By Isaac Zulu
President Hakainde Hichilema should have not discarded all permanent secretaries, says Faustina Sinyangwe.
In interview with the Daily Revelation, Sinyangwe explained that President Hichilema should have maintained some permanent secretaries that are pure civil servants, who she referred to as “career permanent secretaries” in order to sustain institutional memory in government ministries and provincial administration.
“In as much as there’s change of government, there’s need to ensure that the developmental agenda that were started by the previous regime,” said Sinyangwe. “The reason is that you cannot come in power and, suddenly, come up with new innovations. So, it is wrong for President Hakainde Hichilema to discard all the permanent secretaries that served in the previous regime. By taking that route, you cannot sustain institutional memory in these government ministries as well as provincial administration.”
Sinyangwe continued.
“Not all permanent secretaries were politically inclined. You cannot fire all the permanent secretaries and replace them with your own people. And the Head of State appoints new ministers, new permanent secretaries and, in cases of Provinces, he has appointed new deputy permanent secretaries. How can they start from the scratch?” she asked.
She also said that there is need to change the trajectory where political party members are appointed to serve in the civil service.
“If we do not change this tendency of appointing political party cadres or party officials to the civil service should come to an end. If left unchecked, this issue will land us in problems as a country,” said Sinyangwe.
The former Matero Member of Parliament further insisted on the need to depoliticise the civil service.
“The civil service should be reserved for technocrats. Political party officials and party cadres should not be allowed to infiltrate the civil service,” said Sinyangwe. “I have worked in the civil service in the UNIP and the MMD governments. And I know what I am talking about.”
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