Chakwera demands Goodall, Nankhumwa resignation and probe for reducing  Malawi govt to ‘a common criminal’

Main opposition Malawi Congress Party (MCP) has accused Ministers of Finance and Local Government  of  the act of criminalizing the government  unbudgeted controversial K4 billion allocated to parliamentary constituencies, saying the opposition has saved the  State from being criminalised by regularising the funding with MCP  president Lazarus Chakwera demanding that the two ministers should  resigns with immediate effect .

Leader of opposiiton Lazarous Chakwera:  The DPP government has been caught red-handed

Chakwera, who is also Leader of Opposition, said in his closing remarks to the sitting of Mid-tern Budget Review of Parliament on Friday.

“Before this House rises, I would be remiss if I did not go on record to lament the great injustice that government has done the Malawian people during this sitting. I am greatly disheartened by the fact that we in opposition have had to once again come to the government’s rescue from its own blunders,” said Chakwera.

He said  the Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) led administration through the Finance Minister, Goodall Gondwe  was “caught red-handed” in the act of flouting procedure and violating the law in its acquisition and distribution of K4 billion  earmarked for the development of the whole nation.

“Five bad decisions by the Government deserve special attention: its decision to hide the source of the funding; its decision to make contradictory statements about the source of the funding; its decision to unilaterally decide that the development funds should be allocated to less than half of the country’s constituencies; its decision to allocate the funds in a clandestine fashion outside and with no accountability to this House; and its decision to hide the criteria it used to allocate the funds. All of this has left us Malawians justified in our suspicion that the allocation was a kickback to some Parliamentarians who are more concerned about keeping their seats than keeping their integrity,” said Chakwera.

Chakwera said the opposition felt compelled to arrest the situation by stopping what amounts to an act of theft.

“Putting the interests of the nation above our own political ambitions, we did not feel that in would be in the nation’s interest for the Government to be reduced to a common criminal, for if the State is criminalized, our very Republic would collapse,” he said.

He said the  Finance Minister  would not have to put  the legislators in such an impossible situation, “to choose between his act of criminalizing the Government illegally and our act of decriminalizing the Government legally.”

Said Chakwera: “But in the valley of decisions there are no wishes that turn into horses, and so in the interest of the nation, we have acted to make sure that there is no record in the history of this House that we allowed the illegal act of spending Malawians’ taxpayers’ money without Parliament’s approval.”

Chakwera said the parliamentarians later agreed the K4 billion should be spread to all 193 constituencies instead of just 86 “to make sure that the money is used as it is intended, not as a trophy to reward political exploitation, but a resource for the development of all Malawians, who will now benefit in every constituency through the construction of bridges, schools, and hospitals, to name a few.”

He said: “ This was a case of us stopping a man from stealing food from his employers’ kitchen to reward his friends, and then finding a legal means to return the food to its rightful owner, even if it means those seeing us carrying the food back to the owners may judge us wrongly by thinking that it is we who are the thieves.”

The MCP president said since measures have been taken to rectify the situation, the opposition  demand further action “in order to recover what credibility this House has lost in the process.”

First, he said the opposition demand that the actions of the Finance Minister and the Minister of Local Government Kondwani Nankhumwa  be fully investigated, not only by the Anti-Corruption Bureau, but also by the relevant committee of  Parliament “to determine, with evidence, the nature and extent of their wrong doing, and whether they took these actions on their own or on orders from the President.”

Secondly, the opposition, according to Chakwera,  demand that the two Ministers in question,” out of respect for the Office of the President and this House, should tender their resignations.”

Chakwera also took a dig at the DPP, saying since  Malawians are suffering from poorly funded and resourced public services and program, the governing party should use its “newly discovered talent of finding money in mysterious places “ to find more money to complete the projects it guaranteed in the 20 promises it made in its Manifesto but has largely yet to fulfil.

He said failing to do so  “Malawians feel that the opportunity to fire the lot of them in a matter of months cannot come soon enough.”

But presenting his ‘discontinuance’ speech in Chamber on Friday, leader of government business in Parliament, Kondwani Nankhumwa did not comment about the resignation.

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Chilungamo
Chilungamo
6 years ago

If we still have naive people (of course stupid) who still can’t figure-out why this country is a stand-out alone impoverished nation even in this African sub-region, look no where else. If the whole government machinery would connive and conspire to legitimise broad-daylight theft and still as a country we can’t see anything wrong? Furthermore a supposedly oversight arm of government dancing to the tune of the madness.
If Malawians are to face to truth, no wonder we are the most pathetic. Even Goodall can’t give a coherent answer for an over 4bn Mk government expenditure.

Praise
Praise
6 years ago

If the party was able to kill hundreds that time ,this time they will kill thousands in an hour. MCP will never win mark my comment mutukwana but the truth will remain

Napoleon
Napoleon
6 years ago

Chakwera wayetsa m c p .

kaka ni dada
kaka ni dada
6 years ago

Kodi a Pitala ndi team yawoyi samachita manyazi ndi kuba?

Wa Mwale
Wa Mwale
6 years ago

Some mps who are more concerned in keeping their seats rather than serving the nation, govnt full of thieves from Boss to office keeper. Well done opposition these money now will reach the people in the constituency.

ovaha mbwiyanga
ovaha mbwiyanga
6 years ago

OChakwela welcome to politics one more time…dont think your wishes will turn into horses..your boys on this forum will continue making noise…but they dont have enough votes to take you to state house in 2019. You better realize that politics is a game of numbers and you will struggle to consolidate them. Better be a Pastor than a politician..paja you are God sent…..so tiziona izo ukhumba.. Manje uzayiona ya mu Cinema…..its just a matter of time

Kwacha
Kwacha
6 years ago

WE WERE ONCE TOLD THAT APM IS A PRINCE OF THEIVES,CAN YOU SEE NOW WHAT ROBIN HOOD MUTHARIKA IS

Hatton
Hatton
6 years ago

The right Honourable Leader of Opposition would have had my support had he also asked the leadership of the institution that was caught red handed in the act of illegal water connection in Lilongwe to resign as well.

Kaitano
Kaitano
6 years ago
Reply to  Hatton

How about the Government Bills you have failed to pay BWB? iweso ndi Fisi wachabechabe eti? is it not the same?

1944
6 years ago

A Chakwera mwalakwitsa kuti nanunso mudweko ndarama dzimezi ngatinso MP. Tikudziwa kuti dzinali dzogulila ma MP aja analepheretsa Proportional Representation ( 50+1) bill. Tipita kuti poti tsono nonse ndinu akuba. You are all thieves. We all wanted to vote for you but mwawononga. Tivotera ndani tsono ??? INE Ku MPOTO
??

Beholder kuno
Beholder kuno
6 years ago

Kudos Chakwera, you are ready to govern Malawi & this beautiful country needs a decisive leader like you. We are tired of corrupt politicians protected by the rotten status quo. This unethical administration continues to rape vulnerable Malawians. Fire them & drain the swamp!!!’

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