When historians sit down to chronicle the story of our nation, it will be written that Reverend Christopher Mzomera Ngwira MP struck the match to light the fire of federalism. Hopefully, historians will remember that the Reverend was not for federalism per se; rather he wanted the northern region to secede from Malawi altogether. Federalism became the middle ground between the unitary state and secession.
Kenani: His views
So much has gone into this debate. Emotions have crept in. Some have begun to view anybody with opposing views as an enemy, if derogatory comments on online media are anything to go by.
Others have put across interesting arguments. Dr Blessings Chinsinga and Dr DD Phiri have been quoted by the media as saying Malawi cannot be divided because it is too small. I agree that Malawi is the size of Pennsylvania, one of the fifty states that make the United States of America.
But then Malawi is three times bigger than Switzerland, and yet Switzerland is a federation and Malawi is not. Closer to home, Malawi is 60 times bigger than the Comoros Islands, yet the Comoros are a federation and Malawi is not. So, at any rate, let us take size out of this debate.
Federalism has many advantages. To compose this article, I spoke to four Malawian friends, all of whom are in favour of federalism, and have brilliant arguments in support of the system. I will summarise these in due course.
But first, let us start with what I lifted from online research (Wikipedia has been most helpful). Like in all logical arguments, we will begin from the beginning, with the simple question of: What is federalism?
“Federalism” is a word used to describe a system of government in which sovereignty is constitutionally divided between a central governing authority and constituent political units (such as states or provinces). It is a system based on democratic rules and institutions in which the power to govern is shared between national and provincial/state governments, creating what is often called a federation.
The world has 196 countries. Of these, 26, or 13 per cent, are federal republics. Five of these are found in Africa. The full list is as follows:
African countries with a federal system:
• Comoros (Anjouan, Grande Comore, Mohéli)
• Ethiopia (nine regions and two chartered cities)
• Nigeria (36 states and one federal territory (the Federal Capital Territory)
• South Sudan (10 states)
• Sudan (17 states)
Americas & the Caribbean:
• Argentina (23 provinces and one autonomous city (Buenos Aires)
• Brazil (26 states and the Federal District)
• Canada (ten provinces and three territories)
• Mexico (31 states and one federal district (Mexico City)
• Saint Kitts and Nevis (two states)
• United States (50 states, one incorporated territory, and one federal district (Washington, D.C.)
• Venezuela (23 states, one capital district and one federal dependency)
Asia & Australia:
• Australia (six states and three territories)
• India (29 states and seven union territories)
• Iraq (18 governorates and one region (Iraqi Kurdistan)
• Malaysia (13 states and three federal territories)
• Federated States of Micronesia (Chuuk, Kosrae, Pohnpei and Yap)
• Nepal (14 zones)
• Pakistan (4 provinces, 2 autonomous areas and 2 territories)
• United Arab Emirates (seven emirates)
Europe:
• Austria (nine states)
• Belgium (three regions and three linguistic communities)
• Bosnia and Herzegovina (two entities and one district)
• Germany (16 states)
• Russia (46 oblasts, 21 republics, nine krais, four autonomous okrugs, two federal cities, one autonomous oblast)
• Switzerland (26 cantons)
Thank you, Wikipedia; now we must continue with the argument without your help.
And so, from discussions with friends, from broader reading outside the ambience of the internet, and also from living in a country that is a federal republic (Switzerland), I have concluded that federalism has its many advantages, but it also has its own disadvantages.
But before we get down to the laundry list of advantages and disadvantages, let us ask ourselves why, after 50 years of independence, the question of federalism is arising only now?
It is because, to say the truth, some regions feel shortchanged. Some regions feel that resources are being inequitably distributed. So some people are genuinely angry for not having their regions get a fair share of the national cake.
It would seem that the word “federalism” was in the throat of many people who were waiting for someone to strike a match. So when Reverend Ngwira spoke, he did not speak only for himself.
But what, exactly, is wrong with our country? Is it the system of government? Or is it the bankruptcy of leadership we have almost at every stratum of society?
Before answering this question, we have to first go through the advantages and disadvantages of federalism.
The biggest advantage of federalism is that provincial government representatives live in proximity to the people and are most of the time from the same community, so that they are in a better position to understand the people’s problems and offer unique solutions for them.
For example, there is too much sand on the road between Mzimba boma and Manyamula — a problem that could best be solved by the local government of the region, keeping local factors in mind, rather than by somebody living in Lilongwe. Yes, currently the Member of Parliament can and does take the problem to Lilongwe, but decision-makers there will only see it as a problem printed on a piece of paper, quite different from decision-makers at provincial level, who actually use that road.
It must be mentioned that perhaps it is this singular advantage that is the biggest selling point of the idea of federalism.
I, for instance, come from Kasungu West. If I would be asked to choose one thing I would like our government to do for us, the road from Kasungu town to the headquarters of Sub-Traditional Authority Nthunduwala would be it. It is the tobacco heartland, yet the road is so poor it is never easy to send tobacco to the auction floors. In the end, industrious Zambians cross the border to buy the tobacco at give-away prices. Malawi is losing. But somehow we are not and have never been a priority of any government in 50 years, so this road will remain a collection of potholes.
One can then hope that with federalism, unimportant roads like these could be given attention, and probably we could have tarmac in our life time.
The second advantage is that provincial governments have the freedom to adopt policies which may not be followed nationally or by any other state. For example, Governor Ahmed Sani Yerima of Nigeria’s Zamfara state decided that his state was going to adopt the Sharia Law, in January 2000, and it did; whereas the rest of Nigeria did not.
So given the protests against selling pork we witnessed in Mangochi last year, it could well be that the Eastern Province may want to choose to adopt Sharia law if Malawi were to become a federal republic. That would be up to them as they would be free to adopt any policies or laws they want.
And here is the third advantage: a political party could lose national elections and win provincial elections. In the last elections, for instance, the Malawi Congress Party could have won the central region despite losing national elections; and the People’s Party could have won the north, while the United Democratic Front could have won the eastern region.
This gives parties an opportunity to test and prove their capacity for leadership by offering them a chance to demonstrate how they perform once elected at provincial level, such that by the time they ascend to power at federal level, the leaders are tried and tested.
Barack Obama, for instance, was first a senator in the state of Illinois before becoming senator and president at federal level. In India, the current Prime Minister, Narendra Modi, started off as a provincial czar when he served as Chief Minister of his state of origin, Gujarat. Successful there, he has now ascended to the topmost political seat in the world’s biggest democracy.
Apart from the advantages above, the competition that would develop among provinces could result in faster and more ambitious developmental activities. One can assume that no state would want to be viewed as lagging behind, as that would defeat the very idea of changing the political system from unitary to federal.
But not everything about federalism is good. The system has its own disadvantages.
The federal system of government is very expensive, it must be said. More people are elected to office, both at the provincial and the federal level, than necessary. Thus, it is often said that only rich countries can afford it.
In Switzerland, for example, the canton of Geneva alone has 100 MPs, and since there are 26 cantons, it means roughly there are around 2,600 provincial MPs besides the 200 federal MPs that sit in Bern, the federal capital. And, like we have already said, the country is only one-third the size of Malawi.
In Malawi, we are already complaining about the salary raise of our 191 MPs. How much more, then, would we complain if there were 400 other provincial MPs (assuming 100 MPs per region more or less), all of them receiving a 300 per cent salary increase? And yes, the provincial Czar would require his or her own state house, bodyguards, and a motorcade.
Where would we get the money to run such an expensive system? We don’t have money to run the unitary state. Donors, as we speak, have deserted us. We import far much more than we export. In short, our economy is on life support. Where on earth will we get the money to finance such an expensive system?
Proponents of federalism argue that the current system is wasteful because of endless corruption and dysfunctional systems. They argue that corruption and wastefulness would be reduced or eradicated altogether when resources are managed at provincial level. While they are right about the corruption and wastefulness that prevail at present, it is utopian to imagine that all provincial leaders will be saints, that they will not be corrupt.
Sometimes there can be an overlapping of work and subsequent confusion regarding who is responsible for what. The result would be finger-pointing, as the boundaries of responsibility may not easily be defined between the provincial and the federal government. I know Malawian politicians – they like personalizing development. So the regional Czar and the federal President might cherry-pick – anything that succeeds they would want to attribute the success to their individual efforts, and anything that fails they would want to blame the other guy.
In my view, talk of federalism is misdiagnosing our situation. Development is not well-spread because we lack good leaders. Our leaders have mostly been nepotistic and greedy, thinking mostly of themselves and some few greedy souls of their tribes. They are also obsessed with being praised, even if it means praising them for doing nothing.
So, to me, what federalism means is to multiply the poor leadership from currently being at centralized level to provincial level. Because it will be the very same leaders who are failing in the unitary system who will go on to create fiefdoms in their provinces.
Thus apart from struggling to foot the enormous bill that would come due to the new layers of positions, corruption will be two-fold: the federal president and his people stealing at the top while regional Czars and their people steal at provincial level.
Which financial base could accommodate that? In all this, let us not forget that we are failing to operate without the support of donors! Our tax base is small, and over-taxing the people could work only to a certain degree.
Some of the leaders pushing the federalism agenda are doing so for their own selfish purposes. Power having slipped from their hands, they want to find other means of retaining some sort of power, which is why they want federalism. Otherwise, why did they not call for federalism when they themselves were in power? Why call for it now that they have lost?
So, in my view, let us not treat the symptom while ignoring the disease. Let us elect to office leaders that are not nepotistic, that will ensure that development is equitably distributed. Let us hold our leaders to account, instead of clapping hands for anything they do. Let us not allow our leaders to govern us by uttering empty platitudes and wallowing in concentric bonds of narcissism.
We need to make sure our leaders understand that we are not electing them to become our lords and princes, but as our servants. We do not need to praise them for doing what they were hired to do, or indeed for doing nothing.
We Malawians do not need to be afraid to demand our rights. I have never, for instance, seen people from my part of the country protest to demand that our road be given attention. Freedom is not given, it is taken. I therefore wait for the day the people of Kasungu west will march onto the office of their District Commissioner, demanding that the road I have mentioned above receives attention.
This does not happen.
Instead, we hope that the change of the system from unitary to federal will work wonders for us.
As I have already said, it is true that something needs to be done to ensure that this nonsense of shortchanging other regions stops. But to expect that federalism would be the quick-fix solution to our problems is wishful thinking.
Stanley Onjezani Kenani is one of Malawi’s top writers and poets. He is also a chartered accountant. He was persuaded by Nyasa Times to put up his views on federal system .
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122 replies on “To be or not to be: A federal republic of Malawi”
referendum basi, let Malawians understand the concept, just like we did with one party democracy, mutiparty democracy… mind you this is office politics. The concept has no reflection of the aspirations of Malawians. We people we should be fair.
I will ask you few questions
1. will resources be distributed according the population of the people?
2. arent people from the north interested to rule the full Malawi, if at all they posses leadership skills?
3. Why now when most of proponents of federalism performed poorly in the just past elections?
Inu Atumbuka nkhani meneyi idzakuvulazani nokha… anthu akumwera kuno ndi wovuta kwambiri… adzakuvulazani. it is easy to talk about it now because people from the south are in leadership BUT usasewere mudzaphedwa ngati agalu…
REFERENDUM REFERENDUM REFERENDUM BASI
STANDALONE NOOOOOOOOO, NO. THE OTHER CAN WORK BETTER.
YES —–COMOROS ISLANDS TRUE VERY SMALL ISLAND, DOES THIS MEAN IN 2045 LIKOMA AND CHIZUMULU WILL HAVE THEIR GOVT———- MOTO KU MALAWI.
atumbuka mwakondwera ndi articleyi. My tax will not finance federalism. Case closed
This is stupid article by a stupid man who is against federalism. We want federalism to remove these selfish lomwes from power, Let them rule their MTP area and see if they will survive by stealing government money as they have done in the past and are doing now.
mkulu uyu has now bwcome an attention seeker
BRILLIANT ARTICLE!!
I can clearly see that disadvantages have outweighed the advantages. Therefore, no federalism in Malawi.
