Share part of Lake Malawi with Tanzania to avert ‘war’ — Mwenifumbo
United Democratic Front (UDF) presidential running mate Frank Tumpale Mwenifumbo stunned the jam-packed audience that attended the final presidential running mate debate organized by Zodiak Broadcasting Station (ZBS) at Grand Palace Hotel in Mzuzu on Tuesday when said that Malawi should consider allowing Tanzania to keep part of Lake Malawi to avert a possible “war” between the two neibhouring countries.
Mwenifumbo said the wrangle on lake boundary is for its potentially massive reserves of oil and gas.
Said Mwenifumbo: “If it’s about resources we will exploit them mutually as we are doing through the Songwe River Basin Project, the piece of land that is under dispute, is negligible, because if we continue with confrontation, the end result is war.
“We are one people, the issue is about resources , let’s see how we can best exploit these resources for the benefit of all people [Tanzanians and Malawians]. My own opinion is if we are going to have confrontation, we can have war and it’s my people [those who live along the contested Area] who can suffer. Let’s see how best we can exploit this resource together like North Korea and South Korea.”
But the UTM Party presidential running mate Dr Micheal Usi said that Malawi should keep the whole Lake Malawi for itself by engaging in the process of contact and dialogue with Tanzania to persuade the Tanzanian government to leave the Lake to Malawi.
“ We will continue with the negotiations as UTM. Contact and dialogue are always the best. Tanzania and Malawi are neighbours and we need each other, therefore, we need to bring in other people to discuss this issue and it must be discussed amicably. Lake Malawi, the whole of Lake Malawi belongs to Malawi,” said Usi.
However, Mohammad Sidik Mia said that Malawi Congress Party (MCP) led government will keep the Lake Malawi for Malawi and not engage in any negotiations on the ownership of Africa’s third-largest lake with neighbouring Tanzania.
“ Lake Malawi in all sense belongs to Malawi, without doubt and we as Malawi Congress Party will fight for our rights, we will stick to it so that Lake Malawi will continue to belong to us forever. Whoever wants to hear about it, we will go everywhere, if we are called to defend it, we will go and defend it,”said Mia.
Malawi claims the entire northern half of the lake while Tanzania says it owns half of the northern area. The southern half is shared between Malawi and Mozambique.
Two former African presidents, Joachim Chissano of Mozambique and Thabo Mbeki of South Africa, are mediating.
Apart from the lake wrangle, panelists also tackled climate change, energy, population and governance questions.
A governance journalist who attended the debate, Wanangwa Tembo, hailed Zodiak for organizing the prestigious debate in Mzuzu.
“Firstly, we thank Zodiak for taking the debate to the North. It was the first of its kind here in the Northern side of the Country. All in all, it was a lively debate that brought a lot of excitement amongst the patrons. The security was tight and there was good
patronage,” Tembo said.
The trio of Mohammed Sidik Mia (Malawi Congress Party-MCP), Frank Mwenifumbo (United Democratic Front (UDF) and Michael Usi (UTM Party) faced each other at the Grand Palace Hotel in Mzuzu after two other contests in Lilongwe and Blantyre in previous weeks.
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Am not surprised, his roots are in Tanzania
Weak minds would say Tumupale is stupid¿Know from now whether you know or not or like or not.The lake is all about resources ,fish ,water, transportation etc.Tanzania has ships ,they fish they use as we do as it was in the beginning.Mungoti Nyonyo9o9o9o9oo.
So if the lake ii about resources and Tanzania has ships does it make it that the lake belongs to Tanzania? or that Malawi should be forced to share the lake Tanzania? What makes you think what you have said is a demonstration strong mindedness. It may actually be you saying nyonyonyo and nonsense nonsense.
Tumpale has just proven himself to Malawians he is a weak negotiator.
Surrendering the lake to Tanzania, kkkk, and the whole of a leader, calling himself a Malawian says yes to that? Oh, no!! It seems we have more of Tanzanians in northern Malawi bearing Malawi ids
This tumpale is total useless. What are you implying or who are you representing? Tanzania? I don’t believe mangufuli would come that low, let alone be stupid like yourself. Is that what your leader atupele tells you to say?
How do a radio station, debate, bring such a divisive debate on such a forum. Do we need to apply descretion on some matters or we don’t have the knack to sensor our minds? If this is what is democracy, I fear it is not meant for us.
