1000 children in the central Malawi district of Salima, graduate into witchcraft yearly, research shows. The African Network for the Protection and Prevention of Child Abuse and Neglect has revealed there is a school in the lakeshore district teaching children how to become masters of the night.
The Country Director of (ANPPCAN), Kenwilliams Mhango, said "It is sad, let us save these children because they stop concentrating in class because of tiredness. Some who refuse to learn about witchcraft are denied food: it is abuse of children's rights."
There have been increased cases of people teaching children witchcraft, but efforts to deal with the issue are hampered by the constitution of Malawi, which does not recognise witchcraft and regards self-confessed individuals as "pretenders".
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Wednesday, September 29, 2010
Malawians root for death penalty
Majority of Malawians preferred the death penalty to any other form of punishment, according to a recent public study. The report said the respondents warned against efforts towards scraping corporal punishment from the constitution, fearing that would give rise to serious criminal offenses.
The Legal Affairs Committee of Parliament commissioned the report and its findings were revealed by the former committee Chairperson Atupele Muluzi. “Our committee established that this was the wish of most people in Malawi. This gave rise to suggestions that, perhaps, in cases where it is possible to mete out other forms of punishment to serious offenders, the presiding judges should have power of discretion. Otherwise, the truth remains that most Malawians would love to have that provision of the death penalty,” said Muluzi.
However, civil society organizations (CSOs) have kicked against death penalty. Through the Human Rights Consultative Committee (HRCC), they have argued that the law is ‘barbaric and inhuman’. HRCC Chairperson, Undule Mwakasungula, said: “In fact, research findings have revealed that the death penalty does not deter people from committing serious crimes. So, what is the purpose for maintaining it?”
Mwakasungula further said some people are being wrongly executed; a development he said necessitated the need to get rid of death penalties throughout Africa. “To date, over 126 people have been wrongly hanged. Again, what’s the purpose of retaining this barbaric provision? There are other alternatives around, including life imprisonment,” said Mwakasungula.
However, the Malawi Law Commission, which carried out consultations over the issue, indicated in one of its reports that, in cases where prisoners are committed to life in prison, there was need to include prison reforms. “Otherwise, life imprisonment without the basic necessities in prison would be tantamount to meting a slow death on those committed to life-long prison,” read part of the report.
The Legal Affairs Committee of Parliament commissioned the report and its findings were revealed by the former committee Chairperson Atupele Muluzi. “Our committee established that this was the wish of most people in Malawi. This gave rise to suggestions that, perhaps, in cases where it is possible to mete out other forms of punishment to serious offenders, the presiding judges should have power of discretion. Otherwise, the truth remains that most Malawians would love to have that provision of the death penalty,” said Muluzi.
However, civil society organizations (CSOs) have kicked against death penalty. Through the Human Rights Consultative Committee (HRCC), they have argued that the law is ‘barbaric and inhuman’. HRCC Chairperson, Undule Mwakasungula, said: “In fact, research findings have revealed that the death penalty does not deter people from committing serious crimes. So, what is the purpose for maintaining it?”
Mwakasungula further said some people are being wrongly executed; a development he said necessitated the need to get rid of death penalties throughout Africa. “To date, over 126 people have been wrongly hanged. Again, what’s the purpose of retaining this barbaric provision? There are other alternatives around, including life imprisonment,” said Mwakasungula.
However, the Malawi Law Commission, which carried out consultations over the issue, indicated in one of its reports that, in cases where prisoners are committed to life in prison, there was need to include prison reforms. “Otherwise, life imprisonment without the basic necessities in prison would be tantamount to meting a slow death on those committed to life-long prison,” read part of the report.
Only 32 Second World War soldiers remain
Malawi is remaining with only 32 retired soldiers who fought with guns and courage during the Second World War, out of the 300, 000 Malawians who took part in that dreaded affair.
Malawi Defence Force records indicate that the remaining soldiers stay at Cobbe Baracks in Zomba, Moyale in Mzuzu, and in Malawi's capital city, Lilongwe. They fought a hard, long war, and that should make them proud. Yet, they lack the basic necessities at the places they currently stay in, and are in constant need of more resources from a society that takes confort in forgetting the sacrifices these great men made.
One of the remaining soldiers, Swedi Holario, said the was happy to have contributed towards a peaceful world, and hopes the world continues to live in peace.
Malawi Defence Force records indicate that the remaining soldiers stay at Cobbe Baracks in Zomba, Moyale in Mzuzu, and in Malawi's capital city, Lilongwe. They fought a hard, long war, and that should make them proud. Yet, they lack the basic necessities at the places they currently stay in, and are in constant need of more resources from a society that takes confort in forgetting the sacrifices these great men made.
One of the remaining soldiers, Swedi Holario, said the was happy to have contributed towards a peaceful world, and hopes the world continues to live in peace.
Lack of resources leaves 12, 000 blind
Malawi is facing a race against time to cure 12, 000 patients made blind from preventable illnesses.
Ministry of Health officials acknowledge the country was grappling with an artificial blindness problem, but say efforts were being made to reverse the situation.
Joseph Msosa, Chief Eye Specialist in the Ministry of Health, said the common form of blindness was that coming as a result of cataract, a health condition that, if untreated, leads into total blindness. It can, however, be reversed through eye surgery.
“We currently have 20, 000 people who are blind as a result of this condition, of which we have only been able to operate on 8, 000. We don’t have the necessary financial resources to operate on the remaining 12, 000,” said Msosa.
This means countless more days of no sight for people who deserve nothing more but sight.
Other unconfirmed reports indicate that there may be more than 100, 000 people with cataract, but too much reliance of Health Surveillance Assistants means many more people suffering from the condition remain unaware that they can be cured.
Ministry of Health officials acknowledge the country was grappling with an artificial blindness problem, but say efforts were being made to reverse the situation.
Joseph Msosa, Chief Eye Specialist in the Ministry of Health, said the common form of blindness was that coming as a result of cataract, a health condition that, if untreated, leads into total blindness. It can, however, be reversed through eye surgery.
“We currently have 20, 000 people who are blind as a result of this condition, of which we have only been able to operate on 8, 000. We don’t have the necessary financial resources to operate on the remaining 12, 000,” said Msosa.
This means countless more days of no sight for people who deserve nothing more but sight.
Other unconfirmed reports indicate that there may be more than 100, 000 people with cataract, but too much reliance of Health Surveillance Assistants means many more people suffering from the condition remain unaware that they can be cured.
Fistula leaves women discriminated
Women gather at Zomba Central Hospital in Southern Malawi in hundreds. It is not a social gathering, though one condition renders them peers and leaves them united.
Welcome to the Sexual Reproductive Health Ward at the referral public health institution for people from Zomba, Machinga, Mangochi, Balaka and Thyolo districts; common here, among these sad but hopeful women, is a condition termed 'Fistula'.
Fistula is a condition that arises in women who may have delayed to go to the hospital when time for labour approached, or those who delivered children when they thought they were strong mentally, but their bodies were too tender for such an orduous task.
Their condition makes them one because they all suffer from one societal vice: stigma and discrimination.
Mercy Chunda remembers the time she lived as a happily married woman in Machinga, and enjoyed the support of her husband Jimmy. Now, she is an outcast because of her condition, which makes her loose hold of her urinal muscles.
The end result is uncontrolled leakage of urine. This condition sees no place or status in society, and comes with some heavy smell that prompts people to shun those in this situation.
"I, and the other women in this room, are discriminated against because of the smell arising from our condition. The most painful moment in my life was when my husband told me he no longer wanted me; he said I smelt like pigs. Since then, I have been stuck at this place, hoping for a better tomorrow and reunion with my husband," said Chunda.
As it is, she still loves him.
"A lot".
Juliana Lunguzi, a reproductive health officer at UNFPA-Malawi, feels for the women, and hopes for a day society will stop frawning and discriminating women caught on the wrong side of sexual reproductive health.
"It is a sad situation but the good thing is that we are trying. UNFPA is helping these women buy making sure that they get operated on. A lot needs to be done to avert the situation," said Lunguzi.
Zomba Central Hospital Clinical Officer, Edwin Gondwe, said the institution operates on four patients each week, something that initiates the return of four women back home weeekly.
How about the rest?
"We are doing all we can to make sure that we aperate on all of them, as they come. The problem is often that resources do not permit us," said Gondwe.
He asked society to treat the women well, hoping, like Lunguzi, that ten years from now, Fistula will be history- like the urine that came uncontrolled, but stopped at the stroke of a knife for those cured from the condition.
Welcome to the Sexual Reproductive Health Ward at the referral public health institution for people from Zomba, Machinga, Mangochi, Balaka and Thyolo districts; common here, among these sad but hopeful women, is a condition termed 'Fistula'.
Fistula is a condition that arises in women who may have delayed to go to the hospital when time for labour approached, or those who delivered children when they thought they were strong mentally, but their bodies were too tender for such an orduous task.
Their condition makes them one because they all suffer from one societal vice: stigma and discrimination.
Mercy Chunda remembers the time she lived as a happily married woman in Machinga, and enjoyed the support of her husband Jimmy. Now, she is an outcast because of her condition, which makes her loose hold of her urinal muscles.
The end result is uncontrolled leakage of urine. This condition sees no place or status in society, and comes with some heavy smell that prompts people to shun those in this situation.
"I, and the other women in this room, are discriminated against because of the smell arising from our condition. The most painful moment in my life was when my husband told me he no longer wanted me; he said I smelt like pigs. Since then, I have been stuck at this place, hoping for a better tomorrow and reunion with my husband," said Chunda.
As it is, she still loves him.
"A lot".
Juliana Lunguzi, a reproductive health officer at UNFPA-Malawi, feels for the women, and hopes for a day society will stop frawning and discriminating women caught on the wrong side of sexual reproductive health.
"It is a sad situation but the good thing is that we are trying. UNFPA is helping these women buy making sure that they get operated on. A lot needs to be done to avert the situation," said Lunguzi.
Zomba Central Hospital Clinical Officer, Edwin Gondwe, said the institution operates on four patients each week, something that initiates the return of four women back home weeekly.
How about the rest?
"We are doing all we can to make sure that we aperate on all of them, as they come. The problem is often that resources do not permit us," said Gondwe.
He asked society to treat the women well, hoping, like Lunguzi, that ten years from now, Fistula will be history- like the urine that came uncontrolled, but stopped at the stroke of a knife for those cured from the condition.
Concerns raised over free press in Malawi
Samuel Okocha, AfricaNews reporter in Lagos, Nigeria
A freelance journalist has described the recent accreditation of journalists operating in Malawi as a way to limit press freedom in the southern African country.
“They say they are accrediting journalists but it is like man hunting,” Malawian Chancy Namadzunda said of the accreditation exercise the Media Council of Malawi, MCM recently embarked upon.
Namadzunda said journalists had been told that Malawi School Certificate of Education and a certificate in journalism or mass communication were the minimum qualifications required to get accreditation. On the alternative, “three years experience is required,” to get accredited.
“But they are denying people whose certificates were obtained from 'un-recognized colleges' but have worked for more than three years,” Namadzunda said.
Government hand
The freelance journalist said the government had started the accreditation of some private colleges two years ago but some colleges were not accredited and added the government was using the MCM to fight the press.
“I think the government is remote controlling them. The president has for many times said we who writes for international media we want to bring shame on his government.”
“And MCM recently applied for funding from government…You see?”
Malawi was in the media spotlight in May following international criticism of a 14 years sentence of a gay couple who were eventually pardoned by the president.
Accreditation and possible implication
Namadzunda, who has refused to submit himself for accreditation, said journalists without IDs would be denied access to any information, once the accreditation phase ends.
Asked of the penalty for a journalist seen operating without accreditation, the Malawian freelance journalist answered: “They have not talked of that one yet...but I think they may have impostering to be a journalist as a possible crime”- Source: Africa News
A freelance journalist has described the recent accreditation of journalists operating in Malawi as a way to limit press freedom in the southern African country.
“They say they are accrediting journalists but it is like man hunting,” Malawian Chancy Namadzunda said of the accreditation exercise the Media Council of Malawi, MCM recently embarked upon.
Namadzunda said journalists had been told that Malawi School Certificate of Education and a certificate in journalism or mass communication were the minimum qualifications required to get accreditation. On the alternative, “three years experience is required,” to get accredited.
“But they are denying people whose certificates were obtained from 'un-recognized colleges' but have worked for more than three years,” Namadzunda said.
Government hand
The freelance journalist said the government had started the accreditation of some private colleges two years ago but some colleges were not accredited and added the government was using the MCM to fight the press.
“I think the government is remote controlling them. The president has for many times said we who writes for international media we want to bring shame on his government.”
“And MCM recently applied for funding from government…You see?”
Malawi was in the media spotlight in May following international criticism of a 14 years sentence of a gay couple who were eventually pardoned by the president.
Accreditation and possible implication
Namadzunda, who has refused to submit himself for accreditation, said journalists without IDs would be denied access to any information, once the accreditation phase ends.
Asked of the penalty for a journalist seen operating without accreditation, the Malawian freelance journalist answered: “They have not talked of that one yet...but I think they may have impostering to be a journalist as a possible crime”- Source: Africa News
Tuesday, September 28, 2010
Flash back: Cotton farming receives boost
BY RICHARD CHIROMBO
Cotton farmers in Malawi are waiting for the commencement of production by a Chinese company to earn more on their commodity. Integrated Cotton and Textile Manufacturers, A chinese company, has already started ground work aimed at improving proceeds farmers earn on cotton products in Balaka.
Industry and Trade Minister, Henry Mussa, said the company was one of those that recently visited the country to explore investment opportunities, in line with government's goal to improve the number of industries.
Mussa said the coming in of foreign direct investors spelled the beginning of good prospects for Malawi, as most people would now get employed, apart from increasing the number of textile and garment products manufactured in the country.
"Right now, officials from the Chinese textile and Garments Company are on the ground in Balaka district, and it is hoped that by the end of this year they will have brought all the equipment necessary to scale up their activities and bring tremendous improvements as far as the cotton industry is concerned," Mussa said.
