Dimba soon after being sworn in as Deputy Minister of Transport & Public Works last month of January
* As Baba Steve Malondera replaces Dimba as Deputy Minister of Transport & Public Works
* A mini Cabinet reshuffle that has been effected following the firing of Sosten Gwengwe as Trade & Industry Minister, replaced by Mumba
* Meanwhile, President Chakwera arrives in Blantyre to engage youths on his recent State of the Nation Address (SONA)
By Duncan Mlanjira
In replacing Sosten Gwengwe for Vitumbiko Mumba as Minister of Trade & Industry, President Lazarus Chakwera has filled the vacant position of Minister of Labour by appointing Deputy Minister of Transport & Public Works, Peter Dimba for that portfolio.
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In Dimba’s place, the President has appointed Member of Parliament for Lilongwe South East, Baba Steve Malondera as Deputy Minister of Transport & Public Works — in what government says are key changes to the Cabinet to strategic positions in a bid to enhance government efficiency.
The mini Cabinet reshuffle has been effected following the firing of Sosten Gwengwe as Trade & Industry Minister, who was replaced by Mumba and comes as a surprise that Gwengwe has completely been left out from the government decision-making system.
In October 2023, Chakwera removed Gwengwe as Minister of Finance and was replaced with Simplex Chithyola Banda, with him transferred to Ministry of Trade & Industry that was held by Chithyola Banda.
Gwengwe was removed as Finance Minister last October
Gwengwe, who served in the same portfolio Trade in 2012-2014 under Joyce Banda administration and from 2020-22 under Chakwera, bowed out in grace by thanking Chakwera for the opportunity he offered him to serve as Minister of Trade.
“I did so to the best of my capability and due diligence,” he wrote on his Facebook page yesterday. “This far, I wish my brother, Hon. Vitumbiko Mumba all the best as he takes up the Ministry of Trade.”
Under Gwengwe’s stewardship prior to being removed as Finance Minister, the country’s economy had continued to worsen as prices of goods continued to rise while foreign exchange had been in short supply that led to the continuance of fuel supply shortage.
The scenario is the same even under the stewardship of Chithyola Banda as the inflation rate has not changed, and even soared higher making the citizenry suffering more from daily increases of basic household commodities — coupled with hunger due to climatic challenges.
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In Parliament yesterday, to answer questions from MP’s on his State of the Nation Address (SONA), President Chakwera identified hunger and rising commodity prices as “the real enemies facing Malawians” while in the same breath condemned what he described as a deliberate scheme by some traders, allegedly in collusion with an opposition party, to artificially inflate prices and cause suffering for political gain.
“Their plot to overthrow my Government through an illegal hyperinflation of prices will not succeed,” he said. “My government will take tough and swift action against the perpetrators.”
Thus, as part of his response to the crisis, he announced the immediate appointment of Mumba as the new Minister of Trade & Industry to spearhead efforts to stabilise prices and protect Malawians from exploitative business practices.
Meanwhile, President Chakwera arrived in Blantyre this morning to engage youths on his SONA, which he defended in Parliament yesterday against accusations from the opposition that it was filled with falsehoods.
He told the august House that neither he or his Ministers lied to Malawians and dismissed the claims as part of a long-standing culture of false accusations in Malawian politics.
The President acknowledged that about 2% of the data in his SONA contained errors but clarified that these were unintentional mistakes made by a team of five technocrats during the data transfer process.
He emphasised that the process of compiling the SONA, which involves multiple verification stages and over 75 experts, is not immune to human error but is safeguarded against deliberate deception.
He further announced that the team leader responsible for the errors had been dismissed and in a pointed challenge to the opposition, the President urged the Leader of Opposition to withdraw his accusations, just as he himself had withdrawn the small portion of incorrect data from the official record.
He also took the opportunity to highlight inconsistencies in the opposition’s stance, noting that some opposition MPs had acknowledged the development projects mentioned in the SONA, contradicting their party leader’s claims that the address was entirely false.
Chakwera further indicated that his administration is currently implementing the agriculture, tourism and mining (ATM) strategy as a catalyst for export-led growth in the country — saying the ATM implementation reflects Malawi’s efforts to revamp its economy and attract investments that can drive sustainable growth while addressing persistent foreign exchange shortages.
He highlighted key initiatives under this strategy, including the introduction of mega farms, improvements in road infrastructure to boost tourism, and the government’s efforts to secure mineral export markets.
These measures, he stressed, are crucial to helping Malawi achieve economic recovery, emphasising the need to strengthen the ATM strategy in terms of combating inflation and addressing the food insecurity which is contributing to high inflation.
The President said the ATM strategy reflects Malawi’s efforts towards revamping economic growth and attracts investors that can help in addressing persistent foreign exchange problems.
He said, there are a lot of initiatives which government is working on including the introduction of mega farms, improvements in road infrastructure to boost tourism and the government’s efforts to secure mineral export markets.
“Efforts are made to scale up irrigation initiatives and Mega farms to boost agricultural production and also to train people on how to handle tourists when they come in the country,” he said — while also indicating that his administration is committed to ensuring that they promote water transport for economic development.
This was after Chakwera was asked what government intends to do in terms of water transportation, which has been neglected by the past administrations and in his response, he added that a team of CEOs and technocrats from Germany will be arriving in the country next month to assess Malawi’s development needs in the water sector.
He promised to rebuild ports like Chipoka, Makanjira, Monkey Bay, Chilumba, Likoma and others.
The President responded to questions from MPs, including that from Likoma Island, Ashems Songwe; Kasungu North, Mike Bango; Kasungu North North East, Aul Dumembe Nkhoma and Karonga Nyungwe Kenneth Ndovie, among others.—Reporting from inside Parliament by Sheminah Nkhoma, Malawi News Agency, MANA
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