By Rick Dzida
As the year 2023 is coming to an end soon, the norm is to assess the performance of the incumbent Tonse Alliance government.
President Lazarus Chakwera started the year 2023 with a bold decision to reshuffle his cabinet.
It was not a simple decision to drop down the untouchables from the Cabinet such as Gospel Kazako, UTM Secretary-General Patricia Kaliati, well accomplished academician Prof. Blessings Chinsinga and Malawi Congress Party (MCP) Secretary-General Eisenhower Mkaka among others.
It was also observed that Chakwera’s January 2023 cabinet was a bit leaner and indeed 40% of the cabinet ministers were women.
As the year will be ending, President Chakwera can comfortably boast of erecting various infrastructural developments including road networks and health facilities in all the regions of the country.
What is also interesting is that Chakwera’s regime has completed some projects that were previously left over by the Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) government. This sense of continuity of developments must be frankly applauded.
Another positive note is that Chakwera’s government has managed to administer both primary and secondary school exams without any examination leakage.
Unlike in the previous regime, Chakwera government is enjoying cordial diplomatic relations with its neighboring countries and beyond.
This is why in June and July 2023, Malawians welcomed the State visits of Zimbabwean President Emmerson Mnangagwa and Tanzanian President Suluhu Hassan respectively.
If people think that President Chakwera is sitting idly in office, then they will be in for a big surprise.
This is so because on 15 November 2023, the Executive Board of the International Monetary Fund (IMF) approved a 48-month Extended Credit Facility (ECF) to Malawi to the tune of US$174 million or thereabout, with an immediate disbursement of US$35 million.
Following the IMF credit facility approval, international organisations and donor partners such as the European Union and World Bank have shown their interest to resume budgetary support to Malawi.
Despite the aforementioned positive strides, Chakwera’s Tonse Alliance administration has been rocked with a myriad of quagmires.
For starters, Chakwera government has dismally failed to manage Malawi’s economy.
It is therefore not surprising that many Malawians are finding it hard to make ends meet.
Due to abrupt devaluation of the Kwacha, prices of basic goods and services have gone up resulting into the life of a local Malawian unaffordable and unbearable.
It is regrettable to note that the Chakwera’s autopilot or laissez faire mode of governance is a failure.
There is no way Malawi’s economy can just manage itself without human intervention. Never.
Our economy cannot recover on its own by blaming natural unforeseen circumstances such as Cyclone Freddy or COVID 19 or Russia-Ukraine war or the previous DPP regime.
Truth must be told, the Chakwera government’s careless over-expenditure colloquially called Mapwevupwevu syndrome has plunged this country into economic abyss.
It is very pathetic that the Government has no formidable recovery plans to resuscitate the ailing economy.
Faith is the only hope for Reverend President Chakwera that by God’s mercy, international donor partners such as European Union should resume their budgetary support to Malawi in the near future.
Another disappointing aspect from President Chakwera is the way he has handled corruption.
Truth must be told, President Chakwera has shown no interest in cracking down on corruption.
In fact, President Chakwera has abandoned his MCP Hi 5 slogan and has chosen to provide a contrary leadership.
Unfortunately, corruption is one of the abandoned agenda items.
It is unfathomable that President Chakwera who promised to fight corruption can stoop so low as to pardon corruption convict. Uladi Mussa and corruption suspect, Bakili Muluzi.
On another note, the secrecy and clandestine activities of the Dr. Banda’s single party MCP regime has taken another turn in the Chakwera’s regime.
One wonders why the whole youth recruitment process for Israel opportunities should be kept under the carpet till an Israelite chartered plane vamooses from our midst.
Another Malawian is even more bamboozled as to what secrets can the public sector reform report contain to the extent that President should feel it necessary to keep it classified and ciphered.
If there is any good reason why many Malawians voted Reverend Chakwera into power is their expectation that men of God are perceived to be of high integrity.
It is now a shame to the men of God when they notice that Reverend Chakwera has taken another diabolical turn to hypocrisy.
Many Malawians feel duped as to why President Chakwera has tolerated selective justice, lies, thievery, bribery, and rampant corruption at his watch.
It is pathetic that the gap between the poor and the rich is widening. The rich are getting richer while the poor are wallowing in more abject poverty.
The truth is that we are not prospering together as it was envisaged in MCP Hi 5 campaign slogan.
On another negative facet, the Chakwera’s appeasement policy has resulted into mediocre appointments.
It is well substantiated that most of Chakwera’s appointees have either committed a corruption scandal or they are dismally incompetent.
The truth of the matter is that a competent leader must choose competent leaders.
It is not a surprise then that Chakwera’s appointees are embroiled in corruption and dishonesty charges including Kezzie Msukwa, Newton Kambala and many more.
In conclusion, it is highly recommended that President Chakwera takes charge and responsibility of the ailing economy by articulating monetary, fiscal and economic policies that benefit most of the Malawians.
Secondly, the Anti-Corruption Bureau (ACB) must be made independent and must be answerable to the Parliament.
Thirdly, Chakwera’s government is frankly advised to walk the talk by being open in fulfilling the campaign promises.
Fourthly, to circumvent the rampant selective justice, it is highly advisable that the Executive and the Legislative arm of government must provide checks and balances on the verdicts pronounced by the Judiciary in accordance with the Malawi Constitution.
Fifthly, the rampant nepotism prevalent in the Chakwera administration can be resolved by criminalising any aforementioned vice.
Sixthly, Chakwera administration must strive to abandon appeasement policy in appointing public officers as it compromises meritocracy.
Lastly but not least, to avoid Malawians being duped again, it is highly imperative that all campaigns promises must be legally binding as voting a person into a public position is a public trust.
All in all, despite some shortfalls, Chakwera’s government has slightly improved in infrastructural and social aspect save the economic progress in the year 2023.
It is my hope that this improvement can be extrapolated to 2024 as there is high prospect, out of mercy, that international donors will inject some more forex.
