State House has said President Hakainde Hichilema is at home and fully engaged in the work of government. It was responding to questions from governance activist Brebner Changala over the Head of State’s public appearances and the size of the Cabinet.
State House Chief Communications Specialist Clayson Hamasaka gave a direct answer when asked about the President’s whereabouts.
“His Excellency is home busy working,” Mr Hamasaka said.
He suggested the questions were being driven from outside the newsroom, telling the reporter: “The problem with you, you get instructions from Emmanuel Mwamba, who asks you to call Hamasaka to confirm.”
Mr Hamasaka also made clear that the timing of Cabinet appointments was a matter for the Head of State. He said it was not the duty of the media to demand the appointment of the Cabinet.
State House’s position is backed by the President’s record since the August 13 election, at which President Hichilema secured a decisive mandate with 60 per cent of the vote.
On September 14, the President appointed and swore in his first four Cabinet ministers, placing experienced hands in charge of the Government’s most critical portfolios. Dr Situmbeko Musokotwane returned to Finance and National Planning and Mr Mulambo Haimbe to Foreign Affairs and International Cooperation. Prof Roma Chilengi took over Health, and Dr Gilbert Siame was given Green Economy and Environment.
At the swearing-in, President Hichilema set a clear standard for his team. He directed the ministers to spend 60 per cent of their time executing projects, and charged the Minister of Finance with continuing to grow the economy.
On October 2, the President hosted the Speaker’s approbation ceremony at State House, where he reaffirmed the Government’s commitment to reforms. He pointed to progress already achieved in the energy, education and legal sectors, and urged Parliament to enact laws to drive economic transformation.
President Hichilema then officially opened the First Session of the Fourteenth National Assembly little more than a week ago, setting out the Government’s legislative and development priorities for the new term.
He has also kept up his call for national unity, and recently used a prayer on his Facebook page to ask God to guide public servants to serve with humility, gratitude and love.
Mr Changala, in an interview, said the President should tell Zambians where he had been over the past two weeks. He also questioned why the Government was operating with four Cabinet ministers.
“We seemingly have Parliament without a functional Executive wing, backed by a four-member cabinet,” Mr Changala said.
The activist cited Article 116 of the Constitution, which provides for the President to appoint Cabinet ministers to run government departments. He argued that decisions taken without a full Cabinet could be challenged, referring to the recent United States-Zambia deal and to the presentation of the national budget.
Mr Changala also said Vice-President Mutale Nalumango should not stifle citizens’ questions on the Presidency.
The same constitutional provision leaves the power of appointment, and its timing, with the Head of State. That is the point Mr Hamasaka made when he said the appointment of the Cabinet was not a matter for the media to dictate.
The four ministers already in office cover the Government’s core economic, diplomatic and social functions. Finance and National Planning leads on the budget, Foreign Affairs manages international agreements, and Health oversees the national response to public health threats.
That team is already at work. Mr Haimbe recently presented Zambia’s human rights record before the African Commission on Human and Peoples’ Rights, setting out gains in legal aid, women’s representation and institutional reform.
The President’s own calendar for the week ahead also speaks to an active Presidency. President Hichilema is expected to officially open the 2026 Zambia Mining and Investment Insaka at the Mulungushi International Conference Centre in Lusaka on Monday.
The five-day gathering is expected to attract more than 1,500 participants, including special envoys of the presidents of the Democratic Republic of Congo and Botswana, alongside the World Bank, the European Union and the African Development Bank.
The Insaka is anchored on the Grow Zambia Agenda, including the President’s target of raising copper production to three million metric tonnes a year by 2031. Monday’s opening will place the Head of State before regional envoys, global lenders and investors as the Government drives that agenda forward.
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