He lamented current trends, where the country exports raw products- a development that translates into low returns for the local grower while those who add value on the products elsewhere reap more profits.
"That is why we need more industries like this, inorder to transform the economy and bring about change. The good thing is that we have held a lot of fora on the issue of investment with foreign investors from Chana (Mainland), Britain, and even those from Asia. The idea is to transform this country by scaling up industrialisation," he said.
China’s impacts in Africa
While the coming in of Chinese companies may be good for Malawi, other countries have complained about the influx of Chinese products as Garment companies working in China are, for instance, making their own thread now, which they are exporting, thus increasing global competition.
Even the regional giant, South Africa, has not been spared, as the country's employment opportunities in the textile industry dropped from 70, 000 in 2003 to about 50, 000 in 2007. This came against increased cheap imports from Asia.
Yarn imports rose from 77, 000 in 2001 to over 100, 000 tonnes last year, though the truly alarming increase that fretted South African textile makers was the 600 per cent rise in imported textiles- up from about 5000 tonnes in 2001, to about 30, 000 tonnes in 2007.
This comes at a time when China's impact on the region's inputs is being felt, though local manufacturers like Mapeto DWSM offer outlets for locally produced materials. Regional textile trade is facilitated by the Southern African Development community (SADC) Free Trade Agreement, whose goal is to create a unified 'borderless' trading bloc for member states.
Malawi's neighbour, Mozambique, with its reviving economy at the north-eastern part of Maputo Corridor, has been putting in place initiatives aimed at garnering a share of the region's textile business. One big encumbrance, though, is that cotton production last year yielded only a forth of raw materials required by the country's ginning mills, a development that saw cotton being sourced from South Africa and Malawi, among others.
Cotton yields were 90, 000 tonnes in 2007, down from a record 122, 000 tonnes in 2006. Bad weather- droughty conditions in some growing areas but too much rainfall in other places- was blamed for the drop. Mozambican ginning mills require 400, 000 tonnes of cotton for their operations, a trend that necessitates measures to address the influx of cheap products from Asia if the region is to make any in roads into the textile market.
This has prompted South Africa to start addressing the influx of Chinese textiles through the introduction of a quota system. A China Restraint Agreement was introduced by government in January last year. It also covers such areas as firefighter gear and specialised sporting gear.
However, while conditions get tougher opportunities exist for fabrics for industrial applications globally, a market that has a growth rate of approximately 3 to 4 per cent per annum, which is far above the 1.5 per cent annual growth for conventional fabrics.
Malawi, however, is in dire need of industries, following the closing shop of most industrial players over the past ten years, a development trade expects blame on unfavourable policies and privatisation during the previous administration. However,
David Whitehead and Sons Malawi Limited, a textile and garments manufacturer has proved these assertions wrong as it continues to do better on the market, years after being privatised.
Cotton farmers in Malawi are waiting for the commencement of production by a Chinese company to earn more on their commodity. Integrated Cotton and Textile Manufacturers, A chinese company, has already started ground work aimed at improving proceeds farmers earn on cotton products in Balaka.
Industry and Trade Minister, Henry Mussa, said the company was one of those that recently visited the country to explore investment opportunities, in line with government's goal to improve the number of industries.
Mussa said the coming in of foreign direct investors spelled the beginning of good prospects for Malawi, as most people would now get employed, apart from increasing the number of textile and garment products manufactured in the country.
"Right now, officials from the Chinese textile and Garments Company are on the ground in Balaka district, and it is hoped that by the end of this year they will have brought all the equipment necessary to scale up their activities and bring tremendous improvements as far as the cotton industry is concerned," Mussa said.
He lamented current trends, where the country exports raw products- a development that translates into low returns for the local grower while those who add value on the products elsewhere reap more profits.
"That is why we need more industries like this, inorder to transform the economy and bring about change. The good thing is that we have held a lot of fora on the issue of investment with foreign investors from Chana (Mainland), Britain, and even those from Asia. The idea is to transform this country by scaling up industrialisation," he said.
China’s impacts in Africa
While the coming in of Chinese companies may be good for Malawi, other countries have complained about the influx of Chinese products as Garment companies working in China are, for instance, making their own thread now, which they are exporting, thus increasing global competition.
Even the regional giant, South Africa, has not been spared, as the country's employment opportunities in the textile industry dropped from 70, 000 in 2003 to about 50, 000 in 2007. This came against increased cheap imports from Asia.
Yarn imports rose from 77, 000 in 2001 to over 100, 000 tonnes last year, though the truly alarming increase that fretted South African textile makers was the 600 per cent rise in imported textiles- up from about 5000 tonnes in 2001, to about 30, 000 tonnes in 2007.
This comes at a time when China's impact on the region's inputs is being felt, though local manufacturers like Mapeto DWSM offer outlets for locally produced materials. Regional textile trade is facilitated by the Southern African Development community (SADC) Free Trade Agreement, whose goal is to create a unified 'borderless' trading bloc for member states.
Malawi's neighbour, Mozambique, with its reviving economy at the north-eastern part of Maputo Corridor, has been putting in place initiatives aimed at garnering a share of the region's textile business. One big encumbrance, though, is that cotton production last year yielded only a forth of raw materials required by the country's ginning mills, a development that saw cotton being sourced from South Africa and Malawi, among others.
Cotton yields were 90, 000 tonnes in 2007, down from a record 122, 000 tonnes in 2006. Bad weather- droughty conditions in some growing areas but too much rainfall in other places- was blamed for the drop. Mozambican ginning mills require 400, 000 tonnes of cotton for their operations, a trend that necessitates measures to address the influx of cheap products from Asia if the region is to make any in roads into the textile market.
This has prompted South Africa to start addressing the influx of Chinese textiles through the introduction of a quota system. A China Restraint Agreement was introduced by government in January last year. It also covers such areas as firefighter gear and specialised sporting gear.
However, while conditions get tougher opportunities exist for fabrics for industrial applications globally, a market that has a growth rate of approximately 3 to 4 per cent per annum, which is far above the 1.5 per cent annual growth for conventional fabrics.
Malawi, however, is in dire need of industries, following the closing shop of most industrial players over the past ten years, a development trade expects blame on unfavourable policies and privatisation during the previous administration. However,
David Whitehead and Sons Malawi Limited, a textile and garments manufacturer has proved these assertions wrong as it continues to do better on the market, years after being privatised.
Malawi tired of disjointed monitoring mechanisms
Malawi is taking steps aimed at harmonizing monitoring systems in the areas of agriculture and food security, nutrition, and natural resources, as espoused in a new guiding document: Impact and Output Indicators for Agriculture, Food Security, Nutrition and Natural Resources Projects and Programmes in Malawi.
Under the new system- which will be coordinated by the ministries of Agriculture and Food Security; Health; Energy and Mines; and Department of HIV and AIDS in the office of the President and Cabinet (OPC)- organizations will no longer have to follow their own judgment in tracking outcomes, a trend that was blamed for the increased cases of bogus projects by unscrupulous non-governmental organizations.
According to Andrew Daudi, Secretary for Agriculture, and his counterpart secretaries- Chris Kang’ombe for health, Charles Msosa for Energy and Mines, and Mary Shawa- secretary for Nutrition, HIV and AIDS in the OPC- the new document will guide implementers in terms of data collection, reporting and analysis- a development intimated to bring about standardized data sets, thus making it possible to compare progress at local level.
It will also make it possible, at national level, to get some overall trends and gauge the contribution of initiatives carried out in the targeted areas. It will also be easy to crosscheck if projects and programmes are in tandem with national policies, according to the four government officials.
Malawi is being guided by the Malawi Growth and Development Strategy, though a new programme may be in the offing, as the International Monetary Fund discusses a new programme with the Malawi government to replace the Poverty Reduction Strategy Paper. IMF officials were recently in the country to discuss such a possibility.
Under the new system- which will be coordinated by the ministries of Agriculture and Food Security; Health; Energy and Mines; and Department of HIV and AIDS in the office of the President and Cabinet (OPC)- organizations will no longer have to follow their own judgment in tracking outcomes, a trend that was blamed for the increased cases of bogus projects by unscrupulous non-governmental organizations.
According to Andrew Daudi, Secretary for Agriculture, and his counterpart secretaries- Chris Kang’ombe for health, Charles Msosa for Energy and Mines, and Mary Shawa- secretary for Nutrition, HIV and AIDS in the OPC- the new document will guide implementers in terms of data collection, reporting and analysis- a development intimated to bring about standardized data sets, thus making it possible to compare progress at local level.
It will also make it possible, at national level, to get some overall trends and gauge the contribution of initiatives carried out in the targeted areas. It will also be easy to crosscheck if projects and programmes are in tandem with national policies, according to the four government officials.
Malawi is being guided by the Malawi Growth and Development Strategy, though a new programme may be in the offing, as the International Monetary Fund discusses a new programme with the Malawi government to replace the Poverty Reduction Strategy Paper. IMF officials were recently in the country to discuss such a possibility.
Lack of standards threatens infrastructure dev.
Malawi is yet to develop national standards on buildings and related infrastructure, a development the Malawi Bureau of Standards (MBS) claims is a time-bomb for the country in case of catastrophes.
Currently, the country uses South African and British standards, and construction experts have often warned that this could prove costly during times of natural catastrophes such as earthquakes. They say what holds in South Africa or United Kingdom, in terms of standards, may not necessarily work for Malawi owing to differences in environment.
MBS Director General, Davlin Chokazinga, said in an interview the need for standards on housing, and general infrastructure development, was an urgent one. He said Malawi, being part of the Great Rift Valley, needed to put in place mechanisms that would held curtail, or reduce, the costs of destruction during disasters.
"This (the standards) will help us a lot, as we will be sure that our buildings will be able to withstand natural catastrophes, even electrical fires. This is the missing link at the moment, and may have a bearing on Foreign Direct Investment because every investor wants safety in his business transactions. Safety does not only entail the presence of strong law enforcement mechanisms, but also infrastructure," said Chokazinga.
The country last had a devastating earthquake in 1989, which hit the Central region district of Salima- leaving over 1,000 homeless and property worth millions of Kwacha destroyed. Over 100 people also died.
But that was not enough to spur the government into action as, 44 years after independence from Britain, the country still 'borrows' national standards from South Africa and Britain.
It takes over a year for a standard to be developed, according to Chokazinga.
Currently, the country uses South African and British standards, and construction experts have often warned that this could prove costly during times of natural catastrophes such as earthquakes. They say what holds in South Africa or United Kingdom, in terms of standards, may not necessarily work for Malawi owing to differences in environment.
MBS Director General, Davlin Chokazinga, said in an interview the need for standards on housing, and general infrastructure development, was an urgent one. He said Malawi, being part of the Great Rift Valley, needed to put in place mechanisms that would held curtail, or reduce, the costs of destruction during disasters.
"This (the standards) will help us a lot, as we will be sure that our buildings will be able to withstand natural catastrophes, even electrical fires. This is the missing link at the moment, and may have a bearing on Foreign Direct Investment because every investor wants safety in his business transactions. Safety does not only entail the presence of strong law enforcement mechanisms, but also infrastructure," said Chokazinga.
The country last had a devastating earthquake in 1989, which hit the Central region district of Salima- leaving over 1,000 homeless and property worth millions of Kwacha destroyed. Over 100 people also died.
But that was not enough to spur the government into action as, 44 years after independence from Britain, the country still 'borrows' national standards from South Africa and Britain.
It takes over a year for a standard to be developed, according to Chokazinga.
Child traficking cases on the increase
Child trafficking is one of the biggest challenges facing Malawi's efforts to promote the rights of the child. The country was suffering from a silent crisis, as many children continued to get trafficked but their cases went unreported. Zondwayo Juwa, Child Protection Officer for the Eye of the Child, has said.
He said, in the recent past, the country had been registering an average of 1000 cases of child trafficking victims being intercepted, a development he said pointed to a larger picture of cases that go unreported, hence the need to raise the alarm.
Children are trafficked through the country's porous borders, he said, and are sent through highly-established networks in Tanzania, Zambia, Mozambique, and other neighboring countries- from where they are sent to unknown destinations, he said.
Most of child trafficking cases are going unreported in Malawi, and reasons range from cultural aspects that view this sort of practice as normal, Trafficking starts internally, in the form of tenant workers; You will find that children as young as six years are being ferried from the Southern region to work in estates and plantations in the Northern and Central region, and they pass through road blocks with police officers just watching.
"When they get there, they are exploited and are also defiled and sexually abused since they have nowhere to report and look up to the people who do all sorts of evil things to them for help," said Juwa.
According to him, the country has largely done nothing to combat the problem, and said this was in contravention with the Convention on the Rights of the Child (CRC), which Malawi ratified.
However, this contravenes what the Ministry of Gender and Child Welfare has been doing to raise awareness on the problem. Under former minister Joyce Banda, the ministry was holding campaigns aimed at discouraging the practice.
Banda acknowledged, then, that child trafficking was a big issue in Malawi, but campaigns to that effect have since stalled under new minister Anna Kachikho, in what child rights campaigners call one of the highest degrees of disregard for the CRC.
Last month, civil society organisations were carrying out a survey, which included Eye of the Child, aimed at ascertaining the level of knowledge about the CRC amongst the Malawian public.
Juwa said the new initiative, to be implemented in the Southern Malawi districts of Blantyre and Zomba, and the Northern Malawi city of Mzuzu, will help expose cases that have so far gone unreported and noticed.
Monase Nyirongo, a model for Malawi News, a publication of Malawi's oldest newspaper group- Blantyre Newspapers Limited- will be at the head of the project.
She said child trafficking is one of the issues that has been close to her heart, and now wants to use her status to bring about positive change.
"Child trafficking has always worried me. In fact, it shows a weakness in society that must not be accepted. Our children are not goods, they have rights," said Nyirongo.
He said, in the recent past, the country had been registering an average of 1000 cases of child trafficking victims being intercepted, a development he said pointed to a larger picture of cases that go unreported, hence the need to raise the alarm.
Children are trafficked through the country's porous borders, he said, and are sent through highly-established networks in Tanzania, Zambia, Mozambique, and other neighboring countries- from where they are sent to unknown destinations, he said.
Most of child trafficking cases are going unreported in Malawi, and reasons range from cultural aspects that view this sort of practice as normal, Trafficking starts internally, in the form of tenant workers; You will find that children as young as six years are being ferried from the Southern region to work in estates and plantations in the Northern and Central region, and they pass through road blocks with police officers just watching.
"When they get there, they are exploited and are also defiled and sexually abused since they have nowhere to report and look up to the people who do all sorts of evil things to them for help," said Juwa.
According to him, the country has largely done nothing to combat the problem, and said this was in contravention with the Convention on the Rights of the Child (CRC), which Malawi ratified.
However, this contravenes what the Ministry of Gender and Child Welfare has been doing to raise awareness on the problem. Under former minister Joyce Banda, the ministry was holding campaigns aimed at discouraging the practice.
Banda acknowledged, then, that child trafficking was a big issue in Malawi, but campaigns to that effect have since stalled under new minister Anna Kachikho, in what child rights campaigners call one of the highest degrees of disregard for the CRC.
Last month, civil society organisations were carrying out a survey, which included Eye of the Child, aimed at ascertaining the level of knowledge about the CRC amongst the Malawian public.
Juwa said the new initiative, to be implemented in the Southern Malawi districts of Blantyre and Zomba, and the Northern Malawi city of Mzuzu, will help expose cases that have so far gone unreported and noticed.
Monase Nyirongo, a model for Malawi News, a publication of Malawi's oldest newspaper group- Blantyre Newspapers Limited- will be at the head of the project.
She said child trafficking is one of the issues that has been close to her heart, and now wants to use her status to bring about positive change.
"Child trafficking has always worried me. In fact, it shows a weakness in society that must not be accepted. Our children are not goods, they have rights," said Nyirongo.
Malawians now eating more
The Malawian of 2004 used to take in 1.6 kilorites per day and felt food secure, but now that figure has almost doubled to 2.2 kilorites, an indication that the present administration is living up to its 2004 campaign billing of turning the Southern African Development Community (Sadc) member state into a regional food basket.
Principal Secretary for Nutrition in the Office of the President and Cabinet, Mary Shawa, said today the country is now riding up the raddar of food security, as it has improved its Food Availability rating from 1.6 kilorites between 2005/06/07 and 2008 to 2.2 kilorites, a development attributable to the fertiliser subsidy programme. coupled with favourable rains.
The subsidy programme has propelled the country's food production from 1.2 metric tons in 2005 to 3.4 million metric tons in 2007. Malawi has also exported maize to Swaziland and Zimbabwe, a marked improvement from the past when people had to survive on maize husks.
Members of the press who questioned former president, Bakili Muluzi, on reports of hunger hitting some parts of the country faced the wrath of the notorious UDF Young Democrats.
"And, for the first time in 15 years, Malawi has reduced cases of malnutrition mortality rates from 20 per cent to 2 per cent. In most areas, food wasting is now less than 2 per cent, and cases of under-weight children are at between 10 to 14 per cent- an indication that we have improved a lot, and that we have enough food," said Shawa, dispelling notions that some people will starve this year.
Malawi is really turning into a shining star in that, just last week, a team of agriculture experts from Zimbabwe and Swaziland were in the country to pick a leaf from its food security programmes.
President Bingu wa Mutharika recently added icing on the cake when he received an accolade in recognition of his food security efforts.
His subsidy programme, nevertheless, faces a myriad of challenges, one of which being lack of coupons enabling one to receive subsidised farm inputs. Head of Ngoni Chiefs in the Northern Region, Inkosi ya Makosi Mbelwa, recently took Mutharika to task at a development cum political rally in the region, questioning his wisdom for reducing the amount of coupons in his area this year when, last year, there were more coupons.
Mutharika, who is also MInister of Agriculture, remained remained mum on the issue.
However, Deputy Agriculture Minister, Frank Mwenifumbo, said, while the country had made strides in the area of food security, global warming threatened the sustainability of bumper harvests.
Principal Secretary for Nutrition in the Office of the President and Cabinet, Mary Shawa, said today the country is now riding up the raddar of food security, as it has improved its Food Availability rating from 1.6 kilorites between 2005/06/07 and 2008 to 2.2 kilorites, a development attributable to the fertiliser subsidy programme. coupled with favourable rains.
The subsidy programme has propelled the country's food production from 1.2 metric tons in 2005 to 3.4 million metric tons in 2007. Malawi has also exported maize to Swaziland and Zimbabwe, a marked improvement from the past when people had to survive on maize husks.
Members of the press who questioned former president, Bakili Muluzi, on reports of hunger hitting some parts of the country faced the wrath of the notorious UDF Young Democrats.
"And, for the first time in 15 years, Malawi has reduced cases of malnutrition mortality rates from 20 per cent to 2 per cent. In most areas, food wasting is now less than 2 per cent, and cases of under-weight children are at between 10 to 14 per cent- an indication that we have improved a lot, and that we have enough food," said Shawa, dispelling notions that some people will starve this year.
Malawi is really turning into a shining star in that, just last week, a team of agriculture experts from Zimbabwe and Swaziland were in the country to pick a leaf from its food security programmes.
President Bingu wa Mutharika recently added icing on the cake when he received an accolade in recognition of his food security efforts.
His subsidy programme, nevertheless, faces a myriad of challenges, one of which being lack of coupons enabling one to receive subsidised farm inputs. Head of Ngoni Chiefs in the Northern Region, Inkosi ya Makosi Mbelwa, recently took Mutharika to task at a development cum political rally in the region, questioning his wisdom for reducing the amount of coupons in his area this year when, last year, there were more coupons.
Mutharika, who is also MInister of Agriculture, remained remained mum on the issue.
However, Deputy Agriculture Minister, Frank Mwenifumbo, said, while the country had made strides in the area of food security, global warming threatened the sustainability of bumper harvests.
Malawi: Poor designs cause market fires
Poor designs in the various markets in Malawi have been blamed for the recent spate of market fires, the Malawi Union for the Informal Sector has said. It said the inadequate space for fire brigades was the main reason more goods are lost to infernos.
The latest market to fall voctim to such fires is Kachere in Blantyre. THe market went up in flames as September, 2010 draws to a close, marking a bad start to end of year preparations.
The union said city and town assembly’s tendencies to choose cheap labour over quality workmanship was bringing uncertainty to most vendors plying their trade in the country’s markets. Most informal entrepreneurs in the informal sector were reducing their investments for fear of losing everything in case of fires.
The General Secretary of the union, Davies Chimombo, said local government officials were partly to blame because they continued to collect fees in markets that were poorly designed. He said this gives vendors false hopes that, should there be fire, they will be compensated.
“Why are town and city assemblies still collecting market fees in markets that are poorly designed? The case in point is Ndirande market where, we are told, fire brigade personnel failed to extinguish the fire in the early stages because of market impassability. This is reducing the level of investment on part of vendors and has implications on the national economy since vendors are living hand to mouths lives due to the little profits they get from the equally little investment they inject into their businesses,” said Chimombo.
Chimombo also blamed insurance companies for exacerbating post-fire losses, saying unfair insurance policies were discouraging non-formal players from insuring their goods. He said insurers favoured big players at the expense of small traders, thus increasing uncertainty for these vendors as they feel sidelined in most economic recovery programmes.
“But vendors should not be worried because we are starting an International Federation for Workers Education Association (Ifewa) programme, with funding from the British Department for International Development, aimed at linking vendors to insurance companies, as well as drilling them on their rights and how to avoid market fires. Some of the vendors keep combustible substances, which is bad for their business in case of fires,” added Chimombo.
His sentiments on poor market infrastructure designs comes barely a week after Malawi Bureau of Standards Acting Director General Davlin Chokazinga bemoaned the lack of such a policy in Malawi, saying the development was impinging on investment prospects.
He said it was time Malawi, like most of the Southern African Development Community member states, developed standards for buildings and other infrastructure to curtail the economic consequences of disasters like fires and earthquakes.
The recent spate of market infernos has also worried Local Government Minister Anna Namathanga Kachikho, who said his ministry will embark on a programme of markets’ registration to ensure that vendors sell goods in safe markets, as well as helping in post fire recovery for affected people because it will become easy to compensate them.
The fire that gutted Ndirande market, located in the most populous township in Blantyre, is the forth within four months, raising questions over merchandise safety in Malawian markets.
The latest market to fall voctim to such fires is Kachere in Blantyre. THe market went up in flames as September, 2010 draws to a close, marking a bad start to end of year preparations.
The union said city and town assembly’s tendencies to choose cheap labour over quality workmanship was bringing uncertainty to most vendors plying their trade in the country’s markets. Most informal entrepreneurs in the informal sector were reducing their investments for fear of losing everything in case of fires.
The General Secretary of the union, Davies Chimombo, said local government officials were partly to blame because they continued to collect fees in markets that were poorly designed. He said this gives vendors false hopes that, should there be fire, they will be compensated.
“Why are town and city assemblies still collecting market fees in markets that are poorly designed? The case in point is Ndirande market where, we are told, fire brigade personnel failed to extinguish the fire in the early stages because of market impassability. This is reducing the level of investment on part of vendors and has implications on the national economy since vendors are living hand to mouths lives due to the little profits they get from the equally little investment they inject into their businesses,” said Chimombo.
Chimombo also blamed insurance companies for exacerbating post-fire losses, saying unfair insurance policies were discouraging non-formal players from insuring their goods. He said insurers favoured big players at the expense of small traders, thus increasing uncertainty for these vendors as they feel sidelined in most economic recovery programmes.
“But vendors should not be worried because we are starting an International Federation for Workers Education Association (Ifewa) programme, with funding from the British Department for International Development, aimed at linking vendors to insurance companies, as well as drilling them on their rights and how to avoid market fires. Some of the vendors keep combustible substances, which is bad for their business in case of fires,” added Chimombo.
His sentiments on poor market infrastructure designs comes barely a week after Malawi Bureau of Standards Acting Director General Davlin Chokazinga bemoaned the lack of such a policy in Malawi, saying the development was impinging on investment prospects.
He said it was time Malawi, like most of the Southern African Development Community member states, developed standards for buildings and other infrastructure to curtail the economic consequences of disasters like fires and earthquakes.
The recent spate of market infernos has also worried Local Government Minister Anna Namathanga Kachikho, who said his ministry will embark on a programme of markets’ registration to ensure that vendors sell goods in safe markets, as well as helping in post fire recovery for affected people because it will become easy to compensate them.
The fire that gutted Ndirande market, located in the most populous township in Blantyre, is the forth within four months, raising questions over merchandise safety in Malawian markets.
Therapist drought hits Malawi
Malawi only has 30 therapists out of an estimated population of 13 million, a development the Physiotherapy Association of Malawi said has increased the number of people with preventable disabilities.
PAM chairperson, Sylvia Kambalametole, said a quarter of the number of disabilities in Malawi could be avoided if there were "at least more therapists in the country, as well as local medical colleges specializing in this area." She said at the moment, Malawian therapists were being trained abroad, thus increasing the costs of education.
"Imagine, one therapist has to look after 500, 000 people. This is placing unnecessary pressure on the few human resource capacity we have, and there is need to increase the number. The sad thing is that most of the people with disabilities here have conditions that would have easily been avoided had they sought medical help much, much earlier," said Kambalametole.
PAM, which has been in existence since 1994, now wants to bridge the gap in knowledge, and has increased advocacy activities. A majority of Malawians do not go for medical check up, a situation that translates into "unnecessary" deaths, as people succumb to illnesses that could have otherwise been avoided.
PAM chairperson, Sylvia Kambalametole, said a quarter of the number of disabilities in Malawi could be avoided if there were "at least more therapists in the country, as well as local medical colleges specializing in this area." She said at the moment, Malawian therapists were being trained abroad, thus increasing the costs of education.
"Imagine, one therapist has to look after 500, 000 people. This is placing unnecessary pressure on the few human resource capacity we have, and there is need to increase the number. The sad thing is that most of the people with disabilities here have conditions that would have easily been avoided had they sought medical help much, much earlier," said Kambalametole.
PAM, which has been in existence since 1994, now wants to bridge the gap in knowledge, and has increased advocacy activities. A majority of Malawians do not go for medical check up, a situation that translates into "unnecessary" deaths, as people succumb to illnesses that could have otherwise been avoided.
Malawi: Subsidy cripples electricity company
Malawi's sole electricity supplier ESCOM , is still making losses in customers connection costs, contrary to public outcries that the recent hike in fees from K9, 900 ($69) TO K25, 000 ($174) was meant to boost its profit earnings, a senior official has said.
Wiseman Kabwazi, ESCOM marketing manager disclosed that average cost connections for customers who do not consume a lot of electricity, such as households was K65, 000 but ESCOM was compelled to subsidize it in order for many customers to have access electricity. This compels the company to contribute over K30, 000 per each connection.
The statutory corporation connects 15, 000 customers annually, a figure Kabwazi said could reduce drastically if ESCOM did not subsidize costs incurred by the customer to get connected to electrical power.
“To come up with the price, we brought all the stakeholders together and came up with K25, 000 ($174) not because we wanted profits but because we wanted best service for the customer- that is, quick connectivity and the availability of components required to connect customers. And, at the moment, ESCOM is still subsidizing the costs for the customer heavily,” said Kabwazi.
He said, normally, ESCOM is supposed to connect new customers within a month, but now takes up to three months because of inadequate funds to buy equipment, a development he attributed to ESCOM’s heavy subsidies on the customer.
“We do not just fix prices, in fact, we face a lot of challenges in coming up with the best determination for the customer. Things like, should we make the contribution customers pay to get connected cheap and share the expenses, through tariffs, with the existing customer, or the new customer should pay a little bit and we contribute the rest so that our old customers are not affected in case we extend the costs to them? We thought it was better for us to share the costs with the new customer and not burden existing customers,” added Kabwazi.
The statutory corporation last raised the price for connecting new customers in August last year, and Kabwazi rule out the possibility of any price hike any time soon.
Wiseman Kabwazi, ESCOM marketing manager disclosed that average cost connections for customers who do not consume a lot of electricity, such as households was K65, 000 but ESCOM was compelled to subsidize it in order for many customers to have access electricity. This compels the company to contribute over K30, 000 per each connection.
The statutory corporation connects 15, 000 customers annually, a figure Kabwazi said could reduce drastically if ESCOM did not subsidize costs incurred by the customer to get connected to electrical power.
“To come up with the price, we brought all the stakeholders together and came up with K25, 000 ($174) not because we wanted profits but because we wanted best service for the customer- that is, quick connectivity and the availability of components required to connect customers. And, at the moment, ESCOM is still subsidizing the costs for the customer heavily,” said Kabwazi.
He said, normally, ESCOM is supposed to connect new customers within a month, but now takes up to three months because of inadequate funds to buy equipment, a development he attributed to ESCOM’s heavy subsidies on the customer.
“We do not just fix prices, in fact, we face a lot of challenges in coming up with the best determination for the customer. Things like, should we make the contribution customers pay to get connected cheap and share the expenses, through tariffs, with the existing customer, or the new customer should pay a little bit and we contribute the rest so that our old customers are not affected in case we extend the costs to them? We thought it was better for us to share the costs with the new customer and not burden existing customers,” added Kabwazi.
The statutory corporation last raised the price for connecting new customers in August last year, and Kabwazi rule out the possibility of any price hike any time soon.
Malawi's population explodes
Malawi's population growth is said to be the highest in the Southern African Development Community (SADC) region. The country's population has increased by 2.8 per cent, from 9.9 million in 1998 to 13.1 million in 2008, this the Ministry of Economic Planning and Development has described as worrying.
According to a National Statistical Office preliminary results released, the Population and Housing Census enumerated a total population of 13,006,320, and, out of this, 49 percent are males and 51 percent women.
Malawi has 2,957,683 households, representing a 37 percent increase from 2, 273, 846 households recorded in 1998, according to commissioner for census and statistics at NSO, Charles Machinjiri.
According to a National Statistical Office preliminary results released, the Population and Housing Census enumerated a total population of 13,006,320, and, out of this, 49 percent are males and 51 percent women.
Malawi has 2,957,683 households, representing a 37 percent increase from 2, 273, 846 households recorded in 1998, according to commissioner for census and statistics at NSO, Charles Machinjiri.
Malawi: Road accidents on the increase
Malawi has registered an increase in the number of road accidents, registering 2, 358 road crashes from January to June 2008 against 1, 535 during the same period last year, according to the National Road Safety Council of Malawi.
The council says there were 361 fatal crashes in 2007, and the figure has increased to 415 this year, pointing to a worsening situation. This represents a 15 per cent increase.
Pointing to a worsening situation, the council adds that, while 380 people were killed last year, 462 have died in road accidents this year- showing an increase of 22 per cent. Of those killed 234 were pedestrians, 125 passengers, 64 bicyclists, 34 drivers, while 5 were motorcyclists, pegging the figure at 462.
More accidents are expected during the festival season next month and early January, if people are not careful on the roads of Malawi.
Malawi is one of the countries in the Southern African Development Community (SADC) that registers a high rate of road accidents, mainly attributable to mini bus drivers.
The council says there were 361 fatal crashes in 2007, and the figure has increased to 415 this year, pointing to a worsening situation. This represents a 15 per cent increase.
Pointing to a worsening situation, the council adds that, while 380 people were killed last year, 462 have died in road accidents this year- showing an increase of 22 per cent. Of those killed 234 were pedestrians, 125 passengers, 64 bicyclists, 34 drivers, while 5 were motorcyclists, pegging the figure at 462.
More accidents are expected during the festival season next month and early January, if people are not careful on the roads of Malawi.
Malawi is one of the countries in the Southern African Development Community (SADC) that registers a high rate of road accidents, mainly attributable to mini bus drivers.
Malawi incorporates prayer in AIDS treatment
Faced with reluctant religious leaders, who refuse to burge and accept that prayers never cure one from an HIV infection, and highly-religious HIV and AIDS infected persons, the government of Malawi has come up with yet another first- a model that combines prayer, ARV treatment and nutrition.
In the new model, the strange factor is the prayer component. Prayer doesn't fit anywhere in scientific models, yet Principal Secretary for Nutrition, HIV and AIDS in the Office of the President and Cabinet, Mary Shawa, says that is where efforts aimed at coming over the HIV and AIDS issue have been humpered.
People have been known to abandon ARVs for prayer, and then, later, coming back to ARVs after hitting blank walls, a development Shawa said was bringing up the costs of providing ARVs for individuals whose CD count hits the lower mark of 250 by Malawian standards.
Malawi uses US$7 per person each month to provide ARVs to those who have never defaulted on treatment. However, Shawa says the costs go up to US$70 monthly for individuals who either abandon the life-prolonging drugs for prayer or quit for other reasons.
"This is costly on government as we spend more resources on one individual, yet the same amount of money spent on them could be used to benefit 10 more individuals under normal circumstances. We have thus struck out a compromise with religious leaders in Malawi, to the effect that those who believe in prayer will continue to take ARVs. There will be nothing like abandoning ARVs for prayer under the new model; one we think is the first in the world," said Shawa.
The Prayer-Treatment and Nutrition model will help reduce cases of resistance to the life-prolonging drugs, apart from cooling the often tense relationship between faith leaders and HIV and AIDS policy-makers, largely bordering on whether prayer may be the ultimate cure to HIV and AIDS, or the world should wait for another remedy.
Malawi Health Equity Network national coordinator, Martha Kwataine said all possibilities should be explored, and compromises made, if Malawi is to reduce the number of HIV infections. The new model will, thus, give religious leaders and policy-makers an opportunity to learn to strike out compromises, she said.
Media AIDS and Health Watch (Mawa) project officer, Owings Chawanda, hailed the new government model, adding it showed the Bingu wa Mutharika administration really cared about the country's HIV and AIDS situation, and wanted to play an active role to bring about initiatives that work.
"Dr. Mutharika has really shown quality leadership since the Department of Nutrition, HIV and AIDS falls under his office. With him at the helm, Malawi will be a better place, HIV and AIDS-wise, in six years time. This we say because we know the president realises that HIV and AIDS continue to undo social-economic gains achieved over so many years of hard work,"said Chawanda.
In the new model, the strange factor is the prayer component. Prayer doesn't fit anywhere in scientific models, yet Principal Secretary for Nutrition, HIV and AIDS in the Office of the President and Cabinet, Mary Shawa, says that is where efforts aimed at coming over the HIV and AIDS issue have been humpered.
People have been known to abandon ARVs for prayer, and then, later, coming back to ARVs after hitting blank walls, a development Shawa said was bringing up the costs of providing ARVs for individuals whose CD count hits the lower mark of 250 by Malawian standards.
Malawi uses US$7 per person each month to provide ARVs to those who have never defaulted on treatment. However, Shawa says the costs go up to US$70 monthly for individuals who either abandon the life-prolonging drugs for prayer or quit for other reasons.
"This is costly on government as we spend more resources on one individual, yet the same amount of money spent on them could be used to benefit 10 more individuals under normal circumstances. We have thus struck out a compromise with religious leaders in Malawi, to the effect that those who believe in prayer will continue to take ARVs. There will be nothing like abandoning ARVs for prayer under the new model; one we think is the first in the world," said Shawa.
The Prayer-Treatment and Nutrition model will help reduce cases of resistance to the life-prolonging drugs, apart from cooling the often tense relationship between faith leaders and HIV and AIDS policy-makers, largely bordering on whether prayer may be the ultimate cure to HIV and AIDS, or the world should wait for another remedy.
Malawi Health Equity Network national coordinator, Martha Kwataine said all possibilities should be explored, and compromises made, if Malawi is to reduce the number of HIV infections. The new model will, thus, give religious leaders and policy-makers an opportunity to learn to strike out compromises, she said.
Media AIDS and Health Watch (Mawa) project officer, Owings Chawanda, hailed the new government model, adding it showed the Bingu wa Mutharika administration really cared about the country's HIV and AIDS situation, and wanted to play an active role to bring about initiatives that work.
"Dr. Mutharika has really shown quality leadership since the Department of Nutrition, HIV and AIDS falls under his office. With him at the helm, Malawi will be a better place, HIV and AIDS-wise, in six years time. This we say because we know the president realises that HIV and AIDS continue to undo social-economic gains achieved over so many years of hard work,"said Chawanda.
Sikale kwambiri: Malawian women go into ICT
Malawi is experiencing an unprecedented participation of women in the, hither to, considered male-domain fields of Information, Communication and Technological (ICT) advancement, a leading mobile service provider has said.
This follows an increased number of women winning various prizes in promotions run by mobile service providers in the country, one of the Southern African Development Community (SADC) member states where access to ICT services remains poor for most people. Increased tariffs initiated by government to boost its revenue base as well as low per capita income conspire to deprive most Malawians, especially women, of the right to communication.
However, this is being tackled through promotional competitions where people go out with mobile handsets, vehicles, or airtime. One of the companies that is taking an active role in improving the ICT platform is Zain Malawi, a leading mobile service provider that has a client base of over one million subscribers.
Zain honoured its one-millionth customer earlier this year, as other service providers grapple with the problem of low patronage.
Zain Malawi Public Relations Officer, Edith Tsilizani, said in Blantyre that the mobile service provider was impressed with the participation of women in ICT; a development she said could signal the coming out of the cacoon for the long-marginalised sector in society. Research findings have revealed a myriad of factors that stand in the way of women, starting with stereo-typed cultural beliefs and traditions, and a low literacy rate for women, as society still feels it’s a waste to educate a woman.
Less than 60 per cent of girls who enroll in primary schools are said to drop out of school before they finish secondary education, spelling a gloomy future for them when they meet abusive husbands.
"We are happy, as Zain Malawi, with the participation of women. People have often looked down upon women, and fail to appreciate that women are now coming out of their cacoon and playing an active role in improving the ICT spectrum in the country.”
“That is why one lady, Linda Upend, has even won a Toyota Hilux Pick-up in Zanyatwa Promotion- a prize galore where we intend to give out 14 of these vehicles,” said Tsilizani.
The company initially wanted to give out 10 Toyota Hilux pick-ups but has increased the number by four to express gratitude to customers during the Christmas and New Year festivities.
Tsilizani said there were people who still could not believe that most subscribers were women, saying, however, this was becoming a rarity as more and more women win various prizes in ICT promotions.
Zain has, so far, given out six vehicles, and eight are yet to be dished out. Mobile phones and units are also being given out; in a move Tsilizani said was meant to boost government efforts in improving access to ICT, in a country where over 70 per cent of the population lives in rural areas.
Information and Civic Education Minister, Patricia Kaliati, said all efforts aimed at improving access to ICT are greatly appreciated by government, acknowledging that Malawi still had a lot to do to make ICT available to all, as people in rural areas still moved long distances just to grab a call to someone living less than 10 km away.
"We are committed to making ICT available to all; and will do all we can to help service providers willing to improve this aspect of development. ICT is crucial to attaining sustainable social-economic national development," said Kaliati.
This follows an increased number of women winning various prizes in promotions run by mobile service providers in the country, one of the Southern African Development Community (SADC) member states where access to ICT services remains poor for most people. Increased tariffs initiated by government to boost its revenue base as well as low per capita income conspire to deprive most Malawians, especially women, of the right to communication.
However, this is being tackled through promotional competitions where people go out with mobile handsets, vehicles, or airtime. One of the companies that is taking an active role in improving the ICT platform is Zain Malawi, a leading mobile service provider that has a client base of over one million subscribers.
Zain honoured its one-millionth customer earlier this year, as other service providers grapple with the problem of low patronage.
Zain Malawi Public Relations Officer, Edith Tsilizani, said in Blantyre that the mobile service provider was impressed with the participation of women in ICT; a development she said could signal the coming out of the cacoon for the long-marginalised sector in society. Research findings have revealed a myriad of factors that stand in the way of women, starting with stereo-typed cultural beliefs and traditions, and a low literacy rate for women, as society still feels it’s a waste to educate a woman.
Less than 60 per cent of girls who enroll in primary schools are said to drop out of school before they finish secondary education, spelling a gloomy future for them when they meet abusive husbands.
"We are happy, as Zain Malawi, with the participation of women. People have often looked down upon women, and fail to appreciate that women are now coming out of their cacoon and playing an active role in improving the ICT spectrum in the country.”
“That is why one lady, Linda Upend, has even won a Toyota Hilux Pick-up in Zanyatwa Promotion- a prize galore where we intend to give out 14 of these vehicles,” said Tsilizani.
The company initially wanted to give out 10 Toyota Hilux pick-ups but has increased the number by four to express gratitude to customers during the Christmas and New Year festivities.
Tsilizani said there were people who still could not believe that most subscribers were women, saying, however, this was becoming a rarity as more and more women win various prizes in ICT promotions.
Zain has, so far, given out six vehicles, and eight are yet to be dished out. Mobile phones and units are also being given out; in a move Tsilizani said was meant to boost government efforts in improving access to ICT, in a country where over 70 per cent of the population lives in rural areas.
Information and Civic Education Minister, Patricia Kaliati, said all efforts aimed at improving access to ICT are greatly appreciated by government, acknowledging that Malawi still had a lot to do to make ICT available to all, as people in rural areas still moved long distances just to grab a call to someone living less than 10 km away.
"We are committed to making ICT available to all; and will do all we can to help service providers willing to improve this aspect of development. ICT is crucial to attaining sustainable social-economic national development," said Kaliati.
Why MTL Wanderers will not win the TNM Super League, trophies: Wanderers' juju-man prophecies bad times
A man claiming to be former MTL Wanderers’ juju-man, Alfred Mapira, has predicted doom for the team, saying unless they give him K10, 000 they owe him in magic services rendered during the 2007/08 TNM Super League season, team will end up grabbing nothing in all soccer competitions in the country.
