An opposition legislator says preparations for the United Nations World Tourism Organization conference has been a disaster on the Zambian side.
United Party for National Development chairman for tourism Ephraim Bbelemu said it was a shame that Tourism Minister Sylvia Masebo unveiled a new national tourism board barely a week before the global conference is co-hosted with neighbouring Zimbabwe.
Bbelemu said naming a director a few days before a high profile international engaement was a mark of panic.
“You have a minister of tourism appointing a new board within a week of the conference, why? What are they going to change? Why make the changes now when we have known all along that we will be hosts this important international event. And just days back they had just announced a new director,” said Bbelemu who is Mbabala Member of Parliament.
“In a nutshell the preparations have been disastrous and we hope as a country we do not embarass ourselves. How many ministers have we had at the ministry in two years? Our friends have been preparing with one person at the helm through out.”
Bbelemu said he feared that the country’s image would be dented.
“We all read in the media about the awarding of contracts where people were sharing deals instead of thinking about the larger national picture,” he said.
Zambia will be co-hosting the UNWTO conference with Zimbabwe with the Robert Mugabe ruled country hosting the opening ceremony on August 24 while Zambia will host the closing ceremony on August 27.
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