HRDC add its voice of reason to Chakwera on MPs housing project: ´Prioritise urgent projects’
The Human Rights Defenders Coalition (HRDC) has said it doesn’t oppose the plans by President Lazarus Chakwera to build houses for members of parliament (MPs) in their constituency which has come under heavy resistance from the opposition and some section of the society, however it has urged government to prioritise other more urgent projects such as new schools.
The opposition and analysts have chided the move and, instead, advised Chakwera to priotise constructing houses for civil servants including teachers and health workers.
HRDC leaders said they agreed with the voice of reason to prioritise other projects than the MPs houses.
The coalition said this on Wednesday when addressing the media in Lilongwe.
Chakwera announced the MPs housing project in his State of the Nation Address (Sona) address last Friday.
State House press team said the project will be financed by unnamed investor.
But in a supplementary question to Chakwera during the HEQs, MP for Nkhotakota North East Martha Lunji asked the President to name the investor of the project and at how much it will cost “so that we should know the cost of the project.”
The President did not mention the investor and the cost.
Meanwhile, HRDC has asked people who have information about corruption in the new administration should also step forward with the information to the coalition.
HRDC executire director Gift Trapence said the coalition through its whistleblowing on corruption initiative has uncovered a lot of illegal land transactions at the Ministry of Lands.
“Most women have also come forward to complain about land grabbing,” said Trapence.
HRDC said also that it will issue a report on companies that dominated contracts in the previous government.
Trapence said there are 10 companies that have monopolized business which the Competition and Fair Trading Commission should review.
HRDC has also welcomed the gazzeting of the Access To Information law and has called upon all Malawians to ensure the law is being utilized by making information requests to various government agencies.
The coalition has revealed that it has requested Blantyre City Council to release documents on sale of land at Chichiri, Blantyre where the Keza building is located.
Follow and Subscribe Nyasa TV :
I remember when State House was standing empty because late President Bingu was frightened to live in it. Might not some of these newly proposed MPs’ houses suffer the same fate?
Building a dwelling house for an MP is not an investment. It is spending and there no question arise about an investor. If we are to call this an investment, it means goverment will be paying the rental to this investor. So what the difference with the current scenario? In my little thinking someone, possibly a supporter of MCP, wants to build these houses and rent them to the government. He/She wants to be the Landlord for the government. Koma ziliko
We don’t need new houses, school blocks, clinics etc.
As much as the building of facilities may be needed, we need a governance and administration system with less corruption and incompetence.
This will motivate the public workers already in the system to be more efficient and dedicated.
Like Members of Parliament, you can have generous salaries and allowances; but if the whole culture is tilting towards corruption and greed, new houses or offices etc will make little difference.
Recakk how Gospel rudely replied to the concerns on the housing project, he said whether one likes it or not they will still build the houses. HRDC seems to treat this useless government with kid glooves because they helped putting it in government and also because they are especting to be rewarded like
You should be asking him to disclose who the investors are and why would they want to invest in Mps housing. What is in it for them.
Government spends s aot of money on MPs,so we want them to be at their homes and interact with their people!
government will even spend more renovating and maintaining these houses so it does not make sense. especially the logistics to maintain these houses from Nsanje to Choyipa might even be more costly
Seems like witchhunting to me