INTRODUCTION
Madam Speaker, accept my profound gratitude for giving the Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) the opportunity to respond to the 2025-2026 Budget Statement delivered in this august House by the Minister of Finance and Economic Affairs, Hon. Simplex Chithyola Banda, MP on 28 March 2025.
Most importantly, let me thank my President, Professor Arthur Peter Mutharika for providing Malawians with the proven leadership that made Malawians better off. Allow me also to thank our Spokesperson on Finance Hon Joseph Mwananvekha and the entire Leadership of DPP for giving the people of Thyolo Central Constituency an opportunity to present this Budget Response on behalf of the mighty DPP.
Madam Speaker, “I come here to bury Ceaser, and not to praise him”. This is what Marc Anthony said in a play by Shakespear. Truly, the 2025-2026 Budget is full of fiction and drama. I therefore come here to bury the Malawi Congress Party and its unrealistic budgets. I come here to bury MCP because it has put Malawi in a serious economic crisis.
This is the last Session of this Parliament and very soon on 16 September, Malawians will be voting to bury MCP and choose their next President. People will vote to replace this clueless MCP government with a better DPP government. Malawians feel cheated by MCP,the people are angry, and the masses are protesting. MCP has messed up the Budgets since 2020. Surely, there is no second term for Chakwera.
Madam Speaker, since June 2020, DPP has been providing constructive advice on how to manage the economy, but sadly the MCP chose not to listen. MCP opted to run the economy in their own MCP way,they deployed the new economic theory called SOSISA which was and I believe shall remain the most meaningless theory. It is this economic theory which has resulted in Malawi’s debt skyrocketing from 4.4 trillion in 2020 to today’s 16.8 trillion with nothing to show on the ground . No wonder, Malawians from all walks of life are suffering. Malawians are crying. People are regretting why they voted for MCP and Tonse.
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Madam Speaker, it is for this reason that my Budget Response on behalf of the DPP, will also speak to the people’s suffering and to the businesses which are shutting down. But let me also assure Malawians that soon in September, your suffering will be over as Professor Arthur Peter Mutharika is coming back with proven leadership. The DPP is coming back with better Budgets to rescue the economy.
BROKEN PROMISES AND ECONOMIC LIES
Madam Speaker, the 2025-2026 Budget has an economic context of MCP’s broken promises and lies. Malawians were told by MCP that the economy would improve within 2 years. The people know very well that this was a big lie. Instead, the economy has worsened. Malawi has become chaotic with bad economic policies.
Fellow Malawians, MCP promised to reduce poverty. Now I ask you, has poverty reduced? Not at all! For 5 years since 2020, your poverty has worsened. The World Bank says that poverty has increased, as 71% of the population is living in extreme poverty. This is because MCP is clueless, and they have been sleeping on the job.
Fellow Malawians, MCP promised you that they will reduce the price of fuel from K750 per litre to less than K500. Today, fuel is selling at K2,730 per liter which is 3 times the price DPP left in 2020. Does symbolise an improved economy. noooo!
Madam Speaker, the fuel crisis disrupted budgets for Government and business operations. The fuel crisis created uncontrollable corrupt practices as vendors sold fuel at over K10,000 per Liter. That is why we are saying that MCP must pack up and go! Because they do not care about the suffering of the people.
They also promised to bring in 2,000 Megawatts of new electricity by 2025. We are in 2025 and still far away from this target. Load Shedding and electricity power cuts are a daily experience, particularly in Lilongwe.for record purposes the 19.1 mws Tedzani , the 21mws Serengeti are all DPP projects including the Likoma Solar system.
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In 2020 they promised they would create 1 million jobs. The Youths as everyone can see are struggling to get jobs while thousands of youths are jobless. Instead of creating 1 million jobs, MCP has created job losses. Sadly, 800,000 jobs were lost by December 2024 as a result of the closing down of many companies which includes but not limited to Admarc ,PTC and Commodity exchange. Now! Youths and fellow Malawians, is this what you were promised?
Fellow Malawians, MCP promised that you would buy a bag of 50kg of fertilizers at K4,495. Clearly MCP lied to you because, today, fertiliser is selling at over K140,000 a bag. Sadly, MCP has also been abusing your money by paying billions of Kwacha of AIP money to butcheries and pharmacies, which never supplied a single bag of fertilizer. By the way , one farmer in Dowa wondered whether we indeed have the Minister of Agriculture , he wondered how a Minister would oversee the distribution of fertilizer way out of the application season , unfortunately this has been the case for the last 5 growing seasons.
