CIVIL SERVICE NEUTRALITY BETRAYED: THABO KAWANA AND THE UPND’s ENDORSEMENT OF PARTISAN BUREAUCRACY
By Chishala Kateka for President
The Zambian civil service was designed to be a neutral machine of governance, a professional bureaucracy insulated from the partisan winds of politics. The Constitution, the Cabinet Office, and the Public Protector all exist to ensure that neutrality is not a polite suggestion but a binding principle. Yet under the UPND, neutrality has been shredded, and the most glaring example is Thabo Kawana, Permanent Secretary at the Ministry of Information and Media, who has turned his office into a partisan stage while taxpayers foot the bill.
Article 176 of the Constitution of Zambia (Amendment Act No. 2 of 2016) establishes the Secretary to the Cabinet as the guardian of neutrality, efficiency, and accountability. Cabinet Office Circular No. 10 of 2026, issued by Secretary to the Cabinet Patrick Kangwa, requires civil servants with political ambitions to resign by 15 May 2026. The Public Protector Act No. 15 of 2016 empowers the Public Protector to investigate maladministration and abuse of office. These are not ceremonial instruments; they are the bedrock of governance. Yet Kawana’s antics continue unchecked, mocking the law and ridiculing the very idea of impartial administration.
Kawana has publicly disclosed former President Edgar Lungu’s private medical condition, a grotesque violation of ethics and dignity. He has been named in corruption allegations yet shielded from accountability. He has been linked to partisan political violence narratives, positioning himself as a party enforcer rather than a neutral administrator. And, undeterred, he continues to make running commentary on opposition politicians, acting less like a Permanent Secretary and more like a full-time extension of the UPND media team. One wonders whether his office is a government ministry or simply a branch of the party’s communications desk.
President Hakainde Hichilema has extolled the rule of law at every podium, presenting himself as the champion of constitutionalism and good governance. He has declared that Zambia will be governed by laws, not by men. Yet the reality is starkly different. Kawana’s behaviour mocks this principle, and the administration’s tolerance of his antics reveals that the rule of law is applied selectively. It is invoked as a slogan when convenient, but quietly ignored when it threatens the partisan machinery. The contradiction is glaring: the President’s rhetoric on the rule of law is lofty, but the practice under his watch is cynical.
Taxpayer money paid to Kawana and other civil servants who openly practice politics is not just wasteful; it is a direct challenge to the voter. Citizens cast ballots expecting impartial governance, yet their taxes are diverted to subsidise partisan actors masquerading as administrators. Every kwacha spent on Kawana’s salary while he plays cadre is a betrayal of the electorate, a theft dressed in bureaucracy, and a mockery of democracy itself.
So let us ask directly. Secretary to the Cabinet Patrick Kangwa, why issue circulars demanding neutrality if you will not enforce them. Why should taxpayers believe in your authority when Kawana remains untouched. Public Protector, empowered by Article 243 and Act No. 15 of 2016, why do you remain silent in the face of blatant maladministration. Who protects the voter when the institutions designed to safeguard neutrality choose complicity.
Comparative lessons are instructive. In South Africa, the Public Protector has investigated senior officials for maladministration, reinforcing accountability. In the United Kingdom, the civil service operates under the Civil Service Code, which enforces impartiality and political neutrality. In India, the Central Civil Services Conduct Rules prohibit civil servants from engaging in politics, with strict enforcement mechanisms. These examples show that neutrality is not optional; it is enforced through law and institutional courage. Zambia, by contrast, has allowed neutrality to become a casualty of political expediency.
Fellow citizens, the civil service is the backbone of our democracy. Yet today, figures like Thabo Kawana openly betray neutrality, weaponising public office for partisan gain. Cabinet Office Circular No. 10 of 2026 is clear. Article 176 of our Constitution is clear. The Public Protector Act is clear. Why then does Kawana remain untouched. Because the UPND has chosen to endorse this misconduct. Neutrality has been sacrificed at the altar of political expediency. Taxpayers are forced to subsidise political theatre, while governance principles are trampled.
Zambia deserves better. We must demand accountability from the Secretary to the Cabinet, courage from the Public Protector, and integrity from every civil servant. Until then, every kwacha spent on Kawana’s salary while he plays cadre is not just waste, it is theft dressed in bureaucracy, openly endorsed by the UPND.
1 July 2026/////
CIVIL SERVICE NEUTRALITY BETRAYED: THABO KAWANA AND THE UPND’s ENDORSEMENT OF PARTISAN BUREAUCRACY
