Antonio Mucojongo
Africa-Press – Angola. Improvisation – “action or result that is done or said without preparation or premeditation, suddenly and without prior planning…”
It’s enough to cry out to the Heavens what’s happening in our country!…
The core of coherent governance is undoubtedly based on the skills and performance of Public Administration, Human Capital if you will, as it is in vogue in our country (a charming conference was held a few days ago), adopting effective and rapid procedures in the management of processes, where ethics, responsibility and professional deontology must stand out.
Angolan law establishes that within a minimum and reasonable period of time not exceeding 10 working days, State Institutions, that is, Public Institutions at all levels, must respond in writing to requests made by Users (Citizens).
PARADOXES:
1 – It is common to receive a verbal response after 10 business days regarding a specific request, “we still don’t have an answer, come next week, come back in a month”, and so on, and time goes by, these responses given by senior employees of institutions, seconded by Our Doctors in suits and ties, displaying arrogance instead of competence, authority and skill.
A friend of mine confided in me that in a certain Province of Our Country, to resolve a matter that had been going on for years, the Municipality showed itself incapable, gathered all the files and submitted them to a higher authority, in this case, the head of the Province, so that he could help them resolve the issue that they were unable to resolve. After more than twelve months, without seeing the matter resolved, the applicant sent a complaint about the same matter to the head to whom the Municipality had appealed for the solution. The incumbent, in turn, referred the matter again to his hierarchical subordinate (the Municipality in this case), in a mere ping-pong drama! The Municipality, unable to resolve the matter, again sent the same redone dossier to the Chief. Months after the referral, the Chief, who for over a year had been unable to resolve a dossier that the subordinate had sent, becomes Minister. May Our Lady of Mercy have mercy and compassion on us! What will be this Manager’s skill for the new responsibility?
2 – Government debts to service providers are classified as public debt. Debts incurred by the government from 2014 to 2019 are classified as public debt, while those incurred from 2020 to the present date are designated as overdue debts. The country is an expert in this regard, believing that designations, classifications, and committees resolve matters.
With the classifications and designations we specialize in, over the years, it’s common to hear our doctors in suits and ties respond to service providers, “… Don’t worry, sir, your debt is listed as public debt or even in arrears…” This is said as if the problem were already resolved, leaving the interested party free to accept the 15 to 30% extortion “as Diogo Cão taught us.” Indeed, we learned so much from Diogo Cão that the majority of our doctors in suits and ties (governors) are Portuguese nationals.
3 – If the government has not paid its debts for services provided by private individuals for some time, what can we say and demand for different behavior from public companies? Let’s take a look at SONANGOL, EP. A company of national and international prestige, how has it behaved in handling and paying debts owed to service providers and others?
Today, I’m over 60 years old. When I was young, it was my dream, and that of many other young people, to be part of the SONANGOL, EP. staff, given the ease with which they sent their employees for diverse training at major universities around the world, such as the United Kingdom, the United States, etc. Today, I’ve come to the conclusion that SONANGOL, EP. is nothing but an illusion and vanity. Forgive me, the upstanding and honest employees of this company! All that training for senior managers with little formal education was worthless, given the behavior and lack of skill in what I will list below, as well as the arrogance and lack of ethics in not paying their debts:
On August 19 of this year, the newspapers Club K and Angola 24 horas published the news about the non-payment of compensation to some Heirs in Namibe and the influence that SONANGOL, EP. exerted in changing the final judgment;
On August 8th of this year, in the newspaper O País it was reported that SONANGOL, EP. recovered through the court more than Two Hundred Million American Dollars – paradox “Kilapero” recovers “Kilapi” and does not pay for its “Kilapis”, it shows the lack of decency and elegance;
The Angola 24 Horas newspaper reported that SONANGOL, EP. financed more than thirty-five million US dollars for the company of its CEO’s son. – Immoral: it has the money to finance its son’s company and does not pay the debts resulting from signed agreements and contracts.
4 – The Kub K newspaper of August 31 of this year reported that it was the Presidency of the Republic that stopped the irregularities that were allegedly committed in the Supreme Court by the outgoing President of that Court. Therefore, the following question must be asked:
– Is this same Presidency incapable of stopping the countless irregularities that occur in almost all Public Sectors?
– Is this same presidency incapable of stopping the irregularities committed at all levels with the public debt, so that there is fairness, skill, and decency in its settlement?
– Is this same Presidency not capable of stopping the numerous irregularities committed by SONANGOL, EP., in the non-payment of debts contracted several years ago to service providers, influencing decisions of the Civil Courts?
– Could the arrogance and impunity displayed by senior managers at SONANGOL, EP, claiming they can complain wherever they want stem from some kind of backlash against the aforementioned Presidency, as they claim?
The irregularities described here and so many others committed over the years are well known to all of us, with no apparent solution in sight—indeed, they worsen with each passing day! Are we, after all, witnessing an Improvisational Government, or is there Improvisation in Governance?
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