Chokuda man on a mission

The Sunday Mail

Mr Kennedy Chokuda

Newly-appointed Clerk of Parliament Mr Kennedy Chokuda is a man on a mission.

Though soft-spoken, he talks tough.

After all, his 12 years at Parliament Building have taught him to navigate the rough terrain that he finds himself in.

His first assignment as Clerk of Parliament is to trail the 22 former legislators who owe Parliament US$800 000 in car purchase loans.

Twenty-one were expelled from MDC-T for siding with MDC Renewal Team, and former Zanu-PF secretary for administration Didymus Mutasa completes the list.

Mr Chokuda took over the reins from Mr Austin Zvoma, who retired in November 2014, and had been Acting Clerk since then.

On Friday, he ushered The Sunday Mail crew into his new office on Parliament Building’s first floor and shared his vision.

He spoke of recovering Parliament’s money, ensuring legislators get their sitting allowances and forging ahead with the Legislature long-term strategy.

“The former MPs had not paid for the cars despite having contractual obligations to do so. We are now in the process of making sure Parliament gets its money from them; we are certain the money will be paid back.”

With a chuckle, Mr Chokuda explained that his job was also to ensure MPs receive their outstanding allowances.

Parliament’s chief executive should have clarity of priorities in keeping with Section 154 (2) of the Constitution.

And rightly so, Mr Chokuda has lined up 16 strategic priorities, and top of the list is capacitating MPs to enable them to align identified laws with the Constitution.

He also wants parliamentarians to effectively monitor the Executive and public officials in the use of public resources.

“One of my targets is to strengthen the role of Parliament in national development through capacity-building that empowers MPs and staff to articulate and implement national development programmes.

“As you know, committees are the engine rooms of Parliament. We are looking at capacity-building for chairpersons and researchers to guarantee them adequate resources when they carry out their duties, especially consulting the public on Bills.

“I will also prioritise creating a positive image of Parliament and this entails increasing live television broadcasts of debates and even covering portfolio committee meetings. We also hope to start a Parliament TV station once Zimbabwe moves from analogue to digital.”

On shrugging off competition from 49 candidates to land the post, he said: “It was a good feeling to be appointed the Clerk of Parliament. It just shows I am progressing in my career, a firm confirmation that Parliament has confidence in my capabilities and those of the staff I work with.

“This is a reflection of the kind of officers around me. It confirms their competences.”

Mr Chokuda worked for the National Manpower Advisory Council in the Ministry of Higher and Tertiary Education between 1991 and 1994, after which he became a gender officer in the then Ministry of Youth, Gender and Employment Creation, serving until January 2003.

He then joined Parliament as Assistant Clerk in 2003 and was promoted to Deputy Clerk in 2007.

As Assistant Clerk, he worked closely with portfolio committees, which is where most of Parliament’s work is done.

He also led a team which worked on getting ISO certification for Parliament between 2010 and 2013.

In addition, Mr Chokuda became the first secretary of the Constitution Select Committee (Copac) where he oversaw the development of a strategic plan, budgets and staff recruitment.

He recalls working with previous House of Assembly Speakers Vice-President Emmerson Mnangagwa; Vice-President John Landa Nkomo and MDC-T national chair Mr Lovemore Moyo.

His present bosses are Senate President Cde Edna Madzongwe and National Assembly Speaker Advocate Jacob Mudenda.

“I learnt a lot when Cde Mnangagwa was Speaker because he initiated a number of reforms and established Parliamentary Information Centres countrywide. His initiatives were consolidated by VP Nkomo. I must say, I learnt a lot working with these great men.”

A devout Christian, Mr Chokuda is married to Biatha and the couple has two daughters – Tinotenda (10) and Ruvimbo (7).