The More Things Change...

It has not been a good for the governing Democratic Progressive Party administration.

In the end, the government side, which was supposed to behave as a warrior worth its salt by standing on the side of people, ended up creating the picture that it is a side that busies itself in shooting down worthwhile initiatives for the sake of maintaining the status quo.

Come to think of it. In fourteen days, the government side has put itself in an uncomfortable position by rejecting amendments to the Corrupt Practices Act; the President, who plays the cards in the ruling party, has refused to respond to questions from Members of Parliament in Parliament.

The only good news is that both ruling party and opposition Members of Parliament seem to agree with suggestions that the office of the Auditor General should be more independent than is the case now. But, again, the ruling party side sees uncomfortable with suggestions that the Auditor General should be appointed through the Public Appointments Committee.

However, since the issue of President Peter Mutharika refusing to appear before Parliament has been dealt with in previous posts, let us concentrate on the issue of the Corrupt Practices Act.

The Corrupt Practices Act has been at the centre of debate in Malawi for some time. There are two schools of though: one [school of thought] advances the argument that the Corrupt Practices Act is a blue-print watered down by Executive excesses, and; the other school of thought argues that the Corrupt Practices Act is okay in its current form.

Now, those who tow the first line argue that the Executive arm of the government is still very much in control of the Anti-Corruption Bureau, and calls the shorts when it comes to the Anti-Corruption Bureau's decision-making processes. They say the head of the Anti-Corruption Bureau is appointed by the President, which, in essence, makes them the President's Boy or Girl!

However, those who advance the second line of thinking argue that things are okay as they are, and they cite cases where serving government officials have faced the long hand of the law. A good case in point is that of former Cabinet minister, Yusuf Mwawa.

It seems like Lilongwe South West Member of Parliament, Peter Chakhwantha, is on the side of those who believe that the Anti-Corruption Bureau should not be tinted by the President's shenanigans. The legislator, therefore, wanted Parliament to amend Section 5 and Section 7 of the Corrupt Practices Act.

The sections in question gives the President the mandate to appoint the Director of the Anti-Corruption Bureau. Chakhwantha, like most of the opposition Members of Parliament, wants the Public Appointments Committee of Parliament to usurp that role. But that is not all theere is to the changes; Chakhwantha also wants transparency in coming up with names of those qualified to head the Anti-Corruption Bureau by advertising the post.

It did not come as a surprise to learn that, the amendments were shot down in the committee stage of the bill.

Chakwera, Others, Expected Too Much from President Peter Mutharika

Leader of Opposition in Parliament, Lazarus Chakwera, must have expected the moon on earth when he asked the President, Peter Mutharika, to set his feet in Parliament and respond to questions four opposition Members of Parliament directed at him.

After all, no democratic president in recent memory [some people confuse former president, Bakili Muluzi's brief presence in Parliament as a rare moment when a sitting Head of State stepped into Parliament to respond to legislators' questions. How wrong!] has honoured people's expectations and appeared before Parliament.

So, it came as a surprise to learn that Chakwera, Mzimba South West legislator and former Vice-President Khumbo Kachali, Rumphi East legislator Kamlepo Kalua and Nkhotakota South East legislator Makowa Mwale had sent questions to the President.

According to Standing Order 70, legislators are required to send their questions to the President through the Office of the Speaker of the National Assembly [of course, Malawi does not have a National Assembly, in the absence of a Senate-- and this is according to human rights activist Marcel Chisi]. The legislators duly followed the procedures and expected nothing short of the President's presence in Parliament.

But, as has sadly been the case in Malawi, the legislators' wish did not materialise. The President-- to comfortable to be taken out of his comfort zone by mere legislators] decided to delegate.

And, as expected, Chakwera is not pleased and has, again, as expected, simply withdrawn his question. Chakwera says he will ask the questions again once the President indicates that he is ready to appear in Parliament. What wishful thinking!

Chakwera, on one hand, knows pretty well that the president will never avail himself.

The President is a clever man-- if dodging legitimate questions has anything to do with democracy-- and will make it impossible for legislators to corner him and drag him to Parliament. The President may not be ready to face Kalua in Parliament. He may drag his feet when the prospect of meeting Chakwera in a public forum like Parliament is about to be realised.

The President knows that falling for legislators' trick to avail himself in Parliament would be putting himself in Chakwera's hands. And Chakwera may become the master of the game, throwing the President this and that way at his [Chakwera's] will before citizens of this country. The MPs represent the people, after all. Chakwera's hands are like a rock.

Of course, by denying the people of this country [through the MPs] a chance to get answers from the President himself, President Mutharika has played into Chakwera's hands. He has cast himself as a coward, and people may take long to forget this-- especially when hunger is stinging in the stomach and the economy operates on its own terms, other than according to Reserve Bank of Malawi monetary policies.

But that the better option for the President. It is easy, and painless, for the President to snub Chakwera just like that. Over time, as former president Muluzi rightly observed, "Malawians forget very quickly". Appearing in Parliament is like being caught by the raging waves of Lake Malawi.

Otherwise, the President would have fallen into Chakwera's trap by accepting to appear before predictable opposition legislators. Actually, the opposition legislators are predictable; they are out to get at the President. Embarrass him if they can.

And President Mutharika seems not ready for that spectacle. So, maybe it is a fair game for now.

What is needed, though, is for Malawians to fight a way out of presidential rebuffs like these. They do democracy no good.

Why The Malawi Government is Behaving Like a Diminutive Creature

By its very nature, the government— any government— is supposed to be a giant looming over tiny citizens. For all intents and purposes, the government— any government— is supposed to run the shots.
Not the Malawi Government!
From the word go— the moment President Peter Mutharika discarded the cloak of ‘ordinary citizen’ to adopt the all-powerful name of President , he has been behaving like a man struggling to shrug off the shadow of nobody knows who! But, definitely, the shadow that looms over the supposedly all-knowing President is not that of former, temporary, president Joyce Banda. For Banda, may she eat enough today wherever she may be, fears her own shadow!
But there is a shadow President Peter [the name Peter is being repeated to avoid us confusing the President with that other president who smiles at us from beyond our reach] Mutharika fears— a shadow that, probably, forces him to turn his Cabinet ministers into reactionary forces up to, no apologies for this description, some no-good.
Look, since President Peter Mutharika took over the joystick of power after the May 22, 2016 elections [it is difficult to know whether we can ably call those elections the ‘May 22 Tripartite Elections’, for they took almost forever [before the tearful Malawi Electoral Commission Chairperson, Justice Maxon Mbendera made the announcement the opposition loves to hate, after Justice Kenyatta Nyirenda forced the hand of the Malawi Electoral Commission on the issue], his administration has quickly adopted this idea of responding to every media reports that casts the government in negative light.
If the government is not responding to former president Joyce Banda’s outbursts, some Cabinet Assessment, or civil society organisations’ threats to hold demonstrations against government’s failure to arrest an economy on a free-fall, then it is responding to media comments about the media’s perception of President Peter Mutharika’s unwillingness to appear before ‘harmless’ members of Parliament and respond to ‘harmless’ questions.
Today [March 15], the government— through the Ministry of Justice and Constitutional Affairs— has seen it fit to be at it again.
When fear is in high supply due to reports of hunger all over the place [truthfully, though, hunger is not all over the place. I was in the Central Region districts of Mchinji and Kasungu two weeks ago, and I saw the promises that the land in these two districts has made to the farmers: They will have a good harvest], and when the country is running low on hope, the government still finds the time to indulge in the pleasure of writing hastily-written, redundant press releases.
If the purpose of the press statements is not to persuade citizens to change their rational way of thinking and embrace blind patriotism, then, surely, it [the purpose of the press statements] is to assure itself [the government machinery] that it is still in control, and that there are still people out there who can listen to it!
Otherwise, the press statements have become so routine that they serve no purpose.
But, at the same time, they serve a purpose. More than anything else, the purpose is to ‘assure’ Malawians that, contrary to the picture they have— the picture of a government so in touch with current affairs that no one can beat it hands down; the picture that the government is an all-knowing ‘human-being’ who looms over all national affairs, fears and hopes inclusive— the truth is that their government has become a ‘being’ so diminutive that it has been dwarfed by the complexity of the problems the nation is facing.
Need we talk about hunger, economic meltdown [though the kwacha has, of late, been picking up its own pieces, to the chagrin of tobacco farmers who see their investment being eroded by every muscle the kwacha gains], hunger— which has fuelled cholera cases [indeed, for the first time in as many years, we see the health system failing to control the outbreak]— a health system run down by drug shortages that it exists only in name, government’s reluctance to embrace Access to Information [as seen by its watering down of the ATI Draft Bill, among others? No. This is work for another day.
But, when the government grows so afraid of the voice of its own citizens and media that it reduces its core function to issuing press statements, citizens have reasons to worry. Worry, yes, because it means the government is afraid of setting the wheel of democracy run free. And such behaviour is precisely undemocratic.
Those who may wish to go through the government’s latest piece of madness, here is the press statement released today.

PRESS STATEMENT

THE PRESIDENT CAN DELEGATE HIS FUNCTIONS AND POWERS


The Daily Times and the Nation Newspapers today, the 15th March 2016, carried articles entitled: “Mutharika dodges MPs’ questions” ...; and, “Mutharika refuses to answer MPs’ questions....”. The stories in both newspapers are quoting the announcement which the Speaker of the National Assembly, Rt. Hon. Richard Msowoya made in the National Assembly to the effect that the President had delegated to the respective line Ministers the questions which had been asked by some Members of Parliament pursuant to Section 89(4) of the Constitution. The Nation Newspaper, has gone to the extent of imputing that by such delegation, the President has flouted the Constitution which he swore to uphold.