Fellow Malawians, you should still demand answers from the MCP government on the promise made by the Attorney General to bring back from Germany the AIP money which they stole through Barkaat Foods Limited of the United Kingdom.
Madam Speaker, the 2025-2026 Budget talks about progress on Mega Farms. MCP promised MEGA Farms; but they delivered MICRO farms, some of less than 30 hectares being called MEGA farms. Were we promised ma Mega Farm ang’ono ang’ono?
Fellow Malawians, let us demand answers from MCP which promised to boost Tourism in the 2025-2026 Budget. They promised to establish new Lake Malawi tourist cities in Karonga, Salima and Mangochi. These districts are now full of roads with potholes. Where are the cities?
Another failed promise is that of school fees. It is such a shame! MCP promised that no student will fail to finish school for lack of fees. Today, hundreds of students are being withdrawn for lack of fees. Yet MCP budgets have been allocating Billions of kwachas for student loans every year for the past 5 years.
They even promised to open Mbelwa University and enrol 500 students by August 2025. Today, MCP has delivered nothing. Has it been opened?
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Fellow Malawians, you have been promised lies in terms of rehabilitation of some roads for the past 5 years since 2020, MCP has lied to you that it will construct and rehabilitate some roads which have become impassable, and others have developed huge potholes. Yet these are roads that are crucial to improving this economy. Imagine Madam Speaker , MCP found the 2 toll gate at Kalinyeka and Chingeni in operation with a clear vision to use the funds for the dualisation of the Lilongwe Blantyre road but 5 years down the line , nobody knows where the money collected has gone as the roads is now a death trap as if we are not collecting any revenue out of it.
Another example, Madam Speaker! Chiweta Road in Rumphi is totally neglected. Balaka Liwonde Road is in bad condition. Lake Shore road is washed away
They promised rehabilitation of the Railway from Marka in Nsanje is at snails’ pace while costs are being inflated, unfortunately some Senior politicians are enjoying money from such inflated figures
Madam Speaker, this MCP administration is only good at making empty promises. They have mastered the art of lying. That is why MCP must pack up and go!
WEAK STATE OF ECONOMY
Madam Speaker, let me now turn to the weak state of Malawi economy.
Fellow Malawians, see how the MCP found a functioning Extended Credit Facility (ECF) program with the IMF which the DPP left in good shape in 2020. They have destroyed the IMF program. It is pathetic that they cannot finish even 1 year of successful implementation. What you did is treasonous and criminal, Malawians are suffering today because of you. Let me advise my fellow Politicians that you can do propaganda with anything you want but not with the economy. At the IMF there is no DPP government, neither is there an MCP government so going there purely because of politics has costed Malawians.
Fellow Malawians, you know that this country is now on autopilot and is on a dangerous path of decline and collapse. MCP promised to improve the economy. Fellow Malawians, has the economy improved? No! The economy has since jerked back in their hands.
The growth rate was 5.7% during the DPP administration in 2019. Sadly, growth rates under MCP have been 4.6% in 2021, 0.9% in 2022, 1.5% in 2023, and 1.8% in 2024. Fellow Malawians, is this what you expected? Just imagine another 5 years of MCP with this trajectory ! Surely these people will kill us!
Fellow Malawians, inflation is killing this economy. For the past 5 years, MCP has managed to kill the economy with inflation over
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35 percent and food inflation over 44 percent. APM managed inflation effectively well such that the DPP administration left the inflation rate at a single digit of 8.6% in 2020. Madam Speaker, sadly, prices are rising every day, and this is why MCP must go.
Fellow Malawians, the national budgets are also failing because MCP is making you borrow money from commercial banks at high interest rates. MCP has increased interest rates through the Reserve Bank of Malawi which has hiked the policy rate to 26%. With the 26% banks have no choice but to trade with the government as they consider it as low risk than us malawians there by ignoring us along the way hence there is no money on the market for our business
APM managed interest rates very well because during the DPP administration, the rate was only 13%. Fellow Malawians, APM made it easier for your businesses to prosper. APM ensured that you, ordinary Malawians should access loans from banks.
Madam Speaker, sadly, MCP is practicing political corruption by creating business opportunities for the few elites and already rich people who have connections with the party. This is a form of fraud.
Fellow Malawians, the economy is dying because of heavy borrowing by this clueless MCP administration. Malawi has a high debt burden where Public Debt has increased by over 400% from about 4.1 trillion Kwacha in 2020 to 16.1 trillion Kwacha in less than 5 years.
