News
Zambia probes Chinese clothes factory murder
Police in Zambia have arrested three people suspected of murdering three Chinese nationals, dragging the bodies into a factory and setting it alight.
Home Affairs Minister Stephen Kampyongo has promised a full investigation into Sunday’s “barbaric” crime.
It took place at the Chinese-owned Blue Star clothing factory.
The attack comes amid a controversial crackdown in the capital, Lusaka, on Chinese businesses accused of discriminating against Zambians.
There has also been tension over reports that Chinese factory managers have been forcing employees to sleep at work to stop the spread of coronavirus, the BBC’s Kennedy Gondwe reports from Lusaka.
The Chinese embassy in Zambia said the killings were “appalling and vicious acts of violence”.
Police say the motive for the attack, which took place in the Makeni suburb of the capital, is unclear.
One of those arrested had fled to the city of Ndola some 310km (192 miles) north of Lusaka, police spokesperson Esther Katongo told the state-run ZNBC broadcaster.
For the last few weeks, Lusaka Mayor Miles Sampa has been leading an operation to close Chinese-owned businesses, including barber shops and restaurants, after locals complained about discrimination.
He has also been sharing posts on Facebook, including videos, of his impromptu raids on Chinese-owned factories where workers are allegedly being mistreated.
In one video, he confronts Chinese managers at a truck assembly plant about their policy of detaining workers and orders them to allow the Zambian workers to go home.
Mr Sampa, who is a ruling party member, has not commented on the killings.
He has clashed with the government over his operation against Chinese firms.
However, the mayor has accused his colleagues of not taking seriously the reports of discrimination against Zambians, our reporter says.
According to China’s state-run Global Times news site, Sunday’s attack was likely to have been prompted by Zambians who misunderstood the good intentions of some Chinese firms that have recently been prohibiting employees from going home after their shifts in response to the coronavirus crisis.
“This is interpreted by locals as an invasion of freedom,” the Global Times quoted a Chinese person living in Zambia as saying.
Zambia’s Foreign Affairs Minister Joseph Malanji has sought to reassure foreign investors that they are welcome in the southern African nation.
“This is something regrettable, this is anarchy and this government will not tolerate anarchy,” he said on Tuesday.
News
Roads Minister gives Greenhouse International two-month ultimatum over Have–Hohoe road project delays
The Minister for Roads and Highways, Kwame Governs Agbodza, has given Greenhouse International Development (GH) Ltd. a two-month ultimatum to improve work on the Have–Hohoe Road Reconstruction Project or risk losing its contract.
During an inspection of the project part of the Big push yesterday, July 8, 2026, Mr. Agbodza expressed disappointment over the slow pace of work, noting that the contractor had been on the project since 2012 but had made little progress.
He recalled that although work began in 2012, successive governments had continued to support the project, with the current administration prioritising part of the contractor’s outstanding payments under the government’s Big Push infrastructure programme.
According to the minister, payment is no longer the main challenge facing the project.
He stated that the company was not working hard enough and did not have enough equipment on site to justify the delays.
Mr. Agbodza observed that work was only taking place on a small section of the more than 50-kilometre road around Hohoe, while the remaining portions had seen little or no activity.
He dismissed the contractor’s explanations for the delays, insisting that they did not justify the slow progress.
The minister directed the company to increase its workforce by deploying additional construction gangs instead of relying on a single team working from Hokwe.
He warned that the contractor must raise progress on the project to at least 20 per cent within two months.
“If you fail to bring your programme to a minimum of 20 per cent, we will assume that after 14 years you are not capable of doing the work, and we will consider bringing in another contractor to complete the project,” Mr. Agbodza cautioned.
He stressed that the Have–Hohoe Road is an important part of Ghana’s trunk road network and said residents along the corridor have waited too long for its completion.
According to the minister, the government is determined to ensure the road is completed and will not tolerate further unnecessary delays.
By: Jacob Aggrey
NPP urges members to join nationwide clean up exercise
The New Patriotic Party (NPP) has directed all its members across the country to take part in the nationwide General Cleaning Exercise scheduled for Friday, July 10, and Saturday, July 11.
In a statement issued on Wednesday and signed by the party’s General Secretary, Justin Kodua Frimpong, the party called on members to actively participate in the exercise as part of their contribution to environmental sanitation and national development.
The statement noted that because the NPP’s Constituency Elections will be held on Saturday, July 11, members are encouraged to join the clean up exercise after casting their ballots.
It explained that voting in the constituency elections would be conducted on a walk in basis, making it possible for members to take part in both activities.
The party urged its members to demonstrate their commitment to environmental cleanliness, civic responsibility and national development by participating in the exercise.
According to the statement, the directive forms part of the party’s support for the nationwide sanitation campaign declared by the President.
By: Jacob Aggrey
The New Patriotic Party (NPP) has directed all its members across the country to take part in the nationwide General Cleaning Exercise scheduled for Friday, July 10, and Saturday, July 11.
In a statement issued on Wednesday and signed by the party’s General Secretary, Justin Kodua Frimpong, the party called on members to actively participate in the exercise as part of their contribution to environmental sanitation and national development.
The statement noted that because the NPP’s Constituency Elections will be held on Saturday, July 11, members are encouraged to join the clean up exercise after casting their ballots.
It explained that voting in the constituency elections would be conducted on a walk in basis, making it possible for members to take part in both activities.
The party urged its members to demonstrate their commitment to environmental cleanliness, civic responsibility and national development by participating in the exercise.
According to the statement, the directive forms part of the party’s support for the nationwide sanitation campaign declared by the President.
By: Jacob Aggrey
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