KENANI, DO U LIVE IN MALAWI OR IN THE LAND OF THE FREE AND THE HOME OF THE BRAVE? WE FOUGHT FOR FREEDOM AND WE GOT DEMOCRACY, THATS WHY WE ARE STILL LIKE THIS.
reading all these arguments, one is tempted to believe that federalism could be the answer. this is not secession but rather just a change of system of governance “full-stop”! also, this is not about notherners but it is for the good of all malawians. however, like it or not, anzathuwa aku mpoto have always been active in contributing to the change. remember! they were the ones who were at the fore-front during independence, multiparty era, and now federalism. comparatively, most of us have always been slow in realising the benefits of these changes. much as i don’t like atumbukawa (too much kudzitukumula) they are the power house of our intelligence in malawi. even though the north is poor now, these people can turn the tables should this federal system be effected. thus federalism is likely to benefit the north! now my verdict!! should malawi go federal, ine wanga ndi wa kumpoto basi. don’t see any future in the other regions, at least, judging from the level of current corruption and level of vision for the country. rest my case!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
My friend Kenani
Your argument for NOT adopting Federalism is mainly based on the fact that our economy cannot sustain the system. In your research how do the following small economies manage
Nepat,
Comoros
Saint Kitts and Nervis
South Sudan (though oil rich but war never ends)
The following countries do not have rich natural resouces like us but they are managing
Switzerland
Austria
Belgium
Dont you think we to can manage??
Indeed it is your views Mr Kenani, good to enrich the federalism debate. The broad assumptions of any system or laws governing the systems are that, everything being equally, a human being is a reasonable animal. That’s the basis of Mr Kenani’s arguments. Unfortunately it has been proven now and again that a human being is in most cases irrational. The assumption of a rational being is what has put Malawi in the current predicament. For instance why is Sec 65 never implemented yet looks a good law. As one as stated somewhere it is not easy for people who have been nepotic, thieves etc to change. While indeed we need to choose good leaders, unfortunately to find one is like heads and tails game. What has been common in Malawi is that leaders work for their kinsmen not the country, perhaps another facet of nepotism. For instance growth of Mulli brothers etc That is why federalism may be a solution so that leaders work freely for their tribesmen without being labelled nepotic. Mr Kenani has also articulated well about leaders that have been groomed through the federal system. Poor leaders we have today can also be explained by lack of grooming, you come from nowhere and become a president – Alas! see the results around
How can we elect an honest, reliable, people centered, leader when you have the majority who elect him would say “Koma wakuba emweyo” Or “kaya akutani as long as Ndi waku Chigowo chathu it is ok timu sankha basi.
haha federalism we all know politics is about interests (how to manage resources), with the rampant napotism corruption we all know once federalism is introduced in Malawi some people are going to be left deprived when others get everything (hint:northerners) I mean cant u see why they r pushing this agenda those crafty Tumbukas… Iam not tribalist but even our very own Kamuzu knew what these Tumbukas are capable of.
This that you must have a blank head.Aren’t you aware that Kamuzu was put to lead MCP a party formed by northerners by northerners?
It is sad to note that there are learned people who still think malawi can rise above nepotostic tendencies without changing her system of government. It simply wont work. Besides why try the same thing and expect a different outcome?
am tempted to believe that federalism will not solve the problems of malawi. also malawian people are generally united, at least, if you compare them with folks from other parts of the continent. hence, putting a wedge between them, in the name of federalism, may not be a preferred thing. however, we can not just watch leaders happily running down the economy like that! as if that is not enough, people surrounding that leadership can have the audacity of even arrogantly saying “tidzakulamulirani mpaka kalekale, muona!” if this is their democracy, then let the idiots rule by themselves, we will not be part of it. thus, federalism could be the answer.
Mr Kenani kapena mungokkhala Kanani kuti musiye kulimbana ndi zandale, kutengela chigawo chochokera is bad, we know you. Pangani za ukauntnti dada wane,
Persuaded?……… He has tried! A balanced article demonstrative of intellectual maturity not these tribalistic ‘experts’
When you start breaking something consider that it may shatter and you can not control where the chips fall. Look at the Soviet Union for example. Do we really want that? I submit to you that our problem has been lack of leadership. Kamuzu Banda was a despot so obsessed with holding on to power he lost perspective. Muluzi was small minded and had the majority fearing he was out to create an Islamic state. Mutharika I was all about the superiority of mulhako wa alhomwe. JB was misguided. Mutharika II is little brother trying to fill his elder brother’s shoes (kachule kam’dambo koyamba kudzitama kataona ng’ombe). We need somebody who can manage the resources we have, including the people, the culture, land and lakes, to their full potential.
All these people you have mentioned have been put in place by the current system, clearly there is a need to try something new. Where do you think you will get the new leader and the new type of leadership?
Why not you?
kenani,lets go federal,we are not going back to unitary system,federalism woyeeeee,just look at the advantages for yourself
No wonder I like your columns Mr Kenani, now I have an idea of what federalism is all about. Research will do kwatsalira inu ntchito mwaigwira!
Atleast I hv gotten some facts about fedaralism and i can argue objectively now. Thanx Mr for the information.
In Malawi people don’t want to say the truth. We like going round the problem. In the north federal type of government was suggested sometime ago by late Dr Denis Nkhwazi. I remember he said even if I die federal system is the only system that would make the northern part of the country to develop even before him some people also spoke about it. This was said because of the nature of the region and the style of life people living in that region. Malawi is not poor. Leaders are making Malawi poor deliberately. Mzomera Ngwira spoke what people want and he is not the first person to mention of federalism. Late Chakufwa Chihana was aware of this but he did not because he thought could be unwise for him to do so as he was the pioneer of Multiparty system of government. When multiparty system was coming there were a lot of stories against the system and Chakufwa was called a mad person by the MCP members. So federal system may be regarded as bad but for Malawi where other people are sidelined this system can assist. It is good for the whole country.
In as much as i agree with Mr. Kenani i would wish to add that Malawians should let the government learn to respect and fear the voters. A motion must be moved in Parliament on impeachment procidures and recall system has to be brought back into the parliament standing orders. This would add sence and seriousness to our ruling echelons. It would also stop nepotism in our beloved country.
Za nzeru zipose apa???????? wakumva wamva. wakusina khutu ndu mnasi…………. I in full support of federalism
lets create aplatform where such views has to be shared by many.thanx kenani for z info.anthu adziwe zenizeni
this is a balanced article and objective. It only lacks giving tentative solutions. We are neither here or there. Regionalism is the BIG problem. Intermarriages have played little part in downplaying the desease. Churches are regionalistic and we have the so called tribal groupings that fall prey to regionalistic tendencies. Cr my beloved Malawi.
Kenani, you have diagnosed the root problem that has prompted calls for federation very well, i.e. national leaders who shortchange other regions in favour of their own regions. You give the suggestion that federation is not a solution to this problem because Malawi does not have enough money to pay additional layers of politicians, and that there is risk of multiplying theft at the additional layers of politicians created by federation. You therefore suggest that the better option is to elect “good leaders”. This is where I disagree with you totally. Why?
1. where shall we get “good leaders” from? From the North? From the Center? East? South? If I asked this question to you the chances are that you will say the Center and not the North can originate a “good leader”. Why do I say you’re likely to say this? Because you come from the Center, and the voting pattern in Malawi has almost invariably been along regional and tribal lines. If someone from Mangochi would answer the same question he would say East and not North can produce a “good leader”. Almost all Malawians, except Northerners, say they cannot vote for a president from the North! Why? They give their own reasons, of which I’m not here to affirm or dispute. But the Northerners do not look at where the contestant is coming from for them to vote for him/her. Northerners look at all contestants as Malawians and only consider their worth or credentials for leadership. That’s the more reason the North will fight tooth and nail to get their own leadership, either at federal level or as an independent country. But whether you get a “good leader” from North, Center, South, or East you must know that people who appear “good leaders” today may end up kleptomaniacs tomorrow. And if a kleptomaniac comes from your region or tribe you would still say he is a “good leader”. If a “good leader” comes from the North he is not a “good leader”. This subjectivity simply shows that Malawi cannot collectively agree on who is a “good leader” and therefore we must not pursue the impossible. What we must pursue is finding a leader that is closer to his people, and that is only possible in a federation system of government. Your examples of Nthunduwala and Manyamula are impressive.
2. Lack of money or presence of corruption are irrelevant. Why? They can always creep into whatever system of government you have. But their likelihood of occurrence is low in a federal system because each region will compete to develop itself for its own benefit (therefore reduce poverty) and the leadership is closer to the people who can easily follow on the activities of their leaders and hold them to account if deviations are noticed. To say that federation is practiced in rich countries is wrong, but to say that federation can make countries rich is correct. Richness does not make federation, but federation makes a country rich. Do you understand me my brother Kenani?
that is true
Mr.Kenani i respect you very much you once taught me ACCA .Ok ,forget about where money will come from to run a federal Govt,if one person was able to steal 92 billion and we are in the dark about how much his co-friends stole during the same period in total it might come 190 billion.Then there is this cashgate issue,do you think Malawi doesn’t have enough money to run a federal system.Mind you when Bingu and co-friends were stealing the GVT was running very well without people realising so the same with cashgate
EQUITABLE DISTRIBUTION OF RESOURCES! Only if our leaders stop kudana ndi NORTHEN region! PEOPLE FEAR TO ELECT A PRESIDENT FROM NORTHEN REGION COZ THEY know exactly wat HE can do to HIS side of the region! My Question is WHAT DID A NOTHERNER DID TO DESERVE THIS KIND OF TREATMENT? they have been in short of development for 50years, the biggest development ever done z KARONGA chitipa road after 47 years! Plz MALAWIANS love your brother NORTH! God bless MALAWI
But what should we do with these nepotic people,always thinking that the other tribe ndiwozikonda nde tiwakhaulitse ,akumatero.becoz we can’t keep living like this ,in the end one small tribe will be causing alot of problems if well financed by the Russians or Koreas.
I wonder why you still consult people such as DD Phiri.The guy still doesn’t know that a computer exists!
Some areas will always be more developed than others federalism or not. Visit the countries that have federal goverments, you’ll still see that other states are advanced in development than others. Facctors for development determine these things.
We hope Dr Chinsinga and Dr Phiri have learnt something from Kenani because they are used by politicians to comfuse we poor Malawians.
DISTRIBUTION OF POWER
distribution of power makes sure that there are checks and balances, helping to prevent abuse of power
DEMOCRATIC RIGHTS
It gives all citizen the rights to excise their democratic rights, for instance the can vote nationally and and in their individual member states.
LEADERSHIP OPPORTUNITY
political parties have more opportunities to hold power and competition amongst them is encouraged, as they can excise political responsibilities in their member states. this gives political parties to test and prove themselves!
PROXIMITY TO TASKS
In a federation public bodies are closer to regional problems than in in unitary state, there are no remote and forgotten provinces!
CITIZEN ORIENTED ACTION
citizen enjoy access to authorities, it is easier for them to contact top politicians.
COMPETITION
the states are always competing with one another and the nation develops rapidily
DIVERSITY
This provides a more favorable environment to preserve and promote, regional, historical, economic and cultural features. and people will have more advantages regardless of their political, cultural and religious background.
wat wisdom has built in so many years foolishness can destroy in an hour,if we are failing to understand democracy I dont think Malawians can understand federal system of govt in malawi too much ignorance
In Malawi’s case, nothing has been built in the last fifty years
.
I think this article is objective and i have learnt alot about federalism.
How do you elect leaders without nepostic tendancies? such an undertaking is a non-starter. Currently most of our leaders practice nepotism at all levels. The problem is that we have made leaders lords and/or gods. We have not demanded what we deserve and our leaders have taken us for granted. Whichever governance system we adopt we need to take our leaders to task otherwise we shall be abused by them.
An article from a genius,well done Mr kenani for schooling some of these brutes from the so called side.
Thats nice of you ,what we really need id the healing tablet of nepotism.that mulhakomylitis well in the end paralylise north and central regions.
I think one of the most important points that Kenani has raised is L-E-A-D-E-R-S-H-I-P. It could easily be ‘the most important idea’. In short, he says and I quote: “Development is not well-spread because we lack good leaders” (end quote). And he has alluded to leadership several times in the article.
I cannot agree more. A unitary or federal system of government, at the end of the day, still boils down to leadership.
