Acting Secretary to Cabinet, Mr Patrick Kangwa has with immediate effect suspended foreign and local travels for Permanent Secretaries and Directors for a period of 90 days.
He said Cabinet upon investigation had discovered that some Permanent Secretaries had taken upto 99 days out of their offices in 2018.
Mr Kangwa bemoaned the absence from the offices of the Controlling Officers stating that it was one of the reasons some Cabinet decisions had failed to be implemented.
He reminded them that the current situation in the nation demanded for decisive action to be taken in order to restore stability in the nation and eventually record economic growth.
He announced to them that they had one of two choices open to them which was either to transform or face disciplinary action for failure to comply.
“In our respective Ministries, we have the responsibility to act collectively, make sacrifices and ensure that the measures that have been announced are implemented fully,”
“We do not have the luxury to conduct ourselves as we have done in the past of operating in silos,”
“We must act collectively. The plight of 17 million Zambians out there depends on our good actions,” he said.
He said the 90 day suspension of travel for both Permanent Secretaries and Directors was one of the measures being taken to allow them to reflect and transform. We will also ensure strict management of personal emoluments bill,”
“This will call for serious consideration for personnel decisions such as retirements – in – the – national interest which have continued to impact negatively on both payroll and pension,” he said.
He called on all commissions to ensure retirements in national interest and transfers not substitute disciplinary actions against erring officers.
The acting Secretary to the Cabinet said this when he chaired the inaugural management meeting for permanent secretaries at Mulungushi International Conference Centre in Lusaka.
Similar meetings are expected to be held for the Controlling Officers every month going forward.
In other words the Acting Secretary to the Cabinet is saying “Govt no longer has the luxury of reckless spending moving forward!”… wish he had the powers to extend the moratorium to the top brass!!
Meanwhile kangalika will continue travelling umungulu,sometimes we see him inspecting culverts,what a loss
Terrible approach.
Name and shame and suspend them if you believe that is what they actually did.
The 90 days will not abate anything in the life Lun.
We are having breakfast in London. I miss my home time in Glasgow.
I have lost energy but three months to go before she is here.
I hold a PhD
Thanks
BB2014,2016
Hoo thats Patrick Kangwa, I thought it was Vernon Mwanga with Bo Inonge
@ 1 njonginjo
Exactly what I was thinking….so the government knows that all the foreign trips and local trips are just for personal gain and to accumulate allowances….shame on PF bandits
isn’t it a bit too late. This is the way to go anyway.
A very welcome and timely move.
God bless Zambia.
“He announced to them that they had one of two choices open to them which was either to transform or face disciplinary action for failure to comply.”
These are not choices but options no one can take seriously especially coming from an acting Secretary to the Cabinet. To add Insult LAZY LUNGU has rewarded former Secretary to Cabinet Msiska with another job to continue with his underperformance.
Too late
This is a very good step in the right direction, some of us have been crying out to the govt to cut down costs by reducing the benefits and high salaries paid out to not just PSs and their deputies but all senior govt officers because we as a nation cannot afford this, the same should also happen to their vehicles, the govt must do the moral thing and stop buying top range very expensive luxury SUVs, the amount spent on a single one of which would be able to repair the potholes roads in Central Business District of towns like Kitwe, why should we go and waste scarce money buying luxury SUVs? I cry at such wastage for the sake of feeding overgrown egos of apamwambas who want to pose in expensive cars. Enough is enough!
So this guy says ” one of the reasons some Cabinet decisions had failed to be implemented” is because of these globe trotting tourists who take personal trips to make money at the expense of poor suffering Zambians — and all you can do is suspend the travel for 90 days? In other words, these lazy bums are always AWOL from their offices and yet expect to be paid taxpayers money…for doing nothing? And what happens after 90 days? They start the globe trotting again or what? And why do you lazy corrupt people in PF act like you just woke up from a coma only to find your fellow workers not doing their jobs ? And when are you going to wake up and find out that corrupt lazy Lungu is not doing anything either? You all need to be fired, every last one of you, including lazy Lungu. Just…
… wasting taxpayers’ money. You lazy good for nothing bunch. The country’s economy is imploding and you’re busy clowning around. Lazy bums.
