IT is quite baffling that despite the heavy presence of military personnel on the Copperbelt, primarily deployed to stem smuggling of mealie meal into the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC), the scourge has continued.Not even the presence of Zambia National Service (ZNS) soldiers appears to have stopped the rampant smuggling prevailing in the region.The precious mealie meal, that is supposed to feed Zambians finds its way into the neighbouring DRC, leaving Zambians without any.The result is that outlets with mealie meal in stock experience near-riot scenes as desperate residents scramble for the limited supplies. Most leave empty handed, meaning that they obviously have to do without their staple food for that day.And since authorities seem to be aware of the scourge, it appears that more stringent measures must be introduced to end smuggling. Quite clearly, the punishment meted out currently does not seem to be effective to dissuade smugglers.It appears as though the smugglers are […]
Rein in smugglers
