By GIDEON NYENDWA
UNWARRANTED recalls of civil servants in Foreign Service is a cost on the government that should be avoided, PF deputy national chairman Davis Chama has said.
Mr. Chama said it was unfortunate that the government was recalling almost all individuals in the Foreign Service including junior staff which is a very expensive exercise.
He said that recalling individuals who are in Foreign Service and deploying new ones is a drain on the little money the government claims to have in their coffers.
“It costs a lot of money to recall and send new people,” he said.
Mr. Chama said Zambians should learn that continuity has a role to play in the development of the country because turnover of staff every time there is a change of government means all the time they have to go back to the drawing board.
He said Zambia will only begin to prosper if people learn how to value continuity and understand that there are some people who are patriotic to the country and are effective even if there is change of government.
“When you form a government it does not mean changing whatever was left by the previous regime,” he said.
Mr. Chama said when he was appointed minister of Defense he worked with every one he found at the ministry despite receiving warnings from people that he should fire certain individuals who were perceived to be too loyal to the outgoing minister by then.
He said he was proud to say that he worked well with all of them without firing any one and they worked very well.
Mr. Chama said he knows that the government is under pressure to create jobs for their people but it must not come at the expense of another person who can still add value by losing their job.
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