Globe Metals releases study on 20-year Malawi project | The Australian

June 30, 2008

GLOBE Metals & Mining has lifted its trading halt today, announcing the results of its scoping study on its central Malawi project.

Globe (ASX: GBE: quote) said its Kanyika project in Malawi in Africa has the potential to become a very profitable operation with at least a 20-year mine life.

The uranium and specialty metals resource company has completed a study into the economic potential of the site and said both revenues and cash flows were substantial over the life of the mine.

“Plus, the capital expenditure is modest and the capital payback period short,'' Globe managing director Mark Sumich said.

Globe estimated the capital expenditure at $US177 million ($184 million), and the capital payback period at less than two years, according to a statement today.

The Kanyika project is the Perth-based company's lead project, situated in central Malawi.

It contains an inferred resourced of 56Mt, including niobium, uranium, tantalum and zircon.

AAP

Proud to be Malawian

Rikki Shayo

As the year comes to an end it seems supreme that an aggressive slogan campaign to build patriotism among Malawians, dubbed "Proud to be a Malawian" should be a collective resolution for 2008. Well aware of the turbulence among Malawians, based on our political situation, the government as well as well wishers ought to make a strong case for the campaign on both print and electronic media. Only love for this country can motivate us get out of our present predicament. It is ironic how Americans, dissatisfied with the state of their country in its formative years, provided the impetus they needed to make the United States what it is today. I am by no means trying to make the government look bad and irresponsible but it is true that not a single one of the so-called super powers started off as the flourishing lands they are today. The lands Malawians are shamelessly flocking to because of their achievement. The citizens in those super powers simply put their heads down and worked tirelessly until they realized their dreams. Green cards Instead of Malawians following suit, we are now ridiculously tripping over our own feet in a bid to become citizens of these countries! What a shame. We were not born here to get green cards elsewhere. My fellow brothers and sisters, we need to promise ourselves whenever we go abroad or overseas that we must come back and develop this country. If not who will? There is more than enough to live for here. Before offering a quick disapproval, ask yourself why there are people prospering here if this country is truly so hopeless. Some started from scratch and have built themselves dream businesses. Others have gotten prestigious positions in successful corporations. There are those who chose to pursue performing or visual arts and are happy with their choices e.g Lucius Banda, Mlaka Maliro and many more. Exploit hopeless situations Still others are becoming wealthier by investing wisely. In fact, some renowned financial successes claim that it is the socalled hopeless situations that provide opportunities for accomplishment. What is business after all, if not providing solutions to human problems? It is true that former leadership bears much of the responsibility for our patriotic decay. Today's average Malawian has not been taught to love his motherland. When we got independence, our leaders instilled in our hearts a feeling of national pride because of their own strong sense of victory. Their goal, at the time, was to have Malawians enjoy the land they passionately fought for. The downward spiral started when leaders became more concerned with keeping their positions in the government. Bent on stifling competition, the government forgot its duty to the nation and began vigorously nipping every ambitious and capable person in the bud; this was every regime's top priority. Intelligent fools If you are not one of those people who believe that Malawi "has its owners," then you know that it is we who willingly install people who make a mockery of leadership. The fact is, we vote these people in under the spell of group psychology. Just think of the multiparty euphoria in 1992. Many of us were displeased with Western media, which cautioned that we were voting for people whose true colours we had already seen. The media was right. One would think that people who only show up when they need to bribe or incite the youth assault their opponents would not fool an intelligent people like ours, but no, a fool and his money are soon elected to parliament. We are intelligent. In fact, without prejudice black Africans are the most intelligent race in the world. This fact is based on statistics gathered from worldwide academic performance. Even if this were not true, it does make a strong case for the fact that we have plenty of intelligent people within our ranks. I dare say that ignorance, the victim mentality, and self-doubt are the reasons we are lagging behind regional and world powers that actually rely on our resources to keep them going. Reject negativism The first step we need to make is to change our attitudes toward ourselves. Our negativity is evident from such areas as naming and language. We are so proud of European names that we are offended when people use our 'home names.' How many people have you met who abandoned their traditional names on arriving in the city? Sometimes we do not adopt European names; we alter ours. Yet other races proudly expect us to use their native names, even the ones that comprise only of consonants. They regard adjusting to accommodate those who do not speak their language as condescending. We view adjusting ourselves and our language to accommodate outsiders as promotion. As far as language is concerned, most Malawians and especially the youth feel 'proud' only when they speak English. Doing something the English way means doing it well, while doing it the African way based on my continental affiliation, means I have done a shoddy job. Case of low self-esteem Our national self-esteem is so low, in fact, that we readily let outsiders define how we speak our language. Just listen to the high-powered FM stations call this country 'Malaway'. The language of the conqueror, hen spoken by the conquered, ecomes the language of a slave. What about the language of the slave hat the conqueror changes, and then he slave adopts with gratitude and ladness? We need to toil away without the reedy and selfish naggings that have aused us to deplete our land to nrich our individual lives. We forget hat our grandchildren and their ffspring will be the ones to suffer because of our corruption. When we are propagating the agendas of the foreign investors, when we refuse to pay our bills, we make life that much harder for those who will come after us. Money will not solve problems like lack of rain and impoverished essential amenities providers. India, for instance, is now reaping the harvest of its intractable determination. In an article in one of their newspapers boldly titled India as Managerial Number One, Swaminathan S Anklesaria Aiyar outlines how cynical Sir Frederick Upcott, then chief commissioner of the Great Indian Peninsula, was when Jamsetji Tata suggested that India could manufacture steel. Upcott pledged to eat every ounce of steel that Tata could produce. A century later, Tata, modern India's largest empire, is set to take over the entire British steel industry. The Tata group already took over Tetley, Britain's leading tea-bag brand and the world's second biggest at $432 million. Chained in poverty Unless we become self-sufficient, we will always be slaves, bowing down to the dictates of the donor community. The legendary Bob Marley sang, "I remember on the slave ship, how they brutalized the very souls. Today they say that we are free, only to be chained in poverty." The only way to better our individual economy is to better our country's economy. Tata said, "What is good for Tata is good for India." Perhaps if we think along these lines we will lift ourselves out of our national lack. It is time we stopped running away physically, mentally, and emotionally, and began working towards building Malawi. We are not as disadvantaged as other countries that have far outshone us. Before Samsung Electronics was started, South Korea had gone through a war. Today, Samsung is among the world's top three electronics companies. Israel has had problems since Biblical times, yet it is the most industrialized country in the Middle East. Among the world's most competitive economies, it ranks 15th, according to the World's Economic Forum. We are not disadvantaged. Dismiss slave mentality Paraphrasing the legendary Nelson Mandela's words, who are we not to be magnificent, talented, brilliant, and triumphant? It is time to dismiss our slave mentality and realize that we have what it takes to make Malawi the majestic nation she can be. It is superior to be Proud to be Malawian.

National Bank introduces Visa debit cards

By HENRY MCHAZIME - 27 June 2008 - 14:04:27

NATIONAL Bank of Malawi Thursday introduced four ranges of Visa debit cards and point of sales device which would facilitate broad scale electronic transactions.
The four Visa cards include Electron, Classic, Gold and Platinum which would be offered according to the income base of customers and will eventually replace the existing ATM card.
The card, would, among other things be used for purchasing goods and services using Point of Sale (POS) terminal displaying the Visa symbol located at designated places.
During a media briefing in Blantyre National Bank Public Relations Manager Annie Magola said customers would benefit a lot from the card.
“No prior loading of the card is required as the transactions will automatically debit your account online and there would be no need to carry cash around and you spend money that you have in your account,” Magola said.


She said introduction of the new products is part of the bank’s five year strategic plan.
“Over the years National Bank of Malawi has embarked on improving all products that we offer including services to match what is in our strategy to be the best in offering banking services,” said Magola.