Section 89 of the Constitution deals with powers, duties and functions of the President. Sub-sections (3) and (4) of that Section provide for questions to the President. Section 89(6) of the same Constitution expressly states that “the powers and functions of the President shall be exercised by him or her personally or by a member of the Cabinet or by a Government official to whom the President has delegated such power in writing.”

While the Constitution is clear that there are certain specific powers and functions which can only be exercised by the President alone, it does not restrict the President from delegating some of those functions if he chooses to do so. In the case of the questions which were asked by the Members of Parliament, it is clear that the responses to them can best be provided by the line Ministers. The President was, therefore, perfectly entitled to delegate to the said Ministers, and in doing so, he was acting within law. Indeed, it is inconceivable to expect that the President would be able to deal with each and every issue or question personally. Hence, delegation is a necessary part of his Constitutional functions because it affords him the opportunity to deal with other equally important matters of State.

With respect to the Parliamentary questions, the Business Committee fully appreciated that the President could delegate his functions. Standing Orders 70 and 201 of the National Assembly regulate the manner in which questions to the President are handled. Except for questions under Section 89(3) (c) of the Constitution, Standing Order 201 leaves open the possibility for the President to delegate.

Government is, therefore, appealing to all those who comment on matters of public interest to do so in a manner that is fair and accurate. Quoting one provision of the Constitution in isolation from the other similar provisions has the potential to mislead the masses. Fairness demands that those who have the podium to comment on public issues must do so in a manner which is balanced. To interpret the Speaker’s announcement that the President had delegated the Ministers to answer his questions as a refusal by the President is grossly misleading.

Made this 15th Day of March at Capital Hill, Lilongwe.


SAMUEL BATSON TEMBENU
MINISTER OF JUSTICE AND CONSTITUTIONAL AFFAIRS

Why Can't Vice President Saulos Chilima Represent The President in Parliament?

Malawian leaders are an interesting lot, but seem clueless when faced with Members of Parliament intend on holding the leaders accountable for whatever decision they make.
And it is apparent that at no time do the leaders’ fears come to the fore than when they are summoned by Members of Parliament.
In post-1994 Malawi, it has become impossible for leaders to be held accountable through that forum of the people [through their Members of Parliament, of course]: Parliament.
Former president, the late Bingu wa Mutharika, never availed himself to legislators to respond to their questions. Joyce Banda was no different and no one expects President Peter Mutharika to be any different.
But our leaders’ position on the issue of appearing before legislators armed with the sole purpose of responding to questions is no unfortunate it is undemocratic. Come to think of it, our legislators are direct representatives of the people, voted into power to represent nothing but the wishes of the people of this country.
In the latest episode to the issue of legislators asking for an honest, harmless face-off with their president, four members of Parliament— Malawi Congress Party president and opposition leader, reverend Lazarus Chakwera, Mzimba South West legislator and former Vice-President Khumbo Kachali, Rumphi West representative Kamlepo Kalua and Nkhotakota South East legislator, Everson Makowa, send questions to the President under Standing Order 70.
When legislators have burning questions and feel that the only human being capable of providing answers is the President, they write the President through the Speaker of the National Assembly. The four legislators took this path but, as has sadly been the case with our so—called democratic leaders, the four legislators will be disappointed to learn that a Cabinet minister will stand-in for the President.
This is sad, considering that the issues the legislators raised are pertinent to Malawi. We talk of hunger and an economic down-spiral that has no brakes.
Maybe this should be, yet again, an eye-opener and should help us reconsider the role of the Vice-President in our national affairs. Maybe the Vice-President, if the laws said so, could have represented the President well. Otherwise, delegating a Cabinet Minister smacks of insecurity and blatant disdain for accountability.
Of course, I know that Vice-Presidents, even in the United States, are figureheads. They are there and, at the same time, they are not there. Indeed, one humorist in the United States joked that “The role of the Vice-President is to represent him or herself at the president’s funeral”. I have forgotten who, but I liked that expression.
But this is not the way things should pan out, in the United States, or in this country.
The Vice-President can become more useful than now by being given some responsibilities. For example, the laws – or, is it protocol? — should make it possible for the Vice-President to stand in and represent the President when the question of the President appearing in Parliament [and the President seems unwilling to do so] crops up.
As things stand now— and, maybe, I may be schooled on this one— the National Assembly is composed of The President and The Parliament. I do not think the term president [despite appearing alongside the Vice President, who serves as running mate, on the ballot box] includes the Vice-President.
If it does, why not send Vice-President Saulos Chilima? That’s where the issue of insecurity crops up.

Someone, somewhere— as has happened so many times before— is afraid!

The tobacco paradox: Dead forests, living economy

Touted as Malawi’s green gold and top foreign exchange earner, tobacco could as well be described as a death-inducing life-line because it leaves behind a ‘forest’ of dead trees before it injects life into the country’s economy.

Every year, before opening of the Auction Floors, the country pays a heavy price in form of dead trees so that tobacco can exert that small, temporary push on the national economy.

SHOWING HIS LIVE BARN: GANIZANI
But, realising that “nothing good can come out of destructive practices”, Evason Goliati Ganizani, from Dikhirani Village, Traditional Authority Nyoka, in Mchinji has proven to be a man living ahead of his time.

“I have realised that the practice of cutting down trees in order to construct tobacco barns has led to the depletion of the country’s forests and, although I realise that tobacco supports the livelihoods of millions of Malawians, I believe that nothing good can come out of destructive practices. I have, therefore, embraced the idea of using a ‘live barn’,” says Ganizani.

A live barn is a tobacco shed constructed using trees that have not been felled. The trees are systematically planted in stations with the aim of using them every year as a replacement for dead wood while the supporting trees continue to grow.

“I planted the blue gum trees I am using as my live barn in 2012 and I am happy that I have started using them. I am sure that, through my live barn, I will contribute towards efforts aimed at mitigating the effects of climate change while ensuring that I continue earning a living through tobacco cultivation. I am sure that, had Malawi embraced this idea in 1964 [after attaining independence from Britain], we would not be talking of forest depletion,” says Ganizani.

Ganizani, who is a member of Tayambanawo Club— a grouping of like-minded smallholder tobacco farmers that started in 2015— says, before adopting the ‘live barn’ concept, he used to cut down at least 60 trees to support tobacco leaves plucked from his one hectare piece of land.

Before embracing the idea of a live barn, Ganizani used to spend between K40, 000 and K80, 000 to purchase wood for barn use. He, however, observes that other farmers without the financial resources used to sneak into Mchinji Forest Reserve to steal trees.

While other unscrupulous tobacco farmers may continue making the occasional trip into Mchinji Forest Reserve, Ganizani says he no longer digs deeper into his pockets to purchase trees for use in his ‘dead’ barns.

Since 2012, he has been planting 30 trees on his woodlot and expresses hope that, in the next two to three years, every Tayambanawo Club member will have a live barn to cater for forest needs.

Elizabeth Masepa, 60, from Mkusa Village, Traditional Authority Mavwere in Mchinji, observes that the use of live barns can help farmers save costs.

“It is not easy to source the wood we use in barn-construction because one either has to buy the trees at an exorbitant price, or cut down trees, thereby depleting natural resources and exacerbating challenges associated with climate change. I have developed a live barn because I want to get rid of these challenges,” says Masepa.

The live barn initiative is a brain-child of Alliance One Tobacco Company and the company’s Area Field Supervisor for Mchinji District, Patrick Antonio, expresses optimism that it has become possible to delink tobacco cultivation from the practice of cutting down trees.

“Live barns can go a long way in saving the country’s trees from the axe. In fact, we make sure that farmers who are part of our Integrated Farming System— commonly known as ‘Contract Farming’— embrace the idea of having a live barn. The availability of a live barn is a pre-requisite [for us to start working with an interested tobacco farmer] and serves as collateral for those who get loans from us,” says Antonio.

Antonio adds: “We encourage farmers to plant acacia trees for the live barn because trees such as blue gum absorb too much water. We then give the farmers basal dressing fertilizer, and they apply 30 grammes per tree-planting station. This ensures that the trees grow fast. We believe that environmental conservation should be at the centre of tobacco farming in the country.”



Time bomb

Malawi’s natural resources are running out, and fast.

University of Malawi (Unima) professor of history, Wapulumuka Oliver Mulwafu, observes, in a research paper titled ‘Is The Battle on Conservation of Natural Resources in Malawi Winnable? Perspectives from Historical Knowledge’, that “Malawi is experiencing an environmental crisis”, as manifested in the deterioration of natural resources.

Mulwafu observes that the country lost 494, 000 hectares of forest cover between 1990 and 2005, a development he says necessitates a change of approach.

But that approach does not entail the deployment of Malawi Defence Force personnel to forest reserves such as Dzalanyama in Lilongwe— as has been the case recently— he warns.

“Is the use of the military an answer? We need militaristic approaches [yes, but], not necessarily [use of] the military,” says Mulwafu.

He implores policy-makers to embrace approaches that embrace the role of citizens and science in natural resources’ management.

“If the other issues are undressed, degradation of natural resources will continue,” says Mulwafu, citing weak policy and legal framework, poverty levels, and Malawi’s cradle of democracy as some of the challenges fuelling the problem.

