A civic leader in Chililabombwe has called on the National Constitution Conference (NCC) delegates to revise the minimum qualifications of Members of Parliament (MPs) and councilors if economic development is to be accelerated in the country.
Kasumbalesa Ward Councillor William Lloyd told ZANIS in an interview today that civic leaders needed to possess academic qualifications that would enable them articulate developmental issues at the grassroots.
Mr. Lloyd said MPs and councilors for City and Municipal Councils needed to have a minimum of form five certificate or its equivalent while qualification for civic leaders in District Councils should be pegged at form three.
He said the current arrangement where every person conversant with English is eligible to stand as a councilor was detrimental to national development as some people’s representatives failed to effectively represent their electorates due to low levels of education.
‘I’m urging the NCC delegates to consider revising the set minimum qualifications for councillors, MPs and even the President. There is need for educated people to run the affairs of the councils in the country,’ he said.
Mr Lloyd said councils were strategic instruments of national development hence the need for people with the necessary education to run the complex local authority responsibilities such as the collection of taxes and other tasks.
On the Presidential candidates, Mr Lloyd said aspirants should have served either as a councilor or an MP for at least one term besides possessing a Diploma or a Degree from a recognized institution.
He said the NCC delegates have an opportunity to set the tone for the country’ s development provided they ensure that leadership is enshrined in people with the necessary qualifications.
“‘I’m urging the NCC delegates to consider revising the set minimum qualifications for councillors, MPs and even the President. There is need for educated people to run the affairs of the councils in the country,’ he said.”
Mwasosa batata. You couldn’t have put it any better Mr Kasumbalesa Ward Councillor William Lloyd. You are the kind of people Zambia needs. People who see beyond their personal interests.
Minimum qualifications are a necessity if we are to see any tangible development in Zambia.
In politics intellect alone is not enough, you need wisdom, morality, integrity, honesty and resourcefulness. We have seen many degree holders and indeed Phd holders fail us in all sort of ways i.e plunder(katele,machungwa and others) promiscuity (Sondashi, lubinda(dont know if he is graduate but sounds intelligent),shakafuswa) to mention but a few.Education alone should not be the only pre requisite, but would be candidates sholud be of high moral standing in society. OP should be engaged to do background checks on potential candidates. Our councillors are the most pathetic in this regard.
We need learned people. A degree should be the minimum
Councillors should have a diploma and MPs a degree.The President should either have a Matsres Degree or PHD.that way we shall develop.VIVA intellectualism and abash bush manners.!!!
What we need is someone to initiate development to bring food on our table, are we going eat qualifications of a person?
We have not seen any different between loya wama loya and the bus conductor.
In as much as Education alone is not a guarantee that you’d have brilliant leaders especially that during the process of adoption to stand as MP or Councilor,there is probably no way any political party can identify wisdom from candidates.For now,looking at how terrible/shallow most of the parliamentary/Council debates have been,there is need for a minimum qualification which not only realistic but one which reflects seriousness & a direction we want to take our politics.There has to be a high standard at every level & only the cream from each party should be allowed to vie for those positions.After all this is tax payers money & no experiments/job on training should be allowed.
Walasa EHK !
#5 and #6,
If you are a victim of iletracy please don’t show it here. I have not been a supporter of MMD but for you not to notice the difference between Mwawasana and Kaluba you must have been blinded by the same ignorance.
I agree with #4. This wasy we shall not have Presidents who are under pressure to obtain doctrates while they are in State house.
Anyonymous #3,6,5 etc:spare us your tripe.Are you a watchman priviledged to type a few words before the boss returns? Make your argument clear instead of punching a few lines every time secretary goes out.Seriously why qualifications?Who is stopping those with qualifications from standing?After all politics is one of the highiest paying jobs around.The truth is that most so called educated do not have the balls to get in there be counted.Voting anyone in or out is the of the electorate.
Pls inform tonga to stop raping chickens. Pls yesterday’s paper.Yaba umusebanya ubukulu from tonga, WHY NOT AMASOLOLA?
#4,i think intelligence goes beyond having spent many years behind the 4 walls of a class room & obtaining degrees. Some of the most retrogressive pipo i know of in society are learner ed pipo,with terrible personalities.At the end of the day what is important is whether a person is able to deliver.Pipo like KK & most of his cabinet were simple pipo with humble credentials,but they did great things in comparison to the current crop of leaders.I mean look at our current cabinet,one of the most educated since independence but very few hav come close to performing all they give us are strings of explanations in technical jargons(Macro/Micro/fiscal etc)figures which no-one understands!!!
Mwamba Luchembe for presidency!!
This is a sensity ground we are prying. Quick sand maybe. Former President Kaunda’s education was humble but he left a legacy. Of course towards the end, things became too advanced for him but at least he left something to point a finger to. Mr. Michael Sata is not a degree holder but his achievements in the positions he has held speak for themselves, unless probably one does not just like him to exalt him. My point is, as we attempt to harmonise the literates and illiterates, we should strive to come to a compromise between the two. Wisdom is as important as academic qualifications in Nation building and in all walks of life. They are inter-depedent. Having said this, i wish to take a
Its only fair that we are led by educated people. #4’s point sets a good standard. We also need to ensure that we create free education or something in those lines otherwise we do injustice to the poor who can not afford to go to our so called “creme de la creme” schools.
