Mung’omba report clear on deputy ministers – Harrington
By Thandizo Banda
INDIVIDUALS advocating the return of deputy ministers must first read the Mung’omba Constitution Review Commission (CRC) Report, former Transport Minister William Harrington has said.
Harrington, a commissioner on the Mung’omba CRC, cited page 348.
He said the proposal was against Zambians who did not want deputy ministers.
Zambians wanted the position abolished because it was a cost on state resources.
“As a commissioner on the Mung’omba CRC, I’m a witness to the consensus of submissions made from across the country which showed a clear agreement that deputy ministers did little or no work but spent much time drinking tea or coffee, and catching up with current affairs in newspapers and only adding to state resources,” Harrington said in a statement.
Harrington said deputy ministers did not exercise executive powers like full Cabinet ministers.
He said the office of a deputy minister did not attend Cabinet meetings and could not act in the absence of the substantive office holder.
Harrington said government should not use the creation of political offices to address unemployment in the country.
“Whilst we support government’s efforts to implement its manifesto on employment creation, this noble agenda should not and cannot be at the expense of the already financially constrained majority of citizens through creation of unnecessary positions,” he said.
Harrington said any attempt to bring back the deputy minister’s office could not be amended through a bill in Parliament without the approval of the people.
“The Constitution is owned by the people and they already loudly rejected this matter,” he said.
Some UPND aligned civil society organisations have mounted a media campaign for the re-introduction of deputy ministers to ease the workload of Cabinet ministers.
