By JAMES KUNDA –
GOVERNMENT has revised the process of appointing directors to serve on boards of all parastatal companies, Parliament has heard.
Finance Minister Alexander Chikwanda said parastatal boards were no longer chaired by Permanent Secretaries as the directors elected chairpersons from among members of the public to head the organisations.
Mr Chikwanda said positions for vacant chief executive officer in parastatals were often advertised in the Press and applications were subjected to scrutiny before the selection of the best candidate.
Mr Chikwanda was responding to a question from Lubansenshi Independent Member of Parliament (MP) Patrick Mucheleka who wanted to know whether the Government had plans to revise the process of constituting boards of directors for parastatal companies.
“Government has already revised the process of appointing directors on boards of all parastatal companies by appointing professionals and relevant experts from various sectors of the country,” he said.
Mr Chikwanda said the Government writes to professional bodies such as the Law Association of Zambia (LAZ) with requests for the institutions to nominate people deemed competent to serve as directors for the parastatal boards.
He said in the 2012 financial year, six parastatals declared dividends to their shareholders while in the 2013 financial year, seven companies declared dividends.
“Mr Speaker, I must state that Government is concerned that out of more than 40 State owned parastatals, only these few declared dividends in the said financial years,” he said.
Parliament also heard that Government owes 3,218 retired teachers K450 million in unsettled terminal benefits as of April this year.
Education Deputy Minister Sydney Mushanga told the House that Government was committed to offsetting the debt to help improve the livelihood of the retired teachers.
Mr Mushanga was responding to Kalabo Central MP Chinga Miyutu who asked how many retired teachers countrywide were not paid their terminal benefits and how much money was owed.
Meanwhile, Home Affairs Minister Davis Mwila has maintained that the Government will not tolerate political violence.
In a Ministerial Statement in Parliament yesterday, Mr Mwila said perpetrators of the vice would be brought to book regardless of political affiliation.
