Mutharika meets Anglican leaders: Says Church and State crucial in social change

State and church are inseparable players in re-programming the national character on the basis of patriotism, integrity and hard work which are values that must be the foundations of economic progress.

This was said by President Peter Mutharika on Friday when he hosted Anglican Council of Malawi at Kamuzu Palace.

“As a country we cannot succeed without any strong foundation of moral principles. We need to cultivate in the people the right value system that supports socio-economic development. Any sustainable development must be founded on the principles of our umunthu,” said the Malawi leader.

The three values were introduced sometime last year by Mutharika and he clearly intimated to the nation about their importance as foundations for his policy direction.

“These are values that are consistent with scripture as such I urge you to take this new value system as part of your teaching agenda,” said the President.

He further singled out servant-hood as a virtue every leader, whether in the church or state, should always adhere to.

“This country will only prosper if we count ourselves servants of one another. Although I hold the most powerful position in this country, in my personal heart, I have always thought of myself as a servant of the people,” said Mutharika.

The President noted that the Anglican church, being the oldest Christian organization in the country, has and continues to play a crucial role in uplifting livelihoods across the social divide in the country.

The Anglican Church in Malawi is renowned for their intervention role in areas of education, health and humanitarian work among others.

The delegation was led by the Right Reverend Brighton Vitta Malasa who is Chairman of the Anglican Council of Malawi and Bishop of The Diocese of Upper Shire.

Taking his turn, Bishop Malasa disclosed that the audience was aimed at appreciating what government under the leadership of Mutharika was doing and discuss on how best the church could support government programmes.

“We came to talk as partners and there is a lot that we discussed with the President among which is, how we could participate in the development process of the Malawi nation,” explained Malasa.

He also said the church’s other purpose of the visit was to lobby for financial support to complete the nursing school under construction in Nkhotakota.

Malasa has called on Malawians to stop finding faults or pointing fingers at the leadership but rather come forward and be part and parcel of the transformation as well as development process.

The Anglican Church was first introduced in the country around 1861 and is one of the churches with a large following in the country.

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