Addisu Legesse, deputy prime minister, would no longer hold his second post, that of minister of Agriculture and Rural Development (MoARD). Junedin Sado, from Minister of Transport and Communication to a parallel position at the newly established Ministry of Science and Technology. Siraj Fegessa, transferred from Minister of Federal Affairs to the top most position at the Ministry of Defense.

The unexpected appearance of Prime Minister Meles Zenawi before Parliament last Thursday, October 30, 2008, boded ill for four cabinet ministers who were duly deposed of their seats and shook up six others.

Asefa Kesito, Sintayehu Tadesse (PhD) and Shiferaw Jarso, lost their jobs as minister of Justice (MoJ), minister of Education (MoE) and Government representative at the Parliament, respectively.

The female minister, Hirut Delebo, has also been removed from her post as chief of the Ministry of Women Affairs (MoWA).

Equally surprising was his announcement that Addisu Legesse, his deputy, would no longer hold his second post, that of minister of Agriculture and Rural Development (MoARD).

Meles has also announced the dissolution of the Ministry of Information (MoI).

The chief of the now defunct ministry, Berhan Hailu, has replaced Asefa as minister of Justice, while Minister of Federal Affairs, Siraj Fegessa, has now assumed the top most position at the Ministry of Defense.

Despite indications of his presence at Parliament most MPs, especially those from oppositions, were taken by surprise by the unexpected announcements by the PM.

On Thursday, the main entrance to Parliament was quite crowded as its members waited to pass through a high level security check, which only takes place on to days the Prime Minister is there.

Indeed, the Premier surprised the MPs with his presence, not to mention the agenda he had with him, quite contrary to the expectations of many that he was probably there to defend the position of the Enquiry Committee's report that probed into the allegations by the Auditor General's Report that the government had borrowed in excess from domestic sources in 2005/2006 fiscal year.

Instead, when the House Speaker, Teshome Toga, gave the floor to the PM - who, as always, sat in the front chair surrounded government's top officials, including Addisu Legesse - it was to present his new ministerial candidates.

"Some of the reshuffling is in agencies whose areas of responsibilities are among those in which the government claims to have gained significant achievements," Lidetu Ayalew, MP-UEDP said. "How come such ministers are sacked?" he questioned, going on to ask the Premier if there were any other reasons, "perhaps personal disputes?"

"Some are not as productive as the government expected them and some have been overstressed," Meles responded.

Three of the four who have completely been removed from the scene at the highest echelons of the government - Assefa, Sintayehu and Hirut - joined the cabinet after the 2005 national elections.

The fourth, Shiferaw, had been minister of Water Resources before becoming the Government representative following the elections.

Addisu Legesse was relieved of his responsibilities at MoARD.

"The rest have been placed in vacant positions and transferred, following the termination of their institutes."

According to the constitution, the Deputy Prime Minister is responsible for duties delegated to him by the Prime Minister and stands in for the Prime Minister in his absence.

The agriculture sector last year showed a significant decrease in cereals production and the drought the decrease has seriously aggravated is still going on.

The government's Plan for Accelerated and Sustainable Development to End Poverty (PASDEP) that would be finalized in 2008/09, plans to increase the national cereals production to 38.2 million tonnes from the 20.1 million tonnes in 2006. Then, production rose by six million tonnes from the 2005 production. Last Ethiopian year, however, production significantly declined from amount in the 2006, as well as from what MoARD had planned for the year. The nation produced 17 million tonnes, yet the MoARD's plan was to produce 28 million tonnes.

Considering the performance of the Ministry over recent years, the incoming Minister, Tefera Derebew, will have a challenging road ahead of him. This appointment marks a great stride for Tefera from his position as Head of the Amhara Agriculture and Rural Development Bureau.

Tefera is an Agro Economist by profession, and his region achieved a 15pc agricultural production growth in 2005/06 and 2006/07.

But it will not be easy for him to achieve the national target of 38.2 million tonnes of grain in 2008/09, bearing in mind the 17 million tonnes in the 2007/08 season and the number of months left to go.