In his presentation Project Manager for National Bank William Kaunda said apart from offering safe and secured transactions, the new products aim at reducing the cost of managing cash circulation.

“It would be mandatory for us to provide the Electron Visa card to every customer because it would also replace the previous ATM cards but customers would ably acquire products using the Visa cards and also access hard cash on all ATM’s with Visa card symbols,” said Kaunda

National Bank’s Head of Retail Banking Austin Musyani said they would provide point of sale devices to shops, service outlets and merchants across the country to provide a benchmark for the new payment system.

“Cash movement and printing of banknotes is expensive and the Reserve Bank of Malawi has recommended all financial institutions to provide electronic transactions and this would be beneficial not only to National Bank and the customer but the economy in general,” said Musyani.

National Bank says according to its strategy it targets to have a high percentage of electronic transactions by 2011 and an initial investment of K200 million has been pumped into the project.

Only an iconic statesman of Nelson Mandela's stature could be honoured by the glamorous and powerful

Superstars from every field imaginable, many of whom had crossed the
Atlantic, turned out to honour the charismatic former South African
leader at a dinner in a marquee in London's Hyde Park.

First
though, the elder statesman had a private audience at Buckingham Palace
with an old pal - the British monarch. As they shook hands warmly, Mr
Mandela, showing a flash of his famous charm, told his royal host: "You
look younger every time I see you".



Clearly delighted with the compliment, the Queen went on to joke: "It's very nice weather - arranged just for you."


What had been organised especially for the anti-apartheid hero was the
evening gala he hosted, which packed more star power than the red
carpet on Oscar night.



Hollywood was represented in abundance as Robert De Niro, Will Smith, Forest Whitaker, Uma Thurman and Denzel Washington lined up to pay homage to the great man.



Elsewhere Elton John was seen catching up with Oprah Winfrey, while political figures among the guests included Bill Clinton, in town with his daughter Chelsea, and Prime Minister Gordon Brown.


Having prepared the food for the evening Gordon Ramsay joined
the party, mingling with the likes of Formula One ace Lewis Hamilton,
who escorted American singer Nicole Scherzinger, and Bob Geldof.

Clinton, Geldof announce schools boost for Rwanda, Malawi

LONDON (AFP) — Four new teacher training facilities are to be built
in rural areas of Rwanda and Malawi under a scheme announced Thursday
by Britain, Kigali, Blantyre and charities involving Bob Geldof and
Bill Clinton.

The 4.7-million-pound (5.9-million-euro,
9.3-million-dollar) initiative will see up to 4,000 new teachers
trained within a decade, cutting existing class sizes and allowing
thousands of children to go to school for the first time.

Geldof's
Band Aid and The Hunter Foundation, set up by Scottish philanthropist
Tom Hunter, will put in the cash to build and fit out the facilities,
with Britain, Rwanda and Malawi funding the remaining costs.

Former
US president Clinton, Hunter and Geldof were at the launch of the
scheme with the ambassadors of Rwanda and Malawi at a ceremony at the
headquarters of Britain's Department for International Development in
London.

Achieving universal primary education by 2015 is one of the United Nations' eight Millennium Development Goals.

Clinton
said the initiative would try to fill "a big hole in a huge need that
Rwanda and Malawi have for 20,000 more primary school teachers."

Malawi: Muluzi hires 24 lawyers

A simple sentence, 15 words long, which was permanently
inscribed in Malawi Constitution precisely on Section 83 (3), has
attracted a whooping 24 lawyers across the World to interpret what it
means.

It is said the men of law would be charging minimum of US$ 1, 800 per
hour each seating just to make their argument on how they understand
the sentence individually.



Some of the lawyers come from as far as United Kingdom and Nigeria.
Desperate to get back into power after expiry of his constitutional
maximum terms of office, former Malawi President Bakili Muluzi has
confirmed to have hired 24 lawyers to help fight the law that bars him
stand in next year’s general election.



Muluzi retired in 2004 but now says he has retired from retirement.

Malawi’s Electoral commission announced last month that the fourth
general election would be held on May 19, next year and preparations
for registration are almost through and that very soon the exercise
would begin.


One of leading Daily Newspapers in Malawi quoted Muluzi’s personal
attorney, Farhad Assani confirming that their first meeting was held in
the lake district of Mangochi where majority of the lawyers deliberated
their elementary arguments on the interpretation of the 15 words long
sentence.



The familiar sentence reads as follows: “A president and or his vice or
second vice shall serve maximum of two consecutive terms.”

Muluzi served his maximum two consecutive terms of five years each from
1994 to 2004 but he has announced his intention to come back and rule.



Faced with this sentence, he has decided to hire the lawyers to help
him change the interpretation of the provision to mean that it does not
bar a president who retired but decided to retire from retirement.


According to Assani who also happens to be his possible running
mate in the polls, some of the lawyers come from various parts of the
world notably, United Kingdom (UK) and Nigeria.



“The team is comprised of members of the bar from far and wide but
there are also a number of locals in total we are 24,” he was quoted as
saying.

The two digit figure has become a centre of attack from civil society
who say, Muluzi loves to break Malawi laws. There are fears that
changing this law would be recipe for dictatorship. But Malawi public
has nothing to do, other than watch their laws being raped.



Interestingly this would not be the first time for self nicknamed political engineer Muluzi, to try to rape this law.



In 2003 fearing that his term was coming to an end he bribed Members of
Parliament to change the same laws so as to allow him continue ruling
the country. Badly though he failed, because the MP’s were too few to
change this law.


Each MP according reports pocketed almost US$ 5, 000 which they
never refunded back to Muluzi after the move failed. They all scattered
and feigned innocent.


This time the United Democratic Front (UDF) leader, a rich lavish
man, from a terribly poor, hunger stricken family, wants to spend his
money on courts.

But some secret reports say his closest allies most of whom are retired
judges, advised him to stop, saying it is impossible to bypass, let
alone change this law.

Civil servants should learn to earn their pay

BY The Daily Times

14:13:13 - 24 June 2008

Once upon a time civil servants moved about the
streets with their shoulders stooping so low. They were one of the
least paid workers in this country. However, this is not the case any
more. Some civil servants can proudly say they are one of the best paid
people in the land. The trappings that go along with the positions they
hold in the public service are far much better than those of their
counterparts in the private sector.



However, the high remuneration of some civil servants is beset by lack of discipline and sheer laziness by some of them.



While employees in the private sector sweat to earn their pay and
promotion on the job, their counterparts in the civil service make
their pay by fulfilling virtually none of the abovementioned. Some
civil servants can afford to globetrot, and attend one workshop after
another, while their genuine work piles up at their offices.



Some civil servants arrive at work way beyond 7:30 am and knock off at
any time they wish without fear of any reprisals. And some cheeky ones
are now more of business people than civil servants as they can afford
to go to South Africa, Tanzania, Dubai or any other country to get
various things which they sell back home. All this is done during
working time and are paid for doing personal businesses using taxpayers
money.



These civil servants, who are notorious for lazing off and treating
work as a pastime activity, argue that it is a culture not to work hard
in the civil service. Such wasteful civil servants hide behind their
efficient and effective colleagues whose hard work goes unnoticed by
the masters who award promotions.



And yet there is nobody and no system at all to track and discipline
these wayward civil servants. It beats us that sometimes such people
earn a promotion.



Surely, this culture of laziness and lack of dedication to work in the
civil service can not be allowed to go on. It is one of the factors why
our country has not progressed the way it should have been despite
years of independence. The civil service is a pivotal catalyst for
development as it provides various services for the private sector.



We are, therefore, pleased to learn from President Bingu wa Mutharika,
who heads the civil service, that government is not watching this evil
helplessly.



