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Zambian leader appoints junior ministers

Xinhua, February 17, 2015 Adjust font size:

Zambian President Edgar Lungu on Monday announced a list of junior ministers to fill all the ministries, his office said in a statement.

Lungu, who unveiled his full cabinet last Friday after winning last month's presidential election, has retained most of the junior ministers appointed by late President Michael Sata and included new faces.

Among the new faces includes Sata's son, Mulenga, who is deputy minister in the Office of the President, a newly-created portfolio, which has received wide condemnation from a cross section of society, with critics saying it is a waste of resources to create new opposition when the government is already bloated.

Lungu has also maintained two junior ministers each in most ministries, a move that was started by his predecessor as well reappointed some members of the country's two largest opposition political parties.

Among those who have retained their position is Miles Sampa, as deputy minister of commerce, trade and industry, who stood against Lungu for the governing party's presidency ahead of last month's presidential election.

Sampa led a faction that wanted to take over the running of the governing party even after Lungu was elected as the party's leader but the two factions later merged.

Others who have retained their opposition is Panji Kaunda, the son of the country's first President Kenneth Kaunda, who has been moved to the Ministry of Home Affairs from the Ministry of Transport, Works, Supply and Communications.

During the appointment of his full cabinet, which comprises of 22 ministers, the Zambian leader urged all those appointed to get to serious work, adding that he will not hesitate to fire anyone who will not be working. Endi