Sir, retirements were ethnic cleansing and job creation for ethnicists.To fill the vacancies left by the retired no job adverts and interviews were held.This means you already had the chosen candidates to fill the positions.when you analyse these ‘appointments’ regionalism,ethnicity and cadreism is the answer.But this sounds like a good start.In the process the govt,& party have been dented seriously.
Bwafya……Lesa utwafwe
uh…! There goes my allowances for financing the completion of that house, ouch!
African and Zambian lies!!! How possible is it to stop controlling officers from traveling local?
Good move, it’s only 90 days bawesu.
But then, I thought it was the Chief who directed ministers to go out and inspect government projects and interact with the people? Or else he would …eerrr …cut their necks?
And to repeat what I said after the emergency cabinet resolutions, please protect the Chief from breaching the resolutions by quarantine him in State House so that he does not address “his” people and release unbudgeted cash.
By the way, does this travel ban apply to the special assistant for presidential empowerment fund?
Good move, it’s only 90 days bawesu.
But then, I thought it was the Chief who directed ministers AND PERMANENT SECRETARIES to go out and inspect government projects and interact with the people? Or else he would …eerrr …cut their necks?
And to repeat what I said after the emergency cabinet resolutions, please protect the Chief from breaching the resolutions by quarantine him in State House so that he does not address “his” people and release unbudgeted cash.
By the way, does this travel ban apply to the special assistant for presidential empowerment fund?
The buck starts with you sir, if you’re traveling all the time expect your subordinates to follow. l see lungu has messed up everyone with his bad habits. Now everyone wants to travel and steal
What a clueless president and government. They only act when things go bad. My mixed race son thinks that lungu is a very ignorant man for a lawyer. My son works for a magic circle law firm in London. Elisa my swiss wife and I are proud. My son is earning 78000 pounds a year as a newly qualified trainee. We are proud of him. What has lungu kids achieved?
Swiss wife enjoying dark, or is it black, chocolate!
OUCH!
Imwe bashi mine what u trying to say hahaha. Ouch yashani? Mmh it’s to enjoy each other . Life is short we are trying for another baby at the moment
Charlatans, chickens have come home to roost – one down, plethora reckless and senseless greedy dos to go.
So I suppose before you get to the chicken you start by plucking out the feathers, huh? Tizamuonani. Reality will soon become what it is. No spin in hardship, tonse tizakaulila pamodzi.
I say suspend all government officials excluding the foreign affairs minister that is if he exists. He can then select a team with a considerable number of technocrats needed for that particular business, they then can report back to only the relevant people. We have no fruit of most foreign trips made because of the type of officials who make them. If agriculture is flourishing in another country pick the most promising & productive farmers to learn from there fellow farmers there. Let’s please consider the hard working tax payer working tirelessly, we are all human.
you know the worth of water when the well dries up
While we do appreciate the government’s realisation of the corrupsing economy and then their coming up with the so called stringent measures by suspending unnecessary travel expenses from permanent secretaries through travel fares so as to try and resuscitate the economy of ZAMBIA we think the government can even much better by selling off the newly acquired luxury Presidential Jet.TheGulf Stream Jet.So that money can be pumped into the government treasury. What do you think?
What happens after 90 days? Meaning they can go as many times as they want? 5 Trips in a year 2 international and 3 local trips better for me.
“Lulya kawa elyo basensela”
Translated: They are picking up speed when it’s dark and too late
“He reminded them that the current situation in the nation demanded for decisive action to be taken in order to restore stability in the nation and eventually record economic growth.”
Where are those losers who say the country has seen economic growth under Edgar Lungu.
This is way to go. Its just been too much movements without thinking. Just to make a few coins and more money for girlfriends and side chicks. Most often aimless trips – Muzakhaula naimwe – muzaunva mwala. Someone at one Ministry has just been appointed as PS and he has been out of office more times than in the office, 40 days out of office and only 28 days in the office. And yet policy directions are just in the intray. For Ministers also its too much campaigns for one person ne pashilingile ati in the name of our hardworking and humble shani shani…. ” – like f.ools praising one person more than they are praising God for giving them life.
By the way some of these PSs and Directors have amassed more night allowances in a year than the year itself. Some have been given money worth mre…
I just hope this will be effectively implemented.Some PSs and directors infact undertake more foreign trips than local ones