All posts by : Felistas

NATION REPORTER

DR SISHUWA Sishuwa has wondered how all recent nominees for international positions are coming from the same regions as if other Zambians from other regions were not qualified.

Dr Sishuwa has questioned the transparency and fairness of the selection process for international nominations, urging the government to adopt a more inclusive and merit-based approach instead of focusing on regions.

Dr Sishuwa said it started with Chaloka Beyani, from Southern Province, then Mubita Nawa, Shebo Nalishebo, from Western Province and now Samuel Maimbo from either Southern Provinces. “I am quite uneasy that the candidates floated by Zambia for international positions seem to come from just one part of the country,” he said, noting that most of them are either relatives or close associates of influential figures within the government. Does it mean there are no qualified Zambians from other provinces? Or is proximity to power the main qualification?”

Dr Sishuwa has described Zambia’s recent diplomatic setbacks as a reflection of the country’s flawed foreign policy, citing the failed bid of Dr Maimbo for the African Development Bank (AfDB) presidency as the latest example.

Dr Sishuwa argued that Dr Maimbo’s unsuccessful candidacy followed a troubling pattern, which previously saw Zambian nominees such as Chaloka Beyani and Mubita Nawa fail in their quests for high-profile international roles, including positions at the International Court of Justice and Interpol respectively.

“To be sure, Maimbo, a terribly nice person had his own weaknesses,” Dr Sishuwa said. “He lacked the kind of experience in government and African institutions that his competitors possessed. His long tenure at the World Bank left him vulnerable to criticism, especially from those who see the AfDB as needing independence from Western influence.”

Despite Zambia’s failed bid to the AfDB top job, Dr Sishuwa maintained that Dr Maimbo remained a viable and respectable candidate.

However, he asserted that Zambia’s own diplomatic reputation may have worked against Dr Maimnbo.

“His main weakness was also his strength: backing from Zambia, whose current leadership is not favourably looked upon in many quarters outside Zambia,” he said.

Dr Sishuwa also raised concerns about regional imbalances in the nomination of candidates for international roles.

GIDEON NYENDWA

LOCAL Government and Rural Development Permanent Secretary, Nicholas Phiri has refused to resign despite failing to deliver all the 156 ambulances through Ace Pharmaceuticals after vowing that he was going to leave his job by today if the consignment was not going to be delivered.

Mr Phiri has now given himself August 31, 2025 as the deadline to deliver the now scandalous fleet of 156 ambulances procured using the Constituency Development Fund (CDF). Speaking at a press briefing in Lusaka yesterday, Mr Phiri, who gave himself a new deadline of August 2025 admitted that the government had failed to meet its May 31, 2025 deadline to roll out all 156 ambulances, blaming the failure on what he termed unexpected logistical challenges in the shipping process.

He said the vehicles would now arrive by a revised target of August 2025. He had previously vowed to resign if the ambulances were not in the country by the end of this month.

However, when questioned by journalists on whether he would honour that commitment, Mr Phiri declined, wondering why he should when his priority was now to ensure the successful arrival and distribution of the ambulances.

“To resign now would be to abandon the process when we need to see it through,” Mr Phiri said, insisting that the government was still committed to delivering the full fleet.

Mr Phiri said the 156 ambulances were part of a high-profile government initiative aimed at improving emergency medical response services in all 156 constituencies across the country. However, to date, only 47 have been delivered.

The delay has drawn sharp criticism from civil society organisations and opposition leaders, who have accused the government of backtracking on vital service delivery promises.

Critics argue that the failure to meet the deadline undermines public confidence in the administration’s capacity to manage critical health infrastructure projects.

Despite the backlash, Mr Phiri remained defiant, stating that the ministry is working closely with suppliers and logistics partners to expedite the remaining deliveries.

BUUMBA CHIMBULU ZAMBIA’S bid to take up the leadership of the African Development Bank (AfDB) crushed after her candidate for the presidency, Dr. Samuel Maimbo, yesterday fell short of clinching the institution’s top job, only finishing second to Sidi Ould Tah of Mauritania. Dr Tah is set to assume office on September 1, 2025, succeeding […]

IN any functioning democracy, journalists are the bridge between the people and power – the uncomfortable but necessary interrogators of public officials who wield authority funded by taxpayers.

So, when Thabo Kawana, the Permanent Secretary in the Ministry of Information and Media, lashes out at journalists and brands their legitimate questions as “Kachasu” inquiries – trivial, drunken banter – the nation must pause and reflect on what this says about leadership, accountability, and the role of a free press.

It is not only unbecoming but profoundly alarming that Mr Kawana, entrusted with overseeing media relations and public communication, chose to demean journalists for doing the very job the Constitution empowers them to do.

His dismissive and sarcastic remarks during a press briefing – especially in the face of an unresolved procurement scandal – show a contempt for transparency and a dangerous drift toward authoritarianism.

Let’s be clear: there is nothing irrelevant or drunken about asking why the government continues to award contracts to Ace Pharmaceuticals, a firm that has glaringly failed to deliver 156 ambulances on time – ambulances that are now reported to be substandard, left-hand drive, and still undergoing haphazard modifications.

This is not a “Kachasu” debate. It is a matter of life and death, public funds, and government credibility.

If Mr Kawana believes questions about the use of public money are beneath him, then he is categorically the wrong man for the job. A public information officer who recoils in arrogance when probed for answers does not strengthen democracy – he weakens it.

Journalists should never be apologetic for asking tough questions. It is not their job to flatter power or protect egos. It is their duty to challenge, to uncover, and to inform the citizenry.

Mr Kawana’s sneering posture is not only a slap in the face to the press corps, but to every Zambian who deserves clarity on how their money is being spent – especially when lives hang in the balance.

Equally troubling is the evasiveness of Mr Nicholas Phiri, who boldly declared he would resign if the ambulances were not delivered by the end of May.

Now, as that deadline approaches with no full delivery in sight, he insists his role in procurement “justifies” his continued stay in office.

But leadership demands integrity, not spin. If Mr Phiri had the courage to make the promise, he must have the integrity to keep it. No one forced him to offer that commitment.

The scandal surrounding these ambulances remains unresolved. Until government fully owns up – until it explains why a failed supplier is still getting contracts, until it holds someone accountable for the substandard vehicles – the controversy will only deepen.

Public trust is not restored by dodging questions or ridiculing those who ask them.

Mr Kawana must remember: he is not above scrutiny. And neither are the contracts, the ministers, or the companies involved in this shameful saga.

New research finds that self-employed women have fewer risk factors for cardiovascular disease (CVD) compared to non-self-employed women, suggesting that the work environment may play a role in the development of risk factors that can lead to heart attacks.

General service in the US military may lower, rather than heighten, the risk of depression, despite the relatively high prevalence of the condition among active duty and veteran personnel, finds a large observational study published online in BMJ Military Health.

Around one in seven US adults who currently smoke may have some degree of disability, suggests the first study of its kind published in the journal Tobacco Control.

A new study has found that depression is linked to an increased risk of dementia in both mid and later life.

A new study published in The Lancet Child & Adolescent Health suggests that parental or caregiver intuition may outperform some traditional early warning systems in identifying children at risk of deterioration.

UT Southwestern Medical Center scientists have identified a protein that appears to act as a master control switch for reactive gliosis, a prominent feature of many neurodegenerative diseases that is thought to contribute to their pathology. The researchers’ findings, published in Neuron, could eventually lead to new treatments for Alzheimer’s, Parkinson’s, and Huntington’s diseases and other neurodegenerative conditions.