HARARE – Kirsty Coventry says she was not asked if she would accept an appointment in President Emmerson Mnangagwa’s Cabinet last Friday, and the announcement had been made with no advance warning.
But the new Youth, Sport, Arts and Recreation Minister, arriving for her swearing-in at State House on Monday, said she was “excited at the huge opportunity”.
“We heard some rumours,” she said when asked if she had anticipated the Cabinet appointment. “But again, I’m so honoured to be here. It’s a huge opportunity for sport, for youth, arts and recreation. It’s a huge opportunity for myself to be able to give back and hopefully bring back all the things I’ve been learning over the last few years on an international basis.”
A former Cabinet minister told ZimLive.com that under former President Robert Mugabe, and it would seem under Mnangagwa now, there was no prior consultation before one is appointed.
“You turn on your TV with the rest of the country and boom!, you are announced as a minister. So, it’s not unusual,” he said.
The former swimmer who won Olympic gold for Zimbabwe was named in a Cabinet of 20 ministers by Mnangagwa. It is a challenge she looks forward to, she said.
“It’s very exciting, I think it’s a big portfolio with youth, sports and culture. I’m very excited I think all three pillars or four pillars link together, they can work together,” she told journalists.
“The youth portfolio works together with all the other ministries and I’m very excited for the future. I think right now what I’m trying to do is take time to learn how the previous minister Kazembe Kazembe was doing things, what issues he was tackling and what needs to be prioritised, what needs to be faced.
“I will then meet the team. It’s a big ministry with a lot of people working in the ministry and we will figure out a plan and the focus points we want to start off with.”
