Party Functionaries in Public Administration*

One of the changes necessiated by the One-Party system in Zambia, was the abolition of the office of Vice-President and the

re-introduction of the office of Prime Minister. The Prime Minister was relegated to a third place with the Secretary-General of the Party assuming

the position of the second-in-command to the President. The Secretary- General is appointed by the President and he is responsible for Party administration,^ while the Prime Minister, also appointed by the President,

2

is responsible for Government administration.

Whenever the office of President becomes vacant (which has so

far not occured since Inde p e n d e n c e ) , or the President is temporarily out of the country (which occurs o f t e n ) , or if he should be ill or he is incapable by reason of physical or mental informity of discharging the

functions of his office, the Secretary-General performs the functions of

the President.^ When the President dies or is removed from office, the

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Secretary-General becomes the Acting President, but only for a maximum

p e r i o d of three months during wh i c h period the vacancy should be filled. The Acting President is not allowed to dissolve Parliament or revoke any appointment made by the former President.^ Where there is no Secretary- General, the Central Committee (after 1988 the Committee o f Chairmen) selects an MCC to act as the Secretary-General who consequently becomes the Acting President until the per s o n elected as President assumes office.

These provisions are intended to ensure that the Party and not the Government, is the source of the top leadership, hence only the Secretary-General or an MCC and no t the Prime Minister can become Acting President. That is an aspect of the 'supremacy' of the Party.

1. UNIP: Constitution, 1988, Art. 77.

2. Zambia: Constitution of Zambia Act, 1973, Art. 48(1).

3. ibid. Arts. 40(3) and 43.

4. ibid. Art. 42(2).

5. ibid. Arts. 42(3) and 43(2), proviso. Similar

provisions are contained in U NIP Constitution, 1988, Arts. 75 and 76.

The procedure for the removal of the President shows that it

is the Party and not the Government wh i c h initiates the removal. A joint Central Committee and Cabinet meeting, chaired by the Secretary-General, has to resolve by a motion, supported b y the votes of the majority of the joint session, that, for instance, the question of the physical or

mental capacity of the President to discharge the functions of his office, should be investigated. The investigation is carried out by a board

consisting of three medical practitioners appointed by the Chief Justice. If the board reports that the President is, in its opinion, incapable of discharging his official duties, the C hief Justice should in writing

certify accordingly.^ On paper there are sufficient provisions and procedures for a peaceful removal of a President from office either on grounds of ill-health or misconduct, however, these have not been p ut to

a test, yet. President Kaunda has enjoyed good health and hard-working. Since the establishment of the Cne-Party system three persons have held the office of Secretary-General: Alexander Gray Zulu (1973-1976), Mathias Mainza Chona (1976-1981) and Humphrey Mulemba (1981-1985). In 1985 A.G. Zulu was re-appointed Secretary-General and he is still in office at

the time of writing (1989). During the same p e r i o d five persons have been appointed Prime Minister, namely M.M. Chona (1973-1976), Daniel Lisulo

(1976-1981), Nalumino M u n d i a (1981-1985), Kebby Musokotwane (1985-1989)

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and Mulimba Masheke, 1989 and still in office at the time of writing. The

President has a firm control of the Party and Government top leadership to the extent that appointments and removals of these leaders are carried out at his pleasure and as a matter of course. The Cabinet is composed of the President (as C h a i r m a n ) , the Secretary-General, ex- o f f i c i o , the

Secretary of Defence and Security and a bout sixteen Ministers: all

appointees of the President. That is the apex of the public administration in which Party functionaries are deployed and the Party plays its role.

1. Zambia:

2.

Constitution of Zambia Act, 1973, Art. 40(2); and the President ceases to hold o f f i c e ; infra, p. 333. Appointed 15th March, 1989.

199.

(a) The Secretary-General in Public Administration.

One of the fascinating things about the One-Party system is the persistence of the demarcation between those belonging to the

'Party' and those in the 'Government'. The provisions of the State's Constitution on the 'supremacy' of the Party decisions considered in the previous Section and the provisions on the role of the Secretary-

General in public administration considered in this Section, are all

b a s e d on the notion that the Prime M i nister and Ministers do not represent the Party. Views are e x pressed in the Party circles to the

effect that even the President (of the P a r t y ) , once sworn-in as the

President of the Republic, 'ceases to represent the Party' but personifies the Government and the State. Accordingly, the role of the Secretary- General in public administration is p e r c e i v e d as symbolizing the presence of the Party in Government administration.

A close observation of the man n e r each of the men who have held the office of the Secretary-General has conducted his public

administration duties, gives the impression that each one of them believed that he carried out such functions as a representative of the Party. That belief could be based on the fact that he carried out such duties ex-ef ficio - by virtue of be i n g Secretary-General of the Party.

However, the Secretary-General performs such duties as are assigned to

hi m by the Constitution of Zambia as the second-in-command to the President.

(i) Chairmanship of Cabinet.

The chairmanship o f Cabinet b y the Secretary-General runs counter to one of the basic principles p r o n o u n c e d at the inception of the One-Party system, that supreme p o w e r ought to be vested in the people, exercised by them directly where possible, and indirectly through

established democratic representative institutions.^” The Prime Minister

1. Zambia: NCEOPPDZ, Report, 1972, Appendix I, Seventh