President of Zambia, Hakainde Hichilema has chastised his ministers for regularly sleeping and dozing off during meetings.
According to him, this behavior has affected their output, rendering them ineffective and inefficient in their work, stating it shows a lack of attentiveness to “indulgence” and an absence of self-control.
“In cabinet somebody’s sleeping at 10 hours, the question is where were they? To me that is a crime, a serous crime,” Hichilema said during a swearing-in ceremony for a new minister.
He did not spell out what exactly he meant by “indulgence” but local media have interpreted this as referring to excessive alcohol drinking and late-night partying.
The president warned that such behavior risked exposing state secrets and delayed service delivery to the public.
Without naming anyone, he said that some ministers “develop a knack” of revealing confidential state information on social media “especially during happy hours”.
“I have advised cabinet that we must have a self-censure. When you’re in public office you must have… self-control, not to over-indulge,” the president added.
Citing the Bible, he warned such behavior could lead to self-destruction.
“So how do you participate in a meeting when you are sleeping? The message is very clear: you are not interested in cabinet deliberations on behalf of Zambians. So why are you sitting there?” he asked.
Hichilema won a landslide victory in 2021 with ambitious plans to turn around the economy of Africa’s second largest copper producer.
Since assuming office, he has sacked several senior officials including ministers over performance issues.
Watch video:
