Cancel Independence Day celebrations in view of soaring cost of living – Nankhumwa

Leader of Opposition in Parliament Kondwani Nankhumwa has asked government to cancel Independence Day celebration activities on July 6 in view of the escalating cost of living.

He said this just hours after Malawi Energy Regulatory Authority (Mera) announced a 34 per cent fuel pump price hike, triggering immediate price spike of other commodities.

But Nankhumwa says the National Prayer Service should go ahead.

The government has announced that this year’s Independence celebrations would be held in Blantyre.

In a statement posted on his face book page, Nankhumwa says under these painful social and economic conditions, the government should not be spending millions of taxpayers’ money on dining and winning in the name of Independence celebrations when millions of Malawians cannot even afford a meal.

According to him, Malawians are not in a celebratory mood.

On fuel pump price increase, he said in Tanzania, fuel prices have just gone down due to subsidies effected by government upon seeing the suffering of its people and the situation is the same in Zambia and Rwanda and wondered if this is not possible in Malawi.

“One of the duties of government is to come to the rescue of its people in times like these. Mr President, this is the time to rescue Malawians,” he says.

He says in Malawi there is the Price Stabilization Fund, which he said is meant to stabilize the prices of fuel and urged those responsible for the said fund to account as to how the funds have been used over the past two years.

“I would like to urge relevant parliamentary committees to demand a report on how the Price Stabilization Fund has been used, and also a statement from President Chakwera on the same,” Nankhumwa says.

He further advises government to also seriously consider reviewing some fuel levies to keep the price of fuel down the example being the AGGREKO levy which is still being collected despite the fact that recently government terminated the AGGREKO contract.