| The Citizens Democratic Party P.O.Box 37277 Lusaka, Zambia. Tel: +260-975-642-011 Email: citizens@thecitizensdemocraticparty.com |
POWERED BY CITIZENS LIKE YOU.
CDP 7-Point Agenda
| "Putting People First" |
The CDP 7-Point Agenda
The Citizens Democratic Party holds paramount the need for active participation of the citizens in governance. The success of the
Seven Point Agenda rests in the effective implementation of the decentralization of political and economic power in Zambia. With
greater autonomy, Provinces and Districts will adopt CDP's Seven Point Agenda and refine it to be regionally specific and relevant. The
Citizens Democratic Party will also utilise the expertise and knowledge of our Zambian professionals and academicians in refining the
intricacies and application of the national plan.
Putting people first in a decentralized, honest and open government
For two decades, the fight against corruption has yielded very little results. While it is important to chase after individual perpetrators of corruption, it is highly
important to also change the environment in which these individuals operate. The system of checks and balance is not aggressively pursued and/or
implemented, and the Executive Branch of government is practically the backyard of the sitting president and party, who is given too much leeway to make
arbitrary decisions. The Executive will remain to be a sacred cow, as long as this branch is answerable to itself only.
The CDP will suggest and enact legislation to promote an open system, encouraging checks and balances in the three arms of government, where we will
see a reduction of power in the Executive, compensated by equal distribution of power in the two other arms of government in order for the entire government
to be transparent.
Putting people first in wealth creation
For two decades, only a handful of jobs have been created leaving a majority of our youth, fathers and mothers still unemployed. The fight against poverty has
been in vain and if anything, poverty has won. We currently have a situation in our country, where we are told by our government, that billions of dollars are in
our country, and yet the impact is negligible as the majority of our people have seen little to no change. To further compound this problem, we have foreign
investors who are said to be “committing" billions of dollars for investment, and yet there is no coherent plan made available to our citizenry explaining exactly
how that investment directly benefits the nation. If at all there are details on how these foreign firms benefit Zambians from the profits they make, they remain
a secret known only to the sitting government.
The Citizens Democratic Party will embark on its main program, whose ultimate goal is to transfer "Zambian wealth" to "Zambian hands". The CDP will
achieve this by providing easier and cheaper access to loan facilities for our citizenry, provided they show detailed and achievable plans for their would-be
business. Through this same program, the CDP intends to create employment opportunities to the numerous Zambian university graduates, who will
specifically oversee the implementation of this policy. It is the CDP's belief that Zambia will only become truly independent and successful if the wealth of the
nation lies in Zambian hands.
Putting people first in tax relief by broadening the tax burden
Since independence, the government has maintained high income and payroll taxes for citizens employed in the so-called "formal sector". This has resulted
in high taxation imposed on this segment of our population, who are in effect carrying the tax burden of the so called "informal sector". The only way to provide
relief to the highly taxed employees and businesses would be to share the "tax-burden", which is simply broadening the tax base.
Broadening the tax base requires that we formalize the so called "informal sector", where billions of tax revenue is lost every year, due to the numerous
UNTRACKED cash transactions in this "UNDERGROUND" economy, and in part due to lack of enforcement of current existing Zambian laws regarding
business practices. In order to have tax revenue collected from the informal sector, we need to INCREASE and redefine business licenses, according to the
nature and size of the business itself. We encourage people to be entrepreneurs, whether from home, a roadside or an actual office, but in order for them to
operate, they need a LICENSE which will require them to pay tax on income received. For the CIitizens Democratic Party. this is simple party policy, and the
actual finer details on how we determine who pays what amount, will be left to the specialized technocrats whom CDP will utilize. We already have the Zambia
Revenue Authority, which will take on the task of checking that licenses are produced on any would-be business. A successful implementation of this
program, will then take away the tax burden on the current "formal" sector, as we will then be able to reduce taxation on this segment, supplemented by the
new contributors to our tax base.
