As we have consistently been warning, our country’s economy has collapsed.

And one didn’t need to be an economic expert to foresee the consequences of the irrational path that was being pursued by our rulers – unbridled borrowing and irrational expenditure.

All the advice given to them – even by the World Bank, the International Monetary Fund and their other multilateral and bilateral partners – was ignored and arrogantly scoffed at.

Today they are like soaked chickens – humbled by the reality they can’t ignore or conceal and do not know how to resolve.

We are clearly headed for very serious economic challenges. Our economy is shrinking at a frightening rate.

Next year’s budget has been reduced by 47 per cent. This means that the 2021 budget will only be K56,180 bn. The government’s wage bill was K25,601bn at the beginning of this year. And debt repayment was K33.726bn. This gives us a total of K59,327bn – which is K3,149bn more than our 2021 budget.

This means that without very serious down sizing, retrenchments or massive
international assistance, government will only barely manage to service the debt and pay salaries in 2021 and nothing else.

What does this mean for the Zambian people, especially the poor? More suffering, more agony, more poverty, more despair!

Zambians have no sensible alternative but revolutionary change if they have to harbour any hope of a reversal of fortunes. And only a revolutionary party – the Socialist Party – with a revolutionary programme can deliver the nation out of this hell.

Issued by Fred M’membe, President of the Socialist Party

Mwika Royal Village, Chinsali

September 4, 2020