Catholic Bishops’ Pastoral Letter implores on Malawians to vote wisely in 2025 general elections

* As much as our leaders are responsible for the many problems we face as a country, we the citizens, the voters, are also responsible for these problems by choosing leaders who are not able to govern the country properly

* As we approach the 2025 elections, we want to remind everyone that not being interested in politics translates to not being concerned about your quality of life, well-being, job, freedom and future

By Duncan Mlanjira

In the Pastoral Letter of the Catholic Bishops of the Episcopal Conference of Malawi — read in church today (second Sunday of Lent) entitled ‘The Sad Story of Malawi’ — has scathingly attacked the shortfalls of President Lazarus Chakwera-led Tonse Alliance administration and asked the citizenry to choose right leaders in the 2025 general elections.

The Bishops say: “As much as our leaders are responsible for the many problems we face as a country, we the citizens, the voters, are also responsible for these problems by choosing leaders who are not able to govern the country properly.

“Hence, as we approach the 2025 elections, we want to remind everyone that not being interested in politics translates to not being concerned about your quality of life, well-being, job, freedom and future.

“Politics needs sound foundations, legitimacy and an ethical framework to be humane and useful. It is important that everyone exercises their right to vote so that those elected are truly representatives of the people.

The Bishops also encourages young people to be proactive in politics, saying it is essential for them to exercise their right to vote as the outcome of the elections will determine their future”.

While encouraging the citizenry that they have the duty to stand up for freedom and justice, the Bishops pleads on the people to avoid violence and destructive behaviour in the lead-up to the elections.

They enlightened the people that politicians can use money, power, and government, party machinery and the media in devious ways to secure votes and that it is essential to ask of candidates, what their record of service has been, what they are capable of doing, before voting for them – not who they are or where they come from or what connections they have.

This was after the scathing attack on the part of Tonse Alliance’s administration, saying “under their watch and too often with their collusion”, the following has been noted:

a. Speeches about curtailing expenditure on leadership are just empty words. In reality nothing changes at all. Continuous excuses for travel and accumulating allowances for large entourages which drain public funds, have become the norm.

b. There is a perception that suppliers under investigation for corruption are being favoured with millions of dollars in payments at a time when the nation is suffering due to a shortage of forex.

c. Dubious deals with suspect and shady suppliers are the order of the day. There appears to be no prioritising the needs of the majority who struggle to survive day by day. The cry of the poor is drowned out by the prevailing mis-procurement in ministries, departments and agencies through the use of dubious middlemen, some of whom are linked directly to the President’s Advisors at the State House.

d. We have seen the issuance of sovereign guarantees to dubious individuals with nothing to show for the welfare of the country, thus putting the country at risk of an even further debt burden.

e. We have seen a journalist go into hiding for merely telling the nation the truth about the military’s transactions with an individual who is under investigation for corruption. Is it an attempt at taking us back to the one-party state style of dictatorship?

f. We are disturbed by the lingering rumour that there are plans to hurriedly change the 50%+1 electoral system. Pursuing this would be as grave a mistake as attempting to change our constitution to allow a third term. If it is indeed being considered, the wise thing to do is to take it off the table right away, as it would cause great discontent among the public.

g. Nepotism is also rife. Appointment of senior officers in government appears to favour one tribe or region over the others. All Malawians are equal. During the campaign, we were told repeatedly that nepotism would be history, yet now what we see is different from what was promised.

h. Confusion surrounds the Public Service Reform Report. There is a general feeling that the Report has very beneficial recommendations for citizens of the country, but for unknown reasons, it is kept a secret.

i. The Tonse Alliance seems not to care at all about any of the promises it made to the people.

j. The Affordable Inputs Programme has become a joke, targeting only a handful of people. Where is the fertiliser which is to be bought for MK4,995 per bag? As a result, the nation faces food insecurity.

k. The purchasing power of the Kwacha has been greatly reduced, yet incomes have not kept pace with the devaluation.

l. The suffering in the villages has worsened. Some families face starvation, as they could not afford the fertilizer that was on the market and further problems due to erratic rains.

m. Parents/guardians cannot afford school/college fees for their children/wards and many students/pupils are forced out of all levels of education. As well as an injustice to those immediately affected, this will have negative repercussions for our country going forward.

n. Our roads continue to deteriorate rapidly. For instance, main routes like the M1 and the M5 roads are an embarrassment to our nation.

The Tonse Alliance will clock four years in government in June and the Bishops ask the citizenry to reflect by themselves; ‘Am I better off than now that I was four years ago?’

“The resounding answer for the vast majority of Malawians is an emphatic ‘NO’. It is clear that the story that the Tonse Alliance Government told us before being elected into government is not being realised.

“Yes, the nation has suffered from crises such as the CoVID-19 pandemic, the disaster caused by Cyclone Freddy, droughts, floods, etc. These crises have shaken systems, taken lives, uprooted whole villages and wiped out livelihoods.

“However, at the same time, we have witnessed a glaring failure of leadership. Leaders have resorted to being salesmen of words, with no serious attempt at keeping any promises they made to the people.

“In fact, rather than fulfilling any promises, they are making new ones with total disregard for accountability. Is it all just words, words, empty words?”

The Patoral Letter has been signed by Most Reverend George Tambala (President, Archbishop of Lilongwe); Right Reverend Montfort Stima (vice-president, Bishop of Mangochi); Most Reverend Thomas Msusa (Archbishop of Blantyre); Right Reverend Peter Musikuwa (Bishop of Chikwawa); Right Reverend Martin Mtumbuka (Bishop of Karonga); Right Reverend John Ryan (Bishop of Mzuzu); Right Reverend Peter Chifukwa (Bishop of Dedza); Right Reverend Alfred Chaima (Bishop of Zomba; Right Reverend Yohane Nyirenda (Auxiliary Bishop of Mzuzu) and Right Reverend Vincent Mwakhwawa (Auxiliary Bishop of Lilongwe).