Opposition Questions Government’s Handling of Lands System Collapse
…: the government’s failure to manage the transition has cost the nation dearly….
LUSAKA – The opposition has expressed concern over the government’s handling of the recent collapse of the Ministry of Lands and Natural Resources’ online system, questioning whether the transition from the old system to a new one was properly executed.
Speaking in Parliament, Shiwang’andu Member of Parliament Hon. Stephen Kampyongo raised serious doubts about whether the government had adequately planned for the migration from the old system before switching to the new one, which has now suffered a major failure.
“Your predecessor had come to this August House to talk about the initial system which was installed before and that you were going to change the supplier of systems. And so we were raising questions at that point of how it was going to be to migrate from the old system and start with a totally new system,” Hon. Kampyongo stated.
He further questioned whether the rushed transition had directly contributed to the collapse, inconveniencing law firms and other stakeholders who depend on the system for land transactions.
“Do you think that migration from the old system could have now eventually affected the new system, which eventually collapsed and ended up with the challenge we are dealing with now?” he asked.
In response, Minister of Lands and Natural Resources Hon. Silvia Masebo admitted that the disruption was unprecedented but insisted that the new system was superior.
“The old system, Mr. Speaker, had a good side, but it had weaknesses. The current system is much, much superior and better than the old system. Like I indicated, this is the first time when we’ve had such a disruption,” she said.
However, her explanation did little to address concerns about the government’s preparedness in handling the transition. Instead, she shifted responsibility to Smart Zambia, the government division responsible for digital services.
“We, as an end-user, the Ministry of Lands, are not the ones that contracted this system. We are not responsible because this is a technical system that is under a division of government that deals with these kinds of things, and that is Smart Zambia,” Hon. Masebo stated.
Her remarks raise further questions about accountability. If the Ministry of Lands is the main user of the system, why was it not directly involved in ensuring its efficiency and reliability? The opposition argues that this lack of oversight is precisely why the system collapsed, leaving citizens and businesses stranded.
Hon. Masebo also admitted that the ministry had no proper backup system in place, a shocking revelation given the importance of land transactions in the country.
“We are also now looking at ensuring that we in future must have a tight backup so that even if something goes wrong, we have a fallback measure. As it were, we seemed like we had to wait until the system was restored, and of course, that had a negative impact not only on the government but also on our clients,” she conceded.
This admission underscores the Hon. Kampyongo’s argument that the government has failed to put in place the necessary safeguards to protect critical services.
“The issue of e-governance or e-services is a new concept for us in Zambia. Developed countries have gone further, and we are still building on. And so all I can say is that we all have work to do,” Hon. Masebo said, in what many see as an attempt to downplay the severity of the situation.
For the many Zambians, this statement is an admission of failure. If Zambia is still “building on” e-governance, why was the old system abandoned so abruptly? Why were no contingency measures put in place? And most importantly, who will take responsibility for the damage caused to businesses and ordinary Zambians affected by this failure?
In May 2023, Government introduced the Zambia Integrated Land Administration System (ZILAS), promising it would enhance transparency, eliminate bureaucratic inefficiencies, and integrate with other digital government services.
These remarks contradict the current government’s claim that the new system failure was unexpected. If the transition was planned properly, why has it now collapsed? The opposition argues that the government’s failure to ensure a seamless transition has led to this crisis, further exposing a lack of competence and accountability in handling national digital infrastructure.
As the government scrambles to restore the system, it remains to be seen whether this crisis will serve as a wake-up call for better planning and accountability