“The cradle of democracy we have is, probably, creating problems. But democracy is not incompatible with environmental conservation,” claims Mulwafu, urging players in natural resources’ conservation to stop pointing fingers at each other and focus on exploring lasting solutions..

The adoption of the live barn concept in tobacco farming could as well be one of the lasting solutions.



Scattering ‘live barn’ seeds

It is not just Mchinji District tobacco farmers who have embraced the concept of nurturing trees that serve as a live barn, though.

In Kasungu District, the concept seems to have caught the attention of farmers like bush fire.

One of the farmers, Solomon Mwale, says he has, so far, used 758 seedlings to develop his live barn woodlot.

“The acacia trees I have been planting are growing so fast that I am sure I may be able to use them in two years’ time and say good bye to the practice of using dead barns. I have three layers of trees, depending on differences in planting years and I am happy that, shortly, I will be able to save the country’s forests. Live barns can, surely, go a long way in saving what remains of the country’s forest cover,” says Mwale.

Agriculture, Irritation and Water Development Minister, Allan Chiyembekeza, says the government welcomes the use of environmental-friendly agricultural activities, hence encourages players in the industry to adopt good farming practices.

“We all know that climate change is posing a number of challenges to agriculture. We can help deal with some of the factors that have contributed to climatic changes by developing initiatives that will ensure that we do not destroy the very environment that sustains our agriculture. The live barn concept is, surely, a welcome development,” says Chiyembekeza.

As one tree probably kisses the ground somewhere in Mchinji or Kasungu, blue gum trees in Ganizani’s live barn may be shaking against the wind, oblivious of the fact that they would have been ‘dead’ by now.

Vernacular Language Playwrights Shun International Competitions

They take the audience along almost the same path, weaving the same twists and turns into their scripts. But, despite Chichewa and English playwrights adopting the same techniques, Chichewa and foreign language playwrights seem to have taken different routes on their way to earn international acclaim.

The predictable outcome has, unfortunately, been too much paperwork for Chichewa playwrights and producers but little progress to show for it, on one hand, and too much paperwork for English playwrights and relative progress to show for it.

Cases of English playwrights and film producers winning international awards abound. For example, in 2013, Blantyre-based Chimwemwe Mkwezalamba won Best Emerging Director award for her film, ‘The Designer’, at the Silicon Valley African Film Festival held in California, USA.

The feat came after another Malawian, Mwizalero Nyirenda, had won the Sembene Ousmane Award in Zanzibar (Tanzania) after his film, ‘Umunthu’, won the hearts of judges.

Nominations, too, have not been in short supply for Malawian films, including Shemu Joyah’s ‘Seasons of a Life’ and the ‘Last Fishing Boat’— which were nominated several times.

Just recently, Actress Joyce Mhango Chavula won the Best Movie— Southern African category— in the fourth edition of the Africa Magic Viewers Choice Awards at an event held in Lagos, Nigeria.

Chavula, who won the award for her exploits in the movie tilted ‘Lilongwe’, beat two South African movies which were also nominated in the category. These are ‘Ayanda’ by Sarah Bletcher and ‘Tell Me Sweet Something’ by Akin Omotosho.

Ironically, while English film makers have been making in-roads internationally, the Chichewa film and theatre scene has been silent and still. It is as if Chichewa playwrights and filmmakers are almost innocent of any sense of haste to make it big internationally.



Programmed hesitancy?

Veteran actor, Eric Mabedi, says most Chichewa plays and films are not submitted to international award organisers because playwrights and producers do not think beyond the stage performance.

“In the first place, I have never thought of that [submitting our works to international award organisers]. Secondly, my understanding is that drama is the message and our focus is the Malawian audience. I don’t think our messages may appeal to international audiences and judges,” says Mabedi.

He adds that, to buttress his point that “drama is the message”, he has observed foreign nationals struggling to get the message during Chichewa stage-performances.

“It is not just about costume, choreography – it’s about the message you are passing, or trying to pass, across. I have seen Europeans and Americans patronising our stage performances but, for them to understand the message, they always have someone close by who whispers something to them. This means the message is very important and the other things merely serve to support that message.

“The same thing applies to costume. The producer, in our case Charles Mphoka, ensures that the message tallies with the costume. There has to be no disparity between the message and the costume because it is the message that is very important. So, I think it may not be easy for us to win international awards while using our language,” says Mabedi.

But Solomonic Peacocks director, McArthur Matukuta, observes that language may not always be a barrier.

He, however, observes that some local plays are tailored to specific occasions and may, therefore, be unattractive when presented for consideration in international awards.

“In our case [Solomonic Peacocks], we normally do Chichewa productions for civic education purposes and after achieving our purpose [of civic educating the audience], we cannot submit the same productions for consideration in international awards,” says Matukuta.

He is quick to point out that, while he does not understand why Chichewa playwrights do not submit their works for consideration in international awards, other foreign playwrights who produce plays and films in minority languages have excelled in international competitions.

He cited the case of Jean-Baptiste Poquelin, known on stage as Molière— one of the French playwrights and actors considered to be one of the greatest masters of comedy in Western literature. He said, apart from producing works such as The Misanthrope, The School for Wives, Tartuffe, The Miser, The Imaginary Invalid, and The Bourgeois Gentleman, most of his works were scripted in French.

Matukuta also singles out German author, playwright and essayist, Rainald Maria Goetz, who produced a numbers of plays in his native German, and the plays went on to scoop international awards.

In the meantime, as English playwrights make hay while the sun shines, their Chichewa counterparts could be waiting for a turn that may never come.

Serving the Health Needs of Mozambican Refugees

CHADZA: Twenty six women have delivered so far

The grass-thatched houses and tents are mounded together in a scrambled fashion: There cannot be a fixed plan because the number of the people they house— people fleeing the conflict in Mozambique— is changing fast.

“On Thursday [February 25], there were about 7, 000 refugees. Today [February 26] the figure has reached 8, 000. The number is increasing every day but the resources, including medical drugs, have not been increased. We sometimes scramble for the same medical resources with the people who are flocking out of Mozambique,” says Leonard Sambani, a trader at Mtsamika Trading Centre in Mwanza District.

The Trading Centre is situated a kilometre away from Kapisi 2 Village temporary refugee camp— a village standing on high ground in Traditional Authority Nthache, Mwanza. Maybe Kapisi 2 Village was established slightly above the surrounding villages for a purpose. Maybe it was meant to become a centre of attention.

Today, Kapisi 2 is more than a village. Of course, to Village Headman Kapisi’s subjects, it is a village— an ordinary village. Not to Mozambican refugees who are flocking there to secure their dear life. Kapisi 2 is, to them, the centre of hope. It is life itself.

“I am glad I am here at last. I have covered a distance of 40 kilometres on foot to get here,” says Marietta Amigo, who arrived at Kapisi 2 Refugee camp 10 minutes before our arrival on February 26.



Health issue

“The first thing I needed when I got here was malaria drugs. I am feeling like I have malaria. However, I have been told to wait. I understand they are conducting tests before administering drugs. It’s something impossible to get where I come from,” she adds.

So, the influx of Mozambicans into Malawi is both a human rights and health issue.

“You may wish to know that, even in the absence of refugees, the health budget for Mwanza also caters for Mozambican citizens. We have an agreement with our Mozambican friends although, while Mozambicans receive free treatment in Malawi, Malawians are forced to pay when they visit health centres in Mozambique,” says Mwanza District Health Officer, Raphael Lawrence Piringu.

Piringu observes that, even though the district’s health budget has been increased from K7 million last year to K15 million this year, the district is striving to put the resources available for health expenditure to good use.



Children of conflict

It is noisy at Kapisi Camp – so noisy that, sometimes, it is difficult to pick a conversation.

But, in the background of the grown-ups’ noise, there is a subtle noise — baby cries.

Officials from Mwanza District Hospital say another area that needs to be looked into is the provision of essential health services to babies born in the camp.

“So far, we have delivered 26 babies. This means 26 Mozambican women have delivered in Malawi and we are obliged to provide healthcare services,” says Mwanza District Health Office spokesperson, Dikirani Chadza.

Chadza says the district is working with partners to reach out to those who may need health services.

“In fact, we have opened a health facility that is offering services five days a week, except on Saturdays and Sundays. We have plans to extend the days [to Saturdays and Sundays]. Medicines sans Frontiers are helping out with fuel and vehicles while the United Nations Children’s Fund (Unicef) is drilling boreholes. So far, four boreholes have been drilled,” said Chadza.

Chadza adds that international charity, Oxfam, has been fumigating houses in a bid to rid the surroundings of mosquitoes. By Saturday last week, 150 houses had been fumigated.

Unicef Child Protection Officer and Team Leader for the United Nations response team at Kapisi Camp, Martin Nkuna, says the provision of health services goes a long way in safeguarding the rights of refugees.

“In our case, we came here as soon as we heard of the situation and our role is to ensure that the rights of women and children are not violated. Among other things, we are ensuring that their nutrition needs are taken care of, and that they have potable water, live under hygienic conditions, among others,” says Nkuna.

He observes that the situation was pathetic when his team arrived in the camp.



Reverse fortune

On October 28 last year, when we first visited Kapisi Camp, there was no indication that the numbers of Mozambican refugees would keep on rising.

That day, the number of people that had fled conflict in Tete Province, Mozambique, was pegged at 88.