Wanderers were the Malawi Super League champions for the 2006/07 soccer season but lost it to Escom Football Club the following season under mysterious circumstances. Mapira says it was because of his unpaid dues.
Mapira, in an exclusive interview, asked the Nomads executive committee to settle up the bill before their term of office expires. Wanderers, also known locally as the Nomads, are expected to go to club polls on January 25- though both the executive and supporters committee are giving contrary information.
The executive says they will not call for polls to elect, or re-elect, office bearers for the next two years until financial statements are finished for presentation to their sponsors and supporters, while the supporters’ committee wants the polls on January 25 fearing that any delays could lead to a mass exodus of players.
Already, Nomads’ captain Lawrence Majawa is reported to be in Botswana attending trials at a club being mentored by former Wanderers’ Zimbabwean coach, Rahman Gumbo. Reports are also rife that defence pillar Harry Nyirenda could be heading to Silver Strikers- the 2007/08 TNM Super League champions- in Malawi’s capital city, Lilongwe.
“These people at MTL Wanderers are very ungreatful; I helped them win the Super League during the 2005/06 season, and when they thought they were at arms’ length to winning the 2006/07 championship they stopped honouring their financial obligations. That is why, when they only needed a point to clinch the Super League, I sabotaged them and they failed,” said Mapira.
He added: “Still, they were unrepentant, hence their finishing on position five in the TNM Super League; it has never happened to them before, and they must expect more trouble. Let me say it openly here that they will not be among the top three during the Presidential Initiative on Sports which has already started at district level; they will not be in any prized-position at all, unless they pay all, times three this time around”.
For starters, Mapira is not new to Malawi soccer. He is an elementary coach whose team. Blantyre Netting, caused a stir in the Southern Region Football League the time he was at the helm. When he got replaced by the team’s administration, the team’s fortunes deserted them- the coach cum Juju-man took his roots home!
“Football is not all about tactics; it is also about muti. I am only worried that some of our people take our charms to South Africa, where different players from various countries ply their trade in the PSL. This will dilute the power of our herms because they are getting into so many hands,” said Mapira.
But Nomads officials Mapira said knew the issue, denied the accusations. They also threatened that once their names appear in this story, they will hire “thugs” to bit up this reporter.
“That is nonsense. We depend on God, the almighty,” shouted one of the officials, adding any linkage of his name to the story would be met with unforeseen consequencies. “Don’t even try to publish this”.
But Mapira’s story was also featured in Malawi’s Weekend Nation newspaper, though the issue was about the existence of Juju. Mapira said in the newspaper story Juju existed in Malawi, and that a certain team owed him money in juju services- the team was not mentioned.
“The team is Wanderers,” revealed Mapira to this reporter. He said he would nolonger receive the original amount but would accept only double the amount, which is K10, 000 multiplied by three.
“Wanderers will pay heavily for cheating on me. I have helped a lot of teams, including some in foreign leagues. They appreciate and pay in full. The good thing about us is that we let teams take our charms without advance pay, and receive it later when results speak for us- where else can you get such a fair game, and then you cheat? No, no, no, no!,” shouted Mapira.
Wanderers were the Malawi Super League champions for the 2006/07 soccer season but lost it to Escom Football Club the following season under mysterious circumstances. Mapira says it was because of his unpaid dues.
Mapira, in an exclusive interview, asked the Nomads executive committee to settle up the bill before their term of office expires. Wanderers, also known locally as the Nomads, are expected to go to club polls on January 25- though both the executive and supporters committee are giving contrary information.
The executive says they will not call for polls to elect, or re-elect, office bearers for the next two years until financial statements are finished for presentation to their sponsors and supporters, while the supporters’ committee wants the polls on January 25 fearing that any delays could lead to a mass exodus of players.
Already, Nomads’ captain Lawrence Majawa is reported to be in Botswana attending trials at a club being mentored by former Wanderers’ Zimbabwean coach, Rahman Gumbo. Reports are also rife that defence pillar Harry Nyirenda could be heading to Silver Strikers- the 2007/08 TNM Super League champions- in Malawi’s capital city, Lilongwe.
“These people at MTL Wanderers are very ungreatful; I helped them win the Super League during the 2005/06 season, and when they thought they were at arms’ length to winning the 2006/07 championship they stopped honouring their financial obligations. That is why, when they only needed a point to clinch the Super League, I sabotaged them and they failed,” said Mapira.
He added: “Still, they were unrepentant, hence their finishing on position five in the TNM Super League; it has never happened to them before, and they must expect more trouble. Let me say it openly here that they will not be among the top three during the Presidential Initiative on Sports which has already started at district level; they will not be in any prized-position at all, unless they pay all, times three this time around”.
For starters, Mapira is not new to Malawi soccer. He is an elementary coach whose team. Blantyre Netting, caused a stir in the Southern Region Football League the time he was at the helm. When he got replaced by the team’s administration, the team’s fortunes deserted them- the coach cum Juju-man took his roots home!
“Football is not all about tactics; it is also about muti. I am only worried that some of our people take our charms to South Africa, where different players from various countries ply their trade in the PSL. This will dilute the power of our herms because they are getting into so many hands,” said Mapira.
But Nomads officials Mapira said knew the issue, denied the accusations. They also threatened that once their names appear in this story, they will hire “thugs” to bit up this reporter.
“That is nonsense. We depend on God, the almighty,” shouted one of the officials, adding any linkage of his name to the story would be met with unforeseen consequencies. “Don’t even try to publish this”.
But Mapira’s story was also featured in Malawi’s Weekend Nation newspaper, though the issue was about the existence of Juju. Mapira said in the newspaper story Juju existed in Malawi, and that a certain team owed him money in juju services- the team was not mentioned.
“The team is Wanderers,” revealed Mapira to this reporter. He said he would nolonger receive the original amount but would accept only double the amount, which is K10, 000 multiplied by three.
“Wanderers will pay heavily for cheating on me. I have helped a lot of teams, including some in foreign leagues. They appreciate and pay in full. The good thing about us is that we let teams take our charms without advance pay, and receive it later when results speak for us- where else can you get such a fair game, and then you cheat? No, no, no, no!,” shouted Mapira.
Democracy in the valley (Chikhwawa)
This Sunday, May 17, 2009, a group of people gathered at Goma Primary
School in Chikhwawa. The bicycle parade to Mgabu Trading Centre, as one
way of sensitizing people about the beauty of taking part in national
elections, was taking too long to start. But everybody kept quiet, no
murmuring, complaints, whatsoever- just some inner, psychological
pain. It was as if everybody, more or less, blamed themselves for
their delinquency, lack of power to make things happen their way or
merely pushed it over to bad luck.
Among this group were Chikwawa group village heads- Goma, Senjere,
Changa, Makande, Linga, Singano, Konzere, Jombo, Mpheza, and Mgabu. At
Mgabu Trading Centre waited Traditional Authority (T/A) Mgabu himself,
and a host of other T/As; Ngowe and Sub-TA Masache, among others. The
meeting at Mgabu Trading Centre was initially slated for 10:00am, but
arrival delays for a Two-toner vehicle carrying the Public Address
System meant 12:00 noon would be the most probable time for departure
to the Trading Centre.
Then, around 11:00am, something happened- unrelated to the event that
was to be, but in the end (it) related, all the same. Made to relate
by the sharp democratically-tuned eye of Maynard Nyirenda, Programmes
Officer for the Sustainable Rural Growth and Development Initiative
(SRGDI), an organisation behind this great gathering of traditional
leaders and other villagers; for most of these, the relatively long
distance they had traveled registered on their bicycles. The village
‘motor vehicles’ had added some dusty colour to their, mostly, black
colour.
Distance speaks. It speaks through dust that clings to such mobile
property as bicycles, vehicles, ferries, even wheelbarrows.
Back to 11:00am, and what happened:
A man in his late 30s was chasing a little dog in, somewhat, lucid
manner from the Southern end of Goma Primary School. He caught up with
it just some two metres from Nyirenda and me, behind the primary
school. The ‘master’ then started whipping the little dog, fiercely,
without mercy, to the extent of even throwing six stones at it (poor
dog!). To Nyirenda’s amazement, the dog did not come anywhere near us
to seek refuge but lied down before him, licking his hands in an
attempt to mollify him.
That is typical of dogs; they often remain close to their master, even
when the master is away. They wait at home for his return, for in the
dog’s mind the master will always return, and then follows him
whenever it is permitted once he returns. The man, who later said his
name was Simeon Makaza, was a good man, according to some of the
villagers who sat patiently under Acacias trees, waiting for the
bicycle parade to Mgabu. He was only infuriated at his dog’s
discourtesy in eating his two mice. He had laboured and toiled really
had to get those two (mice) because, he claimed, eight more had eluded
his seemingly clever hands.
“I wanted to teach it (the dog) a lesson because it is still young,
only nine months old. As they say, Kuongola mtengo ndiukadali waungono
(the best time to straighten a tree is when it is still tender and
young),” said Makaza, seemingly satisfied with the ‘job’ he had done.
We did not leave Makaza at Goma Primary School, he and his dog. He
went home, some 100 metres away, took his bicycle and joined the
bicycle parade for Mgabu when 12:00 noon came and it was time to go.
Every one on the parade wore t-shirts written ‘Ndife Amodzi’ (We are
One). Except some four people because they had come alittle late when
the t-shirts had run out, but they still cycled, fully aware of the
importance of the day.
Any lessons from the ‘master’-little dog scenario at Goma (Primary
School)? I asked Nyirenda.
“Yes,” said Nyirenda. “It is like democracy”.
Here is a master and his little dog, and you talk about democracy. Has
that scenario gone that far?
“It’s not going far (linking the two to democracy); I am just applying
the things we come across in everyday life, like what we saw at Goma,
and relating them to democracy. The symbols we come across in life may
represent so many things, including the relationship between leaders
and their subjects, which I may link to democracy. There must always
be a process through which leaders are made accountable………….”
(Interruption)
I say, how does that relate to democracy?
“It relates. The dog had eaten its master’s two mice, isn’t it?”
He claimed so.
“Right. That applies in democratic systems of government, like ours
here in Malawi, too. The national leaders ‘eat’ our votes because we
cast them (votes) for them (leaders). The votes are not for free. It
is like investing power in them and we expect something back.
“Something in terms of development initiatives, favourable laws and
accountability. By beating up the dog, the owner- I wouldn’t love to
call him master, which does not apply in democracy because the master
is the voter, the purported subject- Makaza was just trying to make it
accountable for the two mice. Everything we see could have lessons to
the systems of our every day life,” said Nyirenda.
That was the reason national leaders have to play to ‘little dog’ once
every five years, he said. Just what happened on May19, 2009.
So, the delays in departing for Mgabu were a blessing in disguise; one
more lesson about democracy. Nyirenda said, for Malawi’s democracy to
grow and attain maturity to the level of the United States of America,
for instance, there was need to gauge the pay we have traveled, and
suggest some of the things we may put in place to make our leaders
accountable, other than instilling in them the spirit that they were
‘masters’.
Malawians needed to find out the impact of the four times (1994, 1999,
2004 and 2009) our national leaders were made to lie down and account
for their political actions. They then got re-elected (positive
sanction) or got the boot (negative sanction). That happens when
little dogs lie down.
Rafiq Hajat, Executive Director for the Institute for Policy
Interaction (IPI) and his counterpart at the Active Youth Initiative
for Social Enhancement, Marcel Chisi, agree with Nyirenda that there
is need to draw some lessons from the 15 years of Malawi’s democracy.
The boat is not half empty because even chairperson for the Public
Affairs Committee (Pac) Fr. Boniface Tamani, Human Rights Consultative
Committee’s (HRCC) chairperson, Undule Mwakasungula and Gender Support
Programme’s Cecilia Mussa agree- a common voice echoed by political
analysts and scientists.
Some of these lessons came out clearly during public lectures
organized by SRGDI with funding from the German institution GTZ. It
came under the ‘Demokalase Yathu’ (Our Democracy) Project, which was
conceived to help Malawians design democratic principles that make
local sense, and tallies with our hopes, wishes and aspirations.
Hajat, Mzuzu University political analyst Noel Mbowela, Chancellor
College lecture in the Department of Political and Administrative
Studies Joseph Chunga, among others, guided Malawians through this
process. Each step towards the whole 15-years process a lesson.
Some of these lessons also came from various other analysts and observers.
Malawi has no parliament, just a national assembly
One of the things that came out clearly was the revelation by Chisi
that Malawi has no parliament, only a national assembly. This took
students from the Catholic University by surprise. There was some
sort of understandable disgust provoked by that revelation, though it
is clear that constructive thinking, ironically, is almost taking the
place in Malawian politics of the politics of patronage as the void-
once filled by the zeal to appease, regionalism and nepotism- is being
filled with pour ideologies.
Having done away with the one party system of government, and thus
one-sidedness in thinking, people can now focus on a myriad of other
issues- truths, half truths, untruths, abuse, ignorance, or prejudice.
Chisi has picked prejudice, saying the events of 1997 in parliament,
when members of parliament (MPs) repelled the Senate, hinged on
prejudice for the people of Malawi because, as the behaviour of MPs
during the 2004 to 2009 House manifested, there was need for checks
and balances.
“Who could check that bunch of MPs? Not the constituents, because
those people were clearly following their party leaders’ bid, but the
senate. That is to say chiefs, minority groups, among others. It is
sad, but true, that Malawi has no parliament because of that action in
1997. Parliament comprises both the senate and the national assembly.
No one way about it,” says Chisi.
Hajat, however, says, as far as he was concerned, the Senate was still
there- at least in his mind- because the 1997 MPs did not call for a
referendum when undertaking such an “enormous task” as to discard off
chiefs and other minority groups in that one mad sweep.
That sounds very much like in 1993. In that year, Malawi’s political
curtain was apparently in tatters and appeared ripe for revolution.
