Muckracking Extra: On good ol’ Ken’s exit

I received some interesting feedback on my last week’s take on the sacking of Finance Minister Ken Diston Lipenga from a muckraker who wants to remain anonymous. I here-in-under reproduce those thoughts verbatim. Enjoy:

I think it is not really that Ken Lipenga is a novice in financial and economic matters that made his exit from cabinet such disastrous. He had the requisite experience to have been a minister in any socio-economic portfolio.

You must recall that previously Lipenga has been at Information, Tourism and Trade and Industry. All these are portfolios that should prepare anyone to be a Finance and Economic Planning minister, if not a Reserve Bank Governor, at any time.

In fact, it can easily be argued that Dr. Lipenga was “over-educated/qualified” as Finance Minister considering that a number of previous Finance Ministers were basic degree holders – Goodall Gondwe, Louis Chimango and John Tembo. These have neither a PhD nor MA in Finance/Banking or Economics.

But they ran the ministry satisfactorily still.

Aleke Banda, too, had even much less qualifications but he was a ‘star performer’ at Finance.

Of course, it can be said that only Bakili Muluzi knew how to assign Lipenga to fitting ministries – Information and Tourism – where, of course, he was also over-qualified.

But I guess the main problem with Dr. Lipenga is that he has not been resolute and principled enough. He was unable to stamp his authority on the Ministry of Finance. He ought to have exercised that authority in reigning in financial controls at various levels.

But, in retrospect, Dr. Lipenga rendered himself an ideal object for abuse by his officers.

I think his lackadaisical approach in Finance should not mean he was foolish enough not to realise what was going on. Analysts – like you, the Muckraker – were conveniently made to question Ken’s proficiency in finances. 

Ken is a linguist and literature fundi, a doctor of letters to boot. At face value many would expect him to be at Information or Culture. 

So, once you conveniently “misplace him” and looting of the current nature occurs, the reaction should be that a “wrongly-qualified” minister was sent to the “wrong place”. 

That’s politics at its best. If you buy the argument that Ken was the lame-duck who suffered the misfortune of being placed at the wrong ministry where – as you put it – he was ill-qualified for, you are subconsciously buying the yarn hook, line and sinker.

Need I say more? 

Me, from Blantyre