By XAVIER MANCHISHI –
SECRETARY to the Cabinet Roland Msiska has warned that no travel will be allowed for permanent secretaries whose ministries do not submit Statutory Instruments with accompanying memoranda expeditiously.
Speaking when he appeared before the Parliamentary Committee on Delegated Legislation, Dr Msiska said a circular would be issued to all ministries regarding the stringent measures being put in place to curb inefficiency.
Dr Msiska said his office had put in place several interventions, including the travel ban for responsible permanent secretaries and other sanctions.
Dr Msiska was responding to concerns by committee chairperson Moono Lubezhi who wondered why the Government had been delaying in issuing Statutory Instruments thereby disadvantaging the intended beneficiaries.
Ms Lubezhi, who is Namwala MP, questioned whose authority the Government had been using to issue Statutory Instruments and revoke them even before they were approved by the Delegated Legislation
Committee.
“I can’t agree with you more. We cannot sit here and presume that the system is okay and some of the inefficiencies that have been pointed out are inherent with the provisions of the rules base under which we operate,” Dr Msiska said.
The secretary to the Cabinet, who was accompanied by Justice Permanent Secretary Patricia Jere, said the nature of some Statutory Instruments was deemed as an emergency by the Executive.
He added that some old-fashioned regulations on the issuance of Statutory Instruments must be repealed if the country was to be up-to-date with modern trends, adding that even Britain whose model Zambia used abandoned some of the delegated legislation.
Responding to a question from Choma Central Member of Parliament Cornelius Mweetwa on why Zambia could not follow the Ghanaian model, Dr Msiska said changes to the legislation were welcome but costly to
implement.
Ms Lubezhi said the committee was also concerned with the increasing number of Statutory Instruments that were issued with accompanying memoranda as well as others that were gazetted into law before being approved.
“It is not a matter of being disrespectful to this committee but there are instances when the Executive thinks it can’t wait in the reasoning, that delay may hurt the same people that the Statutory
Instrument is meant to benefit,” he submitted.
Other members on the Delegated Legislation Committee, which was discussing the consideration of Statutory Instruments, were Chadiza MP Allan Mbewe, Lukulu West’s Misheck Mitelo and Isaac Banda of Lumezi. Others are: Humphrey Mwanza of Solwezi West and Nakonde’s Abel Sichula.
