Labour Ministry clarifies Kumar hire

LABOUR Commissioner Chanda Kaziya has clarified that the decision by the First Capital Bank to employ Nair Pradeep Kumar was based on his suitability for the job. Mr Kaziya said the appointing authority could not engage someone who cannot add value to the institution. He was reacting to claims by the Zambia Union of Financial Institutions and Allied Workers (ZUFIAW) that First Capital Bank had employed Nair Pradeep Kumar as chief operations officer who did not poses special qualifications to warrant the appointment. Mr Kaziya said the sentiments by ZUFIAW were not genuine because the appointing authority could not engage an incompetent person. The appointing authority does scrutinise people who are supposed to take up that role and it was convinced that the person in question had the required qualifications to take the role, he said. Mr Kaziya said complaints by ZUFIAW should not be taken seriously because for the appointing authority to employ Mr Kumar as chief operations officer, it was convinced he was qualified to take up the position. ZUFIAW general secretary Chingati Msiska on Thursday demanded for a thorough investigation into the appointment of Mr Kumar as he had no special qualifications to deserve the appointment. In a letter to the Labour Commissioner dated March 19, 2019, ZUFIAW general secretary Chingati Msiska alleged that Mr Kumar’s appointment was against what was stipulated on his work permit. Mr Musiska said the union had been receiving complaints about Mr Kumar and that its investigations had revealed that not only was he engaged in bad conduct but was also not qualified for the job. He said the job could be held by a Zambian. Mr Musiska said Mr Kumar’s provocative, intimidating and pushy style of management, including unilateral decisions, undermined Zambia’s labour laws. But Mr Kaziya declined receiving any letter from ZUFIAW over the appointment of Mr Kumar. “I have never seen the letter from ZUFIAW, if the union did write to me I would have seen that letter and I would have looked into their complaints,” he said. “But again the appointing authority cannot engage someone who did not have qualifications to take up that position. Where on earth can government decide to appoint someone who cannot deliver,” he said.