If the same crop of leaders are elected on the regional / provincial level, even if resources got provided by the federal government, squabbles and infighting on the regional / provincial level will slow down or even bring development to a stand still.
It is no big secret that some very well established economies on our continent are facing similar problems. Not because federal or unitary systems do not work, but simply because the leaders are too corrupt or obsessed with self-aggrandizement that huge chunks of the multi-billion dollar budgets do not filter down to the local people. And the leaders at the top levels just turn blind eyes to the goings-on because they also profit from such shady dealings.
I am not pro or against any system of government. I am sure any system can work, provided the leaders are willing to make it work. .
Kenani,
This is the best article ever. Well articulated and well balanced. It has tackled both the merits and demerits of federalism. You have also given your candid analytical opinion. Let a man with brains decipher your writing on the wall
I agree with you bro. But u forgot one thing, our constitution needs overhauling. Why do MPs have the power to impeach the president yet they, as a house, never elected him? Why should they have such powers when they cant be impeached by the people who elected them? Now, who will change the constitution if we continue having successive governments led by people whose vocabularly doesnt have the word accountability? Isnt it high time we had a break, or at least demanded some kind of popular consultation like the egyptians did? Lets stop demonstrating against water shortage and other signs and symptons of bad governance and grab the ugly bull by its horns.. demand what we really need – power to the common people. I will only blame our leaders for not giving us the chance Kamuzu gave us after realising that we needed change. Any leader who doesnt recognise this need for change is not worth the role and should know that he/she is a coward, chicken pussy.
I believe that the federal system will fail if adopted. Whether properly or not. We have limited resources in this country. Had we had the required skills or education to assist in the creation of resources thereby increasing exportable products federalism would have been possible or there could have been no mention of fed. If we are failing to run this huge state with our lone taxes then why thinking of a small venture like federalism? Think guys, think! Remember! We Tend To Trust These Most Learned Pple; Prof. & Dr.`s To Rule This Nation. Childish! We Need A Sculptor In The State House Who Will Change The Face Of MALAWI. Not these Chameleon-Like Nepotistic Thieves.
Wise contribution Mr.Kenani.
Kenani,
May you relook at your maths on number of MPs. Do you feel that if Malawi became a federal state, we would still have 191 MPS at the National Parliament? And why would we have an estimate of 400 MPS as total of provinces.
Well I dont know why you say such huge numbers, but I would expect less than 20 MPS (senators) at National level. And may be a slight increase on sum of MPS in the provinces say from 191 to 250 or less.
Hmmm, get it?
Federal its anon starter we have lots of problems which we as malawians can prioritize and its not only kasungu and Mzimba needs the good roads networks the whole country faces the same from the urban to the rural areas if you go to ntaka taka. Headquarters of siniorchief kachindamoto you will see the problem up to the boundaries of the lake. If you to mulanje the road from nkando namulenga to mulomba T/A nkanda the road is very poor but also there’s farmers who grow tobacco the road from thabwa vie east bank to makhanga in nsanje no tarmac even from mzimba boma endindeni up to kamwala schools the Main to bulala euthin to rumphi there is no tarmac so
Very good article and I dont mind that you have concluded what you think the best option is because this is your opinion and that is perfectly legitimate.
Prsonally I feel Malawi is too poor to afford federalism. On he other hand nepotism is too entremched in Malawi so how does one at know at the ballot that they are not chosing at nepotistic leader?
I feel the solution is not to dederate but to chnage our mind sets such we recognise that we need to develop the whole of Malawi for all our benefit. If we fail to do that it does not matter what system we have in place it is going to under perform because all thes corruptive tendencies are not building blocks, Democracy requires real baseline honesty to approaching governments
Ndili ndi zambiri zowerenga ine- zonsezi kuposa handout ya anatomy? Iya fwatseki
Ndangowelenga last paragraph yokhayo. Mkuluyi akuoneka alemba zanzeru. Koma pliz next time make it short, ukumva iwe Kenani?? Mwix!
this forum is not for students like you,go back to your books,mukakhwime kaye,kenani walemba zanzeru ma paragraph oyambilira okha,koma wamaliza udyo thus a summary for you,now go study your nervous system,and anatomy of the brain-clue, the autonomic and central and csf production and circulation so that in future ypu should be able to detect people with intra-cranial defects.But remember federalism is good,thus the gospel
Abambo, I totally agree with you. Mwalemba za nzeru zedi I wish our so called leaders could think the way you do.
Thats the best of Kenani.
good column.
tamva nawo ziwiri zitatu.
Well balanced article, however it would have been better if you had left readers of your article to make their own conclusion than you deciding for them that malawi is not yet ready for federalism.
I just want to pick on the point of electing good leaders, I think you have deliberately forgotten that most Malawians especially those living in the rural areas vote on regional lines in which case chances of electing good leaders is reduced to almost 0.
Nevertheless, a well written article.
Well balanced article, however it would have been better if you had left readers of your article to make their own conclusion than you deciding for them that malawi is not yet ready for federalism.
I just want to pick on the poine of electing good leaders, I think you have deliberately forgotten that most Malawians especially those living in the rural areas fot on regional lines in which case chances of electing good leaders is reduced to almost 0.
Nevertheless, a well written article.
I want to agree with your observations about the shortcomings of the Federal system of government. u have ably demonstrated that u are knowlegeable about the issue at hand and u did a proper analysis of the pros ans cons of the system.
I want to flip over the purpoted benefits of Federalism so than we can all see the flaws in them.
1. the question of size of Comoros Islands being a federal state despite being small shouldnt be sed as justification. Comoros Islands is a federal state because of its geographical characteristics ~the country is a four Island nation . in addition the history of the country made Federalism a defuat path.
2. Currently MPs and, lately, councillors are closer to people yet they have not hlped much to change the situation for rural pple.
3. u argued about separate states being able to enact laws that fit their likings. the example of Mangochi is a relevant one. My question would be how can such area agree on one position when the peoples diversity is clearly evident. for argument’s sake the noethern region is predominantly Tumbuka ( we are made to believe so) assuming that state decided to declair Tumbuka to be an official Language. But then there are Tongas, Ngonis, and the many tribes in Chitipa and Karonga whose will quickly realise their interest have bn lest out in that case confrotantions will ensue within small states.
3. You argued that a political party that loses national elections can use its influnce in a state where it wins as a testing environment for policies. Malawians whether in a Unitary or Federal state should not be used as a platform for tasting pple’s imainations some of which can be as weird as the idea of sescession. Moreover Malawi needs national vibrant parties that can provide checks and balances at all times and not a myrid of parties each operating in one corner of the country. infact it is that kind of a blue print that sadly has plunged your eample countly~Comoros~ in dozens of coup d’etat s in that Country. Every leader in a particular corner will feel he is strong enough to rule at national level and will refuse to be overseen by he president. in short this will be a recipe for division.
4. I want to conclude my argument by highlighting that provisional leader will take advantage of people ignorance (lets face it many Malawians claim to be educated yet their understanding of critical issues is pathetic~ just listen to MPs’ Pathetic contributions in Parliament and u will believe me. Federalism can work for elite societies who can ably and responsibly embrace democratic principles to beter the lives of those they represent.
If u ask me the more we formulate a multilevel power government the more we will bring chaos in service delivary. In Short this talk about federalism is an involuntary force which is effectively defeating the very purpoted developement goals of the people of Malawi.
APM is already taking advantage of your ignorance as you blindly support him
Precious, u are entitled to your opinion. my honest feeling is that people like u cant think beyond the president as a wholesale provider of your needs. i guess you have never thought of the role your elected MP, the opposition party you support, and more importantly yourself can play to advance the national agenda. It is sad and pathetic people like you always looking up to the president for solutions. everyone knows that on May 20 May Malawi had a new government we can only fodge ahead if we embrace unity osati zanu zomangobuwlabe matenda atatha.kalekale. sad indeed.
Very excellent article!!!
I want every district to be a federal state since we have many tribes in every region e.g Karonga there is angonde, Chitipa a Nyakyusa, Nkhatabay a Tonga,Mzimba a Ngoni and Kasungu A Chewa and Mangochi a yao. e.g. As a Ngoni in the North I will not accept Tumbukas dominance or viceversa
So how many state do we have in Malawi? How many clans and tribes do the countries you listed have? What is the gdp of the countries you listed above? How many intelligent tribes do they have? What is the tax base for the economy for malawi the major ta base is the service sector and then industry. If you find the answer then come back and articulate the issue. We wanted democracy, now you have it, before it become mature you want fedal, you will have it, then you will adopt all the systems of govermt but for sure all will fail. Wake up Malawi, libya wanted democracy now they have war, we wanted democracy now we have adject poverty and corruption and addition bonus of diseases and unemployment. Osatengeka ayi let them run the country the way they want it and we should do the way feel its right and proper.
I strongly support your views and do more civic education to we Malawians
Can’t agree more with the article. Most of the people who are in favour of the system are being too excited with the idea. Indeed we must deal with disease other than jumping on to the symptom, lest the disease resurface later.
The advantages outweigh the disadvantages in this article. Federalism is the answer here!
Having alluded to the blatant truth about the ovedue nepotistic tendency of our national leaders hitherto vis-a-vis the resultant nepotistic culture implanted in the Malawian electrorate, I assert that the North of Malawi has been the portion of our country mostly victimised by the said vice/vile. Whence it comes as a little surprise that calls for change of the current national political satus quo emanate from there. In addition I find it absurd to note that the gallant fight for independence as well as the fierce war against the one party state were all dominated by brothers and sisters from this region who put the plight of Malawi above petty regional/nepotistic inclinations only to help ushering into power greedy national leaders. Honestly putting it, had it been that 50 years ago they made their own country they would be somewhere else by this day. Hate me for being truthful.
But when pur leaders disguised as thieves continue to rule with impunity federation becomes an alternative Mr Onjezani za federation. You are spot on!!
Stanley Onjezani Kenani, You are just too much# nigerian accent# you are the type of journalist / writer Malawi needs , we really need people like you who will guide and give insight of what the people who does not know about federal govt to expect after everything has gone federal, osati mbuzi zina zili ndima PHD zimamyankhula zinthu zopanda pake, this is really a very good piece that I have managed to read in the year 2014, keep t up Stanley for the good work
I am a Northerner and a very proud Tumbuka and i give thumbs up for Mr Stanley Onjezani for a well narrated eye opener and knowledgeable script. These are the kind of people this country need. The kind of people who can propel this country to oneness among all the tribes and development of this country. So you Malawians who put this country at heart what do you say Haaaa!!!!
Good research, good presentation. But what is your conclusion again? Federalism should be given a try. Don’t ask me why. Intuitive choices are often the best.
Useless!
why cant you sumerise issues of national importance?
Okay, can we see the advantages of the current system? Kenani has written two articles on federalism. In both cases, he has outlined his opposition to the federation. I would very much like to see that the advantages of the unitary state which I frankly speaking is none.
Kenani here states that the unitary state is expensive as it has different layers of Government however if you examine Malawi’s current system financial statements, you will note that Malawi has had deficits for the last fifty years of its existence. Clearly then the unitary state is not cheap as Malawi would be able to balance its books. However, this has not happened.
Secondly, the idea that our solution is having good leaders, the question one should ask is where will these good leaders come from? Fifty years after independence, the country continues to elect bad leaders, is it not the system of Government which we have, that has continued to give us bad leaders. Federalism will eliminate the effects of bad leadership as the bad leaders will be in charge of the localities while other localities will have other type of leaders.
Brilliant talk, writing to educate even those who think can not learn any more. The point is Malawians should learn to elect people in leadership positions who has all Malawians at heart, not just because he/she is a doctor/professor something but has n iota leadership requirements. China nchina mkhwani saochera mnyamata Kenan ndi mmodzi mwa anyamata obadwa ndi nzeru zozama. Maganizo onse ndikugwirizana naye, osaonjezera kapena kuchotsera. Bravo bravo!
Ife tinaiwala kalekale kuti kagulu kana ka anthu kakufuna Federal dziko muno,
Very objective opinion and Kudos to you Stanley! Let the myopic oppose your brilliant opinion!
This is great reasoning, you should be available on debates about federalism
Quite objective; well researched and well balanced. Osati zolemba zinazo kungoti “political analyst says this and that.” Malawi, you now have advice and the ball is in your court: which way to go?