Putting people first with dignified retirement
For two decades, we have seen the dignity of our once dignified citizens eroded. The CDP has recognized the failure of Zambia's retirement system and will
take strong measures to correct it. We have duly noted that the Zambian retirement system lacks mainly in two aspects. First, it has failed to take into account
the economics of inflation, and (secondly) naturally the "time value" of money. This has resulted in retirement packages, which are not in line with global
economic conditions, which in turn has given our retirees "peanuts" for the years they put in their work. As if this is not enough, our retirees are treated with
little regard when they make claims on this same money. It is saddening to see retirees treated as beggars for money they are simply entitled to.
The Citizens Democratic Party will immediately embark on pension reform to address the failures of our retirement system using specialized Zambian
professionals, other stakeholders and partners as required. The goal of this particular plan is to ensure sound retirement for our retirees in the next twenty
years.
Putting people first in quality and accessible healthcare
For two decades, the provision of quality healthcare for our people has not been achieved. Our highly trained doctors and nurses have left the country to the
benefit of countries in the region and beyond. Our citizens need them back! It is not right that government and party officials go overseas for treatment while
our people are dying in local hospitals. It is the realization of the CDP, that there is a serious lack of financial input in a sector which deserves to be a priority in
a developing nation's agenda.
Seldom do we hear of that the government has injected huge amounts of money to pursue our health programs. Rather we hear preposterous amounts
being spent on trivial issues. The CDP refuses to view the health of our nation as a simple foot note. As party policy, we intend to pump in massive capital in
training our medical personnel and making sure they are well compensated for the noble work they do. In so doing, we also hope to attract our learned
citizens in the Diaspora to come back and work for their people.
The CDP also intends to prioritize healthcare by encouraging and engaging the private sector to capitalize on insurance plans with the participation of the
people and the government. Again, we intend to utilize Zambian professionals and other stakeholders to formulate a comprehensive program, which we as a
party will make sure is implemented.
It is our belief that the bottom-line of solving the healthcare issue is deliberately and effectively injecting more finances into the health sector than is currently. It
is important to note here, that the CDP realizes that the health of a nation is directly related to the wealth of a nation.
Putting people first in quality education
In the last two decades, we have seen the quality of education standards deteriorate. Due to high education fees, Zambia has at the moment the lowest
college graduates in history. This scenario is bad for our economy and the general well being of our citizens, considering the advancement of the global
society.
The CDP policy on education will focus on reorganization and making adjustments in order to effectively increase education enrolment at primary, secondary
and tertiary education levels, and INCREASE the QUALITY of education at all levels as well. The former will be easily achieved as it is no secret that the
majority of Zambians desire to be educated at practically all levels. We intend to increase the quality by making mass investment in the education sector,
taking the same approach as in our health program. With this investment in mind, we intend to first increase the number of teaching personnel and in turn
improve compensation to our teaching personnel. In addition we will also ensure that we increase and improve education facilities. The difference in our party
will be that we will take action and prioritize education, as there's no mystery to what is lacking in our current system regarding education. We believe an initial
and absolute commitment to improving our education levels and standards is what we require to fix the glaring problems Zambia currently faces in this
regard.
Putting people first in prevention against crime
For two decades, we have seen crime in our cities and towns escalate to high levels. Our businesses are unable to keep their businesses open with peace
of mind, and daily our citizenry are exposed to the risk of being victims of criminal activity. The CDP absolutely acknowledges the important role our collective
security wings play in maintaining law and order at the various levels. The Zambian Air Force, Zambia Army, Zambian National Service, and Zambia Police all
play an integral part in keeping our country safe. With that being said, we acknowledge that at the very basic level, the police service is tasked with everyday
direct interaction with our citizenry, and we as a party see opportunity to improve relations between the police, and the society they aim to protect.
The Citizens Democratic Party recognizes that one of the root problems lies in the inadequacy of our police service. Current conditions do not provide them
either the morale or ability to properly execute their duties. Further, their current numbers are simply not sufficient to enforce the law. It is therefore an
imperative that our men and women in uniform are provided with adequate training, and deserving compensation packages as the nature of their job requires
them to put their lives on the line everyday. With this in mind, the CDP as a first step will strive to improve the current working conditions of our police service,
and in turn hopefully attract more people to this profession to effectively combat crime. We therefore commit as a party to attend to the grievances of the Police
Service, with the seriousness it deserves.