In fact, the day we visited the site, Patrick Thukuta, an advisor at Kapisi 2 refugee camp, told us that less than 10 people were arriving at the camp every day.

“We have received 88 people who have fled the conflict in Tete Province, and the figure translates into 18 families. But people continue to come in.,” said Thukuta at the time.

People started arriving in the country on October 15 last year.

And, since then, the figure keeps on rising.

“We expect that, by July this year, Kapisi Camp will have over 20, 000 people because we expect the situation to worsen and more people to trek into Malawi,” said one official at Mwanza

STAGE POETRY IN MALAWI: WHEN PAPER PIECES SEPARATE POET FROM AUDIENCE

Poetry, despite being guided by some universally agreed principles, remains a personal endeavour, in which the poet— even when performing before a large audience — is lost in his or her own world.

One would, therefore, expect that, while lost in their own world in the course of reciting before a crowd, poets would be so flexible that they would be individualistic in their approach to stage performance.

But this seems to not be the case with the majority of vernacular language poets and, in some cases, local poets who recite in second languages such as English and French. It is as if, despite experiencing the mushrooming of poets and the multiplicity of poetic voices, the concept of multiplicity is quickly diluted through the monotonous nature of their approach.

It is, again, as if the majority of the local poets have come across poet Bouterweck advice that:



Bend the tender stem of a reed;

Bend it too much and it breaks.

He who attempts too much attempts nothing.



So, maybe, the local poets are simply trying to stick to the script written by veteran poets such as Wokomaatani Malunga, Hoffman Aipira, Jack Mapanje, among others, by gluing their eyes to the piece of paper on which the poem is written, instead of maintaining eye contact with audience members during a stage performance.

It does not matter whether they are reciting on stage or on air [radio or television], it is often clear that their eyes are glued to some piece of paper. In fact, it does not matter that it is Malunga reciting ‘Ndidzakutengera kunyanja Ligineti’, Nyamalikiti Nthiwatiwa doing ‘Bwenzi pa pepala’, Mlakatuli Membe reciting ‘Ugonja’, Hudson Chamasowa doing ‘Ku Kwaya’, Mollen Nazombe reciting ‘Ukakhala ulibe ndalama’, or Silvester Kalizang’oma performing ‘Unkalindanji moyo’.

It does not make a big difference either— in terms of style of delivery— if it is Abiti Mutinti doing ‘Milandu pa keliyala’, Kenneth Kondiwa doing ‘Adaponda ndi mapazi Satana’, Deus Sandram reciting ‘Galimoto za kwa Manje 2’, Gerald Mangame doing ‘Zida’, Joseph Madzedze performing ‘Ulosi wa Yoswa’, Hudson Chamasowa reciting ‘Mukapanda Kuitsitsa mbendera’ or ‘Ndende ya Mizimu’, Grecium Kamphulusa doing ‘Chipatso Changa’, Issa Zuze doing ‘Kwadza ma filimu a Chichewa’, Salimu Wyson doing ‘Zapadziko’, Evelyn Pangani-Maotcha reciting ‘Nyonga za bongo’, Yohane Pangani doing ‘Mudabadwa Malawiyu atatha’, or Aipira reciting ‘Dad’, among other poets. All of them prefer maintaining ‘eye’ contact with a piece of paper, or poetry book, to maintaining eye contact with members of the audience.

The exception could be English spoken-word poet Q Malewezi and, sometimes, Madalitso Nyambo. Malewezi has just finished working on a spoken-word poetry compilation which serves as yet another example that it is possible to stick to the stanzas when one understands their lines so well that they register them in their mind.

No wonder, then, that, often, while in the course of a poetry performance, Malewezi will be seen to emphasise the punch of a line with the movement of his hands. He sometimes sways his head as if it were a dry leaf tossed left and right, up and down, in the air by heavy winds.

As for Nyambo, he is sometimes capable of showing members of the audience that some pieces are effectively delivered when delivered directly from the mind, other than a breathless piece of paper stuck between the fingers. He does this well when performing ‘Ndapha buluzi’ to a live audience or in recording sessions, but turns back to his ‘beloved’ piece of paper when the poem is long.

The question is: Why do almost all vernacular language poets seem to be written-word poets, as opposed to spoken word poets?

Aipira says poets who fix their eyes to a piece of paper throughout a performance have good reasons for doing so.

“Mostly, it is because the poet wants to deliver a professional, fault-free performance. The poet does not want to make obvious mistakes because that may put their reputation on the line and portray them as myopic or amateurish. So, a poem decides to stick to the piece of paper to avoid compromising the quality of the poems,” says Aipira.

Put to him that it does not make sense for a poet who has been reciting the same poem for, say, 20 years to keep on reciting it from a piece of paper, Aipira has a quick fire response:

“You see, a poet is not created to recite the same poem forever. A poet worth his or her salt composes a number of poems, some for special occasions, and some tackling general issues. It, therefore, becomes difficult for a busy poet to know all the lines and stanzas in his or her poetry pieces. Therefore, a poet would, rather, recite from a piece of paper [in order for them] to be sure than compromise their performance simply because they want to maintain eye contact with members of the audience,” says Aipira.

Another poet, Madzedze, observes that written-word poets stick to a piece of paper to maintain the touch of their poems.

“It does not matter whether one is reciting from a piece of paper or not, so long as the poem captures the imagination of the audience. I do not think members of the audience have problems with that. I hope they understand that, sometimes, poems are too long that, in order to be exact, one has to recite from a piece of paper,” says Madzedze.

Perhaps, with the introduction of poetry DVDs/videos, the visuals will shield the poet who recites from a piece of paper from eye contact and, therefore, public scrutiny. Kalizang’oma has set a precedent after launching his ‘Unkalindanji moyo’ poetry DVD, which shielded the fact that he was probably reading from a piece of paper when reciting the poems in the DVD.

But Kalizang’oma observes that producing a poetry DVD is no mean thing as, “It takes time and a lot of resources”.

Indeed, it took more than four years for ‘Unkalindanji moyo’ poetry DVD to see the light of day.

But this does not stop poets like Madzedze from planning to launch their own poetry DVDs.

“I have embarked on such a project [poetry DVD production], in fact, and people should expect something good,” says Madzedze.

It remains to be seen, though, if the era of poetry DVDs will help shield poets from criticism that they seem to care more about the papers on which the poems are written than the audience— especially now that poetry DVDs have started appealing to the eye!

Malawi Embraces Publishers' Diversity

Imagination creates as many books as the mind can hold.

But, naturally, not every dream will be absorbed into reality: Some would-be authors live to see their dreams actualised when publishers give the manuscripts a seal of approval, while others endure the experience of seeing cold water being poured on their manuscripts.

Of course, authors often rate their manuscripts highly and count the eggs before they hatch, yet, it is the publisher who turns the dream into reality. Only authors with promising projects that can negotiate the publisher’s stringent tastes.

No wonder that writers— through the Malawi Writers Union (Mawu) — have directed a tide of bitter condemnation at publishers under the Book Publishers Association of Malawi (Bpam), crying foul over their’ [publishers] preference for textbooks at the expense of general books.

Whatever the case, local authors may seek solace in the fact that rejection— which remains one of the most dangerous voids in life— no longer marks the end of one’s dreams to publish a book. Those who emerge from the pit of rejection unbroken and resolute still have a change to actualise their dreams following the influx of publishers in what could best be described as Malawi’s publishing revolution.

MSADALA: We started doing this in 1995


Choice headache

Bpam president, Alfred Msadala, observes that Malawian authors are spoilt for choice. He cites the proliferation of textbook publishers as a case in point.

“From a point where we had one publisher for textbooks prior to 1995, we [Bpam] have 19 members and this means we have made head-way and the industry is growing,” says Msadala.

Of the 19 publishers, however, over half seem to have developed preference for textbook publishing or distribution— most notably, Dzuka Publishing Company, Bookmate Publishers, Claim Mabuku, Jhango Publishers, Bookland International, Montfort Media, Bookworm, among others.

According to Msadala, Claim Mabuku publishes, sells and distributes books. It has its own series, dubbed ‘Arise’ which are basically secondary school textbooks.

However, apart from ‘Arise’ series, Claim Mabuku also sells titles from other publishing houses. Life, at Claim, does not revolve around Bibles and hymns.

Then, there is Montfort Media, which has just joined Bpam. The Balaka-based publisher has just rolled out textbooks for Form One.

Blantyre-based Bookland International, which sells general books and series, acts as the representative for Moran Publishers, which publishes IGCE textbooks while Longman Publishers, which was recently bought by Pearson, is another publisher who is locally represented by Anglia Book Distributors. So, even though students still buy dictionaries branded Longman Dictionary, they actually buy a Pearson Dictionary.

JHANGO Publishing is another company that has made strides in the local publishing industry, making its presence felt in publishing secondary school textbooks books.

Bookmate is another player with a niche in the sciences— most notably in the subjects of science and chemistry.

The other publisher, Dzuka Publishing Company, has contributed immensely to the country’s education sector. At one point, the publishing company— which is Bpam’s oldest member— was the only company producing teaching and learning materials prior to 1995.

Dzuka has its own series but also cuts across since it also acts as a distributor and sells other publishers’ series.

MSADALA: We started doing this in 1995

One roof

However, as one way of bringing harmony in the otherwise diversified industry, Bpam has been bringing textbook publishers under one roof.

“We have a Memorandum of Understanding with the Ministry of Education, Science and Technology to publish and sell teaching and learning materials. As such, we gather in one place to showcase the books we have on offer,” says Msadala.