Uku ndiye kulemba mwa NZERU, osati zopusa zambiri zomwe timawerenga pano, write more Mr Kenani. How I wish we had more of you!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
I think this commentary is quite balanced.
It’s true that the most serious problem of distribution of economic resources is NOT the unitary system of government per se. Rather it’s the leadership, or lack thereof, towards this end. So federalism, as such, is not necessarily the solution: and this should be obvious.
When critics of the federal system, vis-à-vis Malawi, talk about size, they do NOT mean geographic size. Geography does NOT pay the bills. It is the economy they are referring to.
Really, just listing federalist countries, without economic or political analysis, does nothing to advance the pro argument at all. Thus, I personally know about St. Kitts and Nevis (islands): it is a poor country and federalism there is problematic. This is a poor country, and like many of the West Indies islands, it depends a lot on its people working in North America to support those left at home. Ironically, one big reason they joined to form one country was that each one believed it was too small (again economically) to stand alone.
I do not know much about the African example of the Comoros. But just look at the list, the rest of the countries have economies way larger than ours.
Even in rich countries like Canada, some provinces (like Newfoundland) have basket cases for a long time. Ditto for Saskatchewan: sometimes referred to, with tongue-in-cheek, as a third world province.
It is NOT cheap to run a federal system, when you consider that you are adding on another level of government. Where would this extra money come from, in the first place? Of course, there are always taxes, taxes, and taxes – mostly to get pocketed by politicians, in the main.
The push for secession failed miserably; and the push for federalism is losing steam indeed. Federalism is just secession light, that’s all.
Mr Kenan onjezani mwaonjeza kwambili by rightfully noting the current failed unilateral system yet in the same breath contradicting yourself on the most plausible alternatives.
it is madness to continue governing Malawi with the present system and expect a different outcome. where in Malawi today are you going to find a politician who is not nepotistic,regionalist or tribalistic? if truth be told it is realistically impossible
proponents of federalism are people who are seeking answers and solutions of how to take Malawi forward unlike others who are basically refusing to think and clinging to failed ways of doing things.
u have nailed. it is our responsibility to demand the development we want
Well researched. Osati kumangopanga phokoso. Bravo you
Mr Kenani, I have liked seeing your article appearing in this column once again and have read it with keen interest. I did so with the background that there must be a solution to the challenges we grew up experiencing.
It seems you did an indepth research though not relating the facts to how Malawi can operate in that context. I think point analysis and local tailoring would have been prime at this level of discussion. In your presentation, you have put too much weight against introduction of the federal system of government. I for one have the following observations:
i. You have said that such system would be too expensive for a poor country like Malawi. If you look at the USA, they developed the federal system of government before they became rich and it is that system which accelerated their development. For Malawi, if we know that the system will be expensive, then we are better off to develop a solution to ensure that it meets our needs. At federal level we would have a few law makers say, 50 with each region being equally represented. How much would be saved in the course of one term from the 192 member house. The 142 balance would support all the lower chamber members as they will receive less compared to Federal MPs. All problems relating to the bill can be solved.
ii. The other skepticism you have expressed is the character you have among those people advocating for such a system of government, the Ngwiras, Harrys etc. None of these have at any time been a president. You know in Malawi, the president has so much power that he cannot be influenced by a mere minister he or she appoints. So if you talk of these that they still want to have power through the backdoor, I would wonder if these people just get power or are voted into office by their constituents.
iii. You have also stated that the things we want can rightly be attained by protesting against the government to rightfully grant that which want like the road to you village. Different communities need a variety of services and if each community protest to demand their need, what a pandemonium would our country experience? Moreover each department is striking demanding higher wages, what is the central government doing about it? If there would be the federal system, may be only courts in the south could have been closed compared to those in the north. But look now, due to the central system we have, all courts have been shut down.
The status quo will not help us, let us open a new page to change our country and we will change the world.
I’ve changed my mind. Now i totally 100% agree with you Hu Jintao. Where are you people when Malawi need you. You people seem to have two brains as compared to most of Malawians as seen thru comments having just half or a quarter of a brain.
I entirely agree with Stanley. This is a struggle about who dips more from the public purse. People just want autonomy to be able to steal from the taxpayer’s money. The problem with Malawi is lack of quality leadership beginning with politicians, corporate managers and everything that we do. The civil service is so lazy and corrupt. We are just a failed state. What the populace know is to make children like competition and then ignore them thinking it’s government’s responsibility to look after them. We are so sick.
Well articulated Kenani,,, but look; If your people match to the DC’s office about your poor road, will they find anything there (as deprived as your DC is). To demand from your representative is ‘only when he/she can influence anything! The current system make our representatives [from marginalized regions] useless, to say the least! About resources, yes, but change is expensive! I would rather do it expensively rather than leave my area in eternal underdevelopment! We are already divided anyway! This is why, Federalism should prevail, even your argument of having sensible leaders!!!!
Well said. But am afraid, I disagree with one point: that some leaders lost (the elections). The whole world knows elections were rigged as master-minded by one Saulos Chilima who managed to infiltrate every computer system! The man didn`t even hide his deeds, he announced publicly at one meeting in Lilongwe that he would meet the computer experts in their very backyard because he also knows computers. Yet, wonder of wonders, many did not read between the lines and took it for a joke! Poor Malawians. Then there was missing hard disk that was then suddenly brought back to MEC! God forbid if MEC were stupid enough to connect that external drive to any of there computers: that was like asking for more hemlock thinking it was some healthy drink.
MEC was so stupid and sleeping with eyes wide open. And knowing the truth will come out, due process for justice was short-circuited through what others claim to be a a corrupted judge who by hook or crook hang the whole country to the noose for the benefit of one entity! Malawians were forced to swallow that bitter pill. They say where there is smoke there is fire! To win elections and to rig elections are two different words in every dictionary.
So you see Kenani, MCP and PP did not lose, they were robbed of victory! But I understand you would never right emphatically that DPP rigged as then all hell would break loose on you. But truth will out. Bob Marley sung words “you can fool some people some time but you can`t fool all the people all the time”.
For your information the donor community know all these things, not because JB told them but because they had their own eyes and ears open, unlike many of us here at home! The least DPP can do is to be so good that no excuse is given to have federalism, but so far DPP has been a disaster and make even a stronger case for not just federalism but altogether separate states! Anthu akuvutika mMalawi muno, whether aligned with DPP or not!
how would the provinces decide how much each region should receive from the national purse. if each province collects its own taxes then other regions will die a natural death.
we 4rm we r tired with nepotism displayed by the pple 4rm Thyolo lhomwes especially the muthalikas thats the reason we r calling 4 federal system of government. If it fails, we shall demand 4 an independent nation. Donors can not b a problem to us we have all what it takes to win their confidence and have all what is needed to b financially independent we r not thieves of nac gate.
Thank you very much Mr Stanely Onjezani Kenani, you have explained very well on federalism, I have understood very well. If all those who are pushing for this could have explained like you did I think everybody could have well undersood as I have. I do not think this deveil called Christopher Mzomera Ngwira knows all these I wish if he could. Once again thank you Mr. Kenani keep on educating us including Ngwira.
Tonse timatcha mpaka nafenso titalandila salary increament ngati ya ma members of parliament, aliyense apeze mwayi wa ngongole ya 25 million kwacha, mabwana athu nawonso apatsidwe 1000litres ya mafuta pamwezi. Akutiona kupusa. Mzosaveka kuti boma liribe ndalama in this statous quo. Don’t remind me I am out of context you moron. I am angry. Stop talking about fed.
Mr. Kenani:
Thank you for your article that digs deeper into the federalism debate. Your research on Wikipedia has provided an insight to many of us. Here are some observations that I can make from your article:
1) Looking at the list of countries with federal system of government, there are atleast five (Belgium, Germany, United States, Canada, Brazil) that help Malawi financially. You haven’t stated why these countries have been successful despite the challenges that the federal system of government poses. Would we be right to say that the federal system of government has worked to their advantage or not? If yes, what could we learn from them?
2) The number of advantages (four, according to my analysis) in your article outweighs the number of disadvantages (two). What weighting factors did you put in place in order to conclude that federalism is not a good option?
3) It is true that one of the biggest problems Malawi faces is leadership. I strongly believe that if there is devolution of management (federalism in this case), more checks and balances would be put in place to ensure that the federal government or provincial government is operating according to people’s expectations.
4) On the number of MPs, I thought that could be decided upon that we limit their numbers? By the way, we already have a number of MPs that matches the number of constituencies, why would we need more MPs? I thought the number of MPs in a province would be dictated by the number of constituencies in that province?
5) Prof. Mutharika once worked in a nation that has the federal system of government (the USA). I am sure he is aware of the merits and demerits of a federal system of government. I feel that it could be proper to have an audience with him to hear more from him about the merits and demerits and have a sober discussion on whether or not adoption of the system would be beneficial to Malawi. Moreover, he is a law expert hence he would guide the nation in how to frame the constitution if we opt for the federal system of government.
Thank you.
This is good arguement. Listern Muthalika, DD Phiri and many other Tomas Dedmos
Mr writer I presume you started your analysis with a sober mind until you blew everything up when you started presenting the advantages of federal system. How can you compare Malawi to Switzerland in terms of income? Why coouldnt you take Comoros island as your platform as these two countries chare similarities in many forms. Anotherthing I would like to school you about is that federalism is practiced differently in each individual countries. A policy that is good in America may be an hindrance to Russian federalism and vice versa. So if Malawi has to adopt the system it will going to draft policies which are conducives to malawians ways of life not cut and paste from successful federation pracficed in a certain corner of the world. So mr writer sir your Rguments have no substance to suggest that the system will be very costly. At the contrary it might be very cheap to run in malawian settings. What is the purpose of a single president having residences in each part of the country of which he hardly visits but staff work 24 hours to run those residences. Is it not madness. Look at the annual presidential residence budget, enough to build hospitals accross the country, maintain decent roads, supply educational material in various ill maintained schools. We tried unitary system cor 50 years and no good has come out of it. Lets try something else before the country is added to the list of failed states.
You have a point.
problem here is the motive by the proponents with Mzomera Ngwira in the forefront. and that shld b the worrisome thing. dont ignore this. wasnt this proposition made out of selfish intent? if yes then do you think we wld need such leaders to prevail? no!!!
look here, pipo r not stupid, they know where all this debate is emanating from. ws Northern region better off during Joyce Banda reign? No!! it was still as poor as it is now. so whats the difference? those proponents were benefiting from gov coffers. did they advocate for SMALL DEVELOPMENT IN THEIR AREAS USING THE POWERS THEY HAD? no.
in short this whole this is ill timed n that’s where thingz get tricky. minus this, federalism wld b easier to sell otherwise the MOTIVE is disturbing
These are words from a wise man . Anyone sitting on the throne if found with nepotism traits should be brought down and we elect again …
A Kenani tikakumane pa a Kamboni kuti tikapangane zochita pa za nseu mwanena. Mwauzeko a Kasakula. Otherwise a very informative piece of work. Thank you.
Very good analysis. I enjoyed every content of your writing.
Good debate but something u forget to mention that in africa close to our home we have south africa and mozambique that are run on and have all federal features. Similarly even the catholic and anglican churches have automous dioceses run by bishops and archbishops in malawi provinces with some features of federalism,although the central authority is based in holy see in rome or london in uk respectively.
As for local people demonstrating for better roads,this has been tried. U remember chitipa where one protester was shot dead by police,then zomba chingale where ccjp strongly engaged the dc and govt.
On the issue of expensive democracy,the same argument was used by advocates of one party state that multiparty was expensive,and malawi was poor to afford multiparty system.
As of now malawi is at crossroads,there are divisions on tribal and regional grounds and successive national elections results can attest to this. Leaders are elected according to which region. Currently the cabinet and all important positions in government are largely from one tribal region. If things can be left like this forever it means regions with minor population will never have a national president. But federalism can strengthen nationalism,by having south,east,center,and north as automous provinces under one federal republic of malawi.
It does not mean a person that advocates federalism is selfish and wants to be leader. Leadership is through election. Recent bye election in mzimba saw 2 dpp councillors win. The same can happen in federal state where political parties compete. Development is more spread in a federal republic than unitary state
But its unfortunate that the tvmmbc,bishop malasa and fr.rev.tamani are calling advocates of federalism as selfish.