We applaud the move to introduce a comprehensive Public Service
Performance Management System that will measure the performance of
individual public servants and that of ministries or departments. We
hope this time the President means business because we do not think
last time he asked ministers to give him monthly reports he was serious
as that was never sustained.



Indeed, it is high time the civil service was very efficient in service
delivery, so that the country develops fast, to catch with the growing
population and the dynamic globalised world.



It is our wish that implementation of the various civil service reforms
should be done speedily. This country, more than ever before, needs a
vibrant civil service, and coupled with a lively private sector, it can
progress quickly towards its dream of becoming a middle class economy.

‘Bills gathering dust’

BY HENRY MCHAZIME

09:12:27 - 25 June 2008

ECONOMIC bills are still gathering dust in Parliament five years after they were presented in the House, analysts have said.



But government has attributed the delay to the negative behaviour of
opposition legislatures in Parliament that had delayed proceedings in
the august House.





Society of Accountants in Malawi (Socam) says the delay is putting the
country’s business practice in conflict with international standards.



In an interview Tuesday , Socam president Andy Kulugomba said it was
obvious that lack of new laws is slowly affecting Malawi’s economic
development.



“It is very worrying for everybody as these bills are critical and the
more they stay idle in the House the more it affects our development as
a nation.


For example the Companies Act was formulated in 1984 and as it is
today the law is in conflict with international standards of business
practice,” said Kulugomba.



According to Socam the economic bills among others include amending the
1957 Insurance Act, Companies Act (1984), Employment Bill, Public
Accountants Bill which would facilitate the merger between Socam and
Public Accountant Examination Council (Paec) and Mipa-Mepc Bill.



Kulugomba added that it would be better if Parliament could consider enacting some of the bills at the next meeting.



“The current state where all bills are not being touched is
discouraging professionals from coming up with new proposals to update
our laws which is not good as it would deter economic growth and affect
regulation of some business sectors,” said Kulugomba.



In his remarks Minister of Economic Planning and Development Ken
Lipenga said it is government’s intention to have all economics bills
discussed and passed by Parliament but it was unfortunate that politics
is dominating deliberations in parliament.



“These bills were drafted to respond to the needs that are there which
would have been resolved after enactment but both opposition and
governmet side are faced with the current political tension.



It is obvious that we are not addressing some the country’s needs that
are there since some bills have indeed overstayed in the house,” said
Lipenga.



Parliament was suspended last week by President Bingu wa Mutharika
after opposition Members of Parliament indicated that they are not
interested to discuss the national budget without resolving the issue
of Section 65 first.

Malawi’s agriculture sector gets a boost from the World Bank, Norway and GEF

Press Release No:2008/396/AFR

WASHINGTON, June 24, 2008 – The World Bank Board of Executive Directors today approved US$37.80 million to the Malawi Government to support investments aimed at improving food security and sustainable agricultural growth.

The approved amount, to be provided through the Agricultural Development Programme Support Project (ADP-SP), consists of a US$32 million International Development Association (IDA) credit, and a US$5.8 million Global Environment Facility (GEF) grant. The Government of Norway will contribute an additional US$10 million, while the Malawi Government will put in an equivalent to US$2.3 million in kind. The total value of the ADP-SP is US$53.3 million over a five year period (2008-2013).

The ADP-SP will mainly focus on institutional development and capacity building in preparation for an agriculture sector wide approach (SWAp), and sustainable food security.

‘The Bank supports Government’s aspirations of enhancing agricultural growth as a linchpin for the country’s prosperity. We believe that through this project both agricultural productivity and food security will be improved, and that Malawi will be cushioned from the adverse impacts of the rising prices of agricultural commodities,’ says Timothy Gilbo, the World Bank Country Manager for Malawi

With agriculture as Malawi’s engine for economic growth, the first priority of the ADP-SP is to improve overall governance of the agriculture sector by building technical, managerial and administrative capacities in the Ministry of Agriculture and Food Security. Strengthened capacity is important for the Ministry to effectively implement the Agriculture Development Program (ADP) being prepared by the Ministry.

The objective of the ADP is to improve food security and generate agricultural growth through increased productivity of food and cash crops, while ensuring sustainable use of natural resources. Within three years, the ADP is expected to evolve into an agriculture SWAp, which will coordinate donor support to the agriculture sector in Malawi.

‘The ADP-SP represents the first coordinated donor commitment to the Government’s Agricultural Development Programme, and provides a valuable foundation to build from. The harmonization of donor funding in support of the ADP is essential for achieving our target 6% growth in the agricultural sector,’ says Andrew Daudi, Malawi’s Principal Secretary for Agriculture and Food Security.

The second priority for the ADP-SP is sustainable improvement of national and household food security. This will be achieved through supporting smallholder farmers to improve maize productivity growth, sustainable land management, and strengthening market based agricultural risk management strategies. Activities to improve maize productivity will include helping farmers with choosing right maize varieties, including drought resistant ones; efficient use of fertilizer to produce more per unit of fertilizer applied; and reducing post-harvest losses. Sustainable land and rainwater management will include assisting farmers testand adopt conservation farming practices.

The ADP-SP will also support national efforts to stabilize food supplies through the application of several market based risk management initiatives including micro weather insurance, macro weather insurance, price hedging and warehouse receipts.

‘The risk management toolbox being supported through the ADP-SP aims at insuring the country from maize supply deficits and reduces the country’s vulnerability to food price variability. This will encourage more farmers to shift from a preoccupation with food security toward the pursuit of commercial income growth,’ says David Rohrbach, the World Bank’s Task Team Leader for the ADP-SP.

The Ministry of Agriculture and Food Security will be responsible for the implementation of the ADP-SP. About 200,000 rural smallholders, or about 10% of the total farming households of the country, are expected to benefit directly from the various activities of the ADP-SP. Agriculture provides a livelihood for 85 percent of the population and smallholders contribute about three-quarters of agricultural production. Malawi’s economy remains agro-based with agriculture contributing 38 percent of gross domestic product (GDP).

The GEF unites 178 countries in partnership with international institutions, non-governmental organizations (NGOs), and the private sector to address global environmental issues while supporting national sustainable development initiatives. Today the GEF is the largest funder of projects to improve the global environment. An independent financial organization, the GEF provides grants for projects related to biodiversity, climate change, international waters, land degradation, the ozone layer, and persistent organic pollutants. Since 1991, GEF has achieved a strong track record with developing countries and countries with economies in transition, providing US$7.6 billion in grants and leveraging US$30.6 billion in co-financing for over 2,000 projects in over 165 countries.

Irish government disclose a 10 million Euro aid package for Malawi

LOCAL TD and
Minister of State for Overseas Development, Peter Power has travelled
to Malawi where he will open a new Irish Embassy in Lilongwe later on
today.

As well as presiding over the opening ceremony Minister
of State Power also announced an aid package of 10 million euro in
Irish Aid assistance for Malawi for 2008.

Minister of State
Power said that the opening of an Embassy in Malawi considerably
strengthens Irish bilateral relations and partnership in the area.

"Irish
Aid will finalise a comprehensive assistance strategy early next year.
This is a tribute to the commitment of the Government of Malawi to
reducing poverty and it is part of our joint effort to reach the
Millennium Development Goals."

He added that the 10 million
euro aid package would help vulnerable communities in Malawi to respond
to food insecurity and rising food prices.

"The interim
package of support for 2008 is very closely aligned with Malawi’s
national plan for poverty reduction. It will provide a firm foundation
for a multi-year programme of support to Malawi in the years ahead and
will allow the country to respond to key challenges, including in the
areas of agricultural production and rural development, to help offset
rising food prices," he said.

Earlier Minister of State Power had an opportunity to meet with the President of Malawi, His Excellency Bingu wa Mutharika.