Basically, the publishers take their books to the users in the country’s three administrative regions. In the Northern Region, the publishers gather under one roof at Mayemo Secondary School in Karonga District, Katoto Secondary School in Mzuzu and Mzimba Secondary School. In The Central Region, the publishers gather in the Central East Education Division [Chayamba Secondary School] and in Central West Education Division [Bwaila Secondary School].

In the South East Education Division, Machinga Teachers’ Training College is the centre while in the Shire Highlands Education Division, Luchenza Secondary School becomes the centre of activity. The publishers also showcase their materials in the Central West Education Division.

Msadala says publishers— whose number has been growing every year— have been doing this since 1995, and observes that the strategy has a number of advantages.

“In the first place, we take the market to the doorstep of users while, at the same time, selling our products. Most importantly, we are also trying to tell people that we have the books,” says Msadala, adding:

“Another advantage is that some publishers are based in the Capital City [Lilongwe], especially those who distribute Cambridge and Oxford University Press books. Greymatter, which represents East African Publishing Books, is based in Lilongwe. So, when we move like this [together], we take books to the people. It is like all syllabi are under one roof,” says Msadala.

In a way, this means independent publishers are doing their part to take secondary school textbooks to all parts of the country. What remains is the Ministry of Education, Science and Technology is to ensure that it, too, does its part in terms of publishing and distributing primary school textbooks.

As things stand in Malawi, the Ministry of Education, Science and Technology, through the Malawi Institute of Education, is the one that deals with primary school textbooks.

MSADALA: We started doing this in 1995

African revolution

However, as the issue of textbooks taking over the market from non-textbook publishers continues to stir debate in Malawi— with Mawu president Sambalikagwa Mvona disclosing to Weekender last year that writers had complained to the International Authors Forum that local publishers were showing little interest in publishing general [non-textbook-based]—other authors in Africa are looking for alternatives.

One of the way-out initiatives is the establishment of the Self-Publishers Association of Southern Africa (Spasa), a grouping of self-publishing companies, societies, authors and related professionals formed to create “a win-win situation” after realising that “all self-publishers face the same challenges”.

“We face public perception that self-published books have poor content, are sometimes badly printed, have low quality layout and are not considered as ‘good’ as regularly published books. Other challenges include marketing, promotion and distribution for authors, an unregulated industry, print issues and the search for good editors, proofreaders, and other professionals,” says Spasa in a write-up.

Spasa has, therefore, made it its objective to create a regulated industry, promoting standards and linking authors with professional organisations. It also helps members to create self-publishing channels, offer courses and resources, provide a platform for manuscript reviews and book ratings, and establish a Spasa Seal of Approval awarded to self-published books that meet quality standards requirements.

Malawi: From food basket to basket case

Officially available but practically inaccessible, the debate on maize availability has become a game whose prize could turn out to be human life.

On one hand are government officials who— haunted by the daily struggle to fill the gulf between citizens’ high expectations for them to deliver and the nudging reality of maize scarcity and rising food prices— have been reduced to downplaying concerns raising against biting hunger.

Just on Monday, February 15, Agriculture, Irrigation and Food Security Minister, Allan Chiyembekeza, sought to dispel the notion that the country does not have enough maize stocks by announcing the procurement of an additional 41, 000 metric tonnes of maize to supplement the 9,221 metric tonnes under Agricultural Development and Marketing Corporation (Admarc)’s lock and key.

“We expect that the maize that is available now will take us through to the end of the lean period in April after which people will have harvested. We will make sure it reaches every selling point so that Malawians, especially those in remote areas, purchase the maize,” said Chiyembekeza.

On the other hand are opposition and civil society organisations who— sure that the ruling Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) administration has failed to deliver the goods in terms of food security and economic performance— have publicly called for President Peter Mutharika’s resignation.

During the two-day Public Affairs Committee (Pac) meeting held in Blantyre from February 17 to 18 last week, Malawi Congress Party (MCP) spokesperson, Jessie Kabwila, People’s Party spokesperson and Ken Msonda took turns to issue the government a 30-day ultimatum to release maize to all Admarc selling points, failing which Mutharika should step down.

“Government has no clue on the problems that the country is facing. We are dismayed by the inaction of the government to respond with urgency to the current food crisis, in spite of huge financial injections to the Farm Input Subsidy Programme,” said Msonda.



Political issue

The problem associated with food security issues is that they take a partisan politics angle. For example, political parties contesting in the May 2014 Presidential, Parliamentary and Local Government Elections had the component of food in their manifestos.

In its manifesto, the MCP indicated that “MCP considers the agricultural sector as key driver for national economic development; a key source of income; food security and a frontier for an export-led economy”.

The party then pledged that, once in power, it would develop organized agricultural systems that would uplift agriculture as a viable economic development sector.

The United Democratic Front, on its part, pledged to promote food security by putting in place effective risk management systems, commercialising agriculture, agro-processing and market development, and promoting sustainable agricultural land use and water management.

The governing DPP also had sweet-sounding words, saying it would “give highest priority to agriculture as the basis for maintaining sustainable livelihoods and economic growth of our economy.”

The PP— recognising that agriculture “remains the backbone of Malawi’s economy” and “contributes over 90 percent of the country’s export earnings; accounts for 85 percent of total employment; contributes 39 percent Gross Domestic Product; supplies over 65 percent of the manufacturing sector’s raw materials; and provides over 60 percent of the total income of rural people”— pledged to take a cue from the Comprehensive African Agricultural Development Programme (CAADP) and adhere to the CAADP principle that encourages African governments to spend at least 10 percent of their annual budgets on agriculture in order to achieve a minimum growth rate of at least 6 percent per annum.



Empty promises?


President Peter Mutharika, while opening the 45th Session of Parliament and the 2015/16 Budget Meeting in Lilongwe, indicated that his administration had readied itself to face the “looming food shortage” head-on, and “to ensure availability of food at household and national levels”.


Among other measures, he announced that the government had allocated K8.0 billion in the 2015/2016 budget for restocking the Strategic Grain Reserves. He also said the government had held discussions with development partners to provide more resources for the same purpose.


“Meanwhile, government, with support from development partners has provided early maturing maize seed, fertilizer, sweet potato vines and cassava cuttings to support affected smallholder farmers to revive their farming enterprises to take advantage of residual moisture and irrigation,” he said.


However, over eight months after Mutharika ignited the fire of hope among Malawians, challenges abound, one of which being that, while government and Admarc officials maintain that the country has enough maize stocks, citizens continue to queue on endless Admarc queues to purchase 10 kilogramme of maize.


However, Admarc Chief Executive Officer, Foster Mulumbe, maintained on Times Television’s Times Exclusive on February 13 that “We have enough maize stocks and reports that we [Admarc] are running short of maize stocks are not true”.


Mulumbe also dismissed reports that some people were sleeping at Admarc depots, saying “maybe those who go to Admarc deports and markets at 4 am do so to be in a good position when the depot or market’s official opening time comes”.


Whatever officials say, it is clear that the country is in food crisis, according to Right to Food Network Coordinator, Billy Mayaya. He said Malawi needed to go beyond implementing social protection programmes to creating an enabling legal environment in a bid to ensure that the state is held accountable when it fails in its duty to ensure the attainment of the right to food.


“While there are laudable efforts to provide social protection through initiatives such as FISP, there are still gaps in Malawi, as a state, fulfilling its obligations to respect, protect and fulfil the right to food. The human right to food is a human rights concept which is justifiable. Justifiability refers to the ability by any party to take individuals and the State to court to seek legal redress in terms of proven violations of the right to food,” said Mayaya.




In centre of storm?

Malawi has been sailing in troubled food security waters since the 2014/15 agricultural season. The country’s miseries took a new turn when unfavourable weather conditions marred the 2014/2015 growing season. The bad weather cocktail menu included such dishes as heavy floods and prolonged dry spells.


According to a 2014/2015 crop estimates report , maize production decreased from 3,978,123 metric tonnes in the 2013/2014 agricultural season to 2,898,123 metric tonnes, representing a 27.7 percent decline.


The report also indicated that the country registered a “slight decrease” in the production of other major food crops such as rice, millet, cassava and sorghum.


The only good news was that, apart from cotton and groundnuts, other cash crops such as
pulses registered a “slight increase” increase in production.


And, according to Mutharika, the government also initiated talks with “development partners to provide more resources for the same purpose”.


True to his words, well-wishers have not been hard to come by. In January this year, the Chinese government donated K6.8 biliyoni to help mitigate the country’s food crisis. The Egyptian government also donated K20 miliyoni towards the same cause.

Last year, the Japanese government donated $12.4 million to Malawi, Lesotho, Swaziland, Zambia and Zimbabwe through World Food Programme to shore up food security initiatives.



From good to bad?

It is so surprising that a nation that exported 306, 000 metric tonnes to Zimbabwe between March 2007 and April 2008 could, within eight years, be reduced to begging from well-wishers.

Everything was well between 2007 and 2008, Malawi was basking in glory as National Food Reserve Agency (NFRA) Chief Executive Officer, Nasinuku Saukila, “proudly” said in a recent interview that Malawi reaped from the deal.

“For your information, the deal created a value-chain in Malawi. The export of the 306, 000 metric tonnes created a horde of activity....There was a lot of activity that took place. To begin with, 306, 000 metric tonnes were transported by the Road Transport Operators Association (RTOA) [using] 28 metric-tonne carrying capacity trucks, translating into about 11, 000 truck-loads of maize and 6.1 million 50 kilogramme bags of maize. In short, here is the value-chain the deal created.

