Ministry of Health drivers plan to petition administrator over ill treatment
Over 80 drivers from the Ministry of Health’s Community Health Service Unit (CHSU) in Lilongwe are planning to petition Principal Administrative Officer (PAO) Brown Vitsitsi, who is being accused of ill-treating the drivers and redeploying them to other departments within the Ministry whenever they question his dictatorial tendencies.
Most drivers from the department have reportedly been working under stress because of Vitsitsi’s conduct of dressing them down like his own children and replacing them with those deemed loyal to the administrator.
A section of the drivers, who opted for anonymity for fear of reprisals from their uncompromising boss told Nyasa Times that Vitsitsi has been going to the extent of soliciting kickbacks from some drivers for him to facilitate their posting to CHSU at the expense of drivers that are not in good books with him.
The CHSU is considered a more lucrative department in the Ministry, owing to the many projects the department is involved in.
The affected drivers said they are fed up with Vitsitsi’s conduct of making unilateral decisions aimed at getting rid of drivers that are not in good books with.
“Some of our colleagues from other sections within the ministry have openly challenged us that our days at the CHSU are numbered as they will soon fill our places. We find this to be very disturbing as we don’t know what the future holds for us.
“We have been wondering why the whole Ministry is at the mercy of one person. Where he is getting the powers from remains a mystery to us,” said one of the drivers, who pleaded for anonymity.
Another driver, also speaking on anonymous condition claimed some bosses within the Ministry have been expressing surprise at some of the posting instructions, which have been effected without them making any recommendations to the administrator.
Reports reaching this publication indicate, former Education Minister Dr Peter Kumpalume had made a recommendation to have Vitsitsi transferred to another department but the recommendation was not implemented following the recent Cabinet reshuffle, which saw Atupele Muluzi replacing Kumpalume.
Vitsitsi once worked at a foreign mission during the two-year reign of Dr Joyce Banda and is believed to have strong ties with Banda’s Peoples Party as most of his victims are those deemed to be Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) loyalists, according to the drivers.
Vitsitsi did not pick up calls on several occasions, when the reporter tried to get his side of the story.
Ministry’s Public Relations Officer Adrian Chikumbe asked for more time to investigate the matter before coming back to the reporter, which he never did.
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Allowance gate ndiyo yavuta apa. Its has always been a normal practice for officers to change their drivers whenever need be.
Atawapanga post kwina ma driver aku CHSU zingakhale bwino chifukwa anthuwa amayiwala kuti ndi ma driver a boma. Kukhala ngati anthuwa ndalama akumapeza zabwinoko and chifukwa ndima driver ka moyo ka usavage ali nako nkumamaziwonetsa ngati iwowo ndiye ma officer a ku CHSU. Ma driver anzawo a mmadepartment ena sawawona kanthu. Izi sizoyipa kupeza ndalama koma ntchito ya mboma munthu utha kupangidwa post kwina ndi mmene bwana owonela ma drver waganizila. Chifukwa choti ma officer ena amapanga chinyengo ndi ma driver ena pa nkhani zina monga mafuta ndi zina zokhuzana ndi ma galimoto safuna kulandila ma driver ena pa officepo.… Read more »
Hahaha vuto ndiloti anakumanani. Anamanga ma den. Ali ndi ma motor. Inu zanu mumathera kugula ma jumbo a mahule nde mukupanga nsanje. Are you aware that ma driver amapanga okha service, kugula matyre even fuel wa local running? Nde ukati ma driver akuononga chuma what do you mean?driver ukumusakayo amene ukuti savage yo, amavomereza umbuli nkona amalimbikila kuti akamadzapuma asadzakhale kapolo ngati iweyo omangothera pa rent. Shupit
This is a laughable article mostly likely to have been written by one of the driver’s relation. All drivers are ministry of Health employees and can be transferred anytime. These drivers were not employed by CHSU they are simply deployed there. Dyela lavutatu apa. Why shouldn’t others drivers benefit? If it was not for postings most of the drivers should never have been at CHSU. Let others also enjoy. All necessary procedures are followed in effecting postings and officer targeted here can only make recommendations. Mwangodana naye munthuyu. For your information PAO is US who is under DDA who is… Read more »
Just wondering, kodi a Adrian Chikumbe wa alibe photo ina? tawajambureni ina chonde kapena mupite pa FB mukatenge photo ina iyi yatikwana. Zikomo
you were fed with wrong info by the disgruntled drivers. mwati akukana internal posting nde administrator walakwa?
mwasakaniza nkhani zopanda ndi umboni kusonyeza mabodza eni eni
pali nkhani apa these drivers it seems are used to easy money allowances without going to the field vitsitsi has tightened the screws he wants aacountability and its normal in the civil service to transfer people nothing new
These drivers are biting the finger that feeds them. Let them behave well. Govt employees can be transferred to any MDAs (Ministries, Departments and Agencies) when authorities deem it fit. Good for them to resign if they feel they are mis/ill-treadted and join Profit-oriented organizations, NGOs etc. That’s why Govt employees are known as “civil servants” (akapolo a boma) chifukwa servant mu Chichewa chomveka bwino ndi “kapolo”. Kapolo sakwiya. Case closed