By Sean Tembo – PeP President
The ratings below are based on submissions received from the general public regarding the actual and perceived performance of both line ministers and provincial ministers in the new dawn administration. In order to enhance transparency, brief reasons are given for scores given to respective ministers.
TOP FIVE MINISTERS
1. Best Minister for February 2022 = Charles L. Milupi – Minister of Infrastructure, Housing and Urban Development.
Apart from a few politically incorrect gaffes here and there, Milupi is hardworking, focused and visionary. He knows what his ministry should achieve and he has the energy to get it done. He is not shy to traverse the breadth and width of the country, getting beaten by mosquitoes, just to see the infrastructure challenges that are there on the ground in the remotest corners of our country. He has a passion for his job. As a seasoned engineer, he has the necessary competence to get the job done. We can’t wait to see how his PPP ideas will unravel. So far, so good.
2. Second Best Minister for February 2022 = Brenda Tambatamba – Minister of Labour and Social Security.
Her recently unveiled board for NAPSA appears well-balanced, qualified and experienced. Her identification of the NAPSA penalty system as suffocating to SMEs is well on point. We shall wait to see how quickly this will be addressed. Overall she seems to know what reforms need to be undertaken in her ministry.
3. Third Best Minister for February 2022 = Collins Nzovu – Minister of Green Economy and Environment.
Based on the speeches that he gives, he is articulate, visionary, and clear-minded. He seems to know exactly what the mandate of his ministry is and how to achieve it. However, he needs to explain to the public ZEMA’s rationale for approving the proposed mining in lower Zambezi. We need to hear more from his ministry on that issue. Otherwise we shall begin to think that he just has a good speechwriter.
4. Fourth Best Minister for February 2022 = Chipoka Mulenga – Minister of Commerce, Trade and Industry.
He appears to have a passion for discharging the mandate of his ministry. He has the energy to visit various institutions under his ministry to understand and appreciate how things are done and if they can be done better. However, he needs to make better use of the Business Regulatory Review Agency (BRRA) which was formed by the Business Regulatory Act No.3 of 2014 and which seeks to reduce the cost and burden of doing business in the country. Right now the compliance requirements for SMEs are suffocating. From ZRA to NAPSA to Workman’s Compensation, to trading licenses, to personal levy, fire certificates, health certificates, skills levy, etcetera. Chipoka Mulenga needs to make business compliance reform his priority if his good rating is going to be sustained going forward. Government is killing SMEs through these onerous compliance requirements.
5. Fifth Best Minister for February 2022 = Ambrose Lufuma – Minister of Defense.
His good performance lies in his silence. A minister of defense is not supposed to be loud and all over the place. The fact that he has been quiet means that he has performed well.
WORST FIVE MINISTERS
1. Worst Minister for February 2022 = Peter Chibwe Kapala – Minister of Energy.
His handling of Zesco’s increase of connection and meter separation tariffs was pathetic to say the least. Both ZESCO and ERB are under his ministry and instead of sitting both institutions down and communicating a single clear statement to the public, they kept contradicting each other in the press and then the Minister joined the public fray and contradicted both ZESCO and ERB before making a u-turn on his statement. He is clueless, uninspiring and incompetent.
2. Second Worst Minister for February 2022 = Jack Mwiimbu – Minister of Home Affairs and Internal Security.
The minister seems to have a high appetite for washing the dirty linen of the institutions he presides upon in public. Firstly he publicly accused the police of being thieves and that they mounted road blocks to steal money from the public. Secondly he publicly accused the police of being involved in most of the armed robberies around the country. By making these public accusations, the minister is undermining public confidence in the Zambia Police and also undermines the morale of the men and women in uniform. If the minister identifies any problems with some members of the police, corrections officers etcetera, he needs to resolve such problems with the respective command and not disparage all officers to the public. The minister should stop talking like he is at a political rally all the time and start talking like a leader who wants to build.
3. Third Worst Minister for February 2022 = Stanley Kakubo – Minister of Foreign Affairs
The minister’s handling of Zambians who needed to be evacuated from Ukraine was pathetic. Instead of being proactive, he was reactive and we are lucky that we have not lost any citizens so far. His judgement appears to be questionable. A few months ago, he decided to evacuate Zambians from Ethiopia at a time when no other country had evacuated their people from there, but failed to evacuate Zambians from Ukraine when almost all western countries had moved their embassies from Kyiv to Poland or other towns near the Polish border. The minister failed to see the writing on the wall that war was eminent. But even after our citizens managed to cross the border into Poland, they did not receive consular support on the ground, and where only addressed in a Zoom call. The minister is incoherent, confused and overwhelmed by trifles. He appears more suited taking selfie’s with the President in the streets of London than discharging the key functions of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs.