Yesterday
he visited Khulumgira village in Dedza District where he saw at first
hand the benefit of funding from Irish taxpayers in improving food
yields among vulnerable communitie

International NGOs blame IMF, World Bank and WTO for bad policies in Africa as a result of Malawi's food successes

By
PHILIP NGUNJIRI


Special
Correspondent

The
food crisis being experienced
in Africa is due to the failure
of three decades of market deregulation
by the World Bank, the International
Monetary Fund and the World Trade
Organisation’s agricultural sector
development model, a group of
international NGOs have stated.

The
group said that the policies of
the Washington Consensus
had weakened the smallholder agricultural
systems, resulting in the food
crisis now being witnessed in
many African countries, including
Kenya, Sierra Leone, Egypt, Cote
d’Ivoire, Senegal, Burkina Faso,
Cameroon and Mauritania, some
of which have witnessed violent
riots.

Africa’s
share of global exports declined
from 50 per cent in the 1960s
to 20 per cent in the 1980s. On
the other hand, African governments
spent an average of $18.7 billion
to import foods nearly eight years
ago, while food aid dependent
states received $3.8 million as
food aid.

According
to the NGOs, the continent’s spending
on cereal imports is expected
to rise by more than half this
year.

Angela
Wauye, ActionAid Kenya’s food
rights co-ordinator, said African
governments, advised by international
financial institutions and donors,
have dismantled public support
to agriculture and neglected small
farmers, particularly women farmers,
who feed their people. The current
food crisis in Africa, she added
is a signal that most African
countries cannot continue to rely
on importation of food, mostly
grains, to meet national food
requirements.

The
NGOs, including ActionAid, the
Global Call to Action against
Poverty, Oxfam and the Kenya Food
Security Policy Advocacy Network
were at the 25th Food and Agricultural
Organisation (FAO) regional conference
for Africa in Nairobi, last week.

The
NGOs called for an urgent, immediate
and innovative long term strategy
that is largely informed by local
experience and policy direction,
which should be embedded in draft
policies aimed at alleviating
the situation, which the group
predicts will continue for the
next two years.

To
effectively address the current
crisis, food security mandates
ought to be the responsibility
of all various ministries or institutions.
Similarly, policy measures should
be mainstreamed in all government
ministries and departments with
a view to enhancing a cohesive
approach to dealing with the problem.

The
group also proposed the transformation
and subsidisation of smallholder
agriculture by removing nuisance
taxes and cess on all agricultural
products produced locally. Malawi
is a living testimony — it has
moved from being over-dependent
on food aid to a net-food
producing and exporting country.

The
governments should trash the IMF’s
structural adjustment programmes
and subsidise farm inputs needed
by small-scale farmers such as
fertilisers, seeds, animal vaccines,
artificial insemination and other
animal clinical services.

The
governments should support investments
in initiatives that ensure availability
of cereals and seeds for both
consumption and as planting materials
at local level. Blanket and unchecked
liberalisation of seed and other
inputs market has not improved
timely access to quality seeds
or fertilisers by small-scale
farmers.

In
addition, 15 African civil society
organisations (CSOs) attending
the meeting have demanded that
trade must serve the development
of agriculture and livelihoods
of poor people rather than the
interests of multinationals. African
governments, they noted, must
prioritise inter and intra-Africa
trade in agriculture rather than
negotiate unfair bilateral trade
agreements such as the Economic
Partnership Agreements.

The
CSOs recommended that an effective
agricultural special safeguard
mechanism for African countries
to overcome the current food crisis
be applied and that countries
fulfil the commitment of allocating
a minimum of 10 per cent of their
national budget to agriculture
development, while the WTO must
be excluded from agriculture and
left to deal with other issues.

Egypt v Malawi

Egypt
will be seeking to avenge their 1-0 away defeat to Malawi last week
when the two sides face-off at the Cairo stadium on Sunday.

The result saw the Pharaohs drop to third spot in African Cup of Nations and World Cup qualifying Group Twelve.

However, the Egyptian FA are more concerned with safety of
goalkeeper Essam El-Hadary, who was the subject of abuse in their last
home game against the DR Congo.

Egyptian FA president Samir Zaher told the FA's official website: "We have the utmost confidence in the fans' love for Egypt."

"Their support was a decisive factor in helping the national team win back-to-back Nation Cup titles.

"Some reports said that we intend to implement additional
security measures in Sunday's match, but I can affirm that those
reports are completely untrue.

"We fully respect Egyptian fans, whom we believe will heavily support the team against Malawi."

Coach Hassan Shehata will breathe a sigh of relief with the return of experienced strike duo of Emad Moteab and Amr Zaky.

The Flames' confidence will still be high as they top the Group
but Malawi football chief Charles Nyirenda warned the team not to
expect a warm reception in the Egyptian capital.

Nyirenda told FilGoal:"The atmosphere is likely to be
intimidating. They will be over 100,000 fans who will be chanting and
roaring trying to intimidate the Flames."

"Majority of Flames players are playing in outside where they are used to such type of environment."

"The likes of Mponda, Kanyenda and others are conditioned to that kind of environment and they will withstand the heat."

Posted: 20/06/08 10:59

Lest we forget (2002) : Denmark halts aid to the Muluzi Administration blaming political intolerance and corruption

BBCNEWS

The European Union (EU) has asked the Malawi Government to
refund at least 8 million euros ($8m) that the government diverted from its intended use before 30 August.

EU head of delegation in
Malawi Wiepke van der Goot told the BBC on Wednesday that the EU was
demanding its money back because it was used for what he termed as
"ineligible expenditure".

The money was initially
meant for a road construction project in Blantyre but, according to a
joint EU/Malawi Government audit, the money was either used for other
unapproved projects or was misappropriated.

Malawi is in desperate financial plight and in the grip of a devastating drought which has swept across Southern Africa.

Several months ago Denmark halted aid to the impoverished nation blaming political intolerance and corruption.

And the International
Monetary Fund is withholding $47m of the $55m earmarked for Malawi due
to concerns about possible corruption and poor management.

Delay

Mr Van der Goot said the
EU recognised that Malawi was in dire
need of aid but if agreed measures were not respected, he said, "we
will be forced - against our wishes - to delay further budgetary
support to Malawi".

Finance Minister Friday Jumbe confirmed that the EU had asked for a refund but described it as "normal".

He told journalists the government was ready to refund the
money.

The EU has approved a
345 million euro package for Malawi to be spread over a period of
five-years, but the new money will not start flowing until after the
current problem is resolved.

According to EU food
advisor for Malawi Paul Ginies, the EU has already approved a 95,000
metric tonne donation of maize for Malawi where an estimated 3 million
people are facing starvation.

And some of the maize, according to Mr Ginies, has already started arriving.

Did Muluzi swindle ADB schools money in 1995

AfricaNews

Debate has broken in Malawi on how the former government of
Bakili Muluzi managed funds from African Development Bank (ADB) and
Kuwait fund meant for construction of primary schools in 1995.
A circulation suggests that in 1995 Malawi Government got a funding from the bank to construct 92 schools countrywide.



The donation which was complimented by Kuwait funds for the same cause
is slowly becoming a hot debate among non partisan publics. And the
former president needs to clear the air before he is suspected to have
misappropriated the money.



The report says, during that time government claimed to have put the
schools money to a good use by constructing almost half the schools.


But the circulation says, when government was asked to account for
the funds, it listed some old training colleges as among new schools
constructed with the finances. Notable were Kasungu, Karonga.



But it followed that these institutions were already there as they were
constructed by the first President Hastings Kamuzu Banda and his Malawi
Congress Party (MCP) government. Kamuzu relinquished power at the age
of 86 in 1994 through a peaceful democratic process. Muluzi has
announced intention to come back and rule the country despite not being
allowed by laws.