“In the first place, we look at the maize grain. We bought it locally, creating worth for producers in the process. The grain also had to be thoroughly cleaned and women from Ntandire, Bangwe, Chilomoni and other townships were engaged to winnow the maize grain and they were able to economically sustain themselves. We had cases where husbands were just drinking beer at home, sure that the wife would bring something at the end of the day, and we saw women carting K1, 000 or K2, 000 home daily and, at the end of the month, that is K30, 000 or K60, 000.

“The winnower maker also benefitted because of the extra demand for winnowers. It is job creation at its best. Secondly, the chemical supplier comes into the picture. The grain had to be fumigated and the local chemical industry did the job and got paid for that. Jobs were created, too, because extra workforce was needed to do that job. Thirdly, the bag manufacturing industry came into play because we had to package the maize grain. K550 million gross was generated by the bag manufacturing companies during that period. As I said earlier, 306, 000 metric tonnes translate into 28 metric tonne trucks, further translating into about 11, 000 truck-loads of maize and 6.1 million 50 Kilogramme bags of maize. Then, we have the actual maize inspector. Malawi maize had to conform to the standards applicable in Zimbabwe, thus inspectors had to be engaged, generating extra funds in the process while creating job opportunities. Then, we talk of transportation and the motor industry,” Saukila said at the time.

Compare and contrast the situation to February 2016. There is “a horde of activity”, yes; but the activity is about delivering relief items to hunger stricken families, or maize delivery activity at an Admarc depot or market.

Hoffman Aipira's metamorphosis

There is, as Indians say, always one candle that kindles unlimited numbers of other candles, each with the same intensity as the first, there yet remains the original.

To poet Hoffman Aipira, that original candle is his father, Cheliza Leonard Aipira who, although resident in Zimbabwe at the time, still pulled the strings back home.

HAS WRITTEN BOTH FICTION AND NON-FICTION BOOKS: Aipira

“I cannot deny: The love of words, writing, started way back after my father, Leonard Aipira-- I fondly call him Cheliza because I am proud of my Yao heritage-- sent me a dictionary from Zimbabwe while I was in Standard 4 at Mvundula Primary School in Mangochi,” recollects Aipira.

“I went through the book; there was no picture. I then went to my mum, Adisi Aipira, and asked: 'What does dad want me to do with a book that has no pictures?' I took it to my Primary School teacher at Mvundula to seek guidance and the teacher told me that I would understand later. He advised me to keep the picture-less book, saying it would help build the foundation for my vocabulary later,” says Aipira, who comes from Mvumba Village, Traditional Authority Nankumba, in Mangochi.

In the world of the children of yester-years, according to Aipira, a book was not judged by its cover alone. Pictures were worth more than the cover.

But the lack of pictures did not discourage Aipira from flipping the pages and enjoying the artificial breeze created by the purposeless turning of the pages.

“Still, I took interest in flipping the pages. I must say that the sound of the clicking pages fascinated me and I am sure that my love of words sprouted from there [the page-turning]. Later, I graduated from marveling at the sound of the flipping pages to 'building' my vocabulary. The vocabulary gave me a footing in writing,” he says.

Aipira adds that, whereas his father inspired, his mother played the disciplinarian by, among other things, not giving him the leeway to go swimming or fishing-- as is the norm with children born along the lake.

“By the way, I was born at a mission hospital and my father used to ask the missionaries: 'What should I do so that my kids become as educated as you are?' Actually, I heard my father mention the word 'university' several times and I knew that would be my destination some day. The discipline came from my mother, who was self-taught and knew how to read and write,” says Aipira, the last-born in a family of three boys and two girls.



Unlike other people who find it difficult to cope with life when one of their parents decides to leave their homeland and seek greener pastures in a foreign land, Aipira has kind words for his father, who used to be a city council worker before embarking on a trip to Zimbabwe where he could communicate with his family back home through the Post Office.

“My father went to Zimbabwe so that he could secure a job and be able to pay school fees for his sons. You see, my father had a tailoring and fishing business. He registered little success in tailoring and, as regards fishing, some people stole his fishing gear. He also tried tobacco cultivation, with no success. Thus, angry, he left for Zimbabwe.

“My parents had interest in education. In those days, in the 1950s, they sent the first-born in our family to Khola, a boarding school in Ntcheu--away from Mangochi, away from the hustle and bustle of fishing and swimming,” Aipira explains.



Foray in poetry

With the help of the picture-less book, Aipira built the foundation for his writing career and, today, he can proudly look at 'Reflections and Sunsets', a collection of over 50 poems published by Kachere Series, with pride and claim that words, too, have the enduring power to create images-- just like pictures can simply a million words.

About 500 copies of 'Reflections and Sunsets' were printed and, to put an icing to the cake, rights of book were sold to the United Kingdom through African Books Collective [ABC] by the publisher. This means the collection can be found in the United Kingdom and Europe in general.

“I composed the poems in 'Reflections and Sunsets' collection when I was in the United Kingdom. Some of the poems were even featured in American and Irish literary magazines,” says Aipira.

One can see traces of his father's influence in the collection, as evidenced in one of the poems 'Dad'.

Take the hoe my son

Carefully tie the seed-bas

At the end of the hole-handle

At first light

Before the dew is dry

Mark a patch of soil

To carry this life seed

And give life

Hope

The persona in the poem is waxing lyric about agriculture and the emphasis is, clearly, on working. It is common knowledge that if one toils, their life is given the impetus of hope. The one who works neither suffers nor depends on others.

Maybe Malawi, our dad, can learn from this. For 51 years, Malawi has failed to “take the hoe” and “Mark a patch of soil”, “To carry this life seed/And give life/Hope”. Not surprisingly, donor dependence has become Dad Malawi's way of post-independence life. Malawi is, therefore, a bad 'dad'.

There are three sections in 'Reflections and Sunsets'. The first one, titled 'Reflections and Sunsets' see the personae reflecting on life back home. We can only assume that the persona is Malawian. The section has such poems as 'The first rains', 'Dad', 'At Wenela Bus Station', 'Sunset at Lake Malawi'.

Section two, under the title 'Another Winter', could as well be described as a reflection of new experiences of a persona whose body has been trapped in a foreign land-- on, say, academic, religious, tourism grounds--but the mind is stationed at home.

The foreign destination must, surely, be Europe, where the shadow of winter defines the cycle of life. Poems such as 'Crossing continents', 'Waiting for Pelicans at St James Park' and 'An evening on the city' furnish the theme.

But, then, what goes around comes around. So, section three, titled 'Distant drums' is about anticipation, which defines the mood when time to go back to one's native home approaches. So, it is not a surprise that 'Two halves', 'Grandfather's footsteps', 'Telling tales' are some of the dominant poems in the section.

The last section, titled 'Telling tales', is a reflection of the African spirit that prioritises story telling. Finally, the personae are back home and have to tell their stories, share their recollections of life to those they left behind. Ironically, instead of telling tales of the personae's experiences in the foreign land and knowledge acquired abroad-- in much the same way grandmothers gathered their grandchildren around a fire and told stories that had been told, retold, retold, and retold by, and from, one generation to another, before the winds of modernity blew the communal spirit away-- the stories shared are about the native country.

This is reflected in 'Chichiri 3 pm', 'The granaries at Kanengo', among others.

Other grounds

However, 'Reflections and Sunsets' is not the only work associated with Aipira. He has also co-edited the anthology 'The Time Traveller of Malavi: New Poetry from Malawi'. The anthology, which features creative writers such as Yamaha Ali, Sylvester Chabuka, David Lubadiri, Temwani Mgunda, Zondiwe Mbano, Ken Lipenga, Matilda Kampezeni was co-edited by Malawi Writers Union president, Sambalikagwa Mvona and Hoffman Aipira.

Aipira continues his journey of reflections in the anthology through such pieces as 'Visiting Maone', 'Malawi', 'The delights of Nankumba Peninsula'.

Says Aipira: “The poem I love the most in 'The Time Traveller of Malavi: New Poetry from Malawi' is 'The delights of Nankumba Peninsula' because I talk about home, Mangochi.”

He has also contributed poems to the anthology 'Operations and Tears', edited by Anthony Nazombe. Aipira's poems include 'A letter from home', 'Mix and match', 'Water fall'.



Family business

But Aipira is not the only writer in the family.

“I am not the only one interested in writing in our family. The third-born in our family, Okomaatani Steven Aipira, has interest in writing. He has written 'Business Studies for Developing Countries' now being used by students. The book was published by Dzuka Publishing Company,” he says.

Wokomaatani has also authored 'Malawi takes off', a book published by Kachere Series. The book focuses on the late Bingu wa Mutharika's first term in office.

That time, Malawians were running high on both hope and economic prospects, as evidenced by the fact that, according to the Economist Magazine, the country registered the second-fastest growing economy in the world after oil-rich Qatar.

The way things have turn out today is a story for another day. But Okomaatani could not be blamed for his optimism.



Oases

Maybe Zangaphee Chizeze and Edson Mpina grew up believing that they were nothing more than human beings. To Aipira, however, they also served as his sources of inspiration.

