Kunda rubbishes calls for treatment of leaders locally

Kunda rubbishes calls for treatment of leaders locally
Written by Chiwoyu Sinyangwe
Wednesday, June 24, 2009 3:55:43 PM

VICE-President George Kunda was yesterday irked and described as "venomous and inflammatory" demands by the public service union that no senior government official should be evacuated abroad for treatment if the conditions of the local health sector are to be improved.

Vice-President Kunda was reacting to Civil Servants and Allied Workers Union of Zambia (CSAWUZ) deputy president Beatrice Nyirongo, who said among the things that were causing the deterioration of service delivery by the public sector included limited funding by the central government as well as lack of priorities.

Nyirongo, who passionately delivered her speech amidst shouts of "bauze" from fellow workers during the commemorations of the United Nations Public Service Day, said workers in the country were currently being sacrificed by the government under the pretext of the effects of the global economic crisis.

Nyirongo said women in the country were currently feeling the biggest pinch of the economic crisis.

"Even as we come here to march, we shall be given free T-shirts and free meals but the people we have left at home, we left them with nothing," Nyirongo said. "Even with this global hunger crunch, most times when there is global hunger, the men run away but the women soldier on."

Nyirongo said there was need for the government to improve funding to the public service as its activities directly affected the community.

She warned that a de-motivated public service was a threat to the overall ability of the sitting government to meet its mandate of delivering its development agenda.

"Even when you go to the hospitals, all the medicine and other equipment, there is nothing because the government has cut funding and it says because of this financial crunch," she said. "But when they are sick, there is no crunch as they go outside and enjoy themselves at Morning Side Clinic [in Johannesburg, South Africa] and we the ordinary people at UTH. From the top, everybody should be treated at UTH and other hospitals in Zambia."

Nyirongo also urged the public service workers to desist from stealing public funds, saying hunger at home should not be an excuse for pilfering public resources.

But when Vice-President Kunda took to the podium to deliver the official speech, he said the remarks by the workers' representative were inflammatory.

In a short reaction to Nyirongo's statement, Vice-President Kunda who remained calm during the procedures however said he appreciated the spirit of the speech.

"Let me start by acknowledging the speeches delivered, the rather venomous and inflammatory speech coming from the representatives of the trade union," the Vice-President said. "Apart from venomous depth, I acknowledge the speech was very constructive and hammered all of us here from the theft in the public service."

Vice-President Kunda also said the continued revelations of theft by public servants put the public funds at risk.

He said there was need for the public service to safeguard public resources which had been reduced by the current effects of the global financial crisis that had resulted in financing deficits for the government in the short to medium term.

During the prize presentations, master of ceremonies Bright Sinkala caused laughter when he referred to Ministry of Communications and Transport as "single sourcing" when the department was called upon to pick its award.