During that time Muluzi government, in trying to add weight to its
claim, ordered Privatization Commission to finance printing of note
books meant for distribution in the new schools.



The notebooks were shown to the representatives of the donors as
evidence that the government had indeed constructed new schools whose
pupils needed note books.



This was enough for the donors to believe that their money was put to good use says the circulation.



Now it was time to inspect the schools and distribute the notebooks.
One of the schools which were inspected was Nsomba in TA Kapeni. When
officials from Privatization drove to that area they did not find any
school in that name.


Traditional leader of the area only told them that the former
president (Bakili Muluzi) when he visited there, in one of his
political rallies, earmarked the area for a school in that name. But
the school was never constructed. Nsomba was just one of tens of
schools.


Muluzi, a primary school graduate ruled Malawi from 1994 and
stepped down in 2004 at the expiry of his mandatory term but is
fighting constitution to allow him rule again from 2009.


The circulation says, last year 2007, Privatization Commission was
still keeping bulks of notebooks which were printed to be distributed
in the 'non existent schools.



Says the circulation which puts Muluzi's credibility in questions as next year's presidential candidate in Malawi.



The circulation says Muluzi had ordered some Privatization officials to
destroy the notebooks in suspicion that they could be used against him.

This kind of debate shows how African people desire their leaders to be trustworthy before they take over offices.



Meanwhile, Malawi public supports the Declaration of Assets law. This
policy mandates all public officers to declare what they have before
assuming offices.

If Africa tolerates suspicious leaders, we risk losing all donors. No donor condones misappropriation of their money.

Who is Professor Peter Mutharika?

Click here to find out

Malawi: Demonstrators force indefinite adjournment of Malawi parliament

A group of pro-government demonstrators forced an inde
finite adjournment of the current budget session of the Malawi
Parliament.



Speaker Louis Chimango, who was escorted into the chamber under
heavy security, announced to the few Members of Parliament who made it
to the chamber that the situation outside the House was not conducive
for the Parliament to continue it sitting.

"MPs feel unsafe to come here so I adjourn these proceedings indefinitely," he said.

The
Malawi Parliament meets at President Bingu wa Mutharika's official
residence , the New State House, in the capital, Lilongwe.

From
early morning Friday, trucks were seen dropping scores of young men and
women, most of them bearing concealed weapons, according to
eye-witnesses.

They unfurled placards denouncing opposition MPs for delaying the passing of the 2008/09 national budget.

Second
Deputy Speaker Esther Mcheka Chilenje-Nkhoma told PANA most MPs turned
wh en they saw the demonstrators at the gate of the New State House.

"We are not sure of our safety so we had to turn back," she said.

But the demonstrators denied that they intended to cause problems at the house.

"We
are here to make it known to these opposition MPs that we, the people
who put them in there, want the budget passed because it is for our
development," one of the demonstrators Moses Banda told journalists.
"These MPs are being selfish by prioritising their political needs."

Opposition
parties want Speaker Chimango to expel MPs who broke ranks with oppos
ition parties to join President Mutharika's newly-found Democratic
Progressive Party (DPP).

Mutharika founded the DPP after
ditching the then ruling United Democratic Front (UDF) on whose ticket
he won the 2004 elections.

Mutharika claimed UDF leaders were corrupt and several MPs followed him to the DPP.

UDF
leader in Parliament George Mtafu said the opposition, who forms the
majority in Parliament, would not transact any business unless the MPs
were expelled.

"The law is clear; once you quit your party and
join another you have crossed th e floor and you must lose your seat,"
he said, adding "We are only following the law."

But President Mutharika has challenged the opposition to wait for the next elections scheduled for 19 May, 2009.

"They
want to expel my MPs so that they bring down my government," he said
during a public function Thursday. "I won't allow that."

The bad blood between the opposition and government has seen several government bills torpedoes in Parliament.

Blantyre - 20/06/2008

Pana

Malawi’s economy shines,politics threatens prospects

BY GERALD NAMWAZA

12:36:59 - 18 June 2008



MALAWI
can be considered one of the best performing economies in Southern
African Development Community (Sadc) but unfavourable political climate
stands in the way of progress, Standard Bank research economics says.



But that could be history. Some analysts say the increase in fuel,
fertiliser and food prices would erode past economic gains and put the
presidency in a tightrope to tame the political heat and direct the
fragile economy.



Added to this cocktail of problems is the potential threat of losing
donor money for the 2008/09 budget on political tension between
government and opposition which could see about K90 billion in
budgetary support up in smokes.



Except for oil rich Angola over the past three years, the report says
Malawi’s economy has attained growth rates of more than 7 percent
compared to 5 percent in the region and has slashed domestic debt from
25 percent to about 11 percent.



The reduction of domestic debt slashed government’s impetus to crowd
out the private sector on the money market and in the process released
more funds for private sector to borrow and boost their operations.



This has been reflected in the increased total net domestic debt
extended by the banking system to the private sector by 68 percent to
K90 billion in January 2008 that has resulted in more export earnings
for the country.



According to the report, authored by Anita Last and Kondwani Mlilima of
Standard Bank, exports which from the 1980s to 2004 stagnated at
between US$400 and US$500 million reached a record of just over US$700
in 2008 and is expected to hit above US$800 next year.



The success of the economic landscape has been attributed to the
country’s unwavering adherence to prudent economic management as
unveiled in the past national budgets that has put more emphasis on
agriculture.



Just like in the past budgets, the focus of President Bingu wa
Mutharika has been on agriculture and infrastructure development as has
been reflected in Goodall Gondwe’s K229 billion budget.



It has channelled about K32 billion to this sector part of which would be used



“Despite the downturn in economic activity in developed countries, and
the high oil and food prices, the budget has been prepared on the basis
of relatively good and robust macroeconomic assumptions,” reads the
report in part.



It assumes that the goods and services produced during the period will
jump from about K520 billion to K580 billion and that inflation rate
would be at 6.5 percent while the bank rate would fall to 12.5 percent
from the current rate of 15 percent.



National Bank of Malawi (NBM) in its June economic newsletter says food
shortage –which accounts for about 60 percent weight in the Consumer
Price Index—would put pressure on inflation, making the underlying
budgetary assumptions obsolete.







As if these economic challenges are not enough, the tension between
government and opposition is throwing spanners in the economic agenda
of the country as it races towards the achievement of the Millennium
Development Goals (MDGs).



In an interview with Reuters this week, head of the United Nations
mission in Malawi Michael Keating said Parliament needs to pass the
budget to get support from the donor community.



But it would appear this is a tall order to a parliament that is
divided on whether to pass the national financial plan first or to
resolve the controversial Section 65 before discussing the budget.



The country is in political tremor since February 2005 since President
Bingu wa Mutharika broke away from United Democratic Party (UDF) with a
legion of members of parliament to form his own Democratic Progressive
Party (DPP), a development some analysts say is the genesis of the
current political upheaval.



In 2007 soon after passing the budget Mutharika dismissed the National
Assembly before the issue of Section 65, which regulates the movement
of MPs, was resolved.



The President argues that Section 65 infringes on the rights of people
to associate freely while the opposition insist that it is a
constitutional matter and should be resolved before the budget.



Meanwhile waiting on the wings is the business community to grab
opportunities in construction projects, supply of drugs to hospitals,
move fertiliser to rural masses and a host of other business ventures
that would allow them to employ more Malawians.



Incidentally in 2004 general elections, former president Bakili Muluzi,
who is now national chairman of UDF and its presidential candidate for
2009, told people to vote for Bingu wa Mutharika saying he was an
“economic engineer,” who would turn around the economic fortunes of the
country.

Malawi Centralizes Payments for Tobacco, Daily Times Reports

By Brian Latham

June 16 (Bloomberg) -- All foreign currency payments for
tobacco sold in Malawi will now be made through the central bank,
the Daily Times said, citing a statement from the country's
First Discount House Ltd.

