Chimwemwe Banda of ‘ugly face’ remarks finally out of MBC
Government has finally removed controversial Chimwemwe Banda from national broadcaster Malawi Broadcasting Corporation (MBC) and has redeployed to the Ministry of Health as deputy director.
Banda was working as MBC’s Director of News and Programmes.
MBC staff who spoke to Nyasa Times said Banda has bid farewell to her workmates
Banda made headlines when she called her junior at the state broadcaster “ugly.”
She is said to have made the remarks after TV presenter Marie Segula was picked by the ministry of foreign affairs and international cooperation to host the 6th Comesa first ladies meeting in Lilongwe last year.
“Some of these ugly faces” she said and caused quite a storm with Women in Law in Southern Africa (WLSA-Malawi) head Seodi White saying to call someone ugly was “despising God” who created all in His image.
Other ills
Some of her record at MBC is that she single highhandedly fired Ina Thombozi and cost the corporation K18 million k in an affair dismissal damages after she sued.
Fired Ruth Govati -now President Joyce Banda’s press officer – for being approached by Joyce Banda to her personnel assistant when she was Minister of Foreign Affairs under Bingu Wa Mutharika.
Then she transferred Timothy Sandram the then chief producer to Lilongwe there after National Audit office for reporting to Joyce Banda (JB) that she had ordered that her materials be given a black out on TVM after JB brushed shoulders with Bingu.
Sandram later married Govati and an MBC-TVM merger committee chaired by Chimwemwe Banda fired him.
She orchestrated the removal of Tamara Chafunya to Lilongwe city assembly and then redeployed her husband Thomas Chafunya to National Audit office when Sandram left National Audit for studies at the Polytechnic.
Chimwemwe Banda also used Timpunza Mwansamo to victimise fellow workers. Mwansambo was transferred to Mzuzu immediately Bingu died.
Fact File
Banda joined the then TVM as Deputy Director General under Rodrick Mulonya, then deputized Kenson Mbwana. She went on to be deputy to Bright Malopa and later she was demoted to a mere director in the new MBC under Dr Benson Tembo.
She has a T2 Teaching certificate obtained at St Joseph Teacher Training College, Dedza in 1982 and a certificate in journalism from Polytechnic obtained in 1995. Banda also has a Master of Arts: International Broadcast Journalism which she obtained from Birmingham City University, United Kingdom, (formerly University of Central England, UCE Birmingham.)
Once worked for Local government decentralization programme as Information, Education and Communication’s (IEC) Officer. She resigned from decentralisation secretariat and to run for MCP in Dedza in 1999 and lost in primaries.
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