Malawians, as you can see, the MCP government has put you in a serious debt crisis. They have borrowed K12 trillion in 4 years alone! Is this a government you can trust? Sadly, the domestic debts are being spent on consumption instead of development projects.
ECONOMIC AND BUDGET COMPARISONS: DPP VS. MCP ADMINISTRATION
Fellow Malawians, you will recall that when the DPP was governing, the able leadership of Professor Arthur Peter Mutharika created conditions for economic progress. Sadly, since 2020, MCP and Tonse have mercilessly destroyed and plundered this economy.
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Madam Speaker, Malawi was better under APM. Fellow Malawians, you know very well that the cost of living was manageable under the DPP administration. Sadly, you are now daily experiencing a sharp rise in cost of living under MCP’s watch.
Poverty is rising astronomically, and development progress that DPP initiated has been reversed.
Madam Speaker, the APM administration strengthened Public Finance Management (PFM) strategies, and this helped to curb abuse of public funds. APM safeguarded against plunder and corruption. Sadly, fellow Malawians, you can see that since June 2020, the fight against corruption has drastically slowed down.
Malawians, surely you remember how MCP arrested and victimized the then ACB Director General at dawn; see also how they are arresting DPP officials on politically motivated charges. No-one from MCP is prosecuted despite all their stealing and looting.
Madam Speaker, every Malawian can now see that the economy is in a state of collapse. Malawi was better under the APM administration, and this is why we must go back to proven leadership and elect a DPP government this September.
Fellow Malawians, by now you also know that the MCP administration has failed to manage prices which are rising every day, while people’s incomes are losing purchasing power. Salaries continue to lose value, and civil servants can no longer afford to pay for necessities.
Fellow Malawians, as you can see, you can no longer afford to pay for the basic needs such as food, housing rentals, transport fares, and payment of school fees for your children. You know Fellow Malawians that the cost of living was better and affordable under the DPP administration.
Fellow Malawians, it is pathetic you are living with acute hunger. You know that the MCP Administration has completely mismanaged the food situation, and they lied to you about eating
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3 times a day. Sadly, you now must buy maize at a very high price of K100,000 per bag of 50 Kgs.
Madam Speaker, I wish to remind my Fellow Malawians that the price of maize was only K8,000 per bag in June 2020 when DPP left office. The APM Administration made sure that maize was available at affordable prices throughout the year. DPP had maize available in all ADMARC markets. Sadly, MCP has destroyed ADMARC, and workers are protesting day in and day out.
As a result of the high maize prices, some of you Fellow Malawians are surviving on eating poisonous tubers, and chitedze. Many people are sleeping on empty stomachs for many days. This hunger situation has been created by MCP for a simple reason: they want to make you baggers and line you up pretending to be giving you maize when in actual fact they want to take advantage of the gathering to campaign. They know very well that they can’t get huge numbers of you Malawians without bringing maize because you know they have failed miserably ,but let me assure you, this sad situation will change from September after the elections because APM is surely coming back to end this terrible MCP created hunger.
Fellow Malawians, you must be very worried and be very afraid, because the little forex available is being abused by MCP elites for personal enrichment. These are the same people who are fuelling the black market yet they want to blame the DPP for their own incompetence.
In comparison, Madam Speaker, the DPP government managed forex well. In 2020, they found the country’s forex cover at more than 6 months, but today we have less than 1 month forex cover.
The Kwacha has devalued by more than 100% in just 4 years. The Malawi Kwacha is one of the weakest currencies in the region now, the first in the history of this country.
The exchange rate was below K720 to a Dollar in 2020. Today, the MCP has caused suffering because the exchange rate is over K3,500 although the official rate is at a fictitious rate of K1750. Fellow Malawians, you have suffered long fuel queues because the government has been deliberately mismanaging your forex.
Fellow Malawians, the fuel crisis has been pushing up prices of essential commodities such as minibus fares which have almost
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doubled. At the height of this MCP-instigated fuel crisis, motorists spent sleepless nights on long fuel queues. Especially women, you were subjected to torture, and they forced you to pay more money to fill petrol in your cars.
SECTOR SPECIFIC PERFORMANCE
Fellow Malawians, the health sector financing is experiencing serious challenges. Despite the establishment of Malawi Pharmaceutical Company to manufacture generic drugs and other health equipment, no drugs are available in hospitals. When you go to the hospital, they tell you that there are no drugs, and you must buy on your own. But I wish to assure you. APM is coming back. APM is a proven leader and the DPP will sort out this mess in September.