#2 Corrupt and immoral people will be found in intellectual or illiterate circles but I will pick the lesser evil (the intellectual that has a girlfriend at parliament motel as opposed to the dude from Masompe in southern province who is wise and a goat herder but fails to relate to economic issues
cont’d
different thought from my brother/sister at no.4, although to a certain degree, it has some sense in it.
#9 You are very foolish! If you have seen the different between ‘Mwawasana and Kaluba’ is becoz you are ignorant and illitrate this side of equator, bco zed had never had a presdo called ‘Kaluba or Mwawasana’. This shows that you are showing how illitrate u are who used to run away from school.
#14.What is the objective test for wisdom? It works best with hind sight si choncho? Now what is required is a leader who can apply workable solutions/options to our problems be they economic, social etc.Evidence of cikolo/suluku/likolo is promise of capacity to comprehend that problem at hand and a possibility that one can apply workable solutions.If you place a ceiling on educational qualifications what happens if the educated do’nt pitch up? Leave the playing field open.People will always make their choice.
no 5 mulefimwena mu bunga!for you it is just the stomach.alamwandi
The best qualification a person needs to be a leader is legitimacy! Make things of education etc as campaign issues! We dont need such things in our constitution! Every Zambian should be eligible to aspire for any office! As long as you can convince the voters (a sign of wisdom), then if elected you qualify. The constitution should not put such restrictions, the democratic process of canvassing for voters should weed out jokers. If the majority of voters are illiterate, its the fault of the education system that leaves out the majority in a disadvantaged way! We should instead be calling for universal education so that there are no illiterates, why block out illiterates?
Tribalism will just breed so much hatred and most of you chaps will be dead when ur kids will suffer the consequences.stay out of it!there’s only tribe which is dangerous!!!
Can you imagine, a whole country fearing illiterates! Then let the illiterates rule because they must be smart! How do they make people so scared that they have to be locked through the constitution. In fact I would not be suprised to hear UNZA students supporting such silly suggestions! The so called “some of us” lack inovations, they want things to be given to them on a silver spoon. Unfortunately, for leadership you have to fight for it on a level playing field! Some people think that once they are educated, the nation owes them something, no, they owe the nation development or cash back! How can a sensible and educated person fear illiterates? It really buffles me! Naluta ningamala mazyo
Awe kwena guys mulasekesha, ati Mwawasana! Keep on making me laugh.
#22, the educated, especially those from UNZA have been manipulating the uneducated. They have had there agendas pushed through the ignorant grass root leaders. Some have even engineered the grass roots to prevent other educated people from joining in them in politics. Just reflect on the average education level of leaders at national level against those at micro level since 1991, and those involved in tricking masses. A leader who’s spent considerable time in the inside of atleast a senior secondary school, may recognize when a superiorly educated individual is hoodwinking the masses and hopely resist. Otherwise, the blind shall continue been led by the blind.
Ha ha very interesting!
Education broadens one’s mind in as far as appreciation of this global world is concerned. Wisdom, ability to tell right from wrong, is a gift you are born with. You can’t nature it. An effective leader needs both. Wisdom without education is impaired so is education without wisdom…the two are inseparable!!! A reasonable minimum educational qualification is a must if our leadership is to excute basic decisions appropriately…
COME ON PEOPLE, WHY HAVING QUALIFICATION TO BE AN MP OR COUNCILLOR….LET EVERYONE WHO IS QUALIFIED STAND AS CANDIDATE AND THE VOTERS WILL JUDGE THE BEST QUALIFICATION…
JUST BECOZ SOMEONE HAS A DEGREE OR DIPLOMA DOES NOT MEAN YOU WILL DO THE BEST JOB, ACTUALLY IT IS AN ANSULT TO THOSE WHO HAVE NOT ACADEMIC CREDITIAL…
LOOK THE WORLD HERO’S TODAY, HOW MANY HAVE DEGREES…IT IS DISCRIMINATION TO ATTACH ACADEMIC QUALIFICATION TO THE POLITICAL JOB….
THE WORSE LEADERS WE HAVE IN ZAMBIA ARE THOSE WHO ACTUALLY CLAIM TO BE DEGREE HOLDERS OR DIPLOMAS…ALL WE HAVE IS SOMEONE WITH LEADERSHIP QUALIT, HONESTY, MORAL JUDGMENT AND DESIRE TO SERVE THE GENERAL PUBLIC WITHOUT FAMILY TREE AGENDA
Why depend on MPs for development. How about devolving power away from parliament and the Presidency, and toward local government?