Siraj takes over the position left vacant when Kuma Demekssa, now Mayor of Addis Abeba, stepped into the municipality office five months ago. Siraj joined Cabinet after the 2005 elections. He is from the Silti Zone of the Southern Nations, Nationalities and Peoples Region (SNNPR).

At MoFA, Siraj was responsible for issues to do with the least developed regional states and for managing internal conflicts within the boundaries of the country. His new assignment is indeed a tough one as the country's military engagements are much larger now, including a number of peace keeping missions across the continent, Somalia in particular.

A visit to Benshangul-Gumuz region last week by Siraj and two of the PM's top advisors on high level political mission was followed by the resignation of the region's President Yaregal Ayisheshum. Hardball politics must have rolled that way and the president is expected to officially resign on Tuesday this week.

Meles also told Parliament that the Ministry of Information has been dissolved and its chief, Berhan Hailu, transferred to a parallel position at the Ministry of Justice.

Surprisingly though, none of the MPs were alert enough to remember that an article in the New Press Law requires the presence of the MoI and raises questions regarding future arrangements.

According to the particular article, the Ministry of Information is in charge of licensing and registering new media institutions, as well as re-registering the existing ones.

The inclusion of the article in the law had been a bone of contention between media practitioners (owners) and the government before it was approved.

Parliament is expected to endorse a new structure to manage the state media institutions - Ethiopia Radio and Television, Ethiopian News and Press agencies - according to sources from what has just become an extinct ministry.

"Parliament is expected to establish a board that will regulate these institutions," the source told Fortune.

Demeke Mekonnen the second most powerful person, next to Addisu - in Amhara National Democratic Movement (ANDM), one of the four regional parties that constitute the ruling EPRDF - has replaced his party colleague Sintayehu, at the Education Ministry.

Demeke, previously commissioner of the regional Ethics and Anti-Corruption Commission, became Deputy President of the region after the 2005 elections, and replaced Tefera Walewa, minister of Capacity Building, as Deputy Chairperson of ANDM a month ago.

Junedin Sado has been transferred from Minister of Transport and Communication to a parallel position at the newly established Ministry of Science and Technology. Before the 2005 elections, he had been President of Oromia Regional State.

He is known, among EPRDF circles, for his achievements in reducing the level of corruption at the Federal Transport Authority and the Ethiopian Postal Service, both under his former Ministry.

He, however, could not bring the same change to the Ethiopian Telecommunications Corporation. He has left this position to Deriba Kuma, his colleague an executive member of the Oromo People Democratic Organization (OPDO).

Deriba, an economist had been heading the Oromia Region Agriculture and Rural Development Bureau since late 2005.

The long serving Minister, Shiferaw Jarso, who had been Minister of Water Resource up until the 2005 elections, and in the aftermath was assigned to the post of Government Representative at Parliament, has now been relieved of this position.

"It is a decision by the party [EPRDF] that I respect," Shiferaw told Fortune.

His position has been taken over by Desalegn Hailemariam, chairman to Southern Ethiopian Peoples' Democratic Movement (SPDM) to which House Speaker Teshome Toga also belongs. Desalegn, who was president of SNNPR, was removed from that post in 2005/06 and appointed as Public Mobilization advisor to the Prime Minister with Ministerial Portfolio.

Another member of SPDM, Hirut Delebo, has left the top most position at the institution in charge of women's affairs, which became a Ministry after the 2005 elections, to Mufriat Kamile, also a member of SPDM. Mufriat was an official at zonal level before the present appointment. She has a first degree in Agriculture.

Except for the positions previously held by Shiferaw Jarso, Assefa Kessito and Kuma Demeksa, all posts are now held by individuals from the same regional party their predecessors came from.

Shiferaw Jarso told Fortune that the ruling Front is determined to ensure all constituting regional parties are equally represented at the highest echelons of the Federal Government.

"The restructuring will continue down to the lower executive branches," Shiferaw said.

Source: Addis Tribune (Ethiopia)