. Lungu

THE National Assembly is a critical institution in the provision of checks and balances to the Executive and, therefore, its establishment requires a full complement of staff with all relevant savvies.
One of the House’s foremost oversight roles is to scrutise the national Budget and its execution, which makes it important that specifically qualified officers handle the issue.
The national Budget, on the other hand, is an important document which demonstrates the country’s aspirations and resolve on specific challenges and chart a decisive economic course.
We, therefore, concur with Deputy Speaker of the National Assembly Mkhondo Lungu, who yesterday called for the establishment of a Budget Office to strengthen Parliament’s oversight role in the Budget process and public finance management.
This office, if granted relevant officers, will analyse and scrutise the proposals for the Executive’s Budget and tackle several other economic issues.
It will, for instance, extend similar functions on the medium-term plans like the Medium Term Expenditure Framework (MTEF) and others.
Proposed Government policies will also be analysed together with the proposed taxes to ascertain their impact and feasibility on the national economy.
This critical office will further provide economic forecasts and analyses, prepare budgetary briefs, undertake costing of bills and generally give expert advice on the national economy, to the benefit of the entire nation.
Beyond doubt, the Budget Officer, if shored up by relevant subordinates will occupy a crucial position in Parliament’s oversight role in the Budget process from formulation to approval, implementation and audit.
This is a non-controversial but progressive proposal which, when implemented, would help to make the work of other officers of Parliament, the presiding officials and the members of Parliament (MPs) – especially in related committees – easy.
It is also encouraging that the Zambian National Assembly, which is one of the longest functioning Legislatures in the region, is continually and continuously undertaking reforms.
This, in our view, is as it should be since the world is dynamic and the dispensation of democracy is ever changing.

We also note that the proposed Budget Office is just one of the numerous elements under the parliamentary reforms in the area of public finance.
Generally, these reforms will help in the creation of internal technical expertise to enable the constant offering of support to the parliamentary committees on economic, financial and budgetary policy and management of public funds.
They will definitely lead to the enhanced capacity of the committees in handling proposed budgetary appropriation and empower them with further capacity to check Government policies.
These reforms will, besides that, add to the capacities of the Public Accounts Committee to ensure that its recommendations and those from the Auditor General’s office are effectively followed up by the Executive.
This is critical, especially in view of the incessant assertions that on a yearly basis, the Auditor General’s revelations of some alleged misappropriation and misapplication of public funds are, seemingly, not followed up with relevant actions by the Government.
Therefore, all Zambians, especially those in relevant authoritative organs, should support these reforms and the entailing offices which they will create.
As a key pillar of democracy, Parliament and its offices should be strengthened.
The country should continue leading in the democratisation of institutions, including Parliament, because other countries in the region and beyond would want to learn from it.
Zambia should remain a bastion of democracy since currently there is seemingly no better alternative to the social equality.