President Lazarus Chakwera this time chose a solemn occasion to tell a lie. He went to the funeral of Daniel Chiwere, the departed Dedza Central legislator and told the gathering “stop lying to me.”
In short, he was blaming someone for telling him lies always and not the truth. That in itself is a lie. The President is aware and has been told the truth, he always choose to believe the lies, because they make him comfortable.
Chikosa Silungwe was fired for telling him the truth. He wanted an Attorney General that only told him what he wanted to hear. He got one, now the whole public service is avoiding his AG because they are scared he will land them in prison when President Chakwera is booted out in 2025.Sometime in February this year, Peter Dimba, then Chairperson of Parliaments Legal Affairs committee resigned over the suspension of Martha Chizuma, Director General of Anti Corruption Bureau by Secretary to the President and Cabinet Colleen Zamba.
Honourable Dimba was right, it was an illegal decision and embarrassing to President Lazarus Chakwera’s administration and his own personal legacy. Only toddlers, as the President likes to tell his over used lie, would believe that he was not aware of Zamba’s decision.
But that is the character of President Chakwera everyone now knows. He lies with a straight face, does not take responsibility for anything under his administration and when he speaks you can be assured he will either blame someone or pretend he didn’t know.
There is political gossip that Honourable Dimba after his decision, went to meet President Lazarus Chakwera at Kamuzu Palace. He was dressed down and told “mufuna kundigwetsera boma langa” and he was literally chased for telling him the truth.
MCP media team celebrated his chasing and wrote elaborate accounts of this unpresidential character of Chakwera.
President Chakwera indirectly, by chastising Honourabl Dimba he was rebuking his own Hi5 rhetoric and backing a decision he pretended he was not aware.
Here is a President who publicly has told the public they beg too much, they should go and work and later that he is not a driver but an observer to the presidency.
It is difficult to believe that President Chakwera remembers what comes out of his own mouth. We are trying hard not to question his capacity as an elected leader, but we always fail to comprehend his speeches, turn arounds and burying his head in the sand as the country continues to sink.
After blaming the DPP of looting the country, his Ministers, family members, advisors and friends are all deep rooted in corruption. Almost everyone close to him is named in one scandal after another.
His Ministers now have become deal searchers- someone wanted US$10 million for a solar project, another is busy defending a deal with well known crooks allegedly buying fertiliser from them. There is very little integrity left of the President and his administration.
The Investigator Magazine has a huge dossier on some of people very close to him fleecing Chinese, the fight over new security contract at State House, others calling Government Contracting Unit to approve contracts, others collecting alms from contractors, dumping of cash at Mtunthama residence and many more.
We have been exposing bad deals from the K250billion East Bridge Fertiliser deal, Chief come back at Escom and Nocma, the new Prison project and the list is endless.
The President can read and speak English properly with an accent. We are sure he read all the scandals, but he chooses to do nothing. Because either someone as he says “lied to him” or because whoever is writing is an enemy of his administration.
Of course we are aware that he is an ordained Church minister that his experience as a leader means followers have to shout “Amen” to everything he tells them. Anything to the contrary is insubordination to the “anointed man of God.”
But with medical supplies at 30 percent, forex only one month cover, fuel joining the Siku Transport slogan (Here today, there Tommorrow) the President thinks all of them are just lies.
The President cannot even think for himself that giving a K300 billion public loan to Khato Civils, his Minister dealing with criminal suspects to have K250 billion sovereign guarantees issued and hurrying up deals without proper public procurement is very bad and damaging for a country seeking to return to an IMF programme.
Either he does not really care where Malawi is heading to or he is simply too blank for a leader. Perhaps he is really a traffic cop, an observer presiding over looters, corrupt and theiving squads.
There is very little good that has come from this presidency. Malawians even hard working ones have been reduced to beggars.
Every day businesses are closing, the cost of living continues to skyrocket, yet the President will open his mouth and shout “I am delivering.”
His cronies are on the road, trying to convince hungry and angry Malawians
Maize is now heading towards K40,000 in most places, there are no signs the President is aware or doing anything about it. He will find someone to blame, as usual.
We therefore agree with Bishop Martin Mtumbuka of Karonga Diocese, We can’t continue like this. We cannot continue with a leader who is focused on personal enrichment over the plight of 18 million Malawians.
We don’t need a leader, whose every word, is becoming a lie.