If anyone understands local issues, it is the people in local government – mainly because they live their, and don’t spend their career moving back and forth between parliament and their constituency. If they don’t spend all their time in the capital to begin with.
by basic I mean physiological needs for a common Zambian…that’s all politicians need to offer… I know they cannot and should not be obliged to understand the facets of wide spectrum of professionalism Zambia is blessed with…engineering, accounting, medicine, law, etc… That is not their area… It should be left to the experts… If they deem themselves to be wise so as to place right experts in the right positions (not reshaffling experts anyhow), then it is indisputable that education be a considearble issue to factor in their qualification…
#14. Move with time, this is not 1964. Kaunda’s level of Education was considered high at that time. Kaunda tried to utilize as many educated Zambians at that time available.
This is a new era where we cant afford to have presidents and MP who do not think beyond their stomach.
If you dont Value Education, shut down the Colleges and Universities and return to the Ituri Forest and continue waging War which you dont even understand.
Read about malaysian politics and why they are where they are are today. There is no way you can have a Councillor who does not hold a degree or something similar to appoint a Town Clerk whose minimum qualifications are LLM (Masters of Laws). In the absence of that then stop the nonsense of executive president, because all you need is a president with no powers and then the technicrats should be appointed by a specialised body starting from PS and that grade seven president should have no say in the running of Government which in itself requires a professional person. As long as we have an executive political arm, minimum qualifications should be the way forward!!!! VIVA Graduate!!!
Bwalya #28, world heroes were and have been wise beings and you do not espect everyone to be the same. Those are one in a life time species…Tell me, how many Newtons do you know or how many Bill Gates, Ronaldos, Tiger Woods, Oprahs, even in Zambia Kalusha Bwalyas are there??? Those are distinct individuals with rare blessings…thats why they are called heroes… But life should continue with or without heroes…
Do you wonder why developed nations despite their massive wealth put education as key to the leaders’ qualifications???
MrK (28),
You are too theoretical with your local Government model.Have you ever done comparative local Government politics or Public Policy courses at any level? I think you dearly need a realistic distance to understand local Government administration and politics.Keep blogging you could learn even from here.
The blind can not be led by the blind least they all fall in a ditch!
#17, How do you honestly feel to associate me with illiteracy – the same state of mind under-development that I’m against, and that you openly supported in your comments under #6 & #6?
You sound like a person who has never been happy with your education, if at all you posses any qualification. You fill your time in class should have been better spent as a Kaponya.
For your own infor, I prefer to be lead by an educated fellow, and i.e if I dont become a leader myself.
Now get your cowadice out of here because anyone can afford to be ANONYMOUS if they were cowards!!!!!!!!
#17, How do you honestly feel to associate me with illiteracy – the same state of mind under-development that I’m against, and that you openly supported in your comments under #5 & #6?
You sound like a person who has never been happy with your education, if at all you posses any qualification. You feel your time in class should have been better spent as a Kaponya.
For your own infor, I prefer to be lead by an educated fellow, and i.e if I dont become a leader myself.
Now get your cowadice out of here because anyone can afford to be ANONYMOUS if they were cowards!!!!!!!!
Come on you People! Education is necessary but where polities is concerned it should go hand in hand with Wisdom. In Zambia we need leaders who can liberlate us not liberlating themselves, leaders whose love is objective not subjective. There are many people groaning with their stomach in Zambia but our leaders jst pocket the many and putting on their mounth. Zambia is rich in Resources but leaders always fraudulate our resourses. We need leaders ofcourse with Minimun education but should be accompanid by Wisdom and good virtues. To you leaders it high time you liberate Zambia, You Mr. Lloyd what so far have you done to develop Zambia? Tell me do you think education without wisdom can bring
development in Zambia? There are so many political leaders in Zambia who can not even defend their people in constituence in the pariament, they are always defeated in the pariament, they don’t know how to criticise, they have no knowledge of presenting issues and make others understands their points because this calls for Wisdom. Hence you Lloyd and other followers who have supported you, i let me tell you that education together with Wisdom can bring development in Zambia. Realying only on education without wisdom we will endup having stupid leaders and deceiving ones in this world of science and technology.
Does discrimination mean anything to some of you guys? You can discriminate on the basis of race, tribe, social status, language, sex, sexual orientation & many more. Now in ZED they want to add education to the list. These are elective positions. The electorate picks based on their preference, not some funny social status. This is like saying politics or being in politics is for the previlaged. The hiring authority pick if they need intellects only, in this case the eletorate. This guy in Chiliz does not know what he is talking about. These are guys who think english is the right thermometer to judge one’s intelligence.
I think this is a good idea, any person wishing to vie for public office must have a respectable educational background not just u go jump tyres at lilayi police camp, smoke some dagga and then form a political party with a white man and a half cast…then u start shouting ati pabwato!!!! no, there should be educational requirements at least an Undergraduate degree.
I would like to share with all Zambians a scenario i came across while reading on a certain country in the Southern Part of Africa. The Health Minister of South Africa announced that BEATROOT (excuse the spelling) can cure AIDS. Also a Mr Jacob Zuma believes that taking a shower after having unprotected sex with a girl can prevent HIV/AIDS. Oh yes, lets vote for the UNEDUCATED.
This debate in my humble view is another exercise in futility. Every nation, including Zambia, deserves the leadership it elects!! If the Zambian people in their wisdom or lack thereof, elect *****s into office, that is their sovereign right to do so. If the Constitution is amended to put limits on who may ran for public office based on their level of education; then it’s only prudent and fair that the same Constitution stipulate that only citizens of a certain level of education should be VOTERS! By the same token, leaders so elected should also only govern or lead citizens who meet the same or better levels of education. How’s that for starters?
Cont’d…
Countrymen (and women, of course!), as # 20 Mwanangwa so succinctly puts it: the best qualification a person needs to be a leader is legitimacy! Education and the like are indeed mere campaign issues! Otherwise, it won’t be long before some lunatic suggests that only Zambians of a certain height, weight and without any physical disabilities should aspire to positions of leadership. There is no telling where this will end!! Every Zambian should be eligible to aspire for any office! The onus should be on the candidate to convince the electorate!! If the electorate pick on a buffoon for their president or MP, it’s their own funeral until the next election – five years later! Or until
#41 you owe me K100,000 for not cleaning up the shower after we had unprotected sex
Limiting participation on councilorship,MP positions to the educated is an infringement of basic human rights for all Zambians. ‘EVERYONE HAS THE RIGHT TO FREELY PARTICIPATE AND CONTRIBUTE IN THE AFFAIRS OF THEIR STATE WITHOUT ANY FORM OF DISCRIMINATION’.This includes what the MP is suggesting. All you calling for this must read the UN human rights converntion(sp). Let sleeping dogs lie, lest you make the uneducated boycott voting and bring anarchy!! You sound like Your current oppressors in the name of diaspora.
This is cruede and unacceptable, in my own understanding these qualifications will be seen as discrimination based on education that is against the universal of human rights charter.
In other words politics is for the educated and voting is for uneducated what a crime against your people/ humanity. Education doesnt mean being intelligent but only puts your food on the table. We’ve pipo who are so educated but in many cases they have failed to produce the best out of their CVs. Zambians shouldnt be discriminated over this and by all means they have to protest and protect their human rights.They are more uneducated citizens than educated. Think twice before you come up with a policy/law that
cont: undermine / disfrachise the human rights. It again the same as Chiluba issue that discriminated Kaunda to stand for presidency based on having decent zambian parent for presidency.
No more of this . If you have pipo who are able to delivery let them stand and not discriminated.
It is surprising that anyone would question the need for a minimum lvel of education in leadership! I think the real concern for all of us should not be what qualifications are set for these leadership positions BUT the opportunity given to all citizens to attain this level of education. For instance, how many of our people can realistically hope to attain a university education (degree, masters, phd) when after 44 years of independence, we have less than 5 degree granting institutions nationally for a population of 12 million. How many of our young people drop out of school before grade 12, because of a system designed to fail many students at grade 7 and grade 9? These are real questions!
#48 cont’d: So, while the idea of minimum qualifications for leaders is excellent, the focus for our law makers should be to ensure that there is universal education for our children: education should be a constitutional right. Let’s not cheat ourselves: as long as we have a semi-illiterate population, we will always remain a “basket case” with lots of potential to develop which is never realised. Countries that have developed have done it with educated populations (look at Taiwan, Singapore, Malaysia and the Western nations). My complaint is that our so-called learned leaders (now we have a phd as a minister of education) have continued to fail the education requirements of our populace!
#49 continued: fellow countrymen, I also commend those of you talking about integrity in leadership. A case in point: our learned leaders (Chiluba’s first cabinet had lots of PhDs) sold of our economy including the breadbasket (copper mines) for a song. So, yes we need education to formulate and implement development policies but this should also come with integrity. The sad reality is that politics (at least in Zambia) is not about service to your country at all. It is about money- after all these “dim-wits” at Manda Hill have the best paying jobs in the land: paid for sitting, and dozing while others make noise, and rubber-stamping the wishes Plot 1; then paid huge gratuities every 5 years
Can someone tell me something about the coloured Given Lubinda.
Anyone with no adult education should not hold public office.lets not talk about professional education.Adult education atleast can enable one articulate and understand issues.
Please refer to #41 to give you an answer on this topic. Thank you
Ya ya pure Zambian politics just because someone has a certificate or diploma or degree then they can run the affairs of the country. It is more like saying that a lawyer can not be the CEO of the country or company because he lucks business knowledge. People should first understand what education is before exposing their stupidity to the open. How many people run large international corperations and yet they have no university qualification and yet in Zambia we have the so called qualified personnel and cant manage a small companies like ZESCO and ZAMTEL.
If only educated people are allowed to stand as MPs then only the educated people should vote. And you call that democracy. shame.
The point William Lloyd(I knew the Lloyd family in Konkola in the 70’s)makes is, that we should have civic/national leaders with a minimum appreciation of modern politics and commerce which are core to national development in today’s world.We should not pretend otherwise!Civic leadership should not be about illegal demarcation of Plots!A set minimum education standard for Civic Leaders will help Councils move forward in resource mobilization & identifying development priorities whilst setting the right agenda for national development through rational and equitable resource utilization.Honest/Integrity of Civic Leaders are taken care of by existing Codes of Conduct & Criminal Codes.
#30, this is interesting. Yes i move with the time. If you took a little more time to understand what i was driving to, you would have appreciated that iam for moderation and not extremism regarding the topic at hand. I was saying we should find a way of harmonising the two to come up with a hybrid of ideas to run the country. Yes, KK was considered literate in 1964 and according to you, things went beserk later in his tenure because he could not comprehend how the earth was evolving. How about his colleague in Zimbabwe who has a horde of university degrees and has nailed his country on a cross? You can can be educated but still an illiterate in some field, this time around i consider Mugabe
cont’d
to be an illiterate in politics, hence the mess he has created for himself in Zimbabwe. Lets avoid living utopian as much as we can. We need a lot of those University degrees in industry and commerce to improve our economies and maybe and just maybe a few of them in politics. Africa has not reached that stage yet. I HOPE I HAVE MADE MYSELF CLEAR.
As for me I think grade 12 certificate will always do.Certificates or university degrees are not real measure of one s ability to articulate or understand issues.I know alot of intelligent zambians who had unviversity admission but due to problems financial etc are not graduates today but I can assure that these guyz understand issues and can deliver.one of them even prepares questions and notes for one MP from southern Province
Not every graduate might be qualified “The Anti-Corruption Commission (ACC) has arrested the assistant registrar at the University of Zambia, James Chisenga, for allegedly modifying grade 12 results to enable six individuals meet entry requirements at the university.
Chisenga is facing six counts of unauthorised modification of computer data, relating to Grade 12 results for the six Grade 12 students to enable them meet the minimum entry requirements for admission as first year students at the University of Zambia, contrary to Section 6 of the Computer Misuse and Crimes Act, No.13 of the Laws of Zambia.”
Who works for the other,the Educated for Uneducated or vice versa?How can the educated work for the uneducated?
how do some of you define words like educated or uneduacated?,lets get one thing straight first of all
There are people without degrees who can perform better than those with degree.The best example is here in South Africa where the ANC President, Jacob Zuma, not an educated man but able to understand and explain things better that people with degrees.
What is important is electing someone with leadership qualities and wisdom.And appointing right people to do the job.
it really depends on a number of factors. One having a degree does not mean that one is educated. For instance, a degree holder from Oxford University may think lowly of a degree holder from UNZA for lack of a better example. A certificate Havard may also look down on a degree holder from Kalingalinga. Perseption of who an educated person is trully diverse. Another way of looking at things is that if the University confering degrees has limitations obviuosly graduates of such a University will have limtations as well e.g inspite of having so many Profs in Zambia we are yet to even munufacture a simple motor vehicle. But is it so simple? Otherwise I believe that a degree is not the issue.
Presidency and MPs full grade 12 certificate, Councelors grade 9
president, Mps and concillors must all be degree holders!! this is 21 st centuary…..
#63 to 64 nice reasoning .Degrees should no be an issue lets just raise the standards of education at secondary and primary school levels and you will see the real potential of Zambians.Some guyz that are graduating from some universities do not even deserve to pass through universities I refer to #59.I could be more educated but I have always nicely interacted with non graduates and a high level
#10 Good point whoever is bringing the issue of education is a dick. Bill Gates then does not qualify to be an MP in Zed.
who is this dude William Lloyd? This dude is a big dick full of it.
Civil servants are the ones to be degree holders or Masters holders bcoz they are the ones runing the country.
John Dewey once said, “education is life itself.”
#70 no one is arguing that.what is education?dont mislead yourself by thinking a education is a degree or diploma
I am happy it is being discussed here, very interesting. Africa, Zambia in particular is a very rich country but has poor leadership. This is because of the lack of knowledge among our leaders. I was in Chipata a few weeks ago and there I heard the mayor is now doing his grade 9 but he is an old man who never finished school. The deputy Mayor is a grade 7 fellow I know very well because we went to the same school. They are elected by people who do not have knowledge and the guys can’t think outside the box. There is also Vincent Mwale, a grade 12 guy now MP and he cannot deliver in Chipangali. Education is not the only key but it is vital for development. It exposes people.
#70 You are wrong, dont mislead pipo, Jesus is life. If education is life how come degree holders die be4 they can even use their education qualifications.
Educate NCC delegates on human rights, descrimination and leadership qualities. It does not necessarily take an individual with highest level of education to lead. Some of these guys (NCC) delegates are forgeting that what they working on is national paper which is supposed be inclusive. if he has issues in chiliz with his mp or councilor let him not extend to constitution making process. if we are not careful with this type thinking by NCC delegates, it willtake ages for them finish that document, they will just be going round in circles. When one NCC delegate is frustrated brings the nonsense to NCC. We need delegates with right mindset in the consitution making process.
contd. let that mayor just sit and continue receiving allowances if he has no serious issues to present.
lozi Tonga u mwana a mulena? uchuani wayesu?
All those referring to make quote indicated in #70, here is a much better definition;
Education:
– is the organized teaching and training of students. Education is the application of pedagogy, a body of theoretical and applied research relating to teaching and learning. en . wikipedia . org/wiki/Education
– knowledge acquired by learning and instruction; “it was clear that he had a very broad education”. wordnet. princeton. edu/perl/webwn
– Instruction to improve critical life and social skills, including decision-making, refusal skills, critical analysis (eg media messages), and systematic judgment abilities.
wind . uwyo . edu/sig/definition.asp
The Russian Federation (RF) has a new President inaugurated in named Dr Dmitry Medvedeev (spelling). He has a PhD in Law. He has promised to look into human rights, building of infrasture and maintaining of the RF as a force to reckon with in this 21st century and hopefully beyond, etc according to Russia Today (RT) news I gatered a few minutes ago.
This is unprecedented in Russian history for has come from a different background from what has been obtaining in Russian politics.
I hope Zambia and Zambians in general will consider moving the country after such a telling example from those who are willing to develop thier countries.
We don’t need to even go as far as Russia, look at Malawi Dr. Bingu and see the policies he is implementing. Malawians used to flock to Shoprite Chipata and downshops to buy things but now Zambians flock to Malawi to buy things. Education plus exposure are very important but all aspects must work together. We need to educated and wise Zambians to lead us.
we have Dr Mwanawasa,we had Dr Kaunda and Dr Chiluba.In the US they have Mr Bush and they had Mr Clinton.In the Uk they never had a doctor
Thanks #79. You have summed it all. In fact you have gone further by reminding us about the third dimension to the discussion which has been eluding us – EXPOSURE. Thanks again for your literacy and wisdom.
bill gates isnt like an average uneducated fellow in zed..he is havard uni drop out…do you know what it takes to get into havard??? i cant even believe that some people are against education! some africans!!!! the rest of the world is in a “gold rush” to have their masses get learned (degrees,masters, PhDs)..poor and stupid africans are saying ” we dont need them, we can do without them”!!! dumb dumb dumb dumb dumb…
ATLEAST SET MINIMUM QUALIFICATIONS 4 POLITICAL OFFICE.WE CANT HAVE DUNDERHEADS & LOUD MOUTHS AS PRESIDENTS OR MINISTERS
#80 not all Doctors (Dr.s) are PhD ,sometimes called DPhil, holders. Dr Mwanawasa to the Best of my Knowledge is not a PhD holder, he holds an honourary doctrate. This is exactly same with Dr Chiluba. Unfortunately, I am not sure about Dr Kaunda’s doctorness although I know for a fact that it is not a PhD/DPhil
Definitions of honorary on the Web:
given as an honor without the normal duties; “an honorary degree”
wordnet. princeton. edu/perl/webwn
Dr Dmitry Medvedeev has a PhD, Doctor of Philosophy, which he was awarded for having attended classroom instruction at university.
lets not compare zambia with europe or the US,we are morethan a 100 years behind.lets not rush to to equate zambia with say the developed world.lets take our time but move in the right direction.Zambia has a population of less 15million,lets come up with a plan that will enable us get hundred percent output from every citizen.Zambia is in developmental stage meaning we can not discriminate on the basis of degrees.the word is capacity to deliver and not diploma.today the world has so many billionaires who are are university dropouts but they set objectives which the so called educated carry out.
some african countries have managed to tranform themselves from poor countries into medium income countries, we can learn from them and not compare ourselves with Russia ,they even have literacy levels of morethan 96%.Zambians exist on this earth while europeans or Americans live on this earth
“Anonymous” is a default username for any person who posts a contribution withoue a “name” in the name component of the posting webpage.
And so, it follows that their a many people who are appearing as if it is one person with a censored name “Anonymous”. In the words of someone in another thread on here, most of those of us who leave our usernames as “Anonymous” are cowards. However, some of us may not be necessarily cowards but people who are still learning how to use this LT webpage.
its been long over due
As matter of educating most of us on here, Presidet GW Bush has a Masters Degree (http : / / www . whitehouse . gov/ resident/ biography. h t m l).
Bill Clinton had a couple of degrees (http : / / www . zpub . com/ un/ un-bc-bio. h t m l)
Tony Blair has a Degree in Law (http : / / www . biography . com/ search/ article. do ? Id = 9214379).
I hope the above helps you #80 and those who need knowledge on some world leaders. While the above mentioned had no PhDs, they had enough classroom instruction to make them make sound and tough decisions to drive their respective countries to greater heights.
Ok this topic is more than concluded could we perhaps move on to the other latest news like;”perk talks for public service workers collapse” and “Levy salutes Israel” etc.We risk becoming monotones
on this one.It’s been great otherwise!!!
The posts in #89 clearly show that the US(A) and UK respectively have had learned Presidents in recent times.
If we as Zambia ever hope to have any meaningful deelopment, let us try to use methods that have worked elsewhere. There is NO TIME for “trial and error”. We have enough examples to help us carry on safely and carefully to bring the much needed change to our beloved country.
I think, Prof Chirwa must seriously look at how he can become electable in 2011. His partnership with the likes of HH could bring development to Zambia – this is just my opinion brethren.
#89.I mentioned that coz someone was talking about Dmitry who holds Phd.some of you should understand the russian system of education
Education should not start with the President or presidential candidates.we need more of education at grass roots so that we can vote the right people.It will be very difficult for Prof Chirwa to sell his manifesto if the current levels of education remain unchecked.lets the masses receive education and the right leaders will be voted into power with easy.
prof Waminga well come back. missed you greatly
One can have all the degrees and Phd’s but can never have enough wisdom to lead the people. This should be dealt with caution.
It is indeed ideal to have an educated president. But check out this situation- here is an ‘uneducated’ chap without any ‘formal’ qualification but he has managed to build up business empire and infact since he appreciates the value of education goes ahead and employs Master degree holders to look after his interests. This is no just a story but happens everywhere in the world. Some of these qualifications are just mere tags. Remember, slavery, slaves with special skills given special tasks. In todays world people strive to have those tags even at the expense of sought after investments. The point iam driving at is education is only a means to an end. You could have a Doctor for a president
cont’d- but a copletely misguided one. An educated person is one who knows how to for instance knows how to appropriate opportunities. If such a person happens to have formal qualifications and ambitions for presidency well and good but one who does not have qualifications but have the same abillities why should he not be capable as president.There is a lot to consider when you refer to education. Answering other peoples questions (exams) for me is not being ‘educated’ but finding solutions to issues and articulating them is only part of being educated.
Certainly education at G12 level is necessary for all political offices if we are to develop. Anyhting above that is just a bonus. Bus conductor and teacher lacked this magic ingredient thats how lawyer wa ma lawyers has so far outperformed both of them.
Gents/ladies , I think what we need is a system of democracy which allows us to critically analyse the calibre of our leaders in relation to the policies they want to implement. I believe education is extreamly important, the higher the literacy levels of a country the more civilised the people. But of course i personally have been impressed with Sata’s achievement than Dr Katele or even our current minister of health who are educated people. Whats critical is for people to prove themselves. Look at what Obama is enduring… how many of our politicians can have the mental strenghth to be answerable to the people on their policies. We are far off from meaningful democracy, am leaving Zed soon
If we are advocating for educated people to hold political positions then we should also put a minimum qualification for voters because from the centiments being expressed only people with certain qualifications can make sensible decisions. If this is not possible then everyone has got the right to hold any political office coz there is no way literates will depend on illiterate’s vote to put them in office. By the way education has specialisation not all those who are educated have the abilities to run political offices therefore we need people who have enough wisdom to lead the people.
Frstrtd #99,those are good points indeed!!I mean after following the happenings in the US primaries it feels terrible once i tune into ZBS & watch our local news & see politicians boot-lick their boss,sinking so low one wonders whether they even know what’s in their party’s manifesto.Like #99 put it,we need our politics to get to a place where the are issue based & politicians are held accountable for all that they do.Currently we have a raw deal with these new dealers!!!!And #99 all the best as you leave Zed!!
Dr kasanda, I believe, is an appropriate Authority to consult about role of ‘formal education’. What some else defines as an educated person another may scorn. Compare UNZA and OXFORD light years apart. But does not mean an OxFORD graduate has better leadership qualities than a UNZA graduate. Diverse …..
Everyday life is politics. The decisions you make in your homes involve some sort of discussion and compromise on the way forward. Going to a store to purchase and item is political when you bargain to get a reduced price on the item. Honestly do you need education to argue your way to get a discount? Literacy is anecessary tool to ensure that we do not lack behind in the present trend of international politics. But, in the absence of education, customs to ensure productivity, effectivenes and efficiency for political aspirants should be adopted in form of conventions as guidance. Allow the playing field be fair.
The question is how much education is needed for one to be President. It’s not the number of degrees or years spent doing research but a lot of wisdom coupled with a humble education. One must be versatile in interpreting economic, social, health etc data and make heads and tails over it. We don’t need someone that will make everybody feel inferior coz the never went to sch together, or at the same time. Semantics aside bane
i agree with # 4,councillors should have a diploma,mps degree and may be the president also a degree and a masters as an added advantage.
viva zambia
viva graduates
#105 Which University, which degree?
Look her, many times its not the intelligence that works with the presidents but the wealth of knowledge the have at their disposal. Level headed ones will always come out tops coz they know the tricks in tapping in the knowledge and showing it off like their own. Summed, wisdom + knowledge = intelligence
The standards have to be raised ? illiterate voters electing illiterate leaders (ego) = king cobra. King cobra’s strength lies the illiterate masses ba kaponya and a few bana ndola like ba jose?
