By Revelation Editor
President Hakainde Hichilema has increased cabinet ministries from 24 in his first term to 30 during his second and final term of office.
Of course, the move attracted debate as was expected because an increment in the size of the government will attract costs to be born by the taxpayers.
There has been debate especially on the motivation behind this hike in ministries. The President and his team argue that the increase has been necessitated by the demand to meet his growth agenda during his term term, and the need for efficiency in the manner government operates and discharges services.
His own officials have argued that the cost in increasing these ministries is small against the national budget, and that several other countries have taken steps to separate ministries that were viewed to carry broad mandates.
However, his critics argue that he has done so out of need to give jobs to his friends, in the same manner they accused him of having increased parliamentary numbers in order to create more opportunities for his friends to contest, and also to give them jobs.
While not trivialising the debate, this is already a settled matter as the ministries have already been increased with people appointed to steer them.
Is the increase in the number of ministers good for improving government efficiency. Probably yes. A lot of factors can be taken into account, including the increase in the country’s population and the need for efficiency in the delivery of services. However, what we cannot say for certain is if the same move will result in the achievement of the intended objectives. We shall only prove if the decision was worthwhile when we see an improvement in the delivery of services and government efficiency. If we shall notice an upswing in the goals President Hakainde Hichilema has set for his administration in this his last term of office then we shall know whether the decision to increase was worth it or not. Let’s all watch the space.
However, what can’t be reconciled is the President’s own pronouncements before and immediately after he assumed office to the decision he has taken now.
For those who can remember, Hichilema was a constant critic of what he viewed then as his predecessor Edgar Lungu’s bloated government, which had 28 ministers. And he promised he would reduce the same once he got elected into public office. And indeed after defeating Lungu in the 2021 general elections, President Hichilema did not hesitate to actually reduce the number of ministries. He actually trimmed the number from 28 to 24, and in his own words described the action as his “methodical” way of running public matters.
One of the ministries he actually scrapped off was the Ministry of Higher Education, which had existed separately from the Ministry of Education. However, five years down the line, he has reinstated the same ministry he scrapped off and it’s now called Ministry of Skills and Higher Education. He probably earlier removed that ministry with the genuine of intentions. However, once he had become accustomed with the realities of governance, he probably saw the benefit of having two separate ministries of education. The argument from his critics that he did the same to give jobs to his friends can also not be discounted.
What we shall urge all the people, critics and praise singers, alike is to watch the space. Only after then will they have a proper perspective to make judgment on the matter.
Related
By Revelation Editor
President Hakainde Hichilema has increased cabinet ministries from 24 in his first term to 30 during his second and final term of office.
Of course, the move attracted debate as was expected because an increment in the size of the government will attract costs to be born by the taxpayers.
There has been debate especially on the motivation behind this hike in ministries. The President and his team argue that the increase has been necessitated by the demand to meet his growth agenda during his term term, and the need for efficiency in the manner government operates and discharges services.
His own officials have argued that the cost in increasing these ministries is small against the national budget, and that several other countries have taken steps to separate ministries that were viewed to carry broad mandates.
However, his critics argue that he has done so out of need to give jobs to his friends, in the same manner they accused him of having increased parliamentary numbers in order to create more opportunities for his friends to contest, and also to give them jobs.
While not trivialising the debate, this is already a settled matter as the ministries have already been increased with people appointed to steer them.
Is the increase in the number of ministers good for improving government efficiency. Probably yes. A lot of factors can be taken into account, including the increase in the country’s population and the need for efficiency in the delivery of services. However, what we cannot say for certain is if the same move will result in the achievement of the intended objectives. We shall only prove if the decision was worthwhile when we see an improvement in the delivery of services and government efficiency. If we shall notice an upswing in the goals President Hakainde Hichilema has set for his administration in this his last term of office then we shall know whether the decision to increase was worth it or not. Let’s all watch the space.
However, what can’t be reconciled is the President’s own pronouncements before and immediately after he assumed office to the decision he has taken now.
For those who can remember, Hichilema was a constant critic of what he viewed then as his predecessor Edgar Lungu’s bloated government, which had 28 ministers. And he promised he would reduce the same once he got elected into public office. And indeed after defeating Lungu in the 2021 general elections, President Hichilema did not hesitate to actually reduce the number of ministries. He actually trimmed the number from 28 to 24, and in his own words described the action as his “methodical” way of running public matters.
One of the ministries he actually scrapped off was the Ministry of Higher Education, which had existed separately from the Ministry of Education. However, five years down the line, he has reinstated the same ministry he scrapped off and it’s now called Ministry of Skills and Higher Education. He probably earlier removed that ministry with the genuine of intentions. However, once he had become accustomed with the realities of governance, he probably saw the benefit of having two separate ministries of education. The argument from his critics that he did the same to give jobs to his friends can also not be discounted.
What we shall urge all the people, critics and praise singers, alike is to watch the space. Only after then will they have a proper perspective to make judgment on the matter.
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