The massacre at Portland Cement Zambia continues

Ndola has been witnessing one of its darkest phases with the massacre at Portland Cement Zambia. Workers have not only been thrown out of their jobs, but the factory has also been rapidly exploited with a view to loot the assets and steal cash. In the midst of such situation, it has become almost impossible for the actual owners of the factory to operate and restore the loss caused by Ital Terrazzo Limited (ITL), the minority shareholders.

Portland Cement Zambia

In a recent publication, it was learnt that the decision made by the Court on 19 May 2016 has turned down the suggestion of Finsbury Investments to dissolve the factory. Instead, the Court suggested that until and unless the real owners of the factory is decided, the factory cannot be closed. The impact of this result is that the Ventriglias are free to implement their corrupt activities. They have developed fake companies who now own the assets of Zambezi Portland Cement along with its manipulated title deeds. As a matter of fact, the decision to put the liquidation process on hold has also affected the workers as they are now well aware of the fact that soon this factory would be reduced to ashes.

In light of such events, is it not the responsibility of the Government to look into this matter and safeguard the interest of the locals? The Ventriglia family are claiming that Astrea Investments holds the title deeds of PCZ, irrespective of the fact that PACRA sees Finsbury Investments as the true owner of the factory. They have only managed to fabricate the document and ensure that they are shown as the real owners of the factory. Moreover, Astrea Investments is actually a bogus company formed by the Ventriglias themselves to channelize the assets out of the Portland Cement Zambia.

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *