The Zambia Union of Nurses Organisation (ZUNO) has welcomed government’s decision to unconditionally reinstate all the nurses, midwives and other health workers who were dismissed in December 2013.
In a statement today (Friday, December 19, 2014), ZUNO President Thom Yung’ana said that his organisation was elated by this development describing it as a timely Christmas present to the health sector.
Mr Yung’ana said that it was pleasing that government had heard the cries of the general public who were the most affected because the dismissal of the 570 nurses, midwives and health workers had negatively impacted the health service delivery in the country.
“We are excited as a profession and we thank the Minister of Health Dr Joseph Kasonde for his leadership and for heeding the pleas of the general public, and in particular our pleas as the professionals who were affected,” Mr Yung’ana said.
He prayed that in the same spirit that it had reinstated the dismissed nurses and midwives, government would also reverse the wage freeze and the restrictions that had been placed on the recruitment of personnel in the civil service
Mr Yung’ana also appealed to government to be sensitive and pro-active towards workers’ plight that includes improvement of salaries and conditions of service, in order to promote industrial harmony and prevent similar occurrences in future.
However, the opposition UPND has said that it is hypocritical for the PF government to reinstate nurses who were fired for going on an illegal strike at a time when the country is about to hold the presidential election.
Health Minister Joseph Kasonde yesterday announced during a media briefing that all nurses that were charged with gross misconduct and dismissed after an illegal strike have been reinstated without losing their benefits.
But the UPND has questioned the motive behind such a move owing to fact that it has coincided with the holding of the 2015 presidential election.
UPND Lubwa Ward Youth Chairperson Chisankama Mudenda has told Qfm News that his party suspects that the PF government is only trying to solicit for votes in view of the election.
Mr. Mudenda has however, advised Zambians not to be deceived by such a move as it is only meant to divert the attention from the many issues the PF government has allegedly failed to address during the three years they have been in power.
It is very unfortunate to hear that UPND is against reinstatement of nurses.
This tells me that UPND is worse than PF who have forgiven the fired nurses.
Shame on UPND.
Ba LT mwayamba kunama mange.
Here is HH ‘s inspiring statement at the mammoth rallies in Chilanga and Kafue.
“I have told the nation that I will unconditionally reinstate all the fired nurses, and today the PF government have recalled the nurses. I told them that I will recognise Chitimukulu, the PF now are also saying they have started the process. I have said that I will reverse the retirement age from 65 to 55, and now the PF are also saying they will reconsider the decision.
Indeed he has started providing leadership before he is elected to state house.
What more will he do when he gets their, now that some of his promises are being fulfilled before he even gets to state house.
OMG! PF is feeling the heat HH is piling on them.
Vote HH for for a better Zambia.
@reinstated nurses.
LT has misquoted UPND ‘s statement here. UPND has welcomed the reinstatement of nurses because from the time they were fired HH wrote a letter to Sata demanding they be reinstated.
Only PF cadres will believe this fake story by a PF biased publication.
The other day a Sikazwe lied as well.
Truth be told.
Its true that PF is panicking to win sympathy votes and going against Sata’s vision.
What ever PF does now its too late for the people to trust it.
Next I demand ZCTU and ZUNO executives to be fired and replaced for letting down the Zambian people by accepting bribes from the PF to keep quiet when the PF fired the nurses.
Please HH tell the people to fire ZCTU and ZUNO officials. I know with your words things get done quickly.
HH is providing leadership from the opposition for sure.
Thats 570 + votes guaranteed for HH from nurses and their families.
My Dear reinstated nurse,
UPND is not against your reinstatement. The question is why didn’t they reinstate earlier? Which employer takes a year to resolve a disciplinary case against an employee?
The truth is if Sata was alive today and no elections were looming, you wouldn’t have been reinstated. PF knows how this would have disadvantaged them during elections, hence your reinstatement. However, every rightly thinking Zambian should know that this is not done i good faith and should not earn PF any vote much as we celebrate with the reinstated nurses.
There’s nothing wrong for UPND to oppose PF moves and there’s nothing wrong for PF to turn on their decision and reverse it no matter how long it takes or took- the truth is they’ve reinstated the nurses and that is what is important. Whether it is coz of UPND opposing or not it doesn’t matter. Truth is if they did not want to reinstate them they wouldn’t have done so. Therefore we focus on the positive things done (1) disciplining of the nurses for their illegal act (2) reinstating the disciplined and repentant nurses who’ve learnt a lesson and have come to their senses.
If a child becomes unruly discipline him, and if he repents forgive him. Simple
The nurses must be very careful. In the event that a PF president wins the election, the chances that these nurses will be RE-FIRED are very high. Vote wisely.
The Health Minister leaves alot to be desired in this case. Can he explain how he managed to circumvent all the displinary and retirement procedures in the civil service and ? He is panicking and frankly whether PF or UPND wins he should be dismissed. He can’t be trusted to ensure Good Governance of the sector and is too old. His Deputy, Dr Chilufya would be a very good Minister of Health- young, energetic and very articulate- the type of leadership we need going foward.
The general public rallied behind the nurses yet most of these nurses treat the public shabbily. They are rude and cat like they are doing us a favour. Especially those with bleached skins. They don’t want a patient to ask for clarification and they sulk.
Zuno, another useless organization.learn to stand and fight for your nurses.
ZUNO was already pleading these nurse’s cause. They didnt have to be standing and promising people in the streets about nurses reinstament. they had dialogues with government on several occassions. something that any sober organization should do, than politicizing everything. government had proper reason for firing only the 570 nurses and they nurses knows why.. each organization has disciplinary measures to take regarding indiscipline. some people are suspended for longer terms than it has been for these nurses. actually if they misbehave again they must be re-suspended. we can not tolerate indiscipline in government.
VIVA HH ,they are feeling the heat.
HH wanted to win at the expense of these fired innocent individual.
mwagwila pansi
Useless UPND wanted us to be on the streets.
I will never vote for your bantustan party, I have changed my MIND.
Why lie, you were never UPND and yes please support your PF because that party thrives by having dull chaps like you who cannot read between the lines. Gosh! And that tribal sh!t of bantusan whatever exposes you as a total shallow id!ot, stup!d a$$! Can’t stand tribal fcukers!
How can UPND be against reinstatement of the nurses when this pressure came from UPND. All UPND is saying they are F00ling the nurses knowing that it is election time
hh, do no why u will loose the coming election???? because you are telling the voters in public what you are going to do. by the time voting will come pf will have done all you are promising. so in the end they shall be no need to vote for you.
Even for HH it was just a political move. no sober government would tolerate indiscipline from it’s countrymen. Not even HH in power would do so. therefore just welcome this action and move on.
@Factman, you have good brains. Your input is very valid than the other blind follower of unsympathetic UPND.
People are not as stupid as you guys. UNIP and MMD tried these desperate measures in the last minute to win support. Where are they today? Last minute gimmickry does not win votes the world over.
Only f00ls like will buy this PF gimmickry.
PF its too late for you to do some damage control. All these things should have been done before Sata died. And Lungu should be telling people that he will not follow ‘s legacy because it was not good. He should find a way shaking off Sata’s worst legacy that has alienated the people from PF.
For now only HH makes a lot of sense. He really is in charge now whether they like it or not. What he says gets done.
Vote HH.
Am shocked you are exposing your ignorance. so you can’t see that its HH who has given pf pressure
can’t even say thank you to pf for reinstating us because Us the fired nurses are not happy with our being reinstated,in the first place they shouldn’t have fired us. You punished us for your own promises you failed to fulfil and rendered us poor irrespective of our pleas for mercy. Most of us are now working for other institutions and this your act is simply desperate. Most of us resolved that we will vote for HH and nothing will change us because he has stood with us all the way. I encourage fellow nurses who were fired and those who sympathized with us that pf government fired us wrongly not to be swayed by this little too late move. Our unions and ZCTU’ s Roy Mwaba and team also are very useless and fearful unionists who must just resign.
Sincerely thank you to HH for this reinstatement, it could not have come if HH did not put it firmly on his agenda
There’s nothing wrong for UPND to oppose PF moves and there’s nothing wrong for PF to turn on their decision and reverse it no matter how long it takes or took- the truth is they’ve reinstated the nurses and that is what is important. Whether it is coz of UPND opposing or not it doesn’t matter. Truth is if they did not want to reinstate them they wouldn’t have done so. Therefore we focus on the positive things done (1) disciplining of the nurses for their illegal act (2) reinstating the disciplined and repentant nurses who’ve learnt a lesson and have come to their senses.
If a child becomes unruly discipline him, and if he repents forgive him. Simple
Even for HH it was just a political move. no sober government would tolerate indiscipline from it’s countrymen. Not even HH in power would do so. therefore just welcome this action and move on.
I am representing all the fired nurses in Zambia. We honestly thank HH for the move the PF government has taken to reinstate us. Had it not been for the pressure from HH, we could have continued suffering. We know how to thank you Sir
Really this is a Christmas gift? Maybe my thinking is not normal, but how can this be when they should not have been fired in the first place? Surely the motive should be questioned why now not a month after they were fired? Politician are taking advantage of such naivety displayed by organisations such as Zuno
Pay them their 12 months arrears also; we know fully well that it’s just a campaign gimic. Your days are numbered.
Nurses should now sue the Govt for injury and anguish deliberately caused on them. Any patient who experienced any inconvenience during that time the nurses were fired should sue for compensation. Infact these PF guys just deserve to go. They are very useless. If there were no elections and if HH was weak, these nurses would not have been reinstated.
Even for HH it was just a political move. no sober government would tolerate indiscipline from it’s countrymen. Not even HH in power would do so. therefore just welcome this action and move on.
HH supporters crying foul, insulting and pretending to be the fired nurses, or related to the nurses or the winning team…wait until 21 Jan you chaps will have long nights…
HH cant win and wont win these elections…put someone else as prez of upnd then you might win.
VIVA EL VIVA PF
Now I just feel sorry for you Mr. Big Loser.
The nurses should just do a donchi kubeba on PF.
All that tym govt never acted on this amnesty now since most the opposition campaigns echoed to reinstate nurses then it’s done.So even fuel and mealie meal it’s possible to reduce the price even further.hmmm
Everyone knows who spear-headed the call to re-instate nurses. HH – that’s who!
By the way, why does ZUNO have ‘organization ‘ in their name when they already have ‘Union’? Zambia Union of Nurses is sufficient.
(Sorry, today is ‘petty childish jessie’ day)
I was one of the pipo tht were fired n thnk God 4 he wrks in mysterious ways i hd to find my self in dis hppy place out of dt misfortune. Its bn a yr since we got those dismissal lettrs n its a shame tht it had cost Sata his life for the PF to reverse thr decision. Only a fool wud be decieved by such a gesture coz its obviously bait (scratch my bck i scratch yoz).
Thy knw thy r vulnerable en hence tkin desperate moves, pipo lost thr lives becoz of thr greednss othrs droppd out of schs, wen we pleaded for thr lenience it fell on deaf ears, its a shame 4 gvmnt to do gud only wen thy nid somthn in return. M hppy 4 my frnds tht thy hv bn called bck…..Bt sory tht i hv to say this, whoevr will vote 4 PEE A FOOL becoz of the re-instatemnt is js as foolish.
Yeah! misbehave again and we will fire you again. we can not tolerate indiscipline in government. even you, you do discipline your child don’t you? The bible says “No discipline is joyous but grievous, but to those who responds to it, it yields good fruits..” if you arent repentant then you havent learnt. no government not even HH in power would tolerate indiscipline behavior from people who should be working for this country.
Hmmm!……”Unconditionally reinstated?” this is a ‘nolle’ on the nurses for what we are not learning from PF action done hurriedly out of pressure from opposition parties is what remains on nurses’ file records “so long they do not resort to or repeat strike action.” Unless ministers run the civil service procedures it’s not like “you are reinstated” and the next minute you’re reporting to the ward or institution you worked! Those “reinstated” know better some may even report back as demoted and/or, transferred!
The minister should have gone further to instruct that the missed entitlements be paid forthwith without delay to help mitigate the suffering!
Welcome back nurses may the soul of one that passed on rest in peace!
Why were the nurses fired for asking for better working conditions. Yes there is a lot of indiscipline in government but how many people get fired.
But really most Zambians are really dull.Look at the sentiments coming from some bloggers including this so called Union Representative for these poorly paid nurses.Please as adults we MUST have a threshold of reasoning.What is there to support or call this reinstatement move as a christmas bonus-very myopic primitive thinking & one calls himself ati unionist with such analysis.@Wanzelu-im one of those who is seriously advocating for the removal of these sycophantic parasites called union leaders. They are really a let down to the civil service fraternity of Zambia.They are selfish & really useless just like that outgoing Lairs Party PF & its cronies. Please Zambians let us upgrade our credentials & even our perspectives & contextualisation of social events including…
. Please Zambians let us upgrade our credentials & even our perspectives & contextualisation of social events including blogging will be critically rational & radical.That Lairs Party PF name is irritating to most civilised but despondent government workers countrywide more especially with their thuggish & tribal corrupt dealings.Only dull & gullible workers like this useless so called unionist.
In life there at times when we have more questions than answers. Does it mean the government will pay them a 12 months salaries they missed because of wrongfully dismissal and also compensate them? Are these nurses going to behave better now that they have been re-enstated, what will happen
The employer can reinstate anyone at any time and our nurses know that theirs is a noble calling and nothing political about it.
Its workers who must be more worried about UPND.
Can I remind all workers in Zambia that this HH has already threatened to close RTSA “if” by mistake found himself in State House? So who is a better evil? The way you see that man, always annoyed is who he is inside. His followers also are so bitter for reasons known to themselves that anyone who may not speak their language is their enemy.
UPND and HH have prepared a list of new appointments in Banks, Civil service, police, army , National service, ZAF, ZESCO, Zamtel, ZRA, Zambia Railways, airports, Universities and all top ministerial positions from his Tonga land.
They have also given justification of sending the vendors and marketeers from streets saying they want Lusaka, Kitwe, Ndola and Ndola to be like Livingstone. Masebo is the architect on this matter.
They have also stated that the Stadium in Mongu, Universities across the country and the Link 8000, L400, L2000 and the 650 Healthy Centres under construction will be discontinued saying the projects are not justifiable and not worth it.
UPND is evil, so watch out. You have been warned.
@5 Reasons:What are you trying to put on this table.Did you live with HH or how many tongas have you worked with.I for one works with a good number of them but these people on average are not ukwas & are serious with developmental issues.Moreover,why judge HH by his facial appearance.You seem/sound to be personal & tribal.However, you seem to have lost it believe you me this HH has an edge over all his competitors.On RATSA-not knowing your views but to me RATSA & these other international tax agencies are too costly to the treasury & these services can ably be executed by Zambian agencies.Do you still remember ANGONI clearing agencies & its implications ti the Zambian economy?
Zambia has already red carded pf and the law associatiön of Zambia says cabinet ministers for pf or the useless mps,quoting from the man who surounded by these useless mps,laz says useless as they are the law says they can not remove the acting President,look for another way of rigging useless mps shame on u and how wil luo nkandu who is against paramount Sosala work with edgar who actualy wants to recognise Paramount Sosala.No wonder the late President made the put on caps of uselessness
Now you want them to continue suffering not until you loose elections iwe ka hakainde.This is how a listening govt works infact it is a christmass bonus.I have a sister who is part of the nurses that have been re-instated and she has promised me that she will vote for EDGAR LUNGU.VOTE EL
YES, Come to LUSAKA/COPALA with those questions. They will tell you that
EL ,whether rain or sun shine,come 2015 he will be the President
of Zambia.
People in LUSAKA/Copperbelt are waiting for tomorrow`s nominations,
once this is done, then EL will be declared the free man of the
Province.
Here we talk about HH with caution many people have got a wrong
perception about Tongas not only in politics but also in employment,
marriage e.t.c. These perception must be purged before it is too late.
pf is under serious pressure from hh and upnd we have information that in some parts of the country the minister of agriculture is failing to pay farmers in full and they have started paying them in bits scretely to avoid the opposition exposing them.we know nurses are reinstated at upnd s pressure to the goverment so that they win some votes . but remember you have suffered for too long with deaf ears from pf so are farmers. the lifting of wage free under pf will not work cos the budget has no such provisions. so open your eyes and vote wisely . go for the man who has proved experience in business and can correct the economic problems that is hh , upnd come 2015