‘Stranger in the room’: Activist Billy Banda chased out of CSOs meet with Goodall
Billy Banda of Malawi Watch—a popular social-political activist—was reportedly forced out of a meeting in which Minister of Finance, Planning and Economic Development, Goodall Gondwe, was meeting Civil Society Organizations (CSOs) over the controversial K4 billion at Capital Hill for apparently “gate-crushing.”
Nyasa Times understands that Banda was not among the invitees.
Gift Trapence, a popular human rights activist and executive director, who attended the meeting, did not dispute the development.
He said it was “true.”
Gondwe is the one who proposed that the meeting should take place with the CSOs.
The addressee in his invitation letter was Youth and Society Executive Director Charles Kajoloweka and copied to Centre for the Development of People (CEDEP) led by Gift Trapence and Centre for Human Rights Rehabilitation (CHRR) of Timothy Mtambo.
Said Trapence: “Before the meeting, we noticed there was an intruder and asked the Minister [Gondwe] to let him go.”
According to Trapence, they politely asked the person not to be in the meeting.
“He complied and left,” he said.
Nyasa Times was tipped that recently Banda, who was a popular activist during the Bakili Muluzi and Bingu wa Mutharika regimes, is now a sympathizer for the Peter Mutharika government.
Trapence said it was not a surprising matter.
“CSOs will always be divided. But we are principled and shall always stand for the voiceless. We are not opportunists,” he said.
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poyamba sindimayitolera koma komalizako mtcheeeeeew munachita bwino monanthotha
Billy Banda is a stooge. Munachita bwino.
a Banda osamangomwa bwanji
Billy Banda is no longer an activist. He is just a DPP boot-licker and an opportunist. Nothing else. That was good to chase the spy masquerading as an activist.
The problem is when you are CSO you think your main job is to criticize government in everything believing that this is the only way of speaking for the voiceless. But the brilliant Billy is different he gives credit where it is due. After all the way APM is running government who can not give him credit? Just imagine no budgetary support yet everything is going smoothly. Tumbukas dominating in the civil service as well as in all NGOs
Why are u dmso obsessed with the Tumbukas?
The person who could have identified the ‘stranger in the room’ was the owner of the room. It sounds from the article the meeting took place at the ministry. The ministry knew who they invited and they never referred to anybody as a stranger which means everybody in that meeting were invited. If at all there was any stranger in that meeting, then it’s that guy who encourages same sex marriages even though he married a person of opposite sex. The issue that was being discussed had nothing to do with same sex marriages hence that man was a genuine… Read more »
the problem the likes of Trepedence, NTambo and Kajoloweka think they are more equal than everybody. they had to chase Billy because when the time for exchange of envelop comes, there should be less people to share. after all i dont know why Goodall gets shaken with these misguided and unemployables. the money was approved by parliament and no one can overturn an act of parliament except parliament itself.
You are criticising CSO leaders and by your reference to ‘exchanging of envelopes’ you are confirming that the government is corrupt.
Well done guys, its very rear to hear that in such sensitive meetings, you have chosen to represent the voiceless. Thank you and God bless you. Billy is no longer representing the voice of people but has chosen to align himself with ruling party. How the mighty has fallen!
It is the CSOs led by Trapence etc that are a threat to democracy. This is not an issue at all. Our CSOs have become a disgrace. Just papping at anything.
MA units kapena kuti quarry wamupweteka uyu. Opportunists chindere chakufikapo