4. Fourth Worst Minister for the Month of February 2022: Silvia Masebo – Minister of Health.
Despite having extensive experience sitting in cabinet under MMD, PF and now UPND, the minister does not have much to show for her experience in terms of performance. When it comes to recruitment of medical doctors, she speaks a totally different language to her Permenant Secretary for Technical Services, and you can tell that the two do not meet often to confer on important ministerial matters. Additionally, it is a wonder how her ministry could dispatch condemned Honey Bee medicines to hospitals and not discover the anomaly until the expired medicines had been dispensed to unsuspecting patients. For starters, how do you keep condemned drugs together with good drugs. Are condemned drugs not supposed to be isolated and destroyed immediately? Lastly, the majority of hospitals in both rural and urban areas do not have medicines and people are often given prescriptions. Surely Ba Masebo, the PF did their part by building hospitals and clinics all over the country, the least that you can do is put medicines and medical personnel in these health facilities. Is that too much to ask?
5. Fifth Worst Minister for the Month of February 2022 = Chushi C. Kasanda – Minister of Information and Media.
Explaining things in English is just not her area. By keeping her in that ministry, the President is torturing her every day that passes. Please Mr. President, stop the torture.
LT you need to step up on your news content. There is too much airtime given to opinion pieces from some empty tins. Don’t you have journalists who can give us real news instead of us always reading pen down opinions from the same people. It’s either Sean or Amb Emmanuel Mwamba. Do these two voices represent the mind of all Zambians? Please do some investigative journalism & give us content that reflects the real sentiments of ordinary Zambians
hahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahaha, Explaining things in English is just not her area
I was interested in seeing the rating for Felix Chipota Mutati, Paul Kabuswe and Cornelius Mweetwa
Sean Tembo rating the UPND ministers: why are the UPND ministers not rating Sean Tembo? Much easier, much quicker: BIG FAT ZERO!
some truth in this article.
He is even too kind because for me they all get zero marks including ka hh
Very true and correct analysis. They are all a bunch of incompitent ministers. Next include the Veep. and just tell us how incomptent she has handled herself in parliament. Half the time she has no clue of what she talks about. The most frustrating thing is that she tries to parrot HH in understanding economics. But we all know she is a primary school teacher and understanding economic theories is not her,
Minister of Information na Chizungu….. We miss Dora Siliya!!!!
Minister of Mines should be the worst of them all….. He has no clue whatsoever. He deserves to join those JERABOS at black mountain!!
Talk about the Minister for Councils …… The Guy was the hottest and biggest loud mouth in parliament when he was in opposition. He promised so many things he would do when he gets in power including sorting out Esau Chuulu, demolishing forest 27 arresting Kanganja etc. But looking at him today, you just wonder what has happened to him. He has become so elusive on the issues he was shouting about in parliament then. Cannot articulate any tangible issues. He has simply gone mute.
Sean Tembo, atleast strive to have one section Chairman anywhere in Zambia. You can not on doing things that don’t add value to you, your imaginary party and the nation. So you have rated, then what?
They are the same . They cannot perform because the lies they told us are now haunting them. Even their own cadres have now realised that they were duped. Liswaniso has gone mute. Dean has realised he was misguided. That Nawa the motivation speaker has no drop of motvation and inspiration left in him. Luapula youths thought they could own a mine…..their leader was arrested. Confusion and disllusionment is on the faces of all the cadres and UPND youths.
Sean Tembo should be thanked for the free advice he is mgiving to the governmement.Insulting and rubbishing what ever he analyses is not helping the p advancing both political and economic development.He is very generous with his analysis.
This Sean guy has a lot of time to waste. Cant he use his time wisely, this would also be a consequence of not having members, If he had members, they were going to be advising on priorities like coming up with a party and growing it, this one man show is not helping him
Sean is right on the Minister of Information she is just a passenger in that cabinet and costing taxpayers a lot of money because the UPND has had to create positions for cadres in the ministry to assist her.
Sean whilst you are rating other teams who is in your team to shadow the teams you are rating? You are no different to Chilufya Tayali just briefcase politicans.
Don’t laugh at Sean for apparent lack of structures. Shimuchita panono apokele mwikalafye umukashi.
