Governance And Leadership

The draft National Constitution is now out and open to the public for consideration and comment. The development and spirit of any constitution is expected to be; ‘by the people and for the people’.

This may be a guiding principle for all those that have decided to take an interest in the most important guiding document for the social and economic well being of the Zambian people.

The fundamental issues that one might want to consider are; the separation of powers of the three arms of governance, accountability, equity of all stakeholders, and leadership.

These principles also apply to most endeavours in our lives including business and building a robust and sustainable economy.

Interestingly, the draft Constitution has come to the public in print form and one hopes that as promised by the National Constitution Conference chair, it will soon be posted on the various web sites prescribed. Access to the draft Constitution is a basic vehicle for public equity in the Constitution making process.

The draft Constitution contains many provisions to hold the Head of State accountable to the Legislature on behalf of the people, with several mechanisms or the removal of an erring President.

These provisions try to ensure that the Head of State does not plunge the country into chaos in the event that his or her capacity to serve the people is impaired.

The powers of the Head of State hold the Executive, including the Vice President, accountable to the office of the President, and provide protection for the people from a destructive member of the Government machinery. The appointment and removal of top political Government officials by the President ensures accountability, only if managed appropriately.

The rationale seems to fall apart, and there is inconsistency, when the draft Constitution considers the accountability of Members of Parliament and Ward Councillors of the Local Government system. The current status quo is maintained whereby MP’s and Councillors are elected into office and are not compelled to be accountable to the appointing authority, which in this case, are the people who elected them.

MP’s and Councillors have free reign over their domains for the duration of their mandate in office, and there are very few provisions that are in place to either demand accountability, or for removal from office.

This scenario creates a governance structure that demands accountability only at the very top, but allows personal whims and fancies to dictate at the lower levels that interact on a daily basis with the people of the nation.

In a business, this arrangement leads to low productivity, abuse, wastage, inefficiency, lack of transparency, and finally after some time, the collapse of the enterprise.

Some character traits of a nation are set by the Head of State. These traits go a long way towards developing a model of behaviour for the leadership of a nation that could create lean and efficient government machinery, or could indulge in a huge government budget that squeezes vast amount of taxes from the citizenry which would have otherwise gone to investment in productive economic activity.

Botswana offers some insights on options for leadership where leaders do not go about their daily business with entourages of support staff. The Head of State in Botswana walks on the streets of Gaberone like every other citizen, as he engages in the day to day life of buying groceries and engaging with his people. As a result, there are very few motorcades, leaders are more in touch with their people, and the Government machinery is more functional in delivering services to the people rather than feeding itself.

There is merit in questioning what the fundamental values and models of our governance structures and systems are based on. As we comment and offer suggestions on the way forward for Zambia, we may want to re-assess the mechanisms that should motivate every Zambian to want to become more productive, more efficient, more innovative, and more committed to the development and well being of the country.

The cost of running a government adds to the cost of doing business. The lack of efficiency, transparency, and accountability in the governance systems of a country adds to the cost of doing business. The weakness in accountability of the legislature to the electorate adds to the cost of doing business. Leadership with low commitment to cost effective social and economic development adds to the cost of doing business

It is folly to expect ‘cut and paste’ models lifted from the blue prints of other countries to work in Zambia without adjusting and adapting them to address the peculiar influences, circumstances, and geo-political pressures that affect Zambia. It will be naïve, to expect foreign assistance and systems to focus primarily on the development of Zambia when they are promoted with foreign tax payer money that should be employed in developing their own social and economic goals.

Nail biting successes such as Ghana qualifying to the next round in the World Cup tournament may not be the best way to go as a sustainable model for Zambia. As we wish Ghana success in the next round, we must walk away acknowledging that our answers do not lie in wishful thinking but in planning, preparation, investment, and strategy.

What really matters for the Zambian economy and the well being of the vast majority of Zambians, is a set of rules and regulations supported by a long term committed effort to lifting the quality of life for all. The basic building block to achieve this goal is a National Constitution that not only stands the proverbial ‘Test of Time’, but that aggressively promotes equity, accountability, transparency, and investment of all the people inclusive of the elected leadership.

Published 6 July 2010