Tobacco earnings, which are paid in U.S. dollars,
previously went direct to commercial banks in the southern
African nation, the Lilongwe-based newspaper said on its Web
site. The change will allow Malawi's central bank to control the
flow of foreign exchange into the country, the Daily Times added.

Malawi is Africa's biggest exporter of burley tobacco.

To contact the reporter on this story:
Brian Latham via the Johannesburg bureau at
asguazzin@bloomberg.net.

Malawi Flames honoured for beating Egypt

Malawi national soccer team aka the Flames who stunned African
Cup of Nations defending champions Egypt 1-0 in Blantyre on Saturday
have been highly rewarded by its president Bingu Wa Mutharika and
companies for their historical victory.
The country’s Minister of Youth, Sports and Development Symon Kaunda
said Saturday that the president was impressed with the team’s
performance adding that he has invited the soccer team to his residence
for dinner.



The teams’ win has also sparked some of the country’s companies to splash money to the Flames.



Some of the pledges have come from companies like Mapeto David
Whitehead and Sons, HTD, Mike Appel and Gatto, Xerographics and
ministers plus individuals.



The pledges in total have come to about 4 million Malawi Kwacha (about US$ 230,000).



Flames made history once again when they stunned Africa Cup of Nations
defending champions Egypt beating them 1-0 at their backyard Kamuzu
stadium in Blantyre on Saturday in the joint World Cup and Africa Cup
of Nations qualifier.



This was a weekend of shocks which also saw Southern African countries Tanzania and Botswana hold other African heavy weights.



Tanzania held Cameroon, Africa Cup of Nations losing finalists to a
goalless draw in Dar es Salam while Botswana held Ivory Coast to a one
all draw in Gaberone.



However other Southern African countries suffered defeats. South Africa
who are the 2010 World Cup hosts lost 0-1 away to Sierra Leone whereas
Zimbabwe lost 2-0 to Kenya. Angola lost miserably to Uganda 1-3.



Substitute Chiukepo Msowoya who came in for South African based
professional Russel Mwafulirwa was responsible for the Pharaohs
downfall as he scored in the last minute of injury time.



Msowoya’s stunning volley sparked celebrations in the Southern African country’s commercial city of Blantyre.



It was a sweet victory for the Flames who last weekend lost to
Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) 0-1 in Kinshasa in Group 12. The
loss also came after they had registered a biggest win in their first
game beating Djibouti 8-1 in Blantyre.



Malawi played out of their skin with their Captain Peter Mponda
commanding his colleagues well and Egypt survived several dangerous
moves with their goalkeeper Essam El Hadary at his best.



Malawi’s win rifted them to the top of Group 12 with six points
likewise Egypt and DRC who beat Djibouti 6-0 on Friday but the Flames
have a better goal difference.



Egypt coach Hassan Shehata was shocked by Malawi’s late goal and admitted after the match that the Flames deserved the victory.

Shehata who has won two consecutive Africa Cup of Nations attributed the loss to injuries.



“Malawi is a good team and Iam impressed but we had too many injuries,” the Egyptian coach said.



Malawi’s Coach Kinnah Phiri who took over from British coach Stephen
Constantine who resigned recently, said it was a good result which has
put the Southern African country’s national team campaign back on track.

Malawi win 1-0 to current African Champions Egypt

The Flames now sit proudly atop Group 12 after their stunning win at the Kamuzu Stadium.

The
injury-stricken Pharoahs had the best of the early chances, and
appeared to be denied a penalty 20 minutes in, but couldn't convert
their opportunities.

The second half saw the Egyptians clearly
tire, though, and Malawi took full advantage right at the death after
Chiukepo Msowoya seized on a lacklustre clearance from Gomaa to volley
home a famous winner.

Home coach Kinnah Phiri was in no mood for modesty after a famous win.

He
told the press after the match, "We Flames played some classy football
and we should have beaten the Pharaohs be a bigger margin."

Steve Michaels, Goal.com

OPINION: Revealation! Some clergy, Muluzi inplant

PLEASE NOTE THE VIEWS EXPRESSED IN THE OPINION SECTION ARE THE WRITER'S AND DO NOT NECESSARILY REPRESENT THE VIEWS OF THIS BLOG

It has come to our notice that there is a lot of things going on
behind the scene right now that Bakili Muluzi has put some of his
faithful clergy in the current discussions with a goal to manipulate
the discuss and have the Bingu Wamthalika dismantled. by the way muluzi
said that he will use anything to push bingu away even in this case
using the clergy. We heard that some of them even came to the point of
asking parliament to stop deliberating the budget and wait for the
outcome of the mediation talks. The fact that clergy said this, it
means that Muluzi told them to go this far because this man as a Muslim
has the pontential to do anything and use even any weapon from hell
again something that is good.

So we call upon all people to watch out because this whole
mediation thing is Muluzi's making trying to stop parliament from
deliberating the budget because Muluzi's mail goal to to topple
government using whatever weapon from hell. Evidence of Muluzi's
manuvering is seen in that in Parliament, both MCP and UDF led by Tembo
and Ntafu are doing every thing possible to stop the budget and wait
for the mediation because they know that some of the clergy involved
in the mediation are the inplants from hell. Not all clergy are from
God because they are some who are from Hell like those we have in this
mediation team.

We also want to warm government that they should not listern from
the outcome of these talks because they are all Muluzi's plan to use
the clergy whom he has bought them cars and build them houses in
blantyre. there are many examples in the Blantyre Synods where we have
these Revelands eating money bloody money from Muluzi and their main
goal to make sure that they work for Muluzi and be payed more. Malawi
government and entire cabinet should watch out because there is nothing
that clergy can do now because It is hard to deal with Muluzi who is
not only a Malawi but a moslem whose main goal is to Islamise Malawi.
He want to turn Malawi into another Muslims country and decorate our
country with many mosques as he did the last ten years when he
plundered, messed up and flashed our economy into the toilet.

Malawians watch out, because Muluzi is there to plunder the
country again and he will use every weapon from hel to make sure that
he topple our government.

Polani

PRESIDENTIAL LIMIT RULE: Framers explain intention

By VINCENT PHIRI - 11 June 2008 - 09:33:47

Framers of the Republican Constitution have spoken on their intentions
when they formulated Section 83 sub-section 3 that talks about
presidential terms of office in the country.



They say the purpose of limiting presidential terms was to avoid
reverting the country to dictatorial rule of government if the sitting
president was not given a maximum period of office.



The constitutional conference that formulated the current laws of
Malawi was held in March 1995 and chaired by the late Rodwell
Munyenyembe, the former Speaker of Parliament.



One of the framers of the Constitution Rafiq Hajat, who is also
Director of Institute for Policy Interaction (IPI), said in an
interview Tuesday that the constitution was clear that after serving
two terms of office, the president is not allowed to bounce back into
office.



“The mistake we made was to put the word ‘consecutive’, and that is why the legal fraternity is viewing the section differently.



“But the underlying principle was to avoid going back to one party
state. We were trying as much as possible to remove laws that could
take us back to dictatorship,” said Hajat, who was also a founding
member of United Democratic Front (UDF).



Section 83 sub-section 3 stipulates that “the President may serve a maximum of two consecutive terms of office”.



At its convection in April, UDF elected its chairman Bakili Muluzi to
represent the party during next year’s elections but critics argue that
Section 83 restricts the former president from springing back into
State House.



Meanwhile, there is a protracted debate on whether Muluzi is eligible
to stand again as a presidential candidate or not, and the
Constitutional Court in Blantyre is expected to hear the case, which
was filed by Christopher Chiphwanya, lawyer for the unknown James Phiri.



