Of performing ministers

Politics is a game which many would want to play dirty most of the times but cheering those playing hard to impress and service the electorate isn't a bad idea after all. There are game changers who come with the new look and injection of life which one cannot afford to ignore but at least appreciate.

The most common yard stick any layman would use to judge the performance of a public office bearer would be to see change from the obvious or realignment of issues in tandem with the changing times. Life and its institutions are not static hence adjustments are inevitable at any given time.

Following the interview of Minister of Sport and Recreation, Makosini Hlongwane on ZBC TV , one could not help but marvel at the way this new Minister was articulating issues that had been bedevilling the ministry, particularly in the handling of ZIFA affairs.

Having inherited the exuberance from Deputy Minister, Tabeth Malinga, Honourable Hlongwane finally defeated the Goliath in this sector of governance.

Cuthbert Dube had to go, but the initiatives hinted by Minister Hlongwane to improve accountability, responsibility and justification of the tax payers' money and interested stakes, is satisfactory.

However, the buck does not have to stop here rather good governance should prevail resulting in Zimbabwe participating in the World Cup tournaments again as well as sourcing sponsors for sporting activities and improving the general welfare of the athletes. Sport, as an industry, can create jobs and alleviate poverty fulfilling at least two clusters of ZimASSET at once.

Speaking of practical steps towards justifying the tax payer's money, Tyson's fist in this regard cannot go unmentioned. Minister Savior Kasukuwere redirected the axe from the employees' necks to the employers' and this halted wily nilly job losses. Tradition was broken and the rot in the City Council of Harare was exposed. Such is the desired political will towards restoration of effective corporate governance.

Still on labour matters, Minister of Finance Hon Patrick Chinamasa, being the man with the toughest job in Zimbabwe of thinking outside the box and ensure the finances of the country are in order, has been under pressure to make sure every sector of Zimbabwe gets a share from the small economic cake. Recommendations of cutting the wage bill saw him being advised to send the majority of civil servants packing. This was not to be and other means had to be sought like redeploying redundant staff to strategic position among other interventions.

Some of the success stories are the results of the recent Cabinet reshuffling which has proven to be an effective tool as far as rejuvenating service delivery is concerned. Professor Jonathan Moyo has also shaken the Ministry of Higher and Tertiary education, another critical component of the economy which is charged with the responsibility of researching and bringing new ideas in the economy. His presence there can already be felt and hopefully the cooking pot of our think tanks will shift from churning out employees to producing employers equipped to kick start industries.

It would be a noble thing to introduce a programme basically the same as the constituency watch, aimed at reflecting the performance of the ministers and at least get the citizens to know much about a particular ministry and its functions.

This will do a great service as far as educating the likes of Paddington Japajapa is concerned. Some ministries may appear dormant because their line of duty does not produce results overnight. This has to be taken into context when trying to measure performance.

However, due diligence and prudence in forecasting the future needs should be upped so that as a nation and its citizenry we are guarded from the surprises such as the one currently shocking our energy sector.