“As I grew up, I looked up to Chizeze and Mpina. In the case of Chizeze, I came across his poem 'If ifs were ifs' while I was at Bunda College of Agriculture and I said: 'There is beautiful writing here'. As for Mpina, I was left speechless by his poem 'Summer fires of Mulanje Mountain', which won a BBC award in Commonwealth. It's a very short poem, but it is well written,” says Aipira.

Outside Malawi, he is a fan of William Wordsworth and Seamus Heaney, the Irish poet who won the Nobel Prize of Literature.



Landscaper-cum-author

Aipira, who studies General Agriculture at Bunda College of Agriculture from 1976 to 1979, started off as a humble civil servant when he joined Ministry of Works and Supplies in 1980.

In the ministry, he worked for the landscaping section in the Buildings Department. His work saw him landscaping Sanjika and Kamuzu palaces.

He was one of the pioneers of the Landscaping section, a development that meant Malawi had joined two other African countries-- South Africa and Kenya-- that had landscaping sections. For this reason, International Federation Architects president, ZVI Miller, visited Malawi in 1982.

His expertise in landscaping saw him writing for non-fiction magazines.

“As I did landscaping, I was a member of the Association of Advancement of Science of Malawi [AASOM], whose chairperson was architect Dr Bernard Zingano. AASOM had a magazine and he asked workers, especially new graduates, to contribute articles to the magazine. I wrote an article on the environment in 1981 and he said “Your article is very good. You are a very good writer.”

'You can imagine how happy I was to see my article. One of my friends was Richard Maganga, a graduate from the Polytechnic who was aspiring to become a quantity surveyor. He wrote a very good article, too,” says Aipira.

After working for the Ministry of Works between 1980 and 1985, he received a scholarship to study at the University of Bath in England, where he studied horticulture between 1985 and 1989 and I received an award in 'Outstanding Performance in Horticulture' along with a white girl called Alice Forbes. He was the first foreign student to win the award.

He then worked for a private firm of landscape architects in Bristol, United Kingdom, before pursuing a post-graduate course at the University of Iowa, Northern England, United Kingdom.

“While there, I made a u-turn from Horticulture to look into urbanization. We were looking at the growth of cities and how we could manage them [cities]. It was realised that the majority of people in 2050 would be living in cities. So, it was about how to manage people. Just imagine, as I am speaking Tokyo has a population of 38 million while Delhi and Shanghai in China have populations of over 20 million people.

“I even published an article in 'ECODECISION: Environment and Policy Magazine' published in Montreal, Canada in winter [Between November and February] of 1995. The title of my article was 'Urban farming: Making Africa's cities sustainable'.

“This was the beginning of my interest in the role of cities. There was, indeed, a term coined; 'The bush of the rural areas and the pull of the cities' which was being used by people with interest in this area. The United Nations, through United Nations Environmental Programme (UNEP) took interest to make the issue global,” he says.

Aipira also worked on a UNEP report titled 'Urban farming in low income cities: Report prepared in connection with the first workshop on urban farming: strategy for food and environmental health in low low income cities'. He co-edited the report along with Charles Cockburn and the findings were published by the Institute of Advanced Architectural Studies, University of York, in One World Studies 24 November 1993.

That was not all. He continued his work in another report 'Urban and Rural Change in the Developing World: procedures of the International Workshop on Urban Farming and Rural Tourism: Priorities for Action in the 21 Century. The editors were Hoffman Aipira, Noorizan Mohamed and Charles Cockburn.

He also had his articles featured in the United Nations magazine 'Nature and Resources' Volume 32 Number 2, 1996. The title of his article was 'Urban Food Production' published under UNICEF in Paris, France.

“Actually, at [University of] York, they wanted me to start department but I said: 'I have to go back home'. I came back home in 2009,” he says.

Maybe, as he write, he may become another candle that kindles unlimited numbers of other candles but remain the original candle-- like his father did.

Rising from the ashes of street life

In a forgotten part of Mudi Bridge between Blantyre Main Market and Blantyre Flea Market, on a spot hidden from human comfort and the noise of freedom, Peter Sithole and a group of other orphaned and abandoned kids ‘founded’ their own version of heaven.

Forgotten at home in Blantyre’s Bangwe Township, looked down upon by the world on top of Mudi bridge, and with no hope for the future, the now 18-year-old Sithole almost resigned to fate and thought he would be there— under the bridge— for the rest of his life.

SITHOLE: I kept on pestering the employer to employ me as a guard despite being only 15 years

But his fear did not hold or, if it did, it did not hold for a long time. Soon, Sithole and the other kids graduated from sleeping under the bridge to sleeping under benches at Blantyre Flea Market.

“I spent eight years as a street child,” says Sithole.

This means the beardless Sithole has lost eight out of his 18 years in life. In eight years, as Sithole was jumping from one street to another in Blantyre and, as he puts it, “from one damaged carton to another at Blantyre Flea Market”, other ‘lucky’ children were able to progress from Standard 1 to Standard 8.

If he had his way, “I would be home attending to school, chatting with friends and family, exchanging gifts on birthdays, Christmas, New Year days. But life treated me harshly and I just heard from the grapevine that any such opportunities existed”.

Of course, Sithole had problems when his parents were alive. But his parents were there to take care of them [problems] and the children— who basically included Peter and his sister [name withheld].

However, the problems escalated beyond hope when his father died.

“My father died in 2002 and I had no close relation to take care of me. I don’t even know my home village. I understand that my home district is Ntcheu, but I do not even know under which Traditional Authority I fall. So, I was a child lost in my own country. To make matters worse, nobody seems to care,” says Sithole, who grew up in Blantyre’s Bangwe Township.



Lost family

According to Sithole, life on the street is a delicate balance between life and death.

“You have to be steadfast in order to survive, to bring food to your mouth. With street life, there is nothing storing food, or bringing food to one’s table. To begin with, there is no food because, every morning, one rises up— I am not saying ‘waking’ up because, sometimes, one spends sleepless nights thinking about why they should be the only ones singled out for harsh treatment by life when others are enjoying it— without knowing where the next meal will come from. Secondly, there is nothing like bringing food to one’s table because a street child has no property.

“A street child walks with all his belongings on him; in the pockets, in other parts of a short or pair of trousers that are specifically ‘designed’ by the street child for the safe keeping of things. But, as you can guess, the property one has are little things— not something like a table,” says Sithole.

He adds that, among street kids themselves, there are others who have been on the streets for a long time that they boss others around. They grab food and money from other street kids. They beat stubborn ones up; and passers-by, no matter how mature or childish they are, just pass by— unperturbed by the injustices being administered by one unjustly-treated human being to another; victims turning against other victims in a vicious circle of revenge.

“When the victimised grow up a bit, they administer the same treatment, if not harsh, on others. Life is brutal on the streets and the task everyday is to survive, find food, be a team player, and live to the next day,” says Sithole, adding:

“But I am not crying over spilt milk. All I am worried about is my sister. For your information, I am the second-born in our family. My sister, maybe after giving up on prospects of a good life, is into commercial sex work. It’s sad that I can’t help her out for now,” says a visibly-touched Sithole.

Despite what he has gone through on the streets, he still has a caring heart and wants the best— nothing but the best— for her sister.

“Two people from one family should not be lost together. That is a disaster. I am sad for what has happened to my sister,” says Sithole.



Lawless Samaritan?
In a country that seems to attach little value on social programmes, vulnerable groups such as street sometimes use common sense— at the expense of international conventions against, for instance, child labour— to survive and bail themselves out of abandonment and desperation.

For Sithole, the unconventional means took the form of child labour and, ironically, Sithole is all praises to the man and company that gave him a ray of hope by heeding his plea to disregard international instruments against child labour and offer him a job.

“Life on the streets did not break my spirits. Actually, on those cool or hot nights, I could think about school. I, therefore, made up my mind to go to school. I had done some primary schooling when my parents were alive and, so, I started drawing plans on how I could sit examinations and go to secondary school,” says Sithole, adding:

“At 15 years, I went to a security company in Blantyre and pleaded with the directors to employ me as guard. They refused, saying they could not employ a 15-year-old boy as that would be promoting child labour. They said employing me would also be violating Malawi’s labour laws. I pleaded and pleaded, telling them I wanted to generate funds from my fees but they put their feet down.

“I did not give up and kept on pestering them until they gave me what I consider a life-line. I was working as a guard at the age of 15 years and I used the funds to pay fees and buy necessities at Njamba Secondary School [in Blantyre].”

Sithole also found another ‘Good Samaritan’ in chips sellers, who would give him and other kids piece work to peel Irish potatoes. While this could be described as another form of child labour, it saved Sithole’s life.

“All one needed to do was work up early, rush to the chips seller’s bench and, if you were the proverbial early bird, you would be given the task to peel the potatoes. We did not receive payment in the form of cash. No. They could give us food— chips— and we could start the day with something in our stomach,” says Sithole.

His resilience paid off.

“I have just sat for Malawi School Certificate of Education examinations in 2015 and I am hopeful that the future is bright. I was not born to fail and I want to be an agent of positive change in my mother country. I will do it. I don’t want to be on the streets again and I want good life for my sister, too,” says Sithole.



Rough road

Step Kids Awareness executive director, Godknows Maseko, once was a street child and knows how it feels to be exposed to such an environment.

“It is not easy to be on the streets as all sorts of nasty things happen to children on the streets. Some are trafficked. In my case, I was once trafficked to a foreign country and only survived by the grace of God after being rescued by the son of the man who had found a market for my body parts. We really need to bail these children out by providing the basic necessities,” says Maseko.