The fear for multiplying corruption is neither here nor there. Strong ethical standards in government and business will arrest this scourge at all levels in malawi. Each province has to be productive in developing economic and industrial growth with efficient service delivery, and unlocking the export potential for goods and services.
Well put, Kenani!
Koma kwa anthu omvennsense chitatanthauzo cha #FEDERAL,ndi chinthu chimene chingapindulile dziko lathu la malawi,vuto langogona posamvetsesa tanthauzo lake.
Koma dziko lintha kuyenda bwino ngati zingakhalepo.
Malingana ndim’mene ma President aku Malawi akumatumbwira, Fedarism ingathandize chifukwa iyeyo kuti akhale President ayenera kuwina mzigawo zonse zinayi za Malawi eeetu
What a biased analysis. I only like the last part. One as learned as Kenani cannot come flat out on the social media and spark an argument which he has little knowledge about. By deliberately or ignorantly omitting the most important disadvantage of federalism, ‘unequal distribution of resources,’ the very problem which the proponents feel federalism would solve Mr Kenani cannot be trusted with a fair judgement. Federalism will divide us further apart since our regions are greatly identified in terms of the tribes. Much as the writer loves history, he has failed to explain as to why the 26 countries adopted federalism. The fact is these country before were made of separate entities. As a means to enforce unity the entities agreed to surrender ‘some’ sovereignty to central government. What is happening in Malawi is the opposite. We are already united. Thank you.
Excellent analysis. .most important point you have made is that we cant treat the symptoms whilst ignoring the disease. If federal sytem is introduced today, the current maladministration will just be replicated at federal level. In addition, we now have local authorities, whose impact or effectiveness will be judged after 5 years. However, their effectiveness can only be determined if we have clear ptograms and plans at local level, involving the grassroots. Otherwise, I also agree that no resources, no federalism.
That is going to bring malawians back why bcoz malawi is nt as thoz athor countryz its nt eazy to do that plz
take dis issue 2de populace 4dem 2make their views &also there is nid 2dicuss dis issue with sober minds without certain quoters having hidden agendas- motly on part of our politicians.
If I was from the Northern Malawi, I better talk about secession than federal system of government. The people of the north had suffered so much under MCP, UDF and DPP. I would like secession for the north rather federal system of government.
Very brilliant article. Hope many people can read, understand and decide which way to go. Thanks Kenan.
Ana amuna alemba awa!
When Malawians started to agitate for a multiparty system of govt there were those who were opposed to it. They had their reasons. However Malawians opted for multiparty democracy after 30years of a one political party dictatorship. The benefits are numerous including the freedom to hold and impart opinions which Mr Kenani appreciates as a writer. In fact one of the beauties of a free democratic society is freedom to offer different views just as Mr Kenani has done. However let us not overlook the fact that we have been in a unitary state since 1964 and that it has many flaws-some of which have been pointed out by Mr Kenani- that can only be removed if we adopt the federal system of govt. Secondly sovereignty is indivisible Any political scientist will tell you that sovereignty is power by a country to determine its destiny subject to international law or law of nations. What is reduced in a federal system is the concentration of powers in one person-the state president as is the case in Malawi. That is why the ruling DPP is against federalism. Thirdly on federalism being expensive Mr Kenani makes the mistake of assuming that when Malawians decide to go for the federal system they will simply copy the Switzerland system. There is no need for Malawians to just wholesale copy what happens in other countries. Malawians will have to cut our cloth according to our size. There is no need, for example, to have a federal parliament with 193 members. We can agree that a federal parliament should only have 60 members. I feel sad that many people just rush to conclude that our tax base is small without knowing what is a tax base and how do you measure it. In Malawi the tax base is not small but the problem is leakage of tax revenue. No one knows how effective MRA is because since its formatiom it has been politicised. I hope Nyasa Times will invite Malawians to respond to Mr Kenani’s write up. I also hope that when Mr Kenani will be on leave in Malawi he will take a lead to mobilise people in Kasungu west to demonstrate for that road to be upgraded. He should not just be an onlooker.
Not to be!!!!!!!
Nyasatimes idakakhala kuti imafuna nkhani zothandiza ngati izi, bwenzi anthu akuphunzira zinthu zotukula Malawi. This is a well articulated article; very educative and balanced. Bravo a Kenani.
Good reading base but the difference between federalism and secession is not much explicit. When are you going to write much of secession? I understand Mr Ngwira wants that.
Well, all this talk and views is nothing. Put the system to test. If it fails do u think it is evil to go back to the current system.
Anyway, thank u very much for ur opion.
All this shows the high peak of greedy in governments of the world .
It is true much division of powers creates a lot of prblms.power to village headman ,to councillors, to dcs,to mps , to cabinet ,to court and to president so all these need money to be paid frm the already tattered economy we hv . It seem frm far federalism will not work as we are thinking now.
MATURITY
But my worry is; will the majority of Malawians be able to read and interplate this well explained issue? Umbuli too much. Thanx Stanley
I can’t extravagant my time reading absurd article that is shit and it never come to malawi
AMERICA, IS THIS SUPPOSED TO BE ENGLISH, CHIyAO OR WHAT?? OR IS IT AMERICAN? LOL
referendum basi, let Malawians understand the concept, just like we did with one party democracy, mutiparty democracy… mind you this is office politics. The concept has no reflection of the aspirations of Malawians. We people we should be fair.
I will ask you few questions
1. will resources be distributed according the population of the people?
2. arent people from the north interested to rule the full Malawi, if at all they posses leadership skills?
3. Why now when most of proponents of federalism performed poorly in the just past elections?
Inu Atumbuka nkhani meneyi idzakuvulazani nokha… anthu akumwera kuno ndi wovuta kwambiri… adzakuvulazani. it is easy to talk about it now because people from the south are in leadership BUT usasewere mudzaphedwa ngati agalu…
REFERENDUM REFERENDUM REFERENDUM BASI
STANDALONE NOOOOOOOOO, NO. THE OTHER CAN WORK BETTER.
YES —–COMOROS ISLANDS TRUE VERY SMALL ISLAND, DOES THIS MEAN IN 2045 LIKOMA AND CHIZUMULU WILL HAVE THEIR GOVT———- MOTO KU MALAWI.
atumbuka mwakondwera ndi articleyi. My tax will not finance federalism. Case closed
This is stupid article by a stupid man who is against federalism. We want federalism to remove these selfish lomwes from power, Let them rule their MTP area and see if they will survive by stealing government money as they have done in the past and are doing now.
mkulu uyu has now bwcome an attention seeker
BRILLIANT ARTICLE!!
I can clearly see that disadvantages have outweighed the advantages. Therefore, no federalism in Malawi.
KENANI, DO U LIVE IN MALAWI OR IN THE LAND OF THE FREE AND THE HOME OF THE BRAVE? WE FOUGHT FOR FREEDOM AND WE GOT DEMOCRACY, THATS WHY WE ARE STILL LIKE THIS.
reading all these arguments, one is tempted to believe that federalism could be the answer. this is not secession but rather just a change of system of governance “full-stop”! also, this is not about notherners but it is for the good of all malawians. however, like it or not, anzathuwa aku mpoto have always been active in contributing to the change. remember! they were the ones who were at the fore-front during independence, multiparty era, and now federalism. comparatively, most of us have always been slow in realising the benefits of these changes. much as i don’t like atumbukawa (too much kudzitukumula) they are the power house of our intelligence in malawi. even though the north is poor now, these people can turn the tables should this federal system be effected. thus federalism is likely to benefit the north! now my verdict!! should malawi go federal, ine wanga ndi wa kumpoto basi. don’t see any future in the other regions, at least, judging from the level of current corruption and level of vision for the country. rest my case!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
My friend Kenani
Your argument for NOT adopting Federalism is mainly based on the fact that our economy cannot sustain the system. In your research how do the following small economies manage
Nepat,
Comoros
Saint Kitts and Nervis
South Sudan (though oil rich but war never ends)
The following countries do not have rich natural resouces like us but they are managing
Switzerland
Austria
Belgium
Dont you think we to can manage??
Indeed it is your views Mr Kenani, good to enrich the federalism debate. The broad assumptions of any system or laws governing the systems are that, everything being equally, a human being is a reasonable animal. That’s the basis of Mr Kenani’s arguments. Unfortunately it has been proven now and again that a human being is in most cases irrational. The assumption of a rational being is what has put Malawi in the current predicament. For instance why is Sec 65 never implemented yet looks a good law. As one as stated somewhere it is not easy for people who have been nepotic, thieves etc to change. While indeed we need to choose good leaders, unfortunately to find one is like heads and tails game. What has been common in Malawi is that leaders work for their kinsmen not the country, perhaps another facet of nepotism. For instance growth of Mulli brothers etc That is why federalism may be a solution so that leaders work freely for their tribesmen without being labelled nepotic. Mr Kenani has also articulated well about leaders that have been groomed through the federal system. Poor leaders we have today can also be explained by lack of grooming, you come from nowhere and become a president – Alas! see the results around
How can we elect an honest, reliable, people centered, leader when you have the majority who elect him would say “Koma wakuba emweyo” Or “kaya akutani as long as Ndi waku Chigowo chathu it is ok timu sankha basi.
haha federalism we all know politics is about interests (how to manage resources), with the rampant napotism corruption we all know once federalism is introduced in Malawi some people are going to be left deprived when others get everything (hint:northerners) I mean cant u see why they r pushing this agenda those crafty Tumbukas… Iam not tribalist but even our very own Kamuzu knew what these Tumbukas are capable of.
This that you must have a blank head.Aren’t you aware that Kamuzu was put to lead MCP a party formed by northerners by northerners?
It is sad to note that there are learned people who still think malawi can rise above nepotostic tendencies without changing her system of government. It simply wont work. Besides why try the same thing and expect a different outcome?
am tempted to believe that federalism will not solve the problems of malawi. also malawian people are generally united, at least, if you compare them with folks from other parts of the continent. hence, putting a wedge between them, in the name of federalism, may not be a preferred thing. however, we can not just watch leaders happily running down the economy like that! as if that is not enough, people surrounding that leadership can have the audacity of even arrogantly saying “tidzakulamulirani mpaka kalekale, muona!” if this is their democracy, then let the idiots rule by themselves, we will not be part of it. thus, federalism could be the answer.
Mr Kenani kapena mungokkhala Kanani kuti musiye kulimbana ndi zandale, kutengela chigawo chochokera is bad, we know you. Pangani za ukauntnti dada wane,
Persuaded?……… He has tried! A balanced article demonstrative of intellectual maturity not these tribalistic ‘experts’
When you start breaking something consider that it may shatter and you can not control where the chips fall. Look at the Soviet Union for example. Do we really want that? I submit to you that our problem has been lack of leadership. Kamuzu Banda was a despot so obsessed with holding on to power he lost perspective. Muluzi was small minded and had the majority fearing he was out to create an Islamic state. Mutharika I was all about the superiority of mulhako wa alhomwe. JB was misguided. Mutharika II is little brother trying to fill his elder brother’s shoes (kachule kam’dambo koyamba kudzitama kataona ng’ombe). We need somebody who can manage the resources we have, including the people, the culture, land and lakes, to their full potential.
All these people you have mentioned have been put in place by the current system, clearly there is a need to try something new. Where do you think you will get the new leader and the new type of leadership?
Why not you?
kenani,lets go federal,we are not going back to unitary system,federalism woyeeeee,just look at the advantages for yourself
No wonder I like your columns Mr Kenani, now I have an idea of what federalism is all about. Research will do kwatsalira inu ntchito mwaigwira!
Atleast I hv gotten some facts about fedaralism and i can argue objectively now. Thanx Mr for the information.
In Malawi people don’t want to say the truth. We like going round the problem. In the north federal type of government was suggested sometime ago by late Dr Denis Nkhwazi. I remember he said even if I die federal system is the only system that would make the northern part of the country to develop even before him some people also spoke about it. This was said because of the nature of the region and the style of life people living in that region. Malawi is not poor. Leaders are making Malawi poor deliberately. Mzomera Ngwira spoke what people want and he is not the first person to mention of federalism. Late Chakufwa Chihana was aware of this but he did not because he thought could be unwise for him to do so as he was the pioneer of Multiparty system of government. When multiparty system was coming there were a lot of stories against the system and Chakufwa was called a mad person by the MCP members. So federal system may be regarded as bad but for Malawi where other people are sidelined this system can assist. It is good for the whole country.
