Transformation Alliance tells voters to take advantage of by-elections
Political movement Transformation Alliance (TA) has urged Malawians who will vote in the forthcoming by elections to utilize the opportunity availed and begin the transformation process of the country’s governance set up.
Malawi Electoral Commission (MEC) will on Tuesday hold by-elections in three constituencies of Nsanje Lalanje, Lilongwe Msozi North and Lilongwe City South East; and three wards of Mtsiliza in Lilongwe, Mayani North in Dedza and Ndirande Makata in Blantyre.
In a statement made available to Nyasa Times, TA leader Moses Kunkuyu expressed concern that the electorate will be going to the polls without a clear sense of ideological direction due to political parties failure to clearly articulate their ideology and agenda to give the electorate value for their early wakeup call come 17th October.
The campaign trail has been characterized by violence and intimidation in some areas where by elections will be held.
“TA believes the central objective of the transformative politics that we need should be a massive cleansing, radical redistribution of power from the political leaders to the citizens; from the executive arm of government to parliament; from the city Assembly to the local communities. Through decentralization, transparency and accountability we must take power away from the political elite and hand it to the man and woman in the village and an election is an opportunity to fulfil such aspirations” said Kunkuyu.
According to Kunkuyu, the arrogance displayed by the ruling parties in the country when given power since attaining democracy, Malawians remain the victims and get more impoverished.
“Excessive power intoxicates our ruling parties and when this happens, the ordinary man suffers. This has been the case of Malawi since independence in 1964 that today Malawi still has school children learning under trees, hospitals without drugs, people drinking unsafe water even in urban areas, a sluggish economy due to poor industry performance and low foreign direct investments since we have no power to drive the machines,” he said.
Kunkuyu said there is a need to strengthen the legislative arm of Government to foster un
politicized oversight functions over the performance of state and local government institutions and giving councils the power to be effective.
