Samuel Silomba

THE Drug Enforcement Commission (DEC) has this year seized 17 kilogrammes of cocaine compared with the 0.956 kilogrammes it grabbed from drug peddlers last year.
DEC also seized 431 grammes of heroin in 2012 alone compared with the 1.29 grammes it seized the whole of last year.

Commission spokesperson Samuel Silomba said in a response to a press query that DEC has this year performed well in the fight against drug abuse and trafficking.
“DEC has performed very well this year in combating trafficking in hard drugs such as cocaine and heroin,” he said.
Mr Silomba said DEC made the single largest seizure ever of cocaine weighing over 13 kilogrammes from two Bolivians who have since been convicted and are serving a five-year jail term each.
“DEC has seized over 431 grammes of heroin since January this year compared to 1.29 grammes in 2011. Abuse of heroin has continued to increase in Zambia and much of it comes from Afghanistan and Pakistan,” he said.
Mr Silomba said both Zambians and foreign nationals have been involved in the illegal trade in hard drugs.
He said DEC has so far arrested a total of 47 people suspected to have been dealing in cocaine and nine heroin trafficking suspects.
Mr Silomba said the increase in the seizure of hard drugs is a reflection of the efforts the commission has put in place to effectively fight drug abuse and trafficking in the country.
“With the good will and support from the current government, DEC has invested heavily in capacity building with 190 officers being trained in various skills such as drug intelligence gathering, drug investigation, financial crime investigation and police training,” he said.
Mr Silomba also said reports indicate that the cocaine which comes from South America enters the country mostly by air and sometimes by road.
It is concealed in different forms which include swallowing and wrapping on the body.

Zambia Daily Mail

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Former South African President Nelson Mandela remains hospitalized after undergoing recent gallstone surgery and treatment for a lung infection.

A presidential spokesman said Monday that the public should assume that Mandela’s health is improving unless it supplies information to the contrary.

The 94-year-old anti-apartheid leader was admitted to a Pretoria hospital on December 8. He underwent surgery for gallstones this past Saturday after being treated earlier for a lung infection.

The Nobel Peace Prize laureate became South Africa’s first black president in 1994 after spending 27 years in prison for his opposition to apartheid.

He has grown frail and has made few public appearances in recent years.

Some information for this report was provided by AP, AFP and Reuters.

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Jacob Zuma is campaigning hard to keep his job

A plot to bomb the national conference of South Africa’s governing African National Congress has been foiled, a police spokesman has said.

Four white suspected right-wing extremists have been arrested, he said.

President Jacob Zuma and other top officials are at the heavily-guarded conference in Mangaung, where the ANC is due to start electing its leaders.

The ANC has been in power in South Africa since the end of white minority rule in 1994.

Its leader will be overwhelming favourite to win elections due in 2014.

Deputy President Kgalema Motlanthe is challenging Mr Zuma for the leadership of the ANC.

However, Mr Motlanthe has withdrawn his candidature for re-election as ANC deputy leader, putting one of South Africa’s richest businessman, Cyril Ramaphosa, in pole position to take the post, reports the BBC’s Milton Nkosi from Mangaung.

This is a move by Mr Motlanthe to bolster his chances of unseating Mr Zuma, as it avoids diluting his support by running for two positions, our correspondent says.

Police spokesman Phuti Setati told Reuters news agency the four suspects were arrested for planning to plant a bomb in a marquee at the conference, which is being held at the University of the Free State in Mangaung.

A plot to bomb the national conference of South Africa’s governing African National Congress has been foiled, a police spokesman has said.

Four white suspected right-wing extremists have been arrested, he said.

President Jacob Zuma and other top officials are at the heavily-guarded conference in Mangaung, where the ANC is due to start electing its leaders.

The ANC has been in power in South Africa since the end of white minority rule in 1994.

Its leader will be overwhelming favourite to win elections due in 2014.

Deputy President Kgalema Motlanthe is challenging Mr Zuma for the leadership of the ANC.

However, Mr Motlanthe has withdrawn his candidature for re-election as ANC deputy leader, putting one of South Africa’s richest businessman, Cyril Ramaphosa, in pole position to take the post, reports the BBC’s Milton Nkosi from Mangaung.

This is a move by Mr Motlanthe to bolster his chances of unseating Mr Zuma, as it avoids diluting his support by running for two positions, our correspondent says.

Police spokesman Phuti Setati told Reuters news agency the four suspects were arrested for planning to plant a bomb in a marquee at the conference, which is being held at the University of the Free State in Mangaung.

He is the favourite to win, after winning far more nominations than his rival.

Mr Ramaphosa, once a close confidante of South Africa’s first black President Nelson Mandela, has given him his support by standing for the party’s deputy leadership.

Last week, Mr Motlanthe accepted his nomination to run for a second term as ANC deputy leader.

Mr Ramaphosa, who played a key role in the transition to black-majority rule, is now the favourite to become deputy leader, although ANC Treasurer-General Mathews Phosa and Human Settlements Minister Tokyo Sexwale are also running for the post.

In his opening address in Mangaung, where the ANC was formed a century ago, Mr Zuma said the country was now ready to “move into the second phase, in which we will focus on achieving meaningful socio-economic freedom”.

The results of the leadership contest are expected later this week.

BBC

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