By Kellys Kaunda
SPEECH BY THE EIGHTH (😎 PRESIDENT OF ZAMBIA
GIVEN A DAY AFTER HER INAUGURATION
My fellow Zambians, may I start off my term as your President by affirming my belief that human agency is indispensable to the development of any given society. In this case, the citizens of this country are the agents of its development. How I treat you, especially those who have and continue to give their service to this country through both the public and civil services, demonstrates my commitment or lack thereof to the development of Zambia. Therefore, I choose to treat every public/civil servant with kindness and professionalism.
The decisions I am announcing today are informed by the collective experiences of those that have borne the brunt of the decisions of my predecessors. Under the previous seven (7) Presidents, cruelty, sadism, terminated with immediate effect, and recalled with immediate effect were celebrated as the norm despite the shock with which they were received by their victims, and despite the unnecessary disruption to government programs and the loss of qualified and experienced human resource.
A sudden loss of employment is a sudden loss of income. A sudden loss of income is a sudden loss of oxygen in a modern economy where money means almost everything. It means loans procured, school fees, house rentals, and any other financial obligations linked to one’s salary remain dangerously demanding attention on due dates. The emotional distress this state of affairs brings about is inhuman at best and devilish at its worst. Is that what electoral democracy was meant to deliver? I beg to differ.
Against this backdrop, today I am announcing a new page in the politics of this country. I am announcing the end of an era, an era of decisions dipped in a psychopathic spirit and replaced by the Biblical counsel offered by the greatest teacher that ever lived, “do unto others what you would want done unto you”. To this effect, any public/civil servant, whether serving at home or abroad shall not have their job or contract terminated with immediate effect. Notices of termination shall provide for six (6) months for those serving at home and a year for those serving abroad. These time frames are intended to facilitate smooth transitions into new ways of life.
A week before the last day of work, the terminal benefits and any other entitlements shall be paid without fail. This will be made possible by preparing in advance before any officer has their contract terminated. The officers responsible for these payments shall be held personally liable for any omissions in this regard. My government will soon be introducing a law in Parliament that shall provide for offenses that shall be brought against officers who fail in this respect. To assist in efficient processing of payments, various technologies already in use in other parts of the world shall be deployed in our management systems.
Officers that shall not be treated as outlined will be provided with guidelines of reporting their grievances that I promise will be dealt with in good time. Thank you for your kind attention.