By ALICE NACHILEMBE
Chingola Mayor Titus Tembo has made a recommendation to the Parliamentary committee on Labour and Social Security to come up with the deliberate policy to stop issuing work permits to expatriate doing jobs that can be done by Zambians.
Mr Tembo said the cry over expatriate doing jobs that can be done by Zambian is something that needs to be done on how work permits are issued to foreigners.
He said the people issuing those permit in Lusaka mean well but on the ground foreigners use them not for the intended purpose.
“We have even seen foreigners selling chickens and vegetables which is taking away the markets of our citizens. We are happy to have you in our district and hope to see the laws change for the betterment of our people,” he said.
The Mayor was speaking when the Parliamentary committee meeting at the Council Chamber where stakeholders complained over the way work permits are issued.
The complaint was that foreigners are doing jobs that can be done by Zambians while they remain unemployed.
The stakeholders urged the committee to go and sit and make laws that best benefits the Zambian community.
Zambia Congress of Trade Union Chingola Chairperson Aaron Mutondo made an appeal to the committee to consider the issue of giving even small jobs to foreigners.
He said that small jobs done by Zambians are given to foreigners especially in the mines where they are expatriates doing the same jobs Zambians are supposed to be doing.
“The foreigners mostly get paid at the Zambian workers expense while they continue to be doing jobs on training but getting huge salary than Zambian doing the same job.
And the parliamentary committee Chairperson Martin Malama said that it is everyone’s responsibility to protect the interest of this nation both in terms of security and other things.
Dr Malama said if foreigners are allowed to do anything they want then the harm would be on the future generation to come.
He said no company or person should take control over the citizens of this country.
