Hot Mic Diplomacy: Thabo Kawana Upstages His Boss on Diamond TV While Mweetwa Stews in Silence
TV take-21 Jan. 26.
Thabo Kawana is the man who can turn a microphone into a Molotov cocktail without breaking a sweat, the spokesperson who is not a minister, not a special advisor, not even the comms czar of State House, yet somehow manages to eclipse them all with one hot mic stunt on Diamond TV that makes the president himself look like a call in guest on his own show.
Mr. Cornelius Mweetwa, the actual minister of information, must have felt the sting of junior envy, watching his subordinate steal the limelight with a trick he himself never dared attempt.
Clayson Hamasaka, they call him Comms Specialist at State House too, the presidential comms specialist, has never pulled such a stunt, preferring the quiet dignity of scripted statements. Mostly funny.
But Thabo, ah Thabo, he thrives in the theatre of familiarity, calling the president live on air as if HH were his drinking buddy from Chibolya.
This is not random, it is choreographed, and therein lies the satire: the President of Zambia reduced to a prop in his own spokesperson’s show.
I must know this; I am a former newspaper CEO and Editor in Chief.
The pros are obvious—Kawana shows courage, loyalty, and a willingness to bite the bullet for his boss, much like Trump’s Steve Miller or Pete Hegseth in America.
The cons, however, drip with danger. Familiarity can backfire. In Africa, we saw how Mugabe’s spokesperson George Charamba often over performed his loyalty, sometimes making the president look smaller than the office itself, feeding resentment among ministers who felt sidelined.
Abroad, Sean Spicer in the US tried to defend Trump with theatrical loyalty, only to become a punchline and lose credibility, dragging the administration’s messaging into chaos.
Kawana risks the same fate: his boldness could make HH look like a man hiding behind his spokesperson instead of leading from the front.
When the bow breaks!
And the timing could not be worse. Farmers are unpaid, food and fuel costs are soaring into double digits, discontent is simmering six months before the polls. A hot mic stunt may entertain, but it does not feed hungry stomachs or calm angry voters.
The PR could have been done better. In the US, after the BP oil spill, President Obama did not rely on a spokesperson’s theatrics; he addressed the nation directly, showing empathy and control.
President HH could have done the same—speaking to farmers, acknowledging their pain, promising concrete relief—rather than letting Kawana’s familiarity overshadow the crisis.
I love Thabo as a brother and admire his courage, but satire demands I ask: is this the best strategy now? Should Thabo do this again?
Perhaps not. His loyalty is unquestionable, but his timing is catastrophic.
What will brother Cornelius parambulate 😂
Mweetwa’s jealousy over his junior is palpable, the minister forced to watch as Kawana plays star while he remains a supporting actor. In the end, familiarity may win applause in the studio, but it risks losing votes in the field.
Amb AM. 21.01.26
Absolutely rubbish as usual from the jealous Anthony Mukwita! The known PF die hard is trying to divide the ND cohesion. Like him or not, Kawana is in his own league and shouldn’t be compared to people like Mukwita that have nothing to offer but his entitlement mentality. Unfortunately Mukwita doesn’t even know that he “past it” it 4 years ago. He has nothing to offer but jealously watch Kawana rise!!
What is Thabo Kawana, Anthony? What is the mandate of the Ministry of Information?
The role of Presidential aide is to Advise and not to be his Public mouth piece.
Stop creating a narrative that lacks substance.
Thabo Kawana is a civil Servant and works at the Ministry of Information. The mandated Ministry to diserminate information the Zambian people. He speak for Government. The institution mandated under law to run the state. He is government spokesman.
The Minister is Chief Government spokesman. But is a political appointee. Earlier in the week he made a statement but you and other propagandist continue the misleading narrative to confuse Zambians into believe that your story is factual yet not.
Now who would you believe? A political appointee and party functionary or a Civil Servant who heads the Ministry?
Thabo Kawana is doing a good job. There is absolutely no reason to start comparing him with this and that and project his downfall. We are all different and follow different paths in our life.
Kakwita is a small little chap who thinks being appointed to a political cadre -ambassadorship makes him better qualified. He was a typical newspaper writer who after a lifetime struggle studied using the newspaper. He thinks Zambia misses him. He thinks the country will one day run aground and wake up to be told that without him in the media or foreign service circles, Zambia cant move forward. He has everything about him in small matter or quantity. Only his ego is popping bigger than his all .
The media must ignore him to cut him and show him where he belongs.
The chap has malicious tenderances. Remember how he tried to oust the Former MD of Zambia Daily Mail. Like Mwamba; ubulofwa bwashupa so they create chaos to make a living. We need to enact stiffer laws that will truely punish these demagoagues; as they do in South Korea. 23 years to a former President is the sentence he will serve. Nomba baZambia when a politican committs a crime ati Persecution? These kelpomanics wont learn. Has Kambwili learnt his lesson? Already he is also causing his own havoc for notoriety.
Mukwita just seat yourself down