Phiri lodged a complaint with the High Court late last year, arguing
that Muluzi was not eligible to stand as presidential candidate in the
forthcoming elections having served as the country’s leader for a
maximum of two consecutive terms, but Muluzi’s legal team led by Ralph
Kasambara is challenging the case.



In an interview Tuesday, Kasambara agreed with the framers of the
constitution that the intention of Section 83 was to deal with the
issue of life presidency but observed that the word “consecutive” was
deliberately placed to allow the incumbent to break for a certain
period and bounce back.



He faulted Hajat on his observation that the framers made a mistake by
putting the word “consecutive” that is currently a bone of contention.



“The word ‘consecutive’ was put there deliberately to allow a sitting
president to serve two terms of office and bounce back after a certain
period of time. I must say that the framers wanted to avoid life
presidency on the part of the sitting president, and the section does
not apply to the former president.



“But if the framers see that they made a mistake, then the channel of
correcting that mistake is to ask the law makers [legislators] to amend
the said section,” said Kasambara.



However, Blessings Chinsinga, a political analyst at Chancellor College
who closely observed the 1995 constitutional review conference that
formulated the current Constitution, said the spirit behind the
formulation of Section 83 should guide people on the issue of Muluzi’s
comeback bid.



Chinsinga observed that the rationale behind the said section was that
people should experiment different ideas by fostering change of
leadership every 10 years.



“I think people are overstretching the interpretation of Section 83 to
accommodate individual interests. It is just a question of semantics,
and it depends on your understanding of the section.



“But we should all follow the intended purpose of the framers of the
Constitution when they were formulating the said section. Yes, the
Constitution was done in a hurry but the important wording on section
83 is ‘maximum’, which sets the limit,” said Chinsinga.



A special law commission in 2006 said the way the Section is now, it
was clear that a former president who served two consecutive terms
could not bounce back even after resting for some time.



Meanwhile, Malawi Electoral Commission (Mec) says it would use Section
80 sub-sections 6 and 7 of the Constitution, which stipulates
qualifications for one to contest as a presidential candidate and other
sections of the same law.



Without touching on Muluzi’s eligibility, the electoral body observed
that the Constitution was clear on the procedure that the commission
should follow when certifying presidential and parliamentary candidates.



“Section 80 sub-section 6 stipulates that a person shall only be
qualified for nomination for election as president if that person is a
citizen of Malawi by birth or descent and has attained the age of
thirty-five years.



The electoral body has avoided elaborating on the issue, arguing that
the Law Commission or any other relevant authority should come clear on
the matter.

Raise level of debate in the House

By The Daily Times - 11 June 2008 - 09:23:40

Generally speaking, apart from bickering over issues of little or no
consequence for the welfare of the people they represent, our members
of Parliament are expected to bring better agenda to Parliament. All
they need is to do their homework, and work all the time.



Question time, for example, can aptly be described as time wasted in
the House. It is cluttered with requests which MPs could easily sort
out with better coordination and rapport with line ministries and
thereby spare parliamentary discussions for more pressing issues.



It is not uncommon, for example, to hear an MP asking a certain
ministry to provide them with a certain service or facility and then
the minister saying the issue being asked for could better be sought
from or handled at the MP’s respective district assembly. In some
cases, the MP is embarrassed to hear the services he or she is asking
for was already being provided or that good progress is being made on
the matter.



Some MPs ask questions in the House so that their constituents can hear
them doing something, however irrelevant. The result is that a lot of
time is wasted discussing trivialities.



The exchange of salvos in the House yesterday between the opposition
and the government side over what type of questions MPs ask is typical
of the problem we have in our Parliament. Some MPs ask questions just
to embarrass the government. These are issues we could spare our
Parliament of and use the precious time in the House—whose every
meeting costs the taxpayer a lot of money—to show how much we can do
for the good of this country.



Is it not ironical, for example, that some MPs fail to utilise the
Constituency Development Fund allocated to their constituencies simply
because they don’t spend much time with the people to hear their
problems and plan with them how to solve them? Is it not shameful that
the same MPs go to Parliament to ask a certain ministry to provide them
with boreholes?



Through the budget, MPs know and are expected to know, what projects
government has lined up for their respective areas in various sectors.
If there is unsatisfactory progress on some projects, the onus is on
each MP to follow up with the minister concerned. MPs do not have to
wait for Question Time in the Parliament to quiz a cabinet minister or
raise their concerns over a stalling project.



This also goes with all the Parliamentary Committees with oversight in
various sectors. Oftentimes, we see a committee at the end of a
financial year or two years down the line, taking a cabinet minister to
task over an undelivered promise. Why is it difficult to monitor
progress so that if there are inefficiencies, they can be promptly
sorted out?



On its part, government, through its line ministries, is expected to
give people what they deserve, timely and quality services and
facilities.



We can say without fear of contradiction that government does not score
highly on responsiveness or speed when it comes to operationalising
issues. But many senior officers in the driving seat of many projects
will easily use government procedures, for example on procurement, as a
scapegoat for their own inefficiencies. This is unfortunate and is the
reason some donors will demand back their money after the period for
its allocation has expired

The need for Parliament entrance examinations

By Pacharo Felix Munthali - 11 June 2008 - 09:18:30

Almost everyone wants to be in Parliament. For those who are already
there, they say they are qualified and they deserve to be in the House.



They passed the proficiency test. They can speak English. That’s good!
They can manage to write in English. To them, all is well. At least if
an MP can control the pen to write and say some sense in English, it is
all fine – that is a threshold enough to gauge the MPs’ mental and
intellectual malnourishment.



At the time of the test, those that had an MSCE certificate or any
qualification above were exempted from the examination. How should a
nation examine someone who is well educated? They know a lot. If they
posses the basic MSCE certificate, it means they at least know the
basics.



The syllabus covers a good number of basics, enough to make an individual well-informed.



Although the proficiency test was introduced, with some pain, I fail to
grasp the reason for its set up. If it is only to see how fluent one is
in English, be it written or orally, as a nation are we helping one
another? Is the mere understanding of English a reason enough for one
to qualify for a seat in the House?



This coupled with the strange calls by almost every celebrity that they
want to stand as MPs, jittery I am failing to appreciate the whole
situation. Something needs to be done. Not to bar the aspirants, but at
least to separate chaff from the group of many aspirants. At least to
see how ready they are.



Being an era of globalisation, where what is happening in USA or
Britain, South Africa or Zimbabwe can have a bearable effect on the
people, it high time we critically analyzed those to make laws for us
in Parliament. Those to be in parliament need to have at least basic
knowledge on different things. How many MPs have been quoted saying
something on EPAs, AGOA, the once looming economic recession, the
economic slow down, the global warming, the oil prices, and many issues
that in one way or another impact Malawi.



In other ways there is need for a mechanism that surely should sieve
the MPs or those aspiring to become one. The honourable ladies and
gentlemen face issues of all extremes – most of them of the great
importance to the nation. There are crucial decisions that the MPs are
supposed to make. And they do that.



But despite the proficiency test, it is only few individuals who take
part in the deliberations. Others just follow where the wind is blowing
without scrutinising the contributions.



There have been few who are opinion leaders in the House, with the rest
being reduced to mere opinion followers. There have been some issues
that the MPs have failed to participate in. Chances are high that some
of the MPs are always mum not that they don’t know how to speak English
but because of the barrier in understanding things.



In other words, members of Parliament need to be well versed in issues
from different spheres of life. They may not have knowledge of
everything, but they need at least to have an overview of the current
affairs as it is happening around the world. They must know other
issues as well not only English.



My point of view is that English test is not enough in all senses.
There is an urgent need for a special screening process that apart from
gauging them in English, the MPs basic knowledge and reasoning in
politics, economics, religion, environment and other issues that
directly or indirectly will have an effect on the formulation of laws
in the country must also be scaled.



