Minister Kazako calls for solidarity in MDAs: Mtumodzi outlines challenges in department of information

Minister of Information, Gospel Kazako, has asked members of staff in government ministries, departments and agencies (MDA) to respect and love one another in the line of duty in order to maximize productivity in the civil service.

Kazako made the remarks on Tuesday during a maiden familiarisation tour at the Department of Information in Area 3 under his ministry in Lilongwe.

In his address, he cried foul at the tendency of back biting and gossip in MDAs which has reportedly slowed progress owing to divisions among staff.

He said: “We need to cultivate a culture of love and respect if we are to make headway in our activities. Gossiping and negativity towards one another will only drag us in the course of development.”

“There is also a predisposition of disrespecting line authorities which emanates due to various reasons, but this is an immoral code in the civil service which I will not tolerate,” he said.

On work ethics, he commended the members of staff for their continued display of professionalism, objectivity and non-partisanship in execution of duties.

The department, which encompasses Malawi News Agency, Regional Information Office and Audiovisual section, was also applauded for its exceptional delivery despite getting inadequate funding meant for operations.

Speaking earlier, newly appointed Director of Information, Chikumbutso Mtumodzi, corroborated the minister’s stance on the notion of love and respect among staff members.

Mtumodzi asked for support to be rendered to the minister’s vision in transforming the ministry’s capacity which has seemingly plunged into a downward spiral in recent years.

He also expressed gratitude to the minister for the visit which he believed would be a head start in alleviating numerous problems that the Department of Information is facing.

Among other challenges, he bemoaned lack of equipment, poor office accommodation, shortage of staff, inadequate funding and mobility problems.

In his response, the minister took note of the challenges but called for migration in mentality towards dealing with various problems that the ministry is facing.

He challenged the Department of Information which he described as a ‘creativity hub’ of government to establish strategies which will solidify its financial sustenance                                                                                                                                        in the long run through various projects which would lead to independent.

He said: “We need to embark on good policies that will encourage productivity, not the other way round. The solutions must be developed from within instead of over reliance on funding from government just like what MBC is doing with its Development Broadcasting Unit.

“We can curb issues of theft and misallocation of funds; definitely we can have enough income to address some of these aforementioned challenges,” said the minister.

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