PRESIDENT HICHILEMA’S PRESSER; MY TAKE AWAY

By GEORGE CHOMBA

Asked about the taste of an elephant killed for straying into a village and residents having shared the meat for the pot and then for the stomach, the wisemen and women who have over the years participated in such feasts would narrate how this depends on the part of the body consumed.

My mentor in journalism always used this example to counsel on the difficulties of picking a public interest angle story when covering a press conference by a very very important person (VVIP) such as a State President or a King.

This is because a press conference is not an exclusive event for an individual journalist to pick a news angle for the public.

The VVIP is the hero of the event and can swing from one topic to another.

And all and sundry media personnel are present and are free to pick on their preferred story angles and context.

Therefore from a dozen of journalists or media houses, the sought after angle maybe written about way before the newsroom time.

In fact with the opened up digital era, some media houses would be streaming live the press conference and the consumers of news and current affairs would have already formed an opinion by the time traditional journalists lodge the story.

So even before the journalist hits the key board, the public would have already received the news in real-time and may be looking for further details.

How then would a Journalist sustain the story of the press conference which is already in public domain?

On 20th December, 2022, President Hakainde Hichilema held a press conference to mark the end of 2022.

The question which followed and still follows , is; what was new at the presser and what is the take away into 2023?

In my case, President Hichilema’s administration is an open book and many would testify that engaging Vedanta Mineral Resource Limited over Konkola Copper Mine is a beaten story already.

In the last 12 months, Mines Minister Paul kabuswe must have mastered the challenges in the mining sector like an altar boy does with the verses in the Bible.

Equally, Energy Minister Peter Kapala appears to understand the subject of load management as if he is an operative at some Zesco power substation.

Also, rightly or wrongly, why Zesco should increase power connection charges by some 100 percent.

The sound of the drums about the Patriotic Front’s alleged corruption is already at chorus point and therefore what remains is whether the State has strong evidence to sustain the cases in the courts of law.

My take away at the press conference, therefore, lies in the Presidential statement; “2022 was dedicated to stabilize the failed economy while 2023 is dedicated to unlocking domestic rigidities within the country for example approvals, permits and so on.”

President Hichilema explains that he will not entertain excuses by officials tasked to perform duties pertaining to deliverables.

This has prompted the question whether the honeymoon is over for civil servants and politicians whose standard operating procedures have been based on blaming the subordinates?

While at permanent secretary level, President Hichilema has exercised his prerogative powers of appointing and disappointing, it will be front pages if he announced the first ministerial casaulty in 2023 for failure to deal with domestic rigidities.

Since he has given himself the first task of unlocking domestic rigidities in the energy sector at a meeting with captains of industry set for Thursday, 22nd December, 2022, i hold the pen and notebook for possible headlines.

Your guess is as good as mine as I am pregnant with expectations over whether the outcome of the meeting will mitigate worries about energy costs which are digging into my pocket.

Therefore, if indeed 2023 is the year of removing domestic rigidities in delivery of services to the people, then that is the part of the meat of the elephant I have picked for consumption to sustain the press conference story and accountability on promises.