Just like it happens at the interviews or entrance examinations in
universities, some people may qualify but still there is a process of
verifying if the person qualified is indeed qualified enough. Other MPs
are educated but that can not guarantee that their mental capacity will
contribute to the country’s development.



With the frightening influx of aspirants to be members of Parliament,
some of them looking as if there are running away from poverty, it is
necessary to screen them and see if they can contribute anything
meaningful.



At this critical time when the nation is at its preparatory phase in
readiness of the 2009 General Elections, that responsible need to
re-examine the requirement of proficiency test.



This should be considered because whatever decision the MPs make, it
has a long term bearing on the way the country is run. They need to be
people equipped with enough knowledge that can help the country.

Sharp Focus -Hate speeches at rallies poisoning mediation efforts

“To me, it doesn’t make sense that Parliament
should be adjourned for fear of poisoning the atmosphere for mediation
talks when the two warring sides continue to castigate each other
outside it during their rallies.” That was Bulawula last Sunday,
commenting on calls from the opposition to adjourn the House to pave
way for mediation talks currently underway. That was on Sunday.



“I am here in Ndirande, right now. What I am seeing and hearing is
testament to what I have just said. This is that political parties are
fanning more flames of hate on each other during their rallies than in
Parliament. It is, therefore, being too simplistic to assume all will
be well with the mediation talks after adjourning Parliament,” he
argued.



“What are you seeing and hearing in Ndirande, Mr. Bulawula?” I probed.



“There is a group of about a hundred or so kids, or call them
miscreants, most of them well below 15, most of them in party colours
running up and down the road from the market to Chinseu, chanting
anti-Bingu songs,” he said.



“In one song they are saying,

‘Bola Atcheya omwewo (Refrain)



Moseyu ndi wa mi----. (Refrain)



“I can’t say the last word to you loudly. It is too heavy in the mouth.
In fact, if you make out the word, don’t even dare to put it in print.
Criminal libel is what it is called. If what these kids are doing is
setting the atmosphere for what is to come later in the afternoon when
Atcheya addresses a rally here, then you and I have reason enough to
fear for our beloved country.



“And I can imagine what the other group will be doing or saying when
they also want to hold a rally here. If they are foolish, they will
obviously want to outdo their political opponents on sleaze and
mudslinging. It is these scenes, these remarks that are poisoning the
mediation spirit more than the deliberations in Parliament. So, let
Parliament continue,” he said.



“But Mr. Bulawula, do you remember what you said some three weeks ago on Parliament?” I queried him.



“What did I say?”



“You were among those that were advocating for adjournment because the
opposition were shooting down all government business in the House,” I
explained.



“Things change everyday and things have indeed changed in the House. At
that time, the Business Committee had not agreed on any agenda for
Parliament to discuss. But now the clergy are mediating in the talks on
the political impasse and so government business must go on.



“But also, in the name of give-and-take, which is the spirit everyone
must embrace in and outside the mediation talks, even if nothing had
changed on the political landscape, I would have been willing to
concede ground. That is the spirit our political leaders are not
endowed with. That is the spirit that is very much in short supply
among party leaders in the country,” he reasoned.



“Are you not just being philosophical Mr. Bulawula?”



“Not at all! Read between the lines. Opposition MPs are not acting in
the best interest of anybody apart from their own or that of their
leaders. That is why the Speaker has this time around invoked the
Doctrine of Necessity to allow business in the House to continue
because government business has to continue all the time. All the 12
million-plus Malawians cannot be allowed to suffer because some
180-something MPs can’t agree on one thing.



“To cut a long story short, all that Atcheya wants is to oust Bingu wa
Mutharika from power, for ditching UDF. That is very personal. I am not
interested, and I am sure millions of Malawians are also not interested
in personal vendettas.



“The MCP president, John Tembo, is also bitter because he still and
strongly believes the presidency was stolen from under his nose. So, he
also wants Bingu out of government for personal reasons and not because
his government has failed the country. No, thank you.”



“And if I were to advise this government, it is to say that it should
not play or allow anyone to play with people’s lives and welfare, not
any more, especially not with elections around the corner.

Malawi receives MK22.5 Billion from the Norwergian Government based on sound economic principles

Blantyre, Malawi - Norway will be giving Malawi 5.5 billion Malawi
Kwacha every year for the next four years for development projects in
the African country, a visiting Nowergian official has said.



"This is under a development co-operation agreement the two
governments have signed," the Norwegian Secretary of State for
Development, Haakon Gulbrandsen, said as as an agreement to this effect
was signed here Tuesday.

Under the agreement, Norway will also
support the country's fertiliser subsidy programme this year with more
than 420 million Malawi Kwacha.

Speaking during the signing
ceremony, Gulbrandsen said his country would support Malawi's efforts
to reduce poverty and sustain the country's economic growth.

He said the support was based on sound economic principles shown by the administration of President Bingu Mutharika.

Malawi's
Finance Minister Goodall Gondwe said the agreement was an important
milestone in the development of co-operation between Norway and Malawi.

On
Norway's decision to fund the fertiliser subsidy programme, which most
of the West had shunned, Gondwe said: "It's a very welcome surprise to
me. We are having difficulties because the amount of fertiliser that we
use has risen astronomically."

Gulberesen said Norway's first
area was governance through which the Scandinavian kingdom would
support efforts to improve good governance, policy making and im
plementation through budget support and capacity building.

Norway will also support health and efforts to deal HIV/AIDS as well as improved health service delivery.

The third area of support will be environment, sustainable management of natural resources, agrculture and gender issues.

Blantyre - 10/06/2008

Pana

Bingu challenges opposition on popularity

by OLIVIA KUMWENDA
(6/9/2008)

President
Bingu wa Mutharika on Sunday reiterated that opposition political
leaders want to use Section 65 of the Constitution to bring down his
government. He challenged his rivals to wait for next year’s general
elections to have their popularity tested.

But a human rights activist has called for an end to
the blame game and asked both sides to support the on-going mediation
talks.

Mutharika made the remarks in Thyolo after presiding
over the ground-breaking ceremony of the
Thyolo-Makwasa-Thekerani-Bangula Road construction.

Work on the 94 km road, which started in February,
is expected to end in three years’ time. It is funded by government and
donors to the tune of about K9 billion, according to Minister of
Transport, Public Works and Housing Henry Chimunthu Banda.

Mutharika, who addressed a rally at Thekerani
Community Centre after the ground-breaking ceremony, challenged the
opposition to meet him in 2009 if they want to rule this country and
not through Section 65.

"DPP is a ruling party and the strongest. And if the
opposition want to rule, let us meet in 2009 and not through Section
65. It just shows they are cowards. If they are popular, people will
vote for them," said Mutharika amid cheers from a large crowd.

The President said opposition MPs should think over
their alleged intention not to pass this year’s budget before Section
65 is tackled. Mutharika made similar remarks in Blantyre on Saturday
after officially launching the first phase of the extension of the
Masauko Chipembere Highway into a dual carriageway.

But MCP spokesperson Ishmael Chafukira told Nation
on Sunday that Mutharika should be calm and understanding, and allow
the mediation talks facilitated by the clergy to progress smoothly.

UDF deputy secretary-general Hophmally Makande said
Mutharika should stop talking about UDF because he is not a member of
the party.

Commenting on the developments, Human Rights
Consultative Committee (HRCC) chairperson Undule Mwakasungula said
political leaders, both in government and opposition, should refrain
from hate speeches at this stage when the clergy are trying to find a
solution to the political impasse.

"The country needs the budget but there are also issues like Section
65 which need to be tackled. So, at this point, we should not point
fingers to either government or opposition but find an amicable
solution and move forward," said Mwakasungul