Then came May17, 1994, when came the abrupt, but highly anticipated,
change- a new untried political demand made for a nation of learners.
It was a curious state of limbo buried by a collective barrage of
hope.
“That revolution is not over. We need that spirit to reverse the
damage imposed by a handful people over a nation state. We need the
Senate,” says Hajat.
He may be infuriated because, as it turned out, the hopeful image of
politics of perfection proved merely an illusion. The specter of a
smooth ride and fairness was apparently remote from a country still
dozing from a dictatorship, weakened by a new slanderous, castigating
multiparty regime still nursing the pangs of a shattered economy, an
overtaxed population and rife with traits of regionalism.
We may be lucky now, though, as political analysts and experts have
started replacing the lack of serious dissent, based on the view that
democracy would be perfect and the constitution hole-free. The likes
of Edge Kanyongolo, Boniface Dulani, among others, have contributed a
willingness to do voluntary research that unearths our shortfalls,
which they have presented at various platforms. No longer do members
of the academia, civil society organisations (CSOs), private sector
and the media view the political situation through the same prism.
This pleases Nyirenda, who chips in: “This situation will accord the
curious, progressive citizen a candid view of where our democracy has
come from while, for political scholars, it will supply some footnotes
to the relevance of citizens’ participation and, of course, give more
ammunition to the ‘dyed-in-the-wool’ critic of the Republican
constitution.”
Nobody is willing to relinquish grip over public media
One Bruce Sterling never set foot on Malawi. True. Yet, the practical
machinations of his words render credence in Malawi. If that sounds
unfamiliar, hear him (Sterling): “Knowledge is power. Do you suppose
that (that) fragile little form of yours, your primitive legs, your
ridiculous arms and hands, your tiny, scarcely wrinkled brain can
contain all that power? Certainly not! Already, your race is flying to
pieces under the impact of your own expertise. The original human form
is becoming obsolete.”
Nyirenda agrees that knowledge is power. There are so many ways of
getting this knowledge- through school class rooms, conferences,
meetings, seminars, every day experience. But none, he says, surpasses
the power of radio in Malawi, and to some extent television. And no
radio station surpasses the reach of Malawi Broadcasting Corporation’s
(MBC) Radio One (though Zodiac Broadcasting Station is going that
distance).
“People are being denied balanced knowledge here in Malawi; those
entrusted with the mandate to rule are not loosening their grip over
MBC, and that has an impact on democracy. What it means when we say
‘Knowledge is power’ is that it can change perspectives, it can tilt
results, it can misinform. Our people are being shown one side of the
coin and that is a serious anomaly,” says Nyirenda, an observation
once shared by many.
Dulani, Kanyongolo, Hajat, Mwakasungula, Hajat, international
electoral observers, parliament, former president Bakili Muluzi
(himself an abuser of the same) have all spoken about it. Even the
Malawi Communications Regulatory Authority and Electoral Commission’s
(EC) media monitoring units have pointed it out. No change.
Students who also patronized the Demokalase Yathu Public lectures felt
the same- the need to open up the airwaves to dissenting views.
“Let the people get the power. Whether they have the capacity to
contain that power (knowledge) is irrelevant in democracy. Democracy
means power to the people and knowledge is one way of imparting that
knowledge, power,” says Mwakasungula.
EC Chairperson, Justice Anastasia Msosa, bemoaned it too (patronage of
the public media) in her assessment of the official campaign period.
“The public media has performed miserably in leveling the playing
field for other political parties,” she said.
Democratic governance makes it necessary to provide a time frame,
which in Malawi’s case comes every five years after any other national
election, where it is necessary to unmask, through a secret ballot,
the mass of repressed political wishes lying within the unconscious so
that a new possibility founded on informed knowledge and choices may
be launched to inspire people towards the next course of development.
Two months before this all-important unmasking process, the EC pays
for airtime on public broadcasters so that other political players
should have a platform to share their plans, aspirations, wishes
compressed in manifestos.
It never happened in Malawi this time (2009), though it happened in
1994 when the winds of change drew cracks across the hither to single
wall. This is despite the fact that, with the 2004 general elections
approaching and Muluzi ineligible to succeed himself- having served
the two constitutional terms- people thought things would change.
There is hope, however, as most analysts agree. Chisi and Mwakasungula
agree that 2009 may not be fatefully late a beginning to start the
process of change. We are still learning, says Chisi, as evidenced by
the fact, for example, that it may take Malawi over 228 years to reach
the level of democracy of the United States (if maturity in democracy
was measured by the number of years in it, which is, fortunately, not
the case. Democracy lies in the head- the willingness to learn and
change).
While it may be hard to know the real intents behind people who would
want to abuse their political mandate by monopolizing public airwaves,
Mwakasungula says it becomes less hard to isolate their intents from
the will of the people. It all boils down to intolerance and
selfishness, which is often fortified by their propaganda apparatus
including the use of public broadcasters.
Our liberalized markets need democracy, too
The idea behind democratic systems of government is to avoid monopoly
of power by politicians. Those who opted for democracy over all other
forms must have learnt it the hard way from corporations that
monopolized markets in the past. The corporations originally had power
over every dimension of people’s lives: they produced what they (not
people) wanted; produced whatever quantity or quality they determined;
they fixed prices and costs; they decided on the future of each of
their employees and, sometimes, on the future of entire communities.
They could even determine where people lived; what work, if any, would
do for them (people); what they had to eat, drink and wear; what sort
of knowledge, schools and universities needed to encourage; and what
kind of society children had to inherit. Not only that, they also
affected everybody in their treatment of natural resources and how
they decided to deal with their own factory garbage and residues.
Some of these ills, chips in Hajat, continue to be practiced with our
market players.
“Take our tobacco buyers, for instance; they form cartels and connive
on prices; they refuse to share, let alone disclose, part of their
huge profits with the tobacco farmer in Rumphi, Kasungu, Dedza. The
case is the same with the tea grower in Mulanje, Thyolo; and cotton
growers in Salima, Chikwawa, Nsanje. This shows the clear need for
democracy in our market economy,” says Hajat.
He adds that the British government, for instance, makes more money
from taxes imposed on tobacco products than the ‘real’ man who toils
on the ground in Malawi can ever imagine in his basket. They make
billions, he says, when it remains the same old poverty story for the
African farmer.
His sentiments may emanate from the reality that, while our economic
system is sold to us under the banner of a liberalized, free
enterprise economy, experience shows that free enterprise no longer
exists, if, in deed, it ever did. This because free enterprise, as the
name implies, would have been a system in which buyers and sellers had
equal powers, met at a neutral market in the real village, possess
equal information and make their trade without leaving traces of
poverty behind.
Our markets may not be that neutral, in the words of Hajat, because
tobacco buyers dictate the stakes and government still passes
legislation that rigs the market by giving certain groups investment
tax credits, incentives, depletion and depreciation allowances,
subsidies, rebates and price supports.
Assertions best understood by long time Kasungu farmer, Andrew Bauti:
“We need democracy on the tobacco market, and powers enabling farmers
to vote out players who practice unfair trade. In our system,
currently, neither small and big businesses nor buyers and sellers are
equal in any way. It is very unfair on us because we toil and get
nothing in return.”
That may be true because power is contagious. It can only be fought
with equal, or more, power. Buyers are more powerful than the rural
farmer. That is where democracy comes in when, for once, common
citizens retain their power to fight possible excessive use of power
by those in elected positions. This upon the realization that every
human group that exercises power does so, not in such a way as to
bring total happiness to those who are subject to it, but in such a
way as to increase that power.
That happens when we all pretend to own up to the moral values of
democracy none of us really possesses. And Hajat is against it.
From personal to ideology-based politics
Then comes the question of presidential and parliamentary elections.
Sterling wrote that elections were a means by which people delegated
and extended their mandate to national leaders so that, after a
specific period of time, the people (electorate) get their mandate
back and extend it through the election, or re-election, of new
leaders.
Every thing in life is an extension, he argued: as the wheel is an
extension of the foot; clothing an extension of the skin; the roof an
extension of the sky; synthetic hair an extension of tree leaves;
democracy an extension of choice, to the effect that it is no longer
meaningful to see democracy as a subject. It has even moved from an
object of desire to that of designing.
People have designed elections not as an end, but a means to an end.
And the way Malawians are achieving their means to this end (electing
leaders) has pleased Fr. Boniface Tamani, chairperson for the Public
Affairs Committee (PAC) so much.
“People have moved from the politics of personalities to politics
based on principles and ideologies, something we have been advocating
for all these years. It is pleasing to note that we have started
moving towards that direction,” said Tamani.
It is only natural to appreciate, as he does, because every election
is a complex process. The complexity is compounded by the reality that
it involves a multi-purposed society of ever-evolving egos, a
development that means voting on personal, regional, or ideological
lines may not be out of the complete question. To expect that every
one will vote on the basis of principles is tantamount to thinking
that every citizen thinks alike, says Nyirenda.
“Elections and democracy in other words, counters the myth that we
live as autonomous individuals, as islands unto ourselves, without
rights balanced by duties. Our ‘Demokalase Yathu Project’, for
instance, is premised on the realization that every decision each and
every Malawian makes-whether it be to sell yourself into slavery or to
sell yourself into prostitution- adds to and creates the telos of
communities you are part of. You do not exist as an island, in
democracy, you live in the context of majority wishes,” said Nyirenda.
Not that the majority should take everything for themselves, he adds,
but must employ selflessness, compromise, servility and understanding
to improvise the minority population (voters), the social-economically
disenfranchised, the socially and politically marginalized and the
psychologically weak. When people vote on ideology lines, it feeds
into their nature that they must consider the wishes of others without
being tainted by partisanship, nepotism, regionalism, or whatever,”
according to Nyirenda.
Many analysts have hailed Malawians for voting along ideological lines
this time around, though sentiments by Malawi Congress Party leader,
John Tembo, seemed to suggest he wanted people to maintain the status
quo.
What does the sentence, “Those who know the politics of this country
will understand that the way (Bingu wa) Mutharika has amassed the
number of votes he has is very, extra-ordinary”, mean? (That is an
issue for next time).
People get the government they deserve
This is Rafiq Hajat’s tirade against none-voters. During the 2004
parliamentary and presidential elections, only one in every two
registered voters trekked to the polling station, while the rest
stayed home, some remained on the wheel (track and bus drivers). It is
called voter apathy, a term referred to a scenario where eligible
voters decide to stay out for various reasons. There has, however,
never been a comprehensive study on the reasons voters opted to stay
out of the polling station even before voting (when you vote, you are
not supposed to linger around the polling station. Before you vote,
you are most welcome).
“Some of these people were then heard murmuring and complaining about
all sorts of things. If you don’t vote, the government and
administration that comes in is the one you deserve. The solution lies
in voting,” he said.
He may be backed by fact. In 2004, people gave Mutharika, then
standing on United Democratic Front ticket, 36 per cent of the
presidential vote. The policies, ideologies and principles he brought
into office were the things that the people deserved, those who voted,
but more importantly, those who did not.
Come May19, 2009. There was a huge turn out, which Muluzi has equated
to the situation and enthusiasm of 1994. It can not be ruled out that
most of the voters that shunned voting in 2004 came out this time
around, and voted for Mutharika.
Mutharika has chalked 2, 946, 103 votes, translating into 50.7 per
cent of the total votes. Tembo, his staggeringly insignificant runner
up, got 24 per cent of the vote when he got 1, 370, 044 votes. EC
statistics indicate that 5.8 million people registered to be in that
lonely house, polling booth, for some 10 seconds or more.
Why do we say that? “Because Mutharika has amassed an overwhelming
number of votes than anyone else in multiparty democracy since 1994.
The people who stayed out have understandably contributed to this,
after discovering that, may be, Mutharika’s style of leadership could
be something they have wanted all along and deserve,” says Gender
Support Programme’s Cecilia Mussa.
The youth have a great role to play in Malawi’s democracy
It came out clearly, from the minds of Chancellor College’s Chunga and
Mbowela of Mzuni, that Malawian youths form a political bloc that can
be dismissed at one’s own peril. The youths, especially those pursuing
higher education, are taken as role models in rural areas, are
flexible to new ideas, have more access to communication channels, and
have the energy to pursue their dreams, said Chunga, and could
therefore influence political change.
Mbowela cited last year’s election in the United States of America,
where he said the youth, as a bloc, influenced the election of Barack
Obama, as the first African American president. This influence lies
not in voter apathy, but in the ways their goals and aspirations are
employed and the common end to which they are directed. In the USA,
this common end came in their hope for change, and voting for it.
It lies in action, youths’ power, according to Mbowela and Chunga.
Action Chunga said was evident during the nationalist period when
university youths formed a universities’ revolution group that
influenced political change across the width and breadth of the
continent.
A power still evident in current development initiatives. The youth
contribute towards farming in Malawi, they have helped in Malawi
Social Action Fund work, as well as the income generating public works
programme, adds Chunga.
But their main power and influence lies in their numbers. If only they
redirect their energies (from violence) to leadership participation,
their influence could work well for the country’s development agenda,
in the reckoning of Chunga.
Gender equality, too, is a great issue
A long, long battle that represents, in a way, the short of human
rights advocacy. The United Nations has mechanisms that ensure that
minority groups are not suppressed by the majority- some form of
guarantee that the majority will not take everything to themselves but
employ selflessness, compromise, servility and understanding on the
needs of the minority.
Nowhere do they talk about the suppressed majority, like women, and
how the powerful, influential minority should handle them
(selflessness, compassion, compromise, servility, understanding), a
magnanimous sort of international oversight because women comprise a
whooping 52 per cent of the Malawian population.
The suppression of women arose originally on grounds of economics,
which held that cultural and moral change derive from changes in
economic structure. This perceived suppression got perpetuated with
the concept of private property; mainly because women could reproduce,
they, like animals, were defined as property.
Mussa feels that this practice is continuing in Malawi, looking at the
nature of positions our women hold in society. It is evident in the
continued second class status most women are subjected to, especially
in rural areas where the husband is very much the patriarch to be
feared and worshipped in equal measure.
