MINISTRY of Information Media Director and Spokesperson Thabo Kawana says people calling for his dismissal are doing it out of vindictiveness and pressure, adding that he is doing his job accordingly and this irritates “some of their demons”.
Kawana has come under fire, especially on social media, after saying that all Ministers had filed their assets at the “Office of the Filer” when a reporter repeatedly asked him to provide evidence of his statement during a public debate on UPND’s six months in government.
And in an interview, Kawana said all well-meaning Zambians could testify that his public speaking engagements were not arrogant.
“That is not arrogance and every well-meaning Zambian that knows our public trajectory in our public speaking engagements will testify that we are not arrogant. It is because sometimes people ask you deliberate questions aimed at trying to get information or solicit information out of you that will contradict for example what your superiors have stated. I can give you an example when I was talking about filling. The News Diggers carried a headline and my Minister made it very clear and gave the government position that all Ministers have filed,” he said.
“You could tell that the person that was interviewing me received a phone call to ask me about that question and persistently asked me about that question. Sometimes you put a stop gap answer to a wide gap question. So it comes out as arrogant and if it does come out as arrogant I think we will always endeavor to apologise to the people that find it arrogant. But we will give people the answers that are deserving and answers that satisfy the public in as far as information is concerned.”
Kawana said he was cognisant of the fact that government could not impress everybody.
“But we are also cognisant of the fact that we cannot impress everybody. There will be somebody who will not like it and there are some people who just also do not like you because you are you whilst others you irritate their demons and so that is life. So what we do is we will continue on the trajectory of ensuring that we provide correct information where there is misinformation and as long as the public is satisfied. Really, the rest does not matter as much. We come to the public to serve at the appointment of the President,” Kawana said.
“So when you are appointed to public office, you serve the people of Zambia. If you are disappointed, that is it because that is life. When you become a Minister, your next position is that of being a former Minister. When you become a President, the next position is that of being a former President. So I am Director now, in my next position, I will be a former Director and life goes on. What is important is that when I am given an opportunity, I must work it to the best of my ability to ensure that I carry out the mandate as instructed by my superiors and the dictates of my job.”
Kawana said he would only focus on providing correct information to the people of Zambia.
“For the rest, we care less. We know that there are people who are calling for my dismissal. We also understand that they do so out of vindictiveness and also out of pressure because they have come to realise that we are not people they can step on. We are doing our job accordingly and it irritates some of their demons. Therefore, they would rather see us get fired but when we get jobs, we know that the next position is that you are a former in that very same position. For me, what is important is at the time I am given a job to do, I will do it to the best of my ability, satisfaction and service to the people of Zambia,” said Kawana.
“I cannot judge myself. It is the people of Zambia who are to judge if I am doing a good job or not. My job is to give them the correct information as they demand it. So if I tell them that for example the recruitment of nurses and doctors may delay a little bit because these are the issues that have arisen, or the recruitment of teachers may delay a little bit and these issues have arisen, and they are informed. But then there are others who will say ‘no but you said you were going to employ in January therefore you are useless’. My job is to put correct information where there is misinformation. Whether I am managing to do that or not, it is up to the people of Zambia to say that you are informing us or you are failing to inform us.”
One Response
Overall, Mr. Kawana you are doing well. But like every person, it is those small little things that put you in an awkward position. Those little things make you sound like a politician when you are a civil servant. Please, understand that a Director in any Government ministry, is a senior position that is highly respected. You need to help everyone else to respect your office. Do not make it a habit to respond as a politician, I repeat. For the journalists who interview people on different things, let them do thorough prior research before coming on live. They should know where documentation for declarations of assets are filed, for example. It shouldn’t be made as if it such a difficult or challenging question when it is not. Thank you.