If there is any editorial look at matters to be discussed, what do they consider?
The border is Songwe river down to the edge of Lake Malawi, TZ only uses water of the Lake on their shore thats what the Germans & the British signed on in exchange of the Nyasaland govt surrendering Mbeya district to TZ, so why is TZ changing the goal posts? UTM tell them that we shall get our Mbeya if they continue pushing us.
Spot on, comrade. Besides, the Heligoland Treaty signed between the British and the Germans states very clearly that Lake Malawi then known us Lake Nyasa is entirely in Malawi. From the Malawi – Mozambigue – Tanzania tripod on the lake shore, the boundary follows the north eastern shores up to the north of Songwe River. This river is inside Malawi with the boundary running along its edge!!
I would rather die than sharing my wife with someon. If it is fight let us do so.
Amwenifumbo ngati mwakhuta kanyereni ziphwe.Amalawi angapeleke malo poopa nkhondo?, sitingalore kupeleka malo mwachamba poyiwopa TZ ayi.Ngati mwalandira ndalama ku TANZANIA kabwezeni ndipo mukauze kuti asamalote zimenezo, we’re ready to fight for our place at any time if somebody dares to snatch what is ours.Pitani mukauze anthu anu ali kumenekowo achokeretu nkhondo isanayambike, ku TZ ndi mafana okhaokha ndipo sitimaopa. (Mfana wa pa kobe B).
This is th dummiest running mate ever. Who told you that every boundary disagreement end up with war. That is Why there is ICJ adjunction and the rest. More over The other dummiest thing is what this government is doing to have retired mediators for our lakes mediation. Do they have capacity to mediate, No. That is why we have over 7 years without any progress. ICJ please. And Mwenifumbo is very dummy.
mwenifumbo please as malawians we are ready to fight for our own lake
Thats true. But Tanzania has more army and advanced weapons than us. we cant survive
you don’t lose a battle before fighting, shld we let go of what belongs to us because we are afraid of their advanced weapons?
David defeated Goliath with a catapult and we will defeat Tanzania by all means
Which advanced weapons? You mean those planes at Mwanza Airbase which were refurbished by North Koreans? Or those mini locket launching vehicles acquired from China? War is about tactics or strategies. Remember that Tanzanians pounded Ugandan Army under Idi Amin because Ugandan soldiers, despite being heavily armed to the teeth, were not in the mood to fight for their country under Amin. Besides, the Ugandan soldiers were indiscipline. Try to get an analysis of the war by a former Ugandan general who painted a picture that, indeed, Tanzanians with support of Ugandan exiles won the war hands down. So please, do not talk of “we can’t survive.” That is nonsense.
That’s the dummest thing I have ever heard
Very true,
Even if that is good for the country but you do not bring on a negotiation table a compromised position. Mwenefumbo was trying too hard to impress.
I have spent half of my life in the northern region and people there, feel that TZ is their second home,mainly Karonga pipo and they feel ashamed when somebody from south or central region believes lake malawi as the whole to be malawian entity,bcoz most of their relatives r in TZ and when they goes there they wil be treated as betrayers,but I understand them bcoz this issue if not handed well the battle ground will be their land,but remember acoward dies more b4 the real death.Lets fight for the betterment of our children….where were they all these yrs” greedy”
zifukwa zokanira Federal Government apa zaoneka,,,, dzikoli lidzapita sure asa……
A nice debate on the lake – let Tanzania take its share – my question is where is the boundary?
– Keep negotiating – until when Dr. Usi – decisive action is needed after negotiations are done and
yielded no results
-Keeping entirely for Malawi, defending it at all cost – when you have an assurance that it all belongs to us. Who owns Songwe river- that could be a starting point. boundary assets are always trigger tensions but it can be ressoved.
These guys have just opened areas for further research and debate
Read the Heligoland Treaty that established the boundary between Nyasaland (Malawi) and Tanganyika (Tanzania) and Article 31 of the 1969 Vienna Convention of the Law of Treaties. Not even a drop of the water from Lake Malawi and Songwe River belongs to Tanzania. Even former Tanzanian President Nyerere came to his sense upon reading that treaty.
Thus dumb its good that your at UDF you need a new mindset not new beginning! First they aint gonna be war TZ is just testing the waters they have an Ocean to let its people die for a portion of a lake. Second there’s sadc and other organisation that would allow war to break out be dialogue that AMP shuns.