In as much as i agree with Mr. Kenani i would wish to add that Malawians should let the government learn to respect and fear the voters. A motion must be moved in Parliament on impeachment procidures and recall system has to be brought back into the parliament standing orders. This would add sence and seriousness to our ruling echelons. It would also stop nepotism in our beloved country.
Za nzeru zipose apa???????? wakumva wamva. wakusina khutu ndu mnasi…………. I in full support of federalism
lets create aplatform where such views has to be shared by many.thanx kenani for z info.anthu adziwe zenizeni
this is a balanced article and objective. It only lacks giving tentative solutions. We are neither here or there. Regionalism is the BIG problem. Intermarriages have played little part in downplaying the desease. Churches are regionalistic and we have the so called tribal groupings that fall prey to regionalistic tendencies. Cr my beloved Malawi.
Kenani, you have diagnosed the root problem that has prompted calls for federation very well, i.e. national leaders who shortchange other regions in favour of their own regions. You give the suggestion that federation is not a solution to this problem because Malawi does not have enough money to pay additional layers of politicians, and that there is risk of multiplying theft at the additional layers of politicians created by federation. You therefore suggest that the better option is to elect “good leaders”. This is where I disagree with you totally. Why?
1. where shall we get “good leaders” from? From the North? From the Center? East? South? If I asked this question to you the chances are that you will say the Center and not the North can originate a “good leader”. Why do I say you’re likely to say this? Because you come from the Center, and the voting pattern in Malawi has almost invariably been along regional and tribal lines. If someone from Mangochi would answer the same question he would say East and not North can produce a “good leader”. Almost all Malawians, except Northerners, say they cannot vote for a president from the North! Why? They give their own reasons, of which I’m not here to affirm or dispute. But the Northerners do not look at where the contestant is coming from for them to vote for him/her. Northerners look at all contestants as Malawians and only consider their worth or credentials for leadership. That’s the more reason the North will fight tooth and nail to get their own leadership, either at federal level or as an independent country. But whether you get a “good leader” from North, Center, South, or East you must know that people who appear “good leaders” today may end up kleptomaniacs tomorrow. And if a kleptomaniac comes from your region or tribe you would still say he is a “good leader”. If a “good leader” comes from the North he is not a “good leader”. This subjectivity simply shows that Malawi cannot collectively agree on who is a “good leader” and therefore we must not pursue the impossible. What we must pursue is finding a leader that is closer to his people, and that is only possible in a federation system of government. Your examples of Nthunduwala and Manyamula are impressive.
2. Lack of money or presence of corruption are irrelevant. Why? They can always creep into whatever system of government you have. But their likelihood of occurrence is low in a federal system because each region will compete to develop itself for its own benefit (therefore reduce poverty) and the leadership is closer to the people who can easily follow on the activities of their leaders and hold them to account if deviations are noticed. To say that federation is practiced in rich countries is wrong, but to say that federation can make countries rich is correct. Richness does not make federation, but federation makes a country rich. Do you understand me my brother Kenani?
that is true
Mr.Kenani i respect you very much you once taught me ACCA .Ok ,forget about where money will come from to run a federal Govt,if one person was able to steal 92 billion and we are in the dark about how much his co-friends stole during the same period in total it might come 190 billion.Then there is this cashgate issue,do you think Malawi doesn’t have enough money to run a federal system.Mind you when Bingu and co-friends were stealing the GVT was running very well without people realising so the same with cashgate
EQUITABLE DISTRIBUTION OF RESOURCES! Only if our leaders stop kudana ndi NORTHEN region! PEOPLE FEAR TO ELECT A PRESIDENT FROM NORTHEN REGION COZ THEY know exactly wat HE can do to HIS side of the region! My Question is WHAT DID A NOTHERNER DID TO DESERVE THIS KIND OF TREATMENT? they have been in short of development for 50years, the biggest development ever done z KARONGA chitipa road after 47 years! Plz MALAWIANS love your brother NORTH! God bless MALAWI
But what should we do with these nepotic people,always thinking that the other tribe ndiwozikonda nde tiwakhaulitse ,akumatero.becoz we can’t keep living like this ,in the end one small tribe will be causing alot of problems if well financed by the Russians or Koreas.
I wonder why you still consult people such as DD Phiri.The guy still doesn’t know that a computer exists!
Some areas will always be more developed than others federalism or not. Visit the countries that have federal goverments, you’ll still see that other states are advanced in development than others. Facctors for development determine these things.
We hope Dr Chinsinga and Dr Phiri have learnt something from Kenani because they are used by politicians to comfuse we poor Malawians.
DISTRIBUTION OF POWER
distribution of power makes sure that there are checks and balances, helping to prevent abuse of power
DEMOCRATIC RIGHTS
It gives all citizen the rights to excise their democratic rights, for instance the can vote nationally and and in their individual member states.
LEADERSHIP OPPORTUNITY
political parties have more opportunities to hold power and competition amongst them is encouraged, as they can excise political responsibilities in their member states. this gives political parties to test and prove themselves!
PROXIMITY TO TASKS
In a federation public bodies are closer to regional problems than in in unitary state, there are no remote and forgotten provinces!
CITIZEN ORIENTED ACTION
citizen enjoy access to authorities, it is easier for them to contact top politicians.
COMPETITION
the states are always competing with one another and the nation develops rapidily
DIVERSITY
This provides a more favorable environment to preserve and promote, regional, historical, economic and cultural features. and people will have more advantages regardless of their political, cultural and religious background.
wat wisdom has built in so many years foolishness can destroy in an hour,if we are failing to understand democracy I dont think Malawians can understand federal system of govt in malawi too much ignorance
In Malawi’s case, nothing has been built in the last fifty years
.
I think this article is objective and i have learnt alot about federalism.
How do you elect leaders without nepostic tendancies? such an undertaking is a non-starter. Currently most of our leaders practice nepotism at all levels. The problem is that we have made leaders lords and/or gods. We have not demanded what we deserve and our leaders have taken us for granted. Whichever governance system we adopt we need to take our leaders to task otherwise we shall be abused by them.
An article from a genius,well done Mr kenani for schooling some of these brutes from the so called side.
Thats nice of you ,what we really need id the healing tablet of nepotism.that mulhakomylitis well in the end paralylise north and central regions.
I think one of the most important points that Kenani has raised is L-E-A-D-E-R-S-H-I-P. It could easily be ‘the most important idea’. In short, he says and I quote: “Development is not well-spread because we lack good leaders” (end quote). And he has alluded to leadership several times in the article.
I cannot agree more. A unitary or federal system of government, at the end of the day, still boils down to leadership.
If the same crop of leaders are elected on the regional / provincial level, even if resources got provided by the federal government, squabbles and infighting on the regional / provincial level will slow down or even bring development to a stand still.
It is no big secret that some very well established economies on our continent are facing similar problems. Not because federal or unitary systems do not work, but simply because the leaders are too corrupt or obsessed with self-aggrandizement that huge chunks of the multi-billion dollar budgets do not filter down to the local people. And the leaders at the top levels just turn blind eyes to the goings-on because they also profit from such shady dealings.
I am not pro or against any system of government. I am sure any system can work, provided the leaders are willing to make it work. .
Kenani,
This is the best article ever. Well articulated and well balanced. It has tackled both the merits and demerits of federalism. You have also given your candid analytical opinion. Let a man with brains decipher your writing on the wall
I agree with you bro. But u forgot one thing, our constitution needs overhauling. Why do MPs have the power to impeach the president yet they, as a house, never elected him? Why should they have such powers when they cant be impeached by the people who elected them? Now, who will change the constitution if we continue having successive governments led by people whose vocabularly doesnt have the word accountability? Isnt it high time we had a break, or at least demanded some kind of popular consultation like the egyptians did? Lets stop demonstrating against water shortage and other signs and symptons of bad governance and grab the ugly bull by its horns.. demand what we really need – power to the common people. I will only blame our leaders for not giving us the chance Kamuzu gave us after realising that we needed change. Any leader who doesnt recognise this need for change is not worth the role and should know that he/she is a coward, chicken pussy.
I believe that the federal system will fail if adopted. Whether properly or not. We have limited resources in this country. Had we had the required skills or education to assist in the creation of resources thereby increasing exportable products federalism would have been possible or there could have been no mention of fed. If we are failing to run this huge state with our lone taxes then why thinking of a small venture like federalism? Think guys, think! Remember! We Tend To Trust These Most Learned Pple; Prof. & Dr.`s To Rule This Nation. Childish! We Need A Sculptor In The State House Who Will Change The Face Of MALAWI. Not these Chameleon-Like Nepotistic Thieves.
Wise contribution Mr.Kenani.
Kenani,
May you relook at your maths on number of MPs. Do you feel that if Malawi became a federal state, we would still have 191 MPS at the National Parliament? And why would we have an estimate of 400 MPS as total of provinces.
Well I dont know why you say such huge numbers, but I would expect less than 20 MPS (senators) at National level. And may be a slight increase on sum of MPS in the provinces say from 191 to 250 or less.
Hmmm, get it?
Federal its anon starter we have lots of problems which we as malawians can prioritize and its not only kasungu and Mzimba needs the good roads networks the whole country faces the same from the urban to the rural areas if you go to ntaka taka. Headquarters of siniorchief kachindamoto you will see the problem up to the boundaries of the lake. If you to mulanje the road from nkando namulenga to mulomba T/A nkanda the road is very poor but also there’s farmers who grow tobacco the road from thabwa vie east bank to makhanga in nsanje no tarmac even from mzimba boma endindeni up to kamwala schools the Main to bulala euthin to rumphi there is no tarmac so
Very good article and I dont mind that you have concluded what you think the best option is because this is your opinion and that is perfectly legitimate.
Prsonally I feel Malawi is too poor to afford federalism. On he other hand nepotism is too entremched in Malawi so how does one at know at the ballot that they are not chosing at nepotistic leader?
I feel the solution is not to dederate but to chnage our mind sets such we recognise that we need to develop the whole of Malawi for all our benefit. If we fail to do that it does not matter what system we have in place it is going to under perform because all thes corruptive tendencies are not building blocks, Democracy requires real baseline honesty to approaching governments
Ndili ndi zambiri zowerenga ine- zonsezi kuposa handout ya anatomy? Iya fwatseki
Ndangowelenga last paragraph yokhayo. Mkuluyi akuoneka alemba zanzeru. Koma pliz next time make it short, ukumva iwe Kenani?? Mwix!
this forum is not for students like you,go back to your books,mukakhwime kaye,kenani walemba zanzeru ma paragraph oyambilira okha,koma wamaliza udyo thus a summary for you,now go study your nervous system,and anatomy of the brain-clue, the autonomic and central and csf production and circulation so that in future ypu should be able to detect people with intra-cranial defects.But remember federalism is good,thus the gospel
Abambo, I totally agree with you. Mwalemba za nzeru zedi I wish our so called leaders could think the way you do.
Thats the best of Kenani.
good column.
tamva nawo ziwiri zitatu.
Well balanced article, however it would have been better if you had left readers of your article to make their own conclusion than you deciding for them that malawi is not yet ready for federalism.
I just want to pick on the point of electing good leaders, I think you have deliberately forgotten that most Malawians especially those living in the rural areas vote on regional lines in which case chances of electing good leaders is reduced to almost 0.
Nevertheless, a well written article.
Well balanced article, however it would have been better if you had left readers of your article to make their own conclusion than you deciding for them that malawi is not yet ready for federalism.
I just want to pick on the poine of electing good leaders, I think you have deliberately forgotten that most Malawians especially those living in the rural areas fot on regional lines in which case chances of electing good leaders is reduced to almost 0.
Nevertheless, a well written article.
I want to agree with your observations about the shortcomings of the Federal system of government. u have ably demonstrated that u are knowlegeable about the issue at hand and u did a proper analysis of the pros ans cons of the system.
