that members will continue to review their operations and scaling back substantially while reducing capital expenditure by over a half billion dollars over the next three years.