The Citizens Democratic Party holds paramount the need for active participation of the citizens in governance. The success of the
Seven Point Agenda rests in the effective implementation of the decentralization of political and economic power in Zambia. With
greater autonomy, Provinces and Districts will adopt CDP's Seven Point Agenda and refine it to be regionally specific and relevant. The
Citizens Democratic Party will also utilise the expertise and knowledge of our Zambian professionals and academicians in refining the
intricacies and application of the national plan.
Putting people first in a decentralized, honest and open government
For two decades, the fight against corruption has yielded very little results. While it is important to chase after individual perpetrators of corruption, it is highly
important to also change the environment in which these individuals operate. The system of checks and balance is not aggressively pursued and/or
implemented, and the Executive Branch of government is practically the backyard of the sitting president and party, who is given too much leeway to make
arbitrary decisions. The Executive will remain to be a sacred cow, as long as this branch is answerable to itself only.
The CDP will suggest and enact legislation to promote an open system, encouraging checks and balances in the three arms of government, where we will
see a reduction of power in the Executive, compensated by equal distribution of power in the two other arms of government in order for the entire government
to be transparent.
Putting people first in wealth creation
For two decades, only a handful of jobs have been created leaving a majority of our youth, fathers and mothers still unemployed. The fight against poverty has
been in vain and if anything, poverty has won. We currently have a situation in our country, where we are told by our government, that billions of dollars are in
our country, and yet the impact is negligible as the majority of our people have seen little to no change. To further compound this problem, we have foreign
investors who are said to be “committing" billions of dollars for investment, and yet there is no coherent plan made available to our citizenry explaining exactly
how that investment directly benefits the nation. If at all there are details on how these foreign firms benefit Zambians from the profits they make, they remain
a secret known only to the sitting government.
The Citizens Democratic Party will embark on its main program, whose ultimate goal is to transfer "Zambian wealth" to "Zambian hands". The CDP will
achieve this by providing easier and cheaper access to loan facilities for our citizenry, provided they show detailed and achievable plans for their would-be
business. Through this same program, the CDP intends to create employment opportunities to the numerous Zambian university graduates, who will
specifically oversee the implementation of this policy. It is the CDP's belief that Zambia will only become truly independent and successful if the wealth of the
nation lies in Zambian hands.
Putting people first in tax relief by broadening the tax burden
Since independence, the government has maintained high income and payroll taxes for citizens employed in the so-called "formal sector". This has resulted
in high taxation imposed on this segment of our population, who are in effect carrying the tax burden of the so called "informal sector". The only way to provide
relief to the highly taxed employees and businesses would be to share the "tax-burden", which is simply broadening the tax base.
Broadening the tax base requires that we formalize the so called "informal sector", where billions of tax revenue is lost every year, due to the numerous
UNTRACKED cash transactions in this "UNDERGROUND" economy, and in part due to lack of enforcement of current existing Zambian laws regarding
business practices. In order to have tax revenue collected from the informal sector, we need to INCREASE and redefine business licenses, according to the
nature and size of the business itself. We encourage people to be entrepreneurs, whether from home, a roadside or an actual office, but in order for them to
operate, they need a LICENSE which will require them to pay tax on income received. For the CIitizens Democratic Party. this is simple party policy, and the
actual finer details on how we determine who pays what amount, will be left to the specialized technocrats whom CDP will utilize. We already have the Zambia
Revenue Authority, which will take on the task of checking that licenses are produced on any would-be business. A successful implementation of this
program, will then take away the tax burden on the current "formal" sector, as we will then be able to reduce taxation on this segment, supplemented by the
new contributors to our tax base.