“It is also clear in the difficulties women continue to face in so
many areas- their continued difficulty in regulating such matters as
sex, marriage, procreation and divorce,” she says, one of the reasons
gender activists may have almost turned gender equality advocacy into
women empowerment campaigns.
Mussa is convinced this practice is also rampant in employment because
it allows employers to get two workers for the price of one as there
are huge disparities between salaries men and women get at the
workplace. The man is paid wages but his wife, who performs the
services necessary for him to live a decent life during the many hours
he spends at work, is not paid (by the husband).
Women also provide a cheap reserve of labour, which helps keep wages
down and profits up.
Will this change?
Emma Kaliya, NGO Gender Coordinating Network’s chairperson sees no
reason why it should not. She says, through advocacy work, things were
now improving- raising the hopes even higher for women is the fact
that the black clouds may ascend even further and live room for light.
This light comes when women are elected, or appointed, into decision
making decisions.
“That is why we have applauded President Mutharika for choosing Joyce
Banda, a reputable woman, as his running mate and, consequently, vice
president of this country. We are really happy. Now we want a female
speaker,” said Kaliya.
Some 40 seats have gone to women in parliament, following the May19
elections. This goes against the target for the 50-50 campaign for
women meant to catapult more women into decision making positions.
Only that the secret ballot may not be the best of catapults.
Gender activists are not worried, though. They say ensuring that women
get to the same level as men, in terms of numbers and influence, is a
process. But it is not a one-day process.
As Malawi moves more and more towards the island of democratic
maturity, women shall finally make it, according to Kaliya, who sums
up:
“We know for sure it will happen, and society will be an improved lot
because women are known for their caring nature, their unsurpassed
love.”
The battle for women empowerment, a majority that suffers suppression,
is a battle of love, and care.
Democracy is Malawian
Chisi further dispelled suggestion democracy was foreign. He said it
was both local and foreign, but more local than foreign.
“Our chiefs practiced it over a long period of time, even before
colonialism. In fact, colonialists found democracy here (in Malawi)
because our chiefs used to delegate cases to their counselors (Nduna
zamfumu). Isn’t that democracy?”
Local government elections are an integral part of democracy
Hajat says the absence of councilors has been felt for the past four
years, one that shows that their presence fills some void in the
democratic open space. He says failure to hold local government
elections violates people’s development and political rights, as the
duty of MPs was not to initiate development activities in their areas
but make laws.
Nyirenda and the others agree. How can we help the common Malawian
understand the tenets and principles of democracy when there is no
democracy near him (meaning councilors). He says councilors were
“democracy brought to the people”,- a form of living democracy that
sits and chats with the people and sleep with the people.
“Unlike most MPs, councilors live with the people they represent; they
know them personality. Isn’t that not democracy near the people?”
This has been one of the shorts so far; democracy that stays with the
people. The distance from Salima to Capital Hill is too huge to be
covered on foot. The distance to the councilor’s house is not, enthuses
Nyirenda.
The journey to explore the lessons from our fifteen-year old
democracy, too, is too long to be covered on foot. It is like walking from
Salima to Capital Hill.We may be forgiven for being at Mvela in Dowa, and not Capital Hill yet.
School in Chikhwawa. The bicycle parade to Mgabu Trading Centre, as one
way of sensitizing people about the beauty of taking part in national
elections, was taking too long to start. But everybody kept quiet, no
murmuring, complaints, whatsoever- just some inner, psychological
pain. It was as if everybody, more or less, blamed themselves for
their delinquency, lack of power to make things happen their way or
merely pushed it over to bad luck.
Among this group were Chikwawa group village heads- Goma, Senjere,
Changa, Makande, Linga, Singano, Konzere, Jombo, Mpheza, and Mgabu. At
Mgabu Trading Centre waited Traditional Authority (T/A) Mgabu himself,
and a host of other T/As; Ngowe and Sub-TA Masache, among others. The
meeting at Mgabu Trading Centre was initially slated for 10:00am, but
arrival delays for a Two-toner vehicle carrying the Public Address
System meant 12:00 noon would be the most probable time for departure
to the Trading Centre.
Then, around 11:00am, something happened- unrelated to the event that
was to be, but in the end (it) related, all the same. Made to relate
by the sharp democratically-tuned eye of Maynard Nyirenda, Programmes
Officer for the Sustainable Rural Growth and Development Initiative
(SRGDI), an organisation behind this great gathering of traditional
leaders and other villagers; for most of these, the relatively long
distance they had traveled registered on their bicycles. The village
‘motor vehicles’ had added some dusty colour to their, mostly, black
colour.
Distance speaks. It speaks through dust that clings to such mobile
property as bicycles, vehicles, ferries, even wheelbarrows.
Back to 11:00am, and what happened:
A man in his late 30s was chasing a little dog in, somewhat, lucid
manner from the Southern end of Goma Primary School. He caught up with
it just some two metres from Nyirenda and me, behind the primary
school. The ‘master’ then started whipping the little dog, fiercely,
without mercy, to the extent of even throwing six stones at it (poor
dog!). To Nyirenda’s amazement, the dog did not come anywhere near us
to seek refuge but lied down before him, licking his hands in an
attempt to mollify him.
That is typical of dogs; they often remain close to their master, even
when the master is away. They wait at home for his return, for in the
dog’s mind the master will always return, and then follows him
whenever it is permitted once he returns. The man, who later said his
name was Simeon Makaza, was a good man, according to some of the
villagers who sat patiently under Acacias trees, waiting for the
bicycle parade to Mgabu. He was only infuriated at his dog’s
discourtesy in eating his two mice. He had laboured and toiled really
had to get those two (mice) because, he claimed, eight more had eluded
his seemingly clever hands.
“I wanted to teach it (the dog) a lesson because it is still young,
only nine months old. As they say, Kuongola mtengo ndiukadali waungono
(the best time to straighten a tree is when it is still tender and
young),” said Makaza, seemingly satisfied with the ‘job’ he had done.
We did not leave Makaza at Goma Primary School, he and his dog. He
went home, some 100 metres away, took his bicycle and joined the
bicycle parade for Mgabu when 12:00 noon came and it was time to go.
Every one on the parade wore t-shirts written ‘Ndife Amodzi’ (We are
One). Except some four people because they had come alittle late when
the t-shirts had run out, but they still cycled, fully aware of the
importance of the day.
Any lessons from the ‘master’-little dog scenario at Goma (Primary
School)? I asked Nyirenda.
“Yes,” said Nyirenda. “It is like democracy”.
Here is a master and his little dog, and you talk about democracy. Has
that scenario gone that far?
“It’s not going far (linking the two to democracy); I am just applying
the things we come across in everyday life, like what we saw at Goma,
and relating them to democracy. The symbols we come across in life may
represent so many things, including the relationship between leaders
and their subjects, which I may link to democracy. There must always
be a process through which leaders are made accountable………….”
(Interruption)
I say, how does that relate to democracy?
“It relates. The dog had eaten its master’s two mice, isn’t it?”
He claimed so.
“Right. That applies in democratic systems of government, like ours
here in Malawi, too. The national leaders ‘eat’ our votes because we
cast them (votes) for them (leaders). The votes are not for free. It
is like investing power in them and we expect something back.
“Something in terms of development initiatives, favourable laws and
accountability. By beating up the dog, the owner- I wouldn’t love to
call him master, which does not apply in democracy because the master
is the voter, the purported subject- Makaza was just trying to make it
accountable for the two mice. Everything we see could have lessons to
the systems of our every day life,” said Nyirenda.
That was the reason national leaders have to play to ‘little dog’ once
every five years, he said. Just what happened on May19, 2009.
So, the delays in departing for Mgabu were a blessing in disguise; one
more lesson about democracy. Nyirenda said, for Malawi’s democracy to
grow and attain maturity to the level of the United States of America,
for instance, there was need to gauge the pay we have traveled, and
suggest some of the things we may put in place to make our leaders
accountable, other than instilling in them the spirit that they were
‘masters’.
Malawians needed to find out the impact of the four times (1994, 1999,
2004 and 2009) our national leaders were made to lie down and account
for their political actions. They then got re-elected (positive
sanction) or got the boot (negative sanction). That happens when
little dogs lie down.
Rafiq Hajat, Executive Director for the Institute for Policy
Interaction (IPI) and his counterpart at the Active Youth Initiative
for Social Enhancement, Marcel Chisi, agree with Nyirenda that there
is need to draw some lessons from the 15 years of Malawi’s democracy.
The boat is not half empty because even chairperson for the Public
Affairs Committee (Pac) Fr. Boniface Tamani, Human Rights Consultative
Committee’s (HRCC) chairperson, Undule Mwakasungula and Gender Support
Programme’s Cecilia Mussa agree- a common voice echoed by political
analysts and scientists.
Some of these lessons came out clearly during public lectures
organized by SRGDI with funding from the German institution GTZ. It
came under the ‘Demokalase Yathu’ (Our Democracy) Project, which was
conceived to help Malawians design democratic principles that make
local sense, and tallies with our hopes, wishes and aspirations.
Hajat, Mzuzu University political analyst Noel Mbowela, Chancellor
College lecture in the Department of Political and Administrative
Studies Joseph Chunga, among others, guided Malawians through this
process. Each step towards the whole 15-years process a lesson.
Some of these lessons also came from various other analysts and observers.
Malawi has no parliament, just a national assembly
One of the things that came out clearly was the revelation by Chisi
that Malawi has no parliament, only a national assembly. This took
students from the Catholic University by surprise. There was some
sort of understandable disgust provoked by that revelation, though it
is clear that constructive thinking, ironically, is almost taking the
place in Malawian politics of the politics of patronage as the void-
once filled by the zeal to appease, regionalism and nepotism- is being
filled with pour ideologies.
Having done away with the one party system of government, and thus
one-sidedness in thinking, people can now focus on a myriad of other
issues- truths, half truths, untruths, abuse, ignorance, or prejudice.
Chisi has picked prejudice, saying the events of 1997 in parliament,
when members of parliament (MPs) repelled the Senate, hinged on
prejudice for the people of Malawi because, as the behaviour of MPs
during the 2004 to 2009 House manifested, there was need for checks
and balances.
“Who could check that bunch of MPs? Not the constituents, because
those people were clearly following their party leaders’ bid, but the
senate. That is to say chiefs, minority groups, among others. It is
sad, but true, that Malawi has no parliament because of that action in
1997. Parliament comprises both the senate and the national assembly.
No one way about it,” says Chisi.
Hajat, however, says, as far as he was concerned, the Senate was still
there- at least in his mind- because the 1997 MPs did not call for a
referendum when undertaking such an “enormous task” as to discard off
chiefs and other minority groups in that one mad sweep.
That sounds very much like in 1993. In that year, Malawi’s political
curtain was apparently in tatters and appeared ripe for revolution.
Then came May17, 1994, when came the abrupt, but highly anticipated,
change- a new untried political demand made for a nation of learners.
It was a curious state of limbo buried by a collective barrage of
hope.
“That revolution is not over. We need that spirit to reverse the
damage imposed by a handful people over a nation state. We need the
Senate,” says Hajat.
He may be infuriated because, as it turned out, the hopeful image of
politics of perfection proved merely an illusion. The specter of a
smooth ride and fairness was apparently remote from a country still
dozing from a dictatorship, weakened by a new slanderous, castigating
multiparty regime still nursing the pangs of a shattered economy, an
overtaxed population and rife with traits of regionalism.
We may be lucky now, though, as political analysts and experts have
started replacing the lack of serious dissent, based on the view that
democracy would be perfect and the constitution hole-free. The likes
of Edge Kanyongolo, Boniface Dulani, among others, have contributed a
willingness to do voluntary research that unearths our shortfalls,
which they have presented at various platforms. No longer do members
of the academia, civil society organisations (CSOs), private sector
and the media view the political situation through the same prism.
This pleases Nyirenda, who chips in: “This situation will accord the
curious, progressive citizen a candid view of where our democracy has
come from while, for political scholars, it will supply some footnotes
to the relevance of citizens’ participation and, of course, give more
ammunition to the ‘dyed-in-the-wool’ critic of the Republican
constitution.”
Nobody is willing to relinquish grip over public media
One Bruce Sterling never set foot on Malawi. True. Yet, the practical
machinations of his words render credence in Malawi. If that sounds
unfamiliar, hear him (Sterling): “Knowledge is power. Do you suppose
that (that) fragile little form of yours, your primitive legs, your
ridiculous arms and hands, your tiny, scarcely wrinkled brain can
contain all that power? Certainly not! Already, your race is flying to
pieces under the impact of your own expertise. The original human form
is becoming obsolete.”
Nyirenda agrees that knowledge is power. There are so many ways of
getting this knowledge- through school class rooms, conferences,
meetings, seminars, every day experience. But none, he says, surpasses
the power of radio in Malawi, and to some extent television. And no
radio station surpasses the reach of Malawi Broadcasting Corporation’s
(MBC) Radio One (though Zodiac Broadcasting Station is going that
distance).
“People are being denied balanced knowledge here in Malawi; those
entrusted with the mandate to rule are not loosening their grip over
MBC, and that has an impact on democracy. What it means when we say
‘Knowledge is power’ is that it can change perspectives, it can tilt
results, it can misinform. Our people are being shown one side of the
coin and that is a serious anomaly,” says Nyirenda, an observation
once shared by many.
Dulani, Kanyongolo, Hajat, Mwakasungula, Hajat, international
electoral observers, parliament, former president Bakili Muluzi
(himself an abuser of the same) have all spoken about it. Even the
Malawi Communications Regulatory Authority and Electoral Commission’s
(EC) media monitoring units have pointed it out. No change.
Students who also patronized the Demokalase Yathu Public lectures felt
the same- the need to open up the airwaves to dissenting views.
“Let the people get the power. Whether they have the capacity to
contain that power (knowledge) is irrelevant in democracy. Democracy
means power to the people and knowledge is one way of imparting that
knowledge, power,” says Mwakasungula.