I want to flip over the purpoted benefits of Federalism so than we can all see the flaws in them.
1. the question of size of Comoros Islands being a federal state despite being small shouldnt be sed as justification. Comoros Islands is a federal state because of its geographical characteristics ~the country is a four Island nation . in addition the history of the country made Federalism a defuat path.
2. Currently MPs and, lately, councillors are closer to people yet they have not hlped much to change the situation for rural pple.
3. u argued about separate states being able to enact laws that fit their likings. the example of Mangochi is a relevant one. My question would be how can such area agree on one position when the peoples diversity is clearly evident. for argument’s sake the noethern region is predominantly Tumbuka ( we are made to believe so) assuming that state decided to declair Tumbuka to be an official Language. But then there are Tongas, Ngonis, and the many tribes in Chitipa and Karonga whose will quickly realise their interest have bn lest out in that case confrotantions will ensue within small states.
3. You argued that a political party that loses national elections can use its influnce in a state where it wins as a testing environment for policies. Malawians whether in a Unitary or Federal state should not be used as a platform for tasting pple’s imainations some of which can be as weird as the idea of sescession. Moreover Malawi needs national vibrant parties that can provide checks and balances at all times and not a myrid of parties each operating in one corner of the country. infact it is that kind of a blue print that sadly has plunged your eample countly~Comoros~ in dozens of coup d’etat s in that Country. Every leader in a particular corner will feel he is strong enough to rule at national level and will refuse to be overseen by he president. in short this will be a recipe for division.
4. I want to conclude my argument by highlighting that provisional leader will take advantage of people ignorance (lets face it many Malawians claim to be educated yet their understanding of critical issues is pathetic~ just listen to MPs’ Pathetic contributions in Parliament and u will believe me. Federalism can work for elite societies who can ably and responsibly embrace democratic principles to beter the lives of those they represent.
If u ask me the more we formulate a multilevel power government the more we will bring chaos in service delivary. In Short this talk about federalism is an involuntary force which is effectively defeating the very purpoted developement goals of the people of Malawi.
APM is already taking advantage of your ignorance as you blindly support him
Precious, u are entitled to your opinion. my honest feeling is that people like u cant think beyond the president as a wholesale provider of your needs. i guess you have never thought of the role your elected MP, the opposition party you support, and more importantly yourself can play to advance the national agenda. It is sad and pathetic people like you always looking up to the president for solutions. everyone knows that on May 20 May Malawi had a new government we can only fodge ahead if we embrace unity osati zanu zomangobuwlabe matenda atatha.kalekale. sad indeed.
Very excellent article!!!
I want every district to be a federal state since we have many tribes in every region e.g Karonga there is angonde, Chitipa a Nyakyusa, Nkhatabay a Tonga,Mzimba a Ngoni and Kasungu A Chewa and Mangochi a yao. e.g. As a Ngoni in the North I will not accept Tumbukas dominance or viceversa
So how many state do we have in Malawi? How many clans and tribes do the countries you listed have? What is the gdp of the countries you listed above? How many intelligent tribes do they have? What is the tax base for the economy for malawi the major ta base is the service sector and then industry. If you find the answer then come back and articulate the issue. We wanted democracy, now you have it, before it become mature you want fedal, you will have it, then you will adopt all the systems of govermt but for sure all will fail. Wake up Malawi, libya wanted democracy now they have war, we wanted democracy now we have adject poverty and corruption and addition bonus of diseases and unemployment. Osatengeka ayi let them run the country the way they want it and we should do the way feel its right and proper.
I strongly support your views and do more civic education to we Malawians
Can’t agree more with the article. Most of the people who are in favour of the system are being too excited with the idea. Indeed we must deal with disease other than jumping on to the symptom, lest the disease resurface later.
The advantages outweigh the disadvantages in this article. Federalism is the answer here!
Having alluded to the blatant truth about the ovedue nepotistic tendency of our national leaders hitherto vis-a-vis the resultant nepotistic culture implanted in the Malawian electrorate, I assert that the North of Malawi has been the portion of our country mostly victimised by the said vice/vile. Whence it comes as a little surprise that calls for change of the current national political satus quo emanate from there. In addition I find it absurd to note that the gallant fight for independence as well as the fierce war against the one party state were all dominated by brothers and sisters from this region who put the plight of Malawi above petty regional/nepotistic inclinations only to help ushering into power greedy national leaders. Honestly putting it, had it been that 50 years ago they made their own country they would be somewhere else by this day. Hate me for being truthful.
But when pur leaders disguised as thieves continue to rule with impunity federation becomes an alternative Mr Onjezani za federation. You are spot on!!
Stanley Onjezani Kenani, You are just too much# nigerian accent# you are the type of journalist / writer Malawi needs , we really need people like you who will guide and give insight of what the people who does not know about federal govt to expect after everything has gone federal, osati mbuzi zina zili ndima PHD zimamyankhula zinthu zopanda pake, this is really a very good piece that I have managed to read in the year 2014, keep t up Stanley for the good work
I am a Northerner and a very proud Tumbuka and i give thumbs up for Mr Stanley Onjezani for a well narrated eye opener and knowledgeable script. These are the kind of people this country need. The kind of people who can propel this country to oneness among all the tribes and development of this country. So you Malawians who put this country at heart what do you say Haaaa!!!!
Good research, good presentation. But what is your conclusion again? Federalism should be given a try. Don’t ask me why. Intuitive choices are often the best.
Useless!
why cant you sumerise issues of national importance?
Okay, can we see the advantages of the current system? Kenani has written two articles on federalism. In both cases, he has outlined his opposition to the federation. I would very much like to see that the advantages of the unitary state which I frankly speaking is none.
Kenani here states that the unitary state is expensive as it has different layers of Government however if you examine Malawi’s current system financial statements, you will note that Malawi has had deficits for the last fifty years of its existence. Clearly then the unitary state is not cheap as Malawi would be able to balance its books. However, this has not happened.
Secondly, the idea that our solution is having good leaders, the question one should ask is where will these good leaders come from? Fifty years after independence, the country continues to elect bad leaders, is it not the system of Government which we have, that has continued to give us bad leaders. Federalism will eliminate the effects of bad leadership as the bad leaders will be in charge of the localities while other localities will have other type of leaders.
Brilliant talk, writing to educate even those who think can not learn any more. The point is Malawians should learn to elect people in leadership positions who has all Malawians at heart, not just because he/she is a doctor/professor something but has n iota leadership requirements. China nchina mkhwani saochera mnyamata Kenan ndi mmodzi mwa anyamata obadwa ndi nzeru zozama. Maganizo onse ndikugwirizana naye, osaonjezera kapena kuchotsera. Bravo bravo!
Ife tinaiwala kalekale kuti kagulu kana ka anthu kakufuna Federal dziko muno,
Tizingowerenga ndakatulo zanuzi uku masiku kumatha
Very objective opinion and Kudos to you Stanley! Let the myopic oppose your brilliant opinion!
This is great reasoning, you should be available on debates about federalism
Quite objective; well researched and well balanced. Osati zolemba zinazo kungoti “political analyst says this and that.” Malawi, you now have advice and the ball is in your court: which way to go?
Uku ndiye kulemba mwa NZERU, osati zopusa zambiri zomwe timawerenga pano, write more Mr Kenani. How I wish we had more of you!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
I think this commentary is quite balanced.
It’s true that the most serious problem of distribution of economic resources is NOT the unitary system of government per se. Rather it’s the leadership, or lack thereof, towards this end. So federalism, as such, is not necessarily the solution: and this should be obvious.
When critics of the federal system, vis-à-vis Malawi, talk about size, they do NOT mean geographic size. Geography does NOT pay the bills. It is the economy they are referring to.
Really, just listing federalist countries, without economic or political analysis, does nothing to advance the pro argument at all. Thus, I personally know about St. Kitts and Nevis (islands): it is a poor country and federalism there is problematic. This is a poor country, and like many of the West Indies islands, it depends a lot on its people working in North America to support those left at home. Ironically, one big reason they joined to form one country was that each one believed it was too small (again economically) to stand alone.
I do not know much about the African example of the Comoros. But just look at the list, the rest of the countries have economies way larger than ours.
Even in rich countries like Canada, some provinces (like Newfoundland) have basket cases for a long time. Ditto for Saskatchewan: sometimes referred to, with tongue-in-cheek, as a third world province.
It is NOT cheap to run a federal system, when you consider that you are adding on another level of government. Where would this extra money come from, in the first place? Of course, there are always taxes, taxes, and taxes – mostly to get pocketed by politicians, in the main.
The push for secession failed miserably; and the push for federalism is losing steam indeed. Federalism is just secession light, that’s all.
Mr Kenan onjezani mwaonjeza kwambili by rightfully noting the current failed unilateral system yet in the same breath contradicting yourself on the most plausible alternatives.
it is madness to continue governing Malawi with the present system and expect a different outcome. where in Malawi today are you going to find a politician who is not nepotistic,regionalist or tribalistic? if truth be told it is realistically impossible
proponents of federalism are people who are seeking answers and solutions of how to take Malawi forward unlike others who are basically refusing to think and clinging to failed ways of doing things.
u have nailed. it is our responsibility to demand the development we want
Well researched. Osati kumangopanga phokoso. Bravo you
Mr Kenani, I have liked seeing your article appearing in this column once again and have read it with keen interest. I did so with the background that there must be a solution to the challenges we grew up experiencing.
It seems you did an indepth research though not relating the facts to how Malawi can operate in that context. I think point analysis and local tailoring would have been prime at this level of discussion. In your presentation, you have put too much weight against introduction of the federal system of government. I for one have the following observations:
i. You have said that such system would be too expensive for a poor country like Malawi. If you look at the USA, they developed the federal system of government before they became rich and it is that system which accelerated their development. For Malawi, if we know that the system will be expensive, then we are better off to develop a solution to ensure that it meets our needs. At federal level we would have a few law makers say, 50 with each region being equally represented. How much would be saved in the course of one term from the 192 member house. The 142 balance would support all the lower chamber members as they will receive less compared to Federal MPs. All problems relating to the bill can be solved.
ii. The other skepticism you have expressed is the character you have among those people advocating for such a system of government, the Ngwiras, Harrys etc. None of these have at any time been a president. You know in Malawi, the president has so much power that he cannot be influenced by a mere minister he or she appoints. So if you talk of these that they still want to have power through the backdoor, I would wonder if these people just get power or are voted into office by their constituents.
iii. You have also stated that the things we want can rightly be attained by protesting against the government to rightfully grant that which want like the road to you village. Different communities need a variety of services and if each community protest to demand their need, what a pandemonium would our country experience? Moreover each department is striking demanding higher wages, what is the central government doing about it? If there would be the federal system, may be only courts in the south could have been closed compared to those in the north. But look now, due to the central system we have, all courts have been shut down.
The status quo will not help us, let us open a new page to change our country and we will change the world.
I’ve changed my mind. Now i totally 100% agree with you Hu Jintao. Where are you people when Malawi need you. You people seem to have two brains as compared to most of Malawians as seen thru comments having just half or a quarter of a brain.
I entirely agree with Stanley. This is a struggle about who dips more from the public purse. People just want autonomy to be able to steal from the taxpayer’s money. The problem with Malawi is lack of quality leadership beginning with politicians, corporate managers and everything that we do. The civil service is so lazy and corrupt. We are just a failed state. What the populace know is to make children like competition and then ignore them thinking it’s government’s responsibility to look after them. We are so sick.
Well articulated Kenani,,, but look; If your people match to the DC’s office about your poor road, will they find anything there (as deprived as your DC is). To demand from your representative is ‘only when he/she can influence anything! The current system make our representatives [from marginalized regions] useless, to say the least! About resources, yes, but change is expensive! I would rather do it expensively rather than leave my area in eternal underdevelopment! We are already divided anyway! This is why, Federalism should prevail, even your argument of having sensible leaders!!!!
Well said. But am afraid, I disagree with one point: that some leaders lost (the elections). The whole world knows elections were rigged as master-minded by one Saulos Chilima who managed to infiltrate every computer system! The man didn`t even hide his deeds, he announced publicly at one meeting in Lilongwe that he would meet the computer experts in their very backyard because he also knows computers. Yet, wonder of wonders, many did not read between the lines and took it for a joke! Poor Malawians. Then there was missing hard disk that was then suddenly brought back to MEC! God forbid if MEC were stupid enough to connect that external drive to any of there computers: that was like asking for more hemlock thinking it was some healthy drink.