That is why the americans came up with the electral college and the super delegates systems as you can not relay on ba kaponya (majority) to elect the president. if you do not exemplify rational judgement…then let the educated ones do it for you? ward chairman grade seven, councilor grade grade twelve, MP degree or diploma with some leadership or management experience and presidency MA with at least five years as an MP? i know people without degrees shall cry foul, but gentlemen that is the way the world is? not everybody has is given the same opportunity? voter should be able to understand at least one local langauge..?
nice quiz,ofcourse not matero degrees or diplomas but from recognised universties,
g’day
But UNZA is not recognized? Am I joking or not! Any way these are Zambian standards but good! ya ya
#51 He is your father
#92, I posted the comments on both #87 & 89. somehow, I was failing to post stuff as ‘hhehhehhehhe’ and so I tried posting without a name. I wanted to give a follow up on your comments on #80 about the US and UK leaders in totality.
Anyhow, I forgot to make mention that Mr Dmitry Medvedev, PhD, is 42 years yours of age. And so, this is good time to try young men instead of the usual old people.
When are we also going to hold public offices if people who started work in the colonial era will continue holding onto the few jobs Zambia has to offer? Children and Grand-children are crying for jobs and our fathers and grandfathers do not want to let go.
Let us move on, the old had their time.
#113 You point is valid but I want to remind that Africa and Europe are too different places with different needs,problems and wants.When some Guyz to zambia came to see the Victoria falls at my invitation from Sweden Germany and Russia,they were really surprised to hear that civil servants are made to retire at the age of 55 in zambia even when they can still deliver,In germany or sweden or Russia most of the teachers or civil servants are in their seventies but they are still in service.One of retirees was even asked to go teach african history.
Coming to your point about Dmitry being 42 and young.Firstly Mr Putin has known Medvedev for 17 years and they have been working together,such a scenerio has no place in Zambia because our politics is not yet developed nor is it defined.This is why they will awake a person at 03 am and ask him to be president of a nation.Rememember that even in Russia, Dmitry becomes the youngest president in 100 years whilest Zambia is not even 50 years old.The fact that Dmitry has appointed Mr Putin as Prime Minister should remind you that the old and young are supposed to work together.Kwina kulibonesha,dont rush lets first define our political system and structure that will drive Zambia to prosperity.
I understand your point #115. But, we do not need trial and error. There is little time to do experiments for China and Asia (India, Taiwan, Singapore, etc) in general has shown us that uplifting working stuff and then applying it to your situation helps and can move a country from nowhere to somewhere on the world map.
Enjoy your time musa. Sesoli kulibonesha, nditondeka buyo makani mbuli mbwaabedde cinicini.
Calino, ndamwaika. Upone kabotu taata – Choma1.
Courageous, honest, singleness of heart
Wideness of Heart embressing friend and foe, poor and weak
Will he sell out when the tough gets going
Will he be Proud of the nation and esteem it highly
Sacrifice at whatever cost for motherland
Uphold the virtious ideals
Champion the cause of our emanicipation
When he faulters will he weep
Will he defend
Will he fight
“There is two kinds of loyalty: loyalty to people and loyalty to principle.” – Senator George McGovern on Larry King Live.
Education is vital but we have alot of educated fools look at Prof Lungwangwa!!!!!!!!!
KK filled key posts with “stone throwers” who didn’t fully comprehend the intricacies of finance, economics… He had little choice because not too many Zeds were highly educated at that time; also the emphasis was on politics which anyone can grasp without higher education. Balla nayichinja – we need new tactics to deal with development issues & not just political dribbling! President degree level, MP minimum diploma. The electorate can decide on the wisdom and personal qualities of the candidates. ALL MPs must be able to follow AND contribute to debates if we are to make the right decisions. Who hires an illiterate to run their company? So why accept illiterates in Govt positions?
Example Vera!!!!!!!!!!!
Vera Chiluba Tembo, Chanakashi chachikata!
From a Maid to a Housewife;
From Housewife to a First Lady;
From First Lady to former First Lady
From former First Lady to MMD Cadre;
From MMD cadre to an a MP;
From MP to a D/Minister
Soon to be full Minister
After that contemplate to be Presdo
hey pipo vera is courages and admire her for being so ambitious. Anything is possible with her,the next thing we will hear she is married to another presdo somewhere.
123 i meant couragious
#123 wayesu na ku lata
A participatory democracy is not the exclusive domain of the educated.
The issue of academic qualifications for civic positions makes interesting reading. While some people contend that introduction of an academic degree for an MP or president may sideline some people in society, its only true to say that the world has become complex and to probably need corresponding complexity of mind to comprehend. Plato once said “The object of education is to turn the eye which the soul already possesses to the light. The whole function of education is not to put knowledge into the soul, but to bring out the best things that are latent in the soul, and to do so by directing it to the right objects……..”. Although the literate and the illiterate both can become president or MP, i think i share in the ideals of Plato. coz its the only way we can move forward.
I will right away grasp your rss as I can not find your e-mail subscription link or newsletter service. Do you have any? Please let me realize so that I may subscribe. Thanks.