Malawi minister cautions MPs over remarks on foreigners grabbing land

Lands minister Atupele Muluzi has cautioned legislators to comment with sensitivity that foreigners were grabbing land with the aid corrupt government officials.

Muluzi said this on Monday afternoon during a heated debate  in Parliament on Land Bill as the legislators said foreigners have large chunks of land when owners of the land, Malawians, are landless.

“We need to move with caution on this issue. This is a very sensitive issue. We need to balance this issue with our quest to have investors. Some of the land owned by foreigners are for investment purposes,” said Muluzi.

Salima east MP Jessie Kabwila said women and children will remain at the bottom if they are always at the mercy of men.

“Malawi will never develop if women are sidelined on land issues. The social economic challenges will never end if women are always put at the bottom on land issues,” she said.

Dowa east MP Richard Chimwendo Banda said land prices in Malawi are extremely expensive for the reach of most ordinary Malawians including civil servants and asked the government to have deliberate policies to enable civil servants own land.