MEC was so stupid and sleeping with eyes wide open. And knowing the truth will come out, due process for justice was short-circuited through what others claim to be a a corrupted judge who by hook or crook hang the whole country to the noose for the benefit of one entity! Malawians were forced to swallow that bitter pill. They say where there is smoke there is fire! To win elections and to rig elections are two different words in every dictionary.
So you see Kenani, MCP and PP did not lose, they were robbed of victory! But I understand you would never right emphatically that DPP rigged as then all hell would break loose on you. But truth will out. Bob Marley sung words “you can fool some people some time but you can`t fool all the people all the time”.
For your information the donor community know all these things, not because JB told them but because they had their own eyes and ears open, unlike many of us here at home! The least DPP can do is to be so good that no excuse is given to have federalism, but so far DPP has been a disaster and make even a stronger case for not just federalism but altogether separate states! Anthu akuvutika mMalawi muno, whether aligned with DPP or not!
how would the provinces decide how much each region should receive from the national purse. if each province collects its own taxes then other regions will die a natural death.
we 4rm we r tired with nepotism displayed by the pple 4rm Thyolo lhomwes especially the muthalikas thats the reason we r calling 4 federal system of government. If it fails, we shall demand 4 an independent nation. Donors can not b a problem to us we have all what it takes to win their confidence and have all what is needed to b financially independent we r not thieves of nac gate.
Thank you very much Mr Stanely Onjezani Kenani, you have explained very well on federalism, I have understood very well. If all those who are pushing for this could have explained like you did I think everybody could have well undersood as I have. I do not think this deveil called Christopher Mzomera Ngwira knows all these I wish if he could. Once again thank you Mr. Kenani keep on educating us including Ngwira.
Tonse timatcha mpaka nafenso titalandila salary increament ngati ya ma members of parliament, aliyense apeze mwayi wa ngongole ya 25 million kwacha, mabwana athu nawonso apatsidwe 1000litres ya mafuta pamwezi. Akutiona kupusa. Mzosaveka kuti boma liribe ndalama in this statous quo. Don’t remind me I am out of context you moron. I am angry. Stop talking about fed.
Mr. Kenani:
Thank you for your article that digs deeper into the federalism debate. Your research on Wikipedia has provided an insight to many of us. Here are some observations that I can make from your article:
1) Looking at the list of countries with federal system of government, there are atleast five (Belgium, Germany, United States, Canada, Brazil) that help Malawi financially. You haven’t stated why these countries have been successful despite the challenges that the federal system of government poses. Would we be right to say that the federal system of government has worked to their advantage or not? If yes, what could we learn from them?
2) The number of advantages (four, according to my analysis) in your article outweighs the number of disadvantages (two). What weighting factors did you put in place in order to conclude that federalism is not a good option?
3) It is true that one of the biggest problems Malawi faces is leadership. I strongly believe that if there is devolution of management (federalism in this case), more checks and balances would be put in place to ensure that the federal government or provincial government is operating according to people’s expectations.
4) On the number of MPs, I thought that could be decided upon that we limit their numbers? By the way, we already have a number of MPs that matches the number of constituencies, why would we need more MPs? I thought the number of MPs in a province would be dictated by the number of constituencies in that province?
5) Prof. Mutharika once worked in a nation that has the federal system of government (the USA). I am sure he is aware of the merits and demerits of a federal system of government. I feel that it could be proper to have an audience with him to hear more from him about the merits and demerits and have a sober discussion on whether or not adoption of the system would be beneficial to Malawi. Moreover, he is a law expert hence he would guide the nation in how to frame the constitution if we opt for the federal system of government.
Thank you.
This is good arguement. Listern Muthalika, DD Phiri and many other Tomas Dedmos
Mr writer I presume you started your analysis with a sober mind until you blew everything up when you started presenting the advantages of federal system. How can you compare Malawi to Switzerland in terms of income? Why coouldnt you take Comoros island as your platform as these two countries chare similarities in many forms. Anotherthing I would like to school you about is that federalism is practiced differently in each individual countries. A policy that is good in America may be an hindrance to Russian federalism and vice versa. So if Malawi has to adopt the system it will going to draft policies which are conducives to malawians ways of life not cut and paste from successful federation pracficed in a certain corner of the world. So mr writer sir your Rguments have no substance to suggest that the system will be very costly. At the contrary it might be very cheap to run in malawian settings. What is the purpose of a single president having residences in each part of the country of which he hardly visits but staff work 24 hours to run those residences. Is it not madness. Look at the annual presidential residence budget, enough to build hospitals accross the country, maintain decent roads, supply educational material in various ill maintained schools. We tried unitary system cor 50 years and no good has come out of it. Lets try something else before the country is added to the list of failed states.
You have a point.
problem here is the motive by the proponents with Mzomera Ngwira in the forefront. and that shld b the worrisome thing. dont ignore this. wasnt this proposition made out of selfish intent? if yes then do you think we wld need such leaders to prevail? no!!!
look here, pipo r not stupid, they know where all this debate is emanating from. ws Northern region better off during Joyce Banda reign? No!! it was still as poor as it is now. so whats the difference? those proponents were benefiting from gov coffers. did they advocate for SMALL DEVELOPMENT IN THEIR AREAS USING THE POWERS THEY HAD? no.
in short this whole this is ill timed n that’s where thingz get tricky. minus this, federalism wld b easier to sell otherwise the MOTIVE is disturbing
These are words from a wise man . Anyone sitting on the throne if found with nepotism traits should be brought down and we elect again …
A Kenani tikakumane pa a Kamboni kuti tikapangane zochita pa za nseu mwanena. Mwauzeko a Kasakula. Otherwise a very informative piece of work. Thank you.
Very good analysis. I enjoyed every content of your writing.
Good debate but something u forget to mention that in africa close to our home we have south africa and mozambique that are run on and have all federal features. Similarly even the catholic and anglican churches have automous dioceses run by bishops and archbishops in malawi provinces with some features of federalism,although the central authority is based in holy see in rome or london in uk respectively.
As for local people demonstrating for better roads,this has been tried. U remember chitipa where one protester was shot dead by police,then zomba chingale where ccjp strongly engaged the dc and govt.
On the issue of expensive democracy,the same argument was used by advocates of one party state that multiparty was expensive,and malawi was poor to afford multiparty system.
As of now malawi is at crossroads,there are divisions on tribal and regional grounds and successive national elections results can attest to this. Leaders are elected according to which region. Currently the cabinet and all important positions in government are largely from one tribal region. If things can be left like this forever it means regions with minor population will never have a national president. But federalism can strengthen nationalism,by having south,east,center,and north as automous provinces under one federal republic of malawi.
It does not mean a person that advocates federalism is selfish and wants to be leader. Leadership is through election. Recent bye election in mzimba saw 2 dpp councillors win. The same can happen in federal state where political parties compete. Development is more spread in a federal republic than unitary state
But its unfortunate that the tvmmbc,bishop malasa and fr.rev.tamani are calling advocates of federalism as selfish.
The fear for multiplying corruption is neither here nor there. Strong ethical standards in government and business will arrest this scourge at all levels in malawi. Each province has to be productive in developing economic and industrial growth with efficient service delivery, and unlocking the export potential for goods and services.
Well put, Kenani!
Koma kwa anthu omvennsense chitatanthauzo cha #FEDERAL,ndi chinthu chimene chingapindulile dziko lathu la malawi,vuto langogona posamvetsesa tanthauzo lake.
Koma dziko lintha kuyenda bwino ngati zingakhalepo.
Malingana ndim’mene ma President aku Malawi akumatumbwira, Fedarism ingathandize chifukwa iyeyo kuti akhale President ayenera kuwina mzigawo zonse zinayi za Malawi eeetu
What a biased analysis. I only like the last part. One as learned as Kenani cannot come flat out on the social media and spark an argument which he has little knowledge about. By deliberately or ignorantly omitting the most important disadvantage of federalism, ‘unequal distribution of resources,’ the very problem which the proponents feel federalism would solve Mr Kenani cannot be trusted with a fair judgement. Federalism will divide us further apart since our regions are greatly identified in terms of the tribes. Much as the writer loves history, he has failed to explain as to why the 26 countries adopted federalism. The fact is these country before were made of separate entities. As a means to enforce unity the entities agreed to surrender ‘some’ sovereignty to central government. What is happening in Malawi is the opposite. We are already united. Thank you.
Excellent analysis. .most important point you have made is that we cant treat the symptoms whilst ignoring the disease. If federal sytem is introduced today, the current maladministration will just be replicated at federal level. In addition, we now have local authorities, whose impact or effectiveness will be judged after 5 years. However, their effectiveness can only be determined if we have clear ptograms and plans at local level, involving the grassroots. Otherwise, I also agree that no resources, no federalism.
That is going to bring malawians back why bcoz malawi is nt as thoz athor countryz its nt eazy to do that plz
take dis issue 2de populace 4dem 2make their views &also there is nid 2dicuss dis issue with sober minds without certain quoters having hidden agendas- motly on part of our politicians.
If I was from the Northern Malawi, I better talk about secession than federal system of government. The people of the north had suffered so much under MCP, UDF and DPP. I would like secession for the north rather federal system of government.
Very brilliant article. Hope many people can read, understand and decide which way to go. Thanks Kenan.
Ana amuna alemba awa!
When Malawians started to agitate for a multiparty system of govt there were those who were opposed to it. They had their reasons. However Malawians opted for multiparty democracy after 30years of a one political party dictatorship. The benefits are numerous including the freedom to hold and impart opinions which Mr Kenani appreciates as a writer. In fact one of the beauties of a free democratic society is freedom to offer different views just as Mr Kenani has done. However let us not overlook the fact that we have been in a unitary state since 1964 and that it has many flaws-some of which have been pointed out by Mr Kenani- that can only be removed if we adopt the federal system of govt. Secondly sovereignty is indivisible Any political scientist will tell you that sovereignty is power by a country to determine its destiny subject to international law or law of nations. What is reduced in a federal system is the concentration of powers in one person-the state president as is the case in Malawi. That is why the ruling DPP is against federalism. Thirdly on federalism being expensive Mr Kenani makes the mistake of assuming that when Malawians decide to go for the federal system they will simply copy the Switzerland system. There is no need for Malawians to just wholesale copy what happens in other countries. Malawians will have to cut our cloth according to our size. There is no need, for example, to have a federal parliament with 193 members. We can agree that a federal parliament should only have 60 members. I feel sad that many people just rush to conclude that our tax base is small without knowing what is a tax base and how do you measure it. In Malawi the tax base is not small but the problem is leakage of tax revenue. No one knows how effective MRA is because since its formatiom it has been politicised. I hope Nyasa Times will invite Malawians to respond to Mr Kenani’s write up. I also hope that when Mr Kenani will be on leave in Malawi he will take a lead to mobilise people in Kasungu west to demonstrate for that road to be upgraded. He should not just be an onlooker.
Not to be!!!!!!!
Nyasatimes idakakhala kuti imafuna nkhani zothandiza ngati izi, bwenzi anthu akuphunzira zinthu zotukula Malawi. This is a well articulated article; very educative and balanced. Bravo a Kenani.
Good reading base but the difference between federalism and secession is not much explicit. When are you going to write much of secession? I understand Mr Ngwira wants that.
Well, all this talk and views is nothing. Put the system to test. If it fails do u think it is evil to go back to the current system.
Anyway, thank u very much for ur opion.
All this shows the high peak of greedy in governments of the world .
It is true much division of powers creates a lot of prblms.power to village headman ,to councillors, to dcs,to mps , to cabinet ,to court and to president so all these need money to be paid frm the already tattered economy we hv . It seem frm far federalism will not work as we are thinking now.
MATURITY
But my worry is; will the majority of Malawians be able to read and interplate this well explained issue? Umbuli too much. Thanx Stanley
I can’t extravagant my time reading absurd article that is shit and it never come to malawi
AMERICA, IS THIS SUPPOSED TO BE ENGLISH, CHIyAO OR WHAT?? OR IS IT AMERICAN? LOL