Former Higher and Tertiary Education Minister, Professor Jonathan Moyo, says competency should be prioritised when deploying teachers, guided by a thorough deployment policy.
Prof. Moyo made these remarks during a discussion on the ramifications of language instruction at Early Childhood Development (ECD) held on This Morning on Asakhe on Wednesday, a CITE’s X space current affairs programme.
This comes in the wake of the dismissal of former deputy minister of higher and tertiary education, Simelisizwe Sibanda by President Mnangagwa after ordering the transfer of a non-Ndebele speaking teacher at a school in Matabeleland North.
Prof. Moyo noted that Sibanda regrets fueling tribal connotations regarding teachers who cannot speak indigenous languages, as evidenced by his apology letter.
“If we want to be objective, we should be guided by what the former deputy minister himself said. Sibanda wrote a two-page letter, saying he realises after being dismissed that what he said was unnecessarily fueling tribal connotations and undertones,” Prof. Moyo stated.
“Sibanda gives the reasons why and seems to understand a day after what happened. Probably, if he had understood earlier when the audio started circulating, that he was fueling irrelevant and secondary issues, which are not at the heart of the matter he says he encountered at that particular school.”
Read background here: https://cite.org.zw/im-sorry-i-let-you-down-fired-deputy-minister-apologises-to-mnangagwa/
Prof. Moyo’s comments came in response to a question from ZAPU Secretary General Mthulisi Hanana, who asked during the discussion why President Mnangagwa was so upset that he fired Sibanda, as the dismissal could raise concerns about tribal deployments and Harare’s control over Matabeleland.
“Since ministers are appointed at the pleasure of the president, from this incident what could have displeased the president leading to the dismissal of the deputy minister?” Hanana asked.
“What attitude is displayed here because you have seen other ministers accused of certain crimes like corruption but there’s no quick dismissal; it takes a bit of time.”
The ZAPU SG argued that regional tensions may rise after the deputy minister’s sacking.
“From the way the president reacted, good or bad, based on the understanding of people of Matabeleland, how is it going to affect the feeling and attitude of people of Matabeleland who already feel that Sibanda was right?” Hanana said.
“Sibanda might have implemented whatever he was doing wrongly, but he was raising a pertinent issue.”
Hanana said Sibanda’s dismissal suggested that as long as one is from Matabeleland and voices their grievances, “Harare will always crush you.”
“There’s also the issue, if it’s true, that there is tribal deployment, doesn’t it embolden other tribalists that if someone speaks out, we will be more concerned about how it’s done to the point of firing the person and we forget about the wrong that is happening?” he asked.
In his response, Prof. Moyo said the former deputy minister had learned a lesson and reflected on how he had handled the situation, noting that media presentations on how Sibanda had conducted himself were unhelpful.
“When the audio started circulating, a happy media latched onto that audio and presented it in a manner that was unhelpful. In my humble opinion, the former deputy minister would have done himself a great service had he instantly intervened to say, ‘That is not what happened,’ or even dissociated himself from the audio, because the impression is him or someone associated with him circulated it,” Prof. Moyo said.
Sibanda needed to disassociate himself from the audio as the tribal part raised is not the primary issue in the whole situation, Prof. Moyo stated.
“The issue is not that someone with a different surname from the surnames that are local to Bubi is teaching ECD when they cannot communicate in the local language. That is not the issue of the surname or so forth. There’s the issue of competence, and if that is the issue, there’s the issue of deployment policy. How is it being implemented in that school, district, and so forth?” Prof. Moyo said.
“These are issues the former deputy minister, in his letter, says in retrospect, ‘I understand I could have handled this differently. I regret that I didn’t do it. I understand that this has resulted in me losing my job, but I remain committed.’”
Prof. Moyo concluded by saying that to avoid further fueling tribal connotations, people must be guided by the letter of the former deputy minister, who provides an explanation as to why he lost his job and regrets fueling tribal connotations.