Putting people first with dignified retirement
For two decades, we have seen the dignity of our once dignified citizens eroded. The CDP has recognized the failure of Zambia's retirement system and will
take strong measures to correct it. We have duly noted that the Zambian retirement system lacks mainly in two aspects. First, it has failed to take into account
the economics of inflation, and (secondly) naturally the "time value" of money. This has resulted in retirement packages, which are not in line with global
economic conditions, which in turn has given our retirees "peanuts" for the years they put in their work. As if this is not enough, our retirees are treated with
little regard when they make claims on this same money. It is saddening to see retirees treated as beggars for money they are simply entitled to.
The Citizens Democratic Party will immediately embark on pension reform to address the failures of our retirement system using specialized Zambian
professionals, other stakeholders and partners as required. The goal of this particular plan is to ensure sound retirement for our retirees in the next twenty
years.
Putting people first in quality and accessible healthcare
For two decades, the provision of quality healthcare for our people has not been achieved. Our highly trained doctors and nurses have left the country to the
benefit of countries in the region and beyond. Our citizens need them back! It is not right that government and party officials go overseas for treatment while
our people are dying in local hospitals. It is the realization of the CDP, that there is a serious lack of financial input in a sector which deserves to be a priority in
a developing nation's agenda.
Seldom do we hear of that the government has injected huge amounts of money to pursue our health programs. Rather we hear preposterous amounts
being spent on trivial issues. The CDP refuses to view the health of our nation as a simple foot note. As party policy, we intend to pump in massive capital in
training our medical personnel and making sure they are well compensated for the noble work they do. In so doing, we also hope to attract our learned
citizens in the Diaspora to come back and work for their people.
The CDP also intends to prioritize healthcare by encouraging and engaging the private sector to capitalize on insurance plans with the participation of the
people and the government. Again, we intend to utilize Zambian professionals and other stakeholders to formulate a comprehensive program, which we as a
party will make sure is implemented.
It is our belief that the bottom-line of solving the healthcare issue is deliberately and effectively injecting more finances into the health sector than is currently. It
is important to note here, that the CDP realizes that the health of a nation is directly related to the wealth of a nation.
Putting people first in quality education
In the last two decades, we have seen the quality of education standards deteriorate. Due to high education fees, Zambia has at the moment the lowest
college graduates in history. This scenario is bad for our economy and the general well being of our citizens, considering the advancement of the global
society.
The CDP policy on education will focus on reorganization and making adjustments in order to effectively increase education enrolment at primary, secondary
and tertiary education levels, and INCREASE the QUALITY of education at all levels as well. The former will be easily achieved as it is no secret that the
majority of Zambians desire to be educated at practically all levels. We intend to increase the quality by making mass investment in the education sector,
taking the same approach as in our health program. With this investment in mind, we intend to first increase the number of teaching personnel and in turn
improve compensation to our teaching personnel. In addition we will also ensure that we increase and improve education facilities. The difference in our party
will be that we will take action and prioritize education, as there's no mystery to what is lacking in our current system regarding education. We believe an initial
and absolute commitment to improving our education levels and standards is what we require to fix the glaring problems Zambia currently faces in this
regard.
Putting people first in prevention against crime
For two decades, we have seen crime in our cities and towns escalate to high levels. Our businesses are unable to keep their businesses open with peace
of mind, and daily our citizenry are exposed to the risk of being victims of criminal activity. The CDP absolutely acknowledges the important role our collective
security wings play in maintaining law and order at the various levels. The Zambian Air Force, Zambia Army, Zambian National Service, and Zambia Police all
play an integral part in keeping our country safe. With that being said, we acknowledge that at the very basic level, the police service is tasked with everyday
direct interaction with our citizenry, and we as a party see opportunity to improve relations between the police, and the society they aim to protect.
The Citizens Democratic Party recognizes that one of the root problems lies in the inadequacy of our police service. Current conditions do not provide them
either the morale or ability to properly execute their duties. Further, their current numbers are simply not sufficient to enforce the law. It is therefore an
imperative that our men and women in uniform are provided with adequate training, and deserving compensation packages as the nature of their job requires
them to put their lives on the line everyday. With this in mind, the CDP as a first step will strive to improve the current working conditions of our police service,
and in turn hopefully attract more people to this profession to effectively combat crime. We therefore commit as a party to attend to the grievances of the Police
Service, with the seriousness it deserves.
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