Madam Speaker, the 2025-2026 Budget is silent on increasing funding to Community Technical Colleges. To the students, let me say that MCP is abandoning you. The technical colleges are being abandoned. MCP has no interest in technical and vocation training for youths. APM established the Community Technical Colleges to create jobs. The DPP will stop the mismanagement of the Colleges in September because APM is winning the elections again.
Fellow Malawians, in terms of the governance sector, you must be very worried because the MCP Budgets continue to allocate inadequate funds to ACB, the Fiscal Police, Ombudsman, and Financial Intelligence Authority. This is a deliberate move to weaken anti-corruption efforts and disable the accountability systems.
Fellow Malawians, you can also see by yourselves the rise in selective justice as MCP is busy politicising corruption cases by trying to punish DPP leaders. Sadly, taxpayers’ money is being wasted on court cases that have no evidence. By wasting public money, this shows that MCP does not care about you, the people.
As we drive towards Election , we needed proper funding and an operations Peace commission which was established to safeguard the peace we have in this country , sadly Madam speaker , what was to be an independent body for the good of mother Malawi is being run as a programme under the department of peace and unity , it has no vote and have to be at the mercy of the Ps for funding ,and we expect them to go out and mitigate and manage peace in this country . What a joke ! If the MCP government does not value peace just go ahead and abolish this peace commision as it is here on paper but will not deliver anything at all. Be assured fellow Malawians that come 16th September the DPP shall establish a proper Independent Peace Commision and shall fund it in full with its own vote , for we must never take our peace for granted .
Fellow Malawians, governance and accountability of NEEF loans is another serious concern. MCP is using NEEF as a tool for
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political patronage. MCP has been diverting funds to NEEF to reward party supporters, sympathisers and family relations of MCP officials. The DPP will stop this abuse of NEEF in September when we vote MCP out.
In terms of public infrastructure, you can see Fellow Malawians that MCP is biased by rehabilitating roads in Lilongwe City and some parts of the Central Region. This selective developmental approach is happening at the expense of other economically productive geographical districts. For example, Malawians in Rumphi and Karonga will agree that the Chiweta Road is in a sorry state, yet it is an important stretch in the Northern Corridor.
Fellow Malawians living in Balaka, you will agree that the Chingeni-Balaka-Liwonde road has been neglected, and you drive daily through dangerous potholes. The Monkey Bay- Golomoti Road is another death trap. The same is the sad story of the Lakeshore Road through Salima-Nkhotakota-Dwangwa, just to mention a few.
Fellow Malawians, MCP administration does not care about development in other regions. They are removing all Government institutions from Blantyre to Lilongwe. Their evil plan is to kill Blantyre, kill Zomba, and to kill Mzuzu. All they care about is the infrastructure in Lilongwe.
I wish to state this fact again, that it is the DPP administration that initiated rehabilitation of the M1 road from Crossroads to Lumbadzi then to Jenda. Hon Joseph Mwanamveka was Minister of Finance at the time, and He signed for these projects.
DPP constructed Airwing -Kasiya
Santhe Road. Mponela- Ntchisi and Kamphata-Nkhoma road. Dowa road, the Chezi to Dowa Boma just but to mention a few
Fellow Malawians, I also wish to remind you that through the proven leadership of APM, it is the DPP that initiated and commissioned water projects in Nkhatabay, Karonga, Mzimba and Chitipa. DPP constructed the magnificent Nkhatabay District Hospital. It is also DPP that constructed Rumphi TTC and Mchinji TTC.
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Madam Speaker, MCP simply came in and launched the development projects that were initiated by DPP. Fellow Malawians do not lose hope. The darkest hour is just before dawn. APM is soon coming back in September to continue with this developmental agenda.
UNREALISTIC 2025/2026 BUDGET FRAMEWORK
Madam Speaker, the 2025-2026 Budget framework does not inspire hope. It is unrealistic, and hard to implement. I can only ask Malawians to be the final judge.
Madam Speaker, the Honorable Minister of Finance and Economic Planning has presented a rather too exorbitant budget of K8.05 trillion. The budget is too ambitious and unrealistic because the revenue generation is too low at K5.5 trillion.
Fellow Malawians, you can see for yourself that this Budget is a big lie. The budget has a deficit of K2.47 trillion. Where will the money to fill the deficit come from? Again, borrowing is the only answer. Malawians, you must be worried because MCP is ready to put more debt burden on your shoulders, and a yoke of debt around the necks of your children.
