UTM’s Mtumbuka makes series of donations to Catholic groups during tour of northern Malawi

Dr Matthews Mtumbuka, MP for Rumphi Central and UTM’s presidential running mate, has made a string of donations to Catholic lay organisations during a tour through Kasungu, Mzuzu and Rumphi, as he travelled to attend a major church conference in the north of the country.

The MP’s first stop came at Nkhamenya Parish in Kasungu, where he donated K500,000 to a regional conference of the Legion of Mary attended by nearly 2,000 members.

Mtumbuka said he had chosen to stop and greet the gathering because lay groupings formed the backbone of the Catholic Church’s activities.

Brenda Dakishoni, president of the Legion of Mary council at St Peter’s Cathedral, said the donation had caught attendees off guard.

“We have been left speechless by what Hon. Dr Matthews Mtumbuka has done, and we pray that God should reward him abundantly for his good deeds,” she said.

Mtumbuka’s journey north continued to Mzuzu, where he donated a further K1 million to Wamama Wa-Chitemwano, a Catholic women’s group, coinciding with their annual general meeting and the launch of the Society of Women of Charity for the dioceses of Karonga and Mzuzu.

The donation was made through Bridget Nkhoma, a member of the group and a senior figure within the UTM party.

“I decided to give something to Wamama Wa-Chitemwano as they meet and pray for the church,” Mtumbuka said.

More than 10,000 women from the two dioceses gathered for the event at Marymount Ground in Mzuzu, with bishops Martin Mtumbuka of Karonga and Suzgo Nyirenda of Mzuzu due to attend on Sunday to mark the conference’s climax and the formal launch of the society.

The MP’s tour also took him to St Denis Parish in Rumphi, where the Catholic Women Association of Mzuzu Diocese was holding its own annual general meeting.

Mtumbuka was pictured dancing with members of the association, having again arrived with gifts to support the gathering.