Minister of Information is proper, she communicates effectively, the propaganda against her designed to destabilise the cabinent wont work. There is no single area where you can falter her. She is on point in all her communication
Chushi Kasanda is the best Minister of Information the country has ever had. She has all the attributes of a very energetic, engaged and focused Minister.
Those people who want the Minister of Information to work in a confused state like in the past are totally lost. The current one is very good because she communicates what is relevant, communicates when it is relevant and is concise. Infact for most of us she is the best Minister. This attitude of not having a single minister, councilor or just a branch chairman but you want to criticize your colleagues cabinet is not good.
Information Minister is excellent. The President must not be swayed by propagandists whose objective is to bring in discontent which does not exist. Infact all UPND ministers have been very mature, focused and engaged.
Sean Tembo should be thanked for the free advice he is mgiving to the governmement.Insulting and rubbishing what ever he analyses is not helping the advancing of both political and economic development.He is very generous with his analysis and advice.Listen to him soberly
Taulo – This is what cost PF arrogancy – you see Sean as a “propagandists” instead of taking his criticism as constructive, moreover he is a taxpayer and has vested interest in this govt. There is nothing excellent about Information Minister I dont know what yardstick you are using…she is terrible there are women in UPND who can do a better job.
No, Tarino, it is a question of reality that UPND has the best ministers so far, arrogance aside, anybody who is saying the contrary like Sean is alone. Please advise Sean to start scrutinizing himself since he is alone in the party
The Zambian people gave their ratings on Sean Tembo on August 12 2021.
Need I say more.
My childhood friend had a grandfather based in Kabwe. The old man who was a staunch JW member didn’t believe in black rule. His two sons were active during the struggle for independence. Whenever they visited home, he would tell them in Ngoni that the blackman was not meant to run Government quoting some chapter and verse from the Holly Book. When my friend recounted this I was very upset…. but after so many years of disappointment I am not decided whether to believe him or not. After all I am a black man.
Minister of Mines, Kabuswe should have featured on the list, He loves camera as if he wants to win some contest. The man is clueless about organizing cooperatives at the Black Mountain. He has just replaced PF cadres with UPND ones and to a gullible mind, things are now more organized than before. We calo we!!!. Gary Nkombo is conspicuously missing, another loud mouth minister without any meaningful output. Thanks SET with this piece of analysis.
Good work Sean.
LT please spare the articles for serious and value based discussions not useless chaps like this one. During Lungu’s time when public resources were been looted in broad daylight and all directions. This chap had nothing to say. All of the sudden he now has time to be rating ministers who inherited a very bad economic and social situation and have not been in government for even a year.
He is very correct.
Good wake up call for needed selfless hard work.
But he forget to rate his own party’s performance in the just ended election and beyond.
Sean clean your house FIRST
Ministry of health….Yaba no drugs in hospitals….. Before forming government these chaps promised us… heaven on earth…but apa ma rubbish so kaya
UPND ministers have been exemplary so far. One of the best cabinets, with Chushi Kasanda information Minister updating citizens on government policy and upgrades timely and claerly. Please Mr President, don’t take any advice from people who are just jealous of the prowess and competency your ministers have shown. We had ministers in the past whose job was only to laugh at state house and they were getting paid, no out put at all
Very focused cabinet, this UPND one. All ministers above eight out of ten marks. Brilliant information minister as well
Chushi Kasanda, love her or hate her, outstanding Minister. Beauty with intellect. Best pick
Cant PEP stores just adopt Sean Tembo since his imaginary party does not exist, he just sits on the computer now, typing. You wont see a minister in the present government buying a rickety fire tender vehicle for one million US dollars one, or getting a toll gate at 4.3 million dollars one (78 million kwacha in local currency), I can guarantee you wont see such bizzare things. so far the ministers have performed far beyond expectation even in their infancy in office
Sean Tembo, start working on your party please if at all you have one. The UPND ministers are just great, very focused beings. You cant even rate them, because they are all exhibiting excellency – Fair assessment, I am not even UPND
Taulo’s Friend – You say UPND has the best ministers so far? Who are you comparing with …what yardstick are you using ..were you born yesterday? Did you see the MMD cabinet of Mwanawasa or RB? Please stop this nonsense and take criticism as fuel to better yourselves.
The ministers are all not impressive however I cannot stand and watch kasanda my good friend be criticised by tarino who she refused. Tarino your criticism is not objective. She refused your proposals and now you are constantly hating on her. You are a hurt vengeful f00I just like your president t