EC Chairperson, Justice Anastasia Msosa, bemoaned it too (patronage of
the public media) in her assessment of the official campaign period.
“The public media has performed miserably in leveling the playing
field for other political parties,” she said.
Democratic governance makes it necessary to provide a time frame,
which in Malawi’s case comes every five years after any other national
election, where it is necessary to unmask, through a secret ballot,
the mass of repressed political wishes lying within the unconscious so
that a new possibility founded on informed knowledge and choices may
be launched to inspire people towards the next course of development.
Two months before this all-important unmasking process, the EC pays
for airtime on public broadcasters so that other political players
should have a platform to share their plans, aspirations, wishes
compressed in manifestos.
It never happened in Malawi this time (2009), though it happened in
1994 when the winds of change drew cracks across the hither to single
wall. This is despite the fact that, with the 2004 general elections
approaching and Muluzi ineligible to succeed himself- having served
the two constitutional terms- people thought things would change.
There is hope, however, as most analysts agree. Chisi and Mwakasungula
agree that 2009 may not be fatefully late a beginning to start the
process of change. We are still learning, says Chisi, as evidenced by
the fact, for example, that it may take Malawi over 228 years to reach
the level of democracy of the United States (if maturity in democracy
was measured by the number of years in it, which is, fortunately, not
the case. Democracy lies in the head- the willingness to learn and
change).
While it may be hard to know the real intents behind people who would
want to abuse their political mandate by monopolizing public airwaves,
Mwakasungula says it becomes less hard to isolate their intents from
the will of the people. It all boils down to intolerance and
selfishness, which is often fortified by their propaganda apparatus
including the use of public broadcasters.
Our liberalized markets need democracy, too
The idea behind democratic systems of government is to avoid monopoly
of power by politicians. Those who opted for democracy over all other
forms must have learnt it the hard way from corporations that
monopolized markets in the past. The corporations originally had power
over every dimension of people’s lives: they produced what they (not
people) wanted; produced whatever quantity or quality they determined;
they fixed prices and costs; they decided on the future of each of
their employees and, sometimes, on the future of entire communities.
They could even determine where people lived; what work, if any, would
do for them (people); what they had to eat, drink and wear; what sort
of knowledge, schools and universities needed to encourage; and what
kind of society children had to inherit. Not only that, they also
affected everybody in their treatment of natural resources and how
they decided to deal with their own factory garbage and residues.
Some of these ills, chips in Hajat, continue to be practiced with our
market players.
“Take our tobacco buyers, for instance; they form cartels and connive
on prices; they refuse to share, let alone disclose, part of their
huge profits with the tobacco farmer in Rumphi, Kasungu, Dedza. The
case is the same with the tea grower in Mulanje, Thyolo; and cotton
growers in Salima, Chikwawa, Nsanje. This shows the clear need for
democracy in our market economy,” says Hajat.
He adds that the British government, for instance, makes more money
from taxes imposed on tobacco products than the ‘real’ man who toils
on the ground in Malawi can ever imagine in his basket. They make
billions, he says, when it remains the same old poverty story for the
African farmer.
His sentiments may emanate from the reality that, while our economic
system is sold to us under the banner of a liberalized, free
enterprise economy, experience shows that free enterprise no longer
exists, if, in deed, it ever did. This because free enterprise, as the
name implies, would have been a system in which buyers and sellers had
equal powers, met at a neutral market in the real village, possess
equal information and make their trade without leaving traces of
poverty behind.
Our markets may not be that neutral, in the words of Hajat, because
tobacco buyers dictate the stakes and government still passes
legislation that rigs the market by giving certain groups investment
tax credits, incentives, depletion and depreciation allowances,
subsidies, rebates and price supports.
Assertions best understood by long time Kasungu farmer, Andrew Bauti:
“We need democracy on the tobacco market, and powers enabling farmers
to vote out players who practice unfair trade. In our system,
currently, neither small and big businesses nor buyers and sellers are
equal in any way. It is very unfair on us because we toil and get
nothing in return.”
That may be true because power is contagious. It can only be fought
with equal, or more, power. Buyers are more powerful than the rural
farmer. That is where democracy comes in when, for once, common
citizens retain their power to fight possible excessive use of power
by those in elected positions. This upon the realization that every
human group that exercises power does so, not in such a way as to
bring total happiness to those who are subject to it, but in such a
way as to increase that power.
That happens when we all pretend to own up to the moral values of
democracy none of us really possesses. And Hajat is against it.
From personal to ideology-based politics
Then comes the question of presidential and parliamentary elections.
Sterling wrote that elections were a means by which people delegated
and extended their mandate to national leaders so that, after a
specific period of time, the people (electorate) get their mandate
back and extend it through the election, or re-election, of new
leaders.
Every thing in life is an extension, he argued: as the wheel is an
extension of the foot; clothing an extension of the skin; the roof an
extension of the sky; synthetic hair an extension of tree leaves;
democracy an extension of choice, to the effect that it is no longer
meaningful to see democracy as a subject. It has even moved from an
object of desire to that of designing.
People have designed elections not as an end, but a means to an end.
And the way Malawians are achieving their means to this end (electing
leaders) has pleased Fr. Boniface Tamani, chairperson for the Public
Affairs Committee (PAC) so much.
“People have moved from the politics of personalities to politics
based on principles and ideologies, something we have been advocating
for all these years. It is pleasing to note that we have started
moving towards that direction,” said Tamani.
It is only natural to appreciate, as he does, because every election
is a complex process. The complexity is compounded by the reality that
it involves a multi-purposed society of ever-evolving egos, a
development that means voting on personal, regional, or ideological
lines may not be out of the complete question. To expect that every
one will vote on the basis of principles is tantamount to thinking
that every citizen thinks alike, says Nyirenda.
“Elections and democracy in other words, counters the myth that we
live as autonomous individuals, as islands unto ourselves, without
rights balanced by duties. Our ‘Demokalase Yathu Project’, for
instance, is premised on the realization that every decision each and
every Malawian makes-whether it be to sell yourself into slavery or to
sell yourself into prostitution- adds to and creates the telos of
communities you are part of. You do not exist as an island, in
democracy, you live in the context of majority wishes,” said Nyirenda.
Not that the majority should take everything for themselves, he adds,
but must employ selflessness, compromise, servility and understanding
to improvise the minority population (voters), the social-economically
disenfranchised, the socially and politically marginalized and the
psychologically weak. When people vote on ideology lines, it feeds
into their nature that they must consider the wishes of others without
being tainted by partisanship, nepotism, regionalism, or whatever,”
according to Nyirenda.
Many analysts have hailed Malawians for voting along ideological lines
this time around, though sentiments by Malawi Congress Party leader,
John Tembo, seemed to suggest he wanted people to maintain the status
quo.
What does the sentence, “Those who know the politics of this country
will understand that the way (Bingu wa) Mutharika has amassed the
number of votes he has is very, extra-ordinary”, mean? (That is an
issue for next time).
People get the government they deserve
This is Rafiq Hajat’s tirade against none-voters. During the 2004
parliamentary and presidential elections, only one in every two
registered voters trekked to the polling station, while the rest
stayed home, some remained on the wheel (track and bus drivers). It is
called voter apathy, a term referred to a scenario where eligible
voters decide to stay out for various reasons. There has, however,
never been a comprehensive study on the reasons voters opted to stay
out of the polling station even before voting (when you vote, you are
not supposed to linger around the polling station. Before you vote,
you are most welcome).
“Some of these people were then heard murmuring and complaining about
all sorts of things. If you don’t vote, the government and
administration that comes in is the one you deserve. The solution lies
in voting,” he said.
He may be backed by fact. In 2004, people gave Mutharika, then
standing on United Democratic Front ticket, 36 per cent of the
presidential vote. The policies, ideologies and principles he brought
into office were the things that the people deserved, those who voted,
but more importantly, those who did not.
Come May19, 2009. There was a huge turn out, which Muluzi has equated
to the situation and enthusiasm of 1994. It can not be ruled out that
most of the voters that shunned voting in 2004 came out this time
around, and voted for Mutharika.
Mutharika has chalked 2, 946, 103 votes, translating into 50.7 per
cent of the total votes. Tembo, his staggeringly insignificant runner
up, got 24 per cent of the vote when he got 1, 370, 044 votes. EC
statistics indicate that 5.8 million people registered to be in that
lonely house, polling booth, for some 10 seconds or more.
Why do we say that? “Because Mutharika has amassed an overwhelming
number of votes than anyone else in multiparty democracy since 1994.
The people who stayed out have understandably contributed to this,
after discovering that, may be, Mutharika’s style of leadership could
be something they have wanted all along and deserve,” says Gender
Support Programme’s Cecilia Mussa.
The youth have a great role to play in Malawi’s democracy
It came out clearly, from the minds of Chancellor College’s Chunga and
Mbowela of Mzuni, that Malawian youths form a political bloc that can
be dismissed at one’s own peril. The youths, especially those pursuing
higher education, are taken as role models in rural areas, are
flexible to new ideas, have more access to communication channels, and
have the energy to pursue their dreams, said Chunga, and could
therefore influence political change.
Mbowela cited last year’s election in the United States of America,
where he said the youth, as a bloc, influenced the election of Barack
Obama, as the first African American president. This influence lies
not in voter apathy, but in the ways their goals and aspirations are
employed and the common end to which they are directed. In the USA,
this common end came in their hope for change, and voting for it.
It lies in action, youths’ power, according to Mbowela and Chunga.
Action Chunga said was evident during the nationalist period when
university youths formed a universities’ revolution group that
influenced political change across the width and breadth of the
continent.
A power still evident in current development initiatives. The youth
contribute towards farming in Malawi, they have helped in Malawi
Social Action Fund work, as well as the income generating public works
programme, adds Chunga.
But their main power and influence lies in their numbers. If only they
redirect their energies (from violence) to leadership participation,
their influence could work well for the country’s development agenda,
in the reckoning of Chunga.
Gender equality, too, is a great issue
A long, long battle that represents, in a way, the short of human
rights advocacy. The United Nations has mechanisms that ensure that
minority groups are not suppressed by the majority- some form of
guarantee that the majority will not take everything to themselves but
employ selflessness, compromise, servility and understanding on the
needs of the minority.
Nowhere do they talk about the suppressed majority, like women, and
how the powerful, influential minority should handle them
(selflessness, compassion, compromise, servility, understanding), a
magnanimous sort of international oversight because women comprise a
whooping 52 per cent of the Malawian population.
The suppression of women arose originally on grounds of economics,
which held that cultural and moral change derive from changes in
economic structure. This perceived suppression got perpetuated with
the concept of private property; mainly because women could reproduce,
they, like animals, were defined as property.
Mussa feels that this practice is continuing in Malawi, looking at the
nature of positions our women hold in society. It is evident in the
continued second class status most women are subjected to, especially
in rural areas where the husband is very much the patriarch to be
feared and worshipped in equal measure.
“It is also clear in the difficulties women continue to face in so
many areas- their continued difficulty in regulating such matters as
sex, marriage, procreation and divorce,” she says, one of the reasons
gender activists may have almost turned gender equality advocacy into
women empowerment campaigns.
Mussa is convinced this practice is also rampant in employment because
it allows employers to get two workers for the price of one as there
are huge disparities between salaries men and women get at the
workplace. The man is paid wages but his wife, who performs the
services necessary for him to live a decent life during the many hours
he spends at work, is not paid (by the husband).
Women also provide a cheap reserve of labour, which helps keep wages
down and profits up.
Will this change?
Emma Kaliya, NGO Gender Coordinating Network’s chairperson sees no
reason why it should not. She says, through advocacy work, things were
now improving- raising the hopes even higher for women is the fact
that the black clouds may ascend even further and live room for light.
This light comes when women are elected, or appointed, into decision
making decisions.
“That is why we have applauded President Mutharika for choosing Joyce
Banda, a reputable woman, as his running mate and, consequently, vice
president of this country. We are really happy. Now we want a female
speaker,” said Kaliya.
Some 40 seats have gone to women in parliament, following the May19
elections. This goes against the target for the 50-50 campaign for
women meant to catapult more women into decision making positions.
Only that the secret ballot may not be the best of catapults.
Gender activists are not worried, though. They say ensuring that women
get to the same level as men, in terms of numbers and influence, is a
process. But it is not a one-day process.
As Malawi moves more and more towards the island of democratic
maturity, women shall finally make it, according to Kaliya, who sums
up:
“We know for sure it will happen, and society will be an improved lot
because women are known for their caring nature, their unsurpassed
love.”
The battle for women empowerment, a majority that suffers suppression,
is a battle of love, and care.
Democracy is Malawian
Chisi further dispelled suggestion democracy was foreign. He said it
was both local and foreign, but more local than foreign.
“Our chiefs practiced it over a long period of time, even before
colonialism. In fact, colonialists found democracy here (in Malawi)
because our chiefs used to delegate cases to their counselors (Nduna
zamfumu). Isn’t that democracy?”
Local government elections are an integral part of democracy
Hajat says the absence of councilors has been felt for the past four
years, one that shows that their presence fills some void in the
democratic open space. He says failure to hold local government
elections violates people’s development and political rights, as the
duty of MPs was not to initiate development activities in their areas
but make laws.
Nyirenda and the others agree. How can we help the common Malawian
understand the tenets and principles of democracy when there is no
democracy near him (meaning councilors). He says councilors were
“democracy brought to the people”,- a form of living democracy that
sits and chats with the people and sleep with the people.
“Unlike most MPs, councilors live with the people they represent; they
know them personality. Isn’t that not democracy near the people?”
This has been one of the shorts so far; democracy that stays with the
people. The distance from Salima to Capital Hill is too huge to be
covered on foot. The distance to the councilor’s house is not, enthuses
Nyirenda.
The journey to explore the lessons from our fifteen-year old
democracy, too, is too long to be covered on foot. It is like walking from
Salima to Capital Hill.We may be forgiven for being at Mvela in Dowa, and not Capital Hill yet.
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