MCP demands stop on Sona debate, albino killing brought to Malawi parliament

Opposition legislators on Wednesday afternoon demanded a curtail on the debate of the President Peter Mutharika’s state of the nation address in order to discuss an emergency, the killing of yet another person with albinism that morning in Ntcheu.

Dedza east MP Juliana Lunguzi (MCP) was supported by all the opposition legislators to curtail the debate on the state of the nation address to slot in the ‘breaking news’ of the killing of 38 year-old Fletcher Masina who was brutally killed in his crop field at Zintambira Village in Chief Chakhumbira’s area in Ntcheu.

After a lengthy debate on the matter, however second deputy speaker Clement Chiwaya refused to grant permission for the debate, a move that has angered many people with albinism.

As Masina was being butchered, several civil society groups were at the same time presenting their petition to the Office of the President and Cabinet to stop the abductions and killings of people with albinism.

Masina was discovered in a pool of blood, his private parts, arms and legs had already been removed.

The killing of the 18th person with albinism comes during a week civil society groups are intensifying their calls to government to take the situation under control.

Hetherwick Ntaba, the chairman of National Technical Committee on Abuses of People with Albinism, the government committee mandated to look into the matter described the killing as a crisis.

“The country is in a crisis but it is not late to reverse the situation,” he said at a news conference on Wednesday, the first time the Peter Mutharika appointed committed has faced the media.

He said the blame should not only go to the government, saying the government is just one of the stakeholders in the matter, others, he said, included non government organizations and the church among other key stake holders.

“There is no way we can fail. We cannot go back, we will deal with this issue once and for all,” he said.

He said the committee is advocating for the speedy investigations of the killings, the speedy prosecutions of such cases and the regulation of witch doctors.

The committee involves officials from the ministry of Home Affairs, Justice, Health, Education and civil society groups.

However, Boniface Massa, President of the Association of People with Albinism said the government is not doing enough to stop the abductions ad killings as evidenced by Wednesday’s killing of Masina in Ntcheu.

This statement left Ntaba scratching his  head with no answer.

Government is expected to make a statement in parliament on abductions and killings of people with albinism

Follow and Subscribe Nyasa TV :