African Network for the Prevention and Protection against Child Abuse and Neglect – Malawi Chapter executive director, Kenwilliams Mhango, suggests that the country needs to put in place “robust” social programmes for vulnerable children.

Mhango says the social programmes will help children who have been abandoned by society to find a new lease of life through government interventions.

“Otherwise, removing children from the streets merely serves as a mechanism of treating the symptoms of a disease but not the actual disease. Before long, the children go back to the streets. These children need to be taken care of through, say, child placement homes or utilising extended family systems by sending the children back to their communities and providing social support through those channels,” says Mhango.



Government act

But Minister of Gender, Disability and Social Welfare, Patricia Kaliati, says the government is working on creating lasting solutions.

“For your information, Sithole is one of those earmarked to benefit from the Community Colleges’ initiative. It is our hope that, through this intervention, we will be able to help Sithole become the responsible citizen he has always wanted to become.

“You may also wish to know that we have social cash transfer programmes that have assisted in making lives of, say, the elderly bearable. We have these problems and will work hard to ensure that a lot of people benefit so that we may be, together with the citizens of this country, turn sadness into happiness for many who think that society has forgotten them,” says Kaliati.

The Malawi Way to Film Prominence

The aim was to establish their presence in a crowded and competitive cultural sphere.

In the end, or mid-way through the journey, that presence seems to have been established, and film makers seem to have received more than what they bargained for: They have managed to sneak their interests in national discourse.

This is the story of film making in 2015. To some degree, film makers managed to add colour to entertainment-starved Malawi by interpreting social, economic, cultural issues and giving them a sense of local significance.

While the holding of festivals such as the Lake of Stars Festival and the Blantyre Arts Festival did not come as a surprise in 2015, as some of these events have been on the local arts calendar for a while, film makers— through the Film Association of Malawi – came with a bolt from the blues when they organised a film festival in Lilongwe between October 23 and 25.

As Film Association of Malawi president, Ezaius Mkandawire, observed, the event was a first in the history of the baby industry.

“We are not duplicating issues. As far as we know, there is no festival that has given film space. We are also looking at the festival as a development project for the industry,” Mkandawire told Weekender.


However, Mkandawire also cited the venue for the festival as a point of departure from other arts festivals.

“We are looking at using Lilongwe, which has no festival in terms of geography, in the Central Region of Malawi. In terms of objectives, we are looking at building a pool of future film makers. The festival has a component of training,” he observed.


The aim, according to Mkandawire, is long-term: To cultivate “a cinema going culture; something that can spur the growth of the industry”.


Of course, being a baby industry, it was always going to be a tall order to host an all-Malawian films’ festival. No wonder, festival organisers also beamed films from Senegal, South Africa, Mali, among other countries.


The highest moment at the festival was when ‘Lilongwe’, a film by Joyce chavula, was premiered. Another film, produced by a Ghanaian and titled ‘South Valley’, was also premiered.
Building from nothing

Fifteen years ago, it would have been wishful thinking to imagine that film makers would have a festival dedicated to the art.
More so when the intentions of the film makers who came up with the idea of establishing the grouping had other reasons for doing so.
“The idea to establish Film Association of Malawi was mooted in the early 2000s when a group of people decided to establish an association with a specific purpose of lobbying the then sole television station, Television Malawi [now Malawi Broadcasting Corporation (MBC) Television], to provide cheaper rate for broadcasting material,” recalls Mkandawire.
But, like many of the local film maker’s dreams, the idea [to lobby MBC] did not work. Nevertheless, the film makers can finally have solace in the fact that some of their ideas, including the one to hold the Malawi International Film Festival in 2015, materialised.
Indeed, over the years, local film makers have chalked one success over another.
In 2013, for example, Blantyre-based Chimwemwe Mkwezalamba won Best Emerging Director award for her film, ‘The Designer’, at the Silicon Valley African Film Festival held in California, USA.

Another Malawian, Mwizalero Nyirenda, won the Sembene Ousmane Award in Zanzibar (Tanzania) after his film, ‘Umunthu’, won the hearts of judges. Shemu Joyah’s ‘Seasons of a Life’ and the ‘Last Fishing Boat’ have been nominated several times.

Misses, losses

Despite making headway, however, Malawian film makers have lost out on a number of opportunities.
For example, while 2015 came with a host of opportunities for film makers, the chance bypassed locals. One of the festivals that made headlines is the African Film Festival held in New York, USA.
In addition, Greenpop hosted ‘Forest in Focus’, a film festival fundraiser in celebration of forests, in Cape Town, South Africa from 6 to11 June 2013. This was part of an integrative media event that screened a selection of winning short films from the United Nations Forum on Forests and Forests for People awards.


In association with the United Nations Forum on Forests, Forest for People awards, the programme screened five award-winning documentary shorts by “fusing” activism and culture, arts and environmentalism” and, as usual, no Malawian film maker made it to the top.

It is unclear whether local film makers will patronise the Amakula International Film Festival, Uganda’s oldest independent film festival, which will return and celebrate its tenth anniversary this year.
Its objectives are to contribute to a vibrant local film industry, by broadening access to and developing audiences for quality African film production; inspiring local film makers to produce quality local films based on own stories; facilitating, presenting and promoting local film productions; and offering a professional networking platform for the film making community in East Africa and beyond.
A statement from the organisers reads: “After nine consecutive successful festival editions from 2004 to 2012 and a period of reflection, the Amakula International Film Festival is now set to return to the scene and screen to celebrate its 10th anniversary edition in March 2016 in Kampala, Uganda.
“We are now accepting film submissions, especially from African filmmakers, including African diaspora, in all categories (feature films, documentaries, short films, animation). Only films completed after 2013 will be accepted. Films from African filmmakers will automatically enter the Golden Impala Award competition. Films by other filmmakers are submitted out of competition. There will be a special Maisha Screenwriters Award for Ugandan submissions as well as a Student Film Scholarship Award for student submissions.”


China also has film parties lined up, most notably The Chinese-based FIRST International Film Festival which has since called for African film and documentary makers to submit their entries to compete for the Crystal Brick Award during their 10th FIRST International Film Festival Xining 2016 to be held from July 21 to 30, 2016 in Xining, Peoples Republic of China.


The festival, which is aimed at enhancing China-Africa cooperation by introducing African films to Chinese audience, is targeting films produced from June 1, 2014 to date.


According to a statement released by organisers of FIRST International Film Festival Xining, the festival is premised on the idea of “enhancing the development of contemporary film culture and providing opportunities for young filmmakers” by focusing “on the early work of emerging filmmakers all around the world and would love to introduce outstanding African films to Chinese audience”.

However, Mkandawire justified the absence of Malawians at most foreign festivals.

“Most Malawians do not participate in the festivals indeed. The biggest problem is that most film makers in Malawi are not aware of such opportunities. [Of course] The film association helps in making available such kind of information on the various festivals taking place worldwide. As an association, I am not certain if we can participate [in such events] as an entity,” said Mkandawire.

Is Malawi Becoming blood-Thirsty Nation? If Not, Why Were The Following People with Albinism Attacked in 2014 and 2015?

Some things are giving Malawi a bad name. One of them is, definitely, the targeted attacks on people with albinism.

Some of the attacked people have escaped with scars in both their hands and hearts. But others have not been so lucky.

Below are some of the people who have either been killed, injured, of abused in one way or another:


Apart from the murder of Esnert Phiri in Kasungu, and Prescot Pepuza from Mchinji, cases of albino killings, attempted killings, abductions, and attempted abductions have been so commonplace that they are disturbing.


In January this year, a nine-year-old girl was rescued from the jaws of death in Machinga when a 24-year-old man, identified by police spokesperson Davie Sulumba as Mandela Paipi, attempted to abduct her. Paipi is said to have offered the girl's brother K500, 000 in order for him to facilitate the move.



In September 2015, an 11-year-old boy was fighting for his life at Karonga District Hospital after two men kidnapped him and tried to cut his throat and right arm in Karonga. Karonga police spokesperson, Enock Livason, said at the time that the two suspects persuaded the boy to accompany them to the market, only to turn from sheep to wolf, and turn against the unsuspecting boy.



Just last year, suspected members of a criminal gang tampered with the grave of an albino in Balaka District.



In Zomba, eight-year-old girl Maria Kosta might have thought she would return home when she decided to visit Mayaka Trading Centre on July 2, 2013. She has never been heard of again.

She suffered the same fate as Violet Kanyama, 25, but Kanyama's remains were recovered, albeit with amputated feet and no arms.

But the worst case scenario was when people attacked a Machinga District house before mid-night in February last year and abducted the family's two-year-old girl named Ibra Pilo.


Malita Makolija, 68, from Zomba disappeared on January 17, 2015, only for her headless body to be found without arms and legs.

In January this year, four people were convicted for being found in possession of bones believed to belong to an albino.


These developments last year prompted Inspector General, Lexen Kachama, to instruct police officers to shoot-to-kill those caught in the act of abducting or killing albinos. “These people are ruthless, have no mercy and, therefore, need to be treated like that [shot at].”


Deputy Secretary in the Ministry of Gender, Children, Women and Social Welfare, Isaac Katopola, was quoted in June, 2015 as telling AFP that citizens needed to “change their mindset and realise that albinos do not have magic powers”.
He is on record to have said that, since the spate of attacks escalated in December 2014, six albinos were officially registered as dead. This contrasted sharply with UN agencies' reports. They agencies put the figure at nine.