Chakwera spent 2023 travelling not governing, NGO says

The Leadership Institute for Transparency and Accountability (LITA) has described 2023 as the most wasted year in the history of Malawi’s political governance and socio-economic development agenda under the ruling Malawi Congress Party (MCP).

LITA, which is one of the vocal governance grouping operating in the country, made the sentiments through a press statement issued on Wednesday under the tittle: 2023 a wasted Year.  

The statement says 2023 was the year Malawians had high hopes that the President Lazarus Chakwera administration would solve the socio-economic problems that had marauded the citizens.

“At the time when Malawians expected the State President to swiftly take serious action, the man of God was either travelling locally or outside the country. In short, Malawians have had an absent President,” reads the statement in part

According to the statement, 2023 was the year when the President had watched over high industrialized corruption in the echelon of power.

“The administration tirelessly advanced public looting, money laundering and racketeering agenda. Billions of Malawi Kwachas that could have boosted the health, road, education and agricultural sectors, had been syphoned through dubious deals, yet to date, no culprit has been brought to book.

This, therefore, entails that the Chakwera administration is a bunch of thieves with no agenda for transformative leadership.”

Lita further said in the just ended year Malawi witnessed a number of mysterious deaths  and rise in murder cases.

“It is not lost on Malawians, that during the Chakwera administration, we lamented over the dubious deaths of Lusungu Mwakhwawa, of Federalism Institute in Malawi, Allan Witika, the former Sales Manager of the Coca-Cola beverage, Agnes Katengeza, the former employee of the Reserve Bank of Malawi, among others.

These deaths happened in between August and September 2023. Road accidents were on the rise due to road carnages. Suicidal deaths skyrocketed. Cases of robbery were at their toll, signifying security breakdown, among others.”

“The previous year was earmarked by gross human rights violations as evidenced by the detention, arbitrary arrest, threats and intimidation of human rights activists in the country. All these human rights violations were orchestrated by failed politicians from the governing Malawi Congress Party (MCP).

“What was even more worrisome was the gross negligence of the Chakwera administration to control the economy. The Kwacha went on losing its grip with no political will to bring it into total check. The prices of basic food commodities, including maize, went up, without the administration’s effort to regulate the prices for the reach of the poorest Malawians. The series of the Kwacha devaluation have crippled the economy with no hope of recovery. Sadly, salaries in the civil service remain disproportionate to the devaluation rate.”

“The politicization of the Affordable farm Input Program (AIP), and loans at National Economic Empowerment Fund (NEEF) continues to worry us. Nepotism, tribalism, cronyism, and executive arrogance, are even terribly the worst in this administration.

The division among the civil society, the opposition political parties, the numbness of Public Affairs Committee (PAC), had been the weakest link among the chain that could have provided the checks and balances.”

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