Details have emerged of how National Local Government Finance Committee (NLGFC) bent its own rules to hire an executive director who lacked the first degree it required for the job.
The Nation investigations, which included a review of relevant documents and interviews with officials familiar with the recruitment process, show that back in 2022 a short-listing panel rejected Kondwani Santhe, the current NLGFC executive director, due to lack of a first degree just as it did with other applicants who either did not have first degrees or their bachelor’s qualifications were not relevant to the job requirements.
However, Santhe’s name made it to the final short-list and he attended interviews where he emerged as the successful candidate.
The vacancy announcement for the post of executive director floated in daily newspapers on December 21 2021 and the NLGFC job description handbook of 2016 (Volume II) required one to have both the first degree and master’s in specified fields plus 10 years’ experience in a senior position.
Reads the requirements: “Master’s degree in finance, business administration/management, strategic management, public administration or any other management related field from an accredited institution.
“Bachelor’s degree in economics, finance, business administration/management, public administration or any relevant field from an accredited institution. Ten years work experience on a senior management position.”
But, according to the interview report dated June 1 2022 that also contains a summary of qualifications and experience for each candidate, Santhe did not produce a first degree.
“Dr. Santhe holds a doctorate degree in accounting and finance from the University of Lusaka [in Zambia]. He also has a masters’ degree in business administration [University of Derby]. He is a Fellow of Chartered Certified Accountants [FCCA] and Association of Chartered Certified Accountants [ACCA],” further reads the interview report.
The NLGFC subcommittee of the board that met on February 15 and 16 2022 in Salima also resolved that candidates for the job needed to have “both a first degree and master’s”.
Out of 21 applicants, according to the subcommittee’s report, nine, including Santhe, were not recommended for shortlisting on the basis that they did not provide proof of a first degree.
Of the nine, six, including Santhe, had PhDs and of those, four— Santhe inclusive—were disqualified for either lack of a first degree or their bachelor’s degrees were not relevant to the job requirements.
For Santhe, the report indicated: “Not recommended, lacks relevant first degree.”
The report recommended Stanley Chuthi as the only one meeting all the requirements for the job.
When contacted, committee chairperson Ziddy Medi said the board was better placed to comment as his committee submitted their report to the full board for action.
According to the interview report, Santhe scored the highest with 23.6 out of 25 points while Chuthi came second with 22 points and Clement Chiwaya was third with 20.8 points. Both Santhe and Chuthi were working for NLGFC at the time of the interview.
“The interview board recommended that subject to a due diligence that should be undertaken before hiring the officer, the vacant position of executive director in the NLGFC shall be offered to Dr. Kondwani Santhe being the best performing candidate,” reads the report.
The report also recommended Chuthi as another option should Santhe turn down the offer.
The Nation submitted its findings to NLGFC board chairperson Richard Chapweteka, who stated that the master’s degree was the highest qualification for the job.
He said: “The board considered all the applicants. The minimum qualification was first degree and master’s as the highest qualification needed for the job, and no one was disadvantaged nor discriminated.”
Speaking on condition of anonymity, a senior public sector expert in human resource management said the fact that the advert and job description required both a first degree and master’s rendered the board’s explanation invalid.
“The language is clear; first degree and master’s. The reason was to have a candidate with a strong academic background. There is a good reason you have to do a first degree before a master’s,” said the official.
Another government official familiar with this recruitment also confirmed that the first degree was indeed a must and was not supposed to be replaced by any other qualification.
Meanwhile, NLGFC has undertaken a functional review that has since removed the first degree as a requirement for the post of executive director.
Reads the new requirements brief: “Master’s degree in finance, business administration/management, strategic management, public administration, or any other management related field from an accredited institution plus ten years work experience in a senior management position in public institution. Those with accounting professional qualifications will have an added advantage.”
Chapweteka said the board works independently and that its decisions are on merit without looking at personalities.
He said the 2023 functional review did not look at personalities, but to realign NLGFC mandate and functions to meet ever-growing demand for efficiency and effectiveness in its service delivery while providing job enrichment, staff growth and development.
In a separate interview, Department of Human Resource Management and Development (DHRMD)spokesperson Kennie Mtonga said while the department has mandate to vet and approve job descriptions, the new guidelines at NLGFC were prepared without its blessing.
However, he confirmed that DHRMD was responsible for the functional review save for the job descriptions which in this case are part of the functional review report.
NLGFC has since advertised for some senior management positions using the new job descriptions.
In a vacancy announcement published in The Nation of June 25 2025, the committee is inviting applications for the post of director of corporate and strategic support services, which is grade two (F2) and the requirement is only a master’s degree in strategic management or business administration or any related disciplines from recognised institutions.In the 2016 handbook, this position demanded one to have master’s in related field with a bachelor of laws.
On what it means to have a job description without the blessing of DHRMD, Mtonga said their position remains that this was not vetted by DHRMD as required.
Another senior government official said the coincidence that the new job description has removed the first degree requirement for management posts, including that of the executive director, is suspicious.
The functional review has also pushed at least 11 managers on grade three to grade four, creating vacancies in grade three that have now been advertised.
Records The Nation has seen also show that 29 officers have been pushed from grade four to five, making them lose some benefits such as 250 litres of fuel monthly.
In separate interviews, three officials affected by a drop in grades described the new arrangement as a demotivation.
But according to Chapweteka, the new arrangement is meant to create more growth opportunities.
“A new grade has been inserted for FC3, which meant the previous grade of M5 and M4 have been merged to FC5. Otherwise, if the functional review had maintained previous grades, then that could have been job retitling or otherwise,” he said.
Santhe, when contacted yesterday, asked The Nation to direct questions on hhis recruitment to the board.
On the new job description which seem aligned with his qualifications, he said other State agencies were doing the same with management positions requiring no first degree. He cited Admarc and National Economic Empowerment Fund.
