JB ‘no longer inspiring confidence’, says Malawi rights activist
Human rights activist and member of rights group Civic and Political Space Platform, Billy Mayaya, has said President Joyce Banda is no longer inspiring confidence.
Mayaya was quoted in the Nation on Sunday in the report of the newspaper’s survey conducted which shows that President Banda is “a failure.”
According to the publication, a survey of 1, 200 people in the country’s population of 12 million, 71 percent said Banda had “failed to meet their expectations.”
The people cited the problems of fuel, plummeting living standards, floatation of the kwacha, devaluation and arrogance of the presidency.
Commenting on the results, Mayaya said the president “had lost the plot” because of her own making.
“People have become disillusioned with Joyce Banda’s presidency because she is no longer inspiring confidence,” said Mayaya.
“She is only reinforcing the culture of executive arrogance that has led to the downfall of presidents before here,” Mayaya added.
Mayaya, who was one of the critics of late president Bingu wa Mutharika on human rights, democracy and governance issues, recently also told Nyasa Times that the civil society will not give Banda government a blind eye when things are going wrong.
“Malawi will continue on a downward slope if transparent and accountable government is not prioritised. Malawians are becoming more politically conscious of their rights as exemplified by the events of July 20 2011,” he said in apparent reference to the mass demonstrations against the Mutharika regime.
Mayaya said President Banda needs to be reminded that “the honeymoon with the Malawian people is over.”
He said “citizens want to see movement towards incremental results on the ailing economy, security concerns and a myriad of other social concerns. “
Chancellor College political analyst Blessings Chinsinga was also quoted by the paper saying that despite reversing the late Bingu wa Mutharika’s bad policies, Banda hasn’t made the “wow decision” which Malawians can be proud of.
“Malawians are also disappointed because they expected a break from the politics of the previous administration, but they realised that things were unlikely to change, especially with the PP convention that brought in people that were in the past administration that caused the current problem Malawi is facing,” Chinsinga is quoted saying
But presidential press secretary Steven Nhlane blamed the media for not going deep enough to look at what government is doing and instead giving a platform to some civil society personalities, some of whom have “personal agendas to advance.”
Nhlane said the Banda administration will deliver and revive the ailing econonomy, saying “wait and bash government when that time expires and nothing improves.”
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