Fellow Malawians, the 2025-2026 budget is unrealistic due to its continued overreliance on donor support at a time global dynamics points to heavy deductions in foreign aid. The budget is counting on K1.14 trillion of donor grants. Recently, USAID announced closure. Unfortunately we are yet to be addressed on how the government intends to manage job loses due to the cut with about 5000 Malawians affected , how they intend to fund the services that were previously funded by the USAID.
The UK government too has announced it will reduce budget spending where international development or foreign aid will experience cuts. Malawians, you must expect more economic troubles. What kind of Government is this that has the guts to increase budget expenditures at a time when revenues are falling?
Malawians, forget about Malawi2063. The structure of the 2025-2026 budget has little to offer in implementation of Malawi2063 vision.
The Budget allocations to State House and
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The Office of the President and Cabinet (OPC) have increased allocations at the expense of developmental needs.
Malawians, you can see that the State House budget has increased to an allocation of K67.3 billion. This is worrisome, especially in an election year where State House activities can be disguised for political campaign purposes. The trend puts to question austerity
measures that are preached by the OPC yet the presidency cannot walk the talk. This amount can easily fund more than 3 ministries but is being consumed by 1 house
Fellow Malawians, remember that the large budgetary increase to State Residences does not support the developmental aspirations of Mw2063. Similarly, OPC budget allocation has increased from K17 billion in 2022-2023 to K54.3 billion in the current budget of 2025-2026. The Office of the Vice President has been allocated K8.1 billion.
Malawians, you can also observe that the combined allocation to State Residences, Presidency, National Intelligence and OPC is over K150 billion. Sadly, this does not compare well with smaller allocations made to sectors that have potential to create economic transformation as espoused under Malawi2063.
Fellow Malawians, the Minister is postponing long term development because the 2025-2026 Budget is by far a consumption budget. Only K2.1 trillion is allocated for development budgets out of K8.05 trillion. All the rhetoric from MCP about developing Malawi is cheap and empty talk. Malawians
will have to wait for the comeback of the DPP to experience tangible national development.
Madam Speaker, with a general election fast approaching on 16 September, elections and campaign spending will likely force the 2025-2026 Budget to experience fiscal stress. Clearly, the MCP is planning to engage into more borrowing to finance these governance obligations.
Sadly, the Minister has announced revenue measures that are not convincing. Malawi Revenue Authority (MRA) will struggle to meet
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its target of K4.33 trillion. This is because of slow business activities due to lack of forex, electricity load shedding, and general poor economic environment.
Madam Speaker, the Budget should expect to experience high expenditure against dwindling revenue. That is how unrealistic and hard this Budget is to implement. This is how useless the Budget is, That is how careless this Minister is. That is how clueless this MCP government is.
THE FUTURE: DPP READY TO ‘ROLL AWAY THE STONE’
Madam Speaker, let me remind Malawians the words of Catholic Bishops in their recent Pastoral Letter. The Bishops are asking, ‘Who Will Roll Away The Stone for Us?’.
Fellow Malawians the DPP is ready to roll away the stone. Malawians will remove MCP. This is the time for the people to rise and show MCP the exit door. The Budgets since 2020 have delivered nothing but lies. MCP budgets have delivered corruption and plunder, and self-enrichment for the few MCP elites. These are the stones that we will roll away.
Fellow Malawians, since 2020, MCP has delivered nothing but poverty. I urge you, fellow Malawians, to say enough is enough, and call upon MCP to stop the economic persecution inflicted on the masses. MCP must vacate State House in September because the people cannot endure another 5 years of Chakwera’s economic cluelessness and plunder. Chakwera is the stone that must be rolled away.
CONCLUSION
Madam Speaker, I would like to conclude by saying that the 2025- 2026 budget is a pack of lies and is a heap of senseless fiscal promises that will again not be delivered. MCP wishes to continue with its fiscal deceit and budget hypocrisy. Should Malawians tolerate this? No, and a big NO!
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Fellow Malawians, freedom is coming tomorrow. Freedom is coming on 16 September! APM is the trusted and proven leadership. And DPP will win as predicted by Afrobarometer and Economic Intelligence Unit.
With these remarks, I wish to assure Malawians that DPP will bring you better budgets that will end your suffering and make businesses work again. DPP will stop the rising prices of goods and services, and we will put the economy back on track.
Madam Speaker,
on behalf of the mighty DPP,
I submit and I thank you.
