Chitseko (in white wig) on Chakwera’s procession into Parliament yesterday
* The 2024-2025 Budget Session was cancelled for today in Chitseko’s honour
* Cause of death and Parliament says burial will take place tomorrow February 23 in Zomba
By Duncan Mlanjira
Assistant Clerk of Parliament responsible for committees, Lawson Chitseko performed his duties yesterday in the august House that included welcoming President Lazarus Chakwera, who honoured his presence to answer questions from the MPs.
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But after knocking from work, he died and has led to the sitting of the 2024-2025 Budget Session to be cancelled for today in Chitseko’s honour.
In its announcement of the sad news, which did not cause of death, Parliament burial will take place tomorrow February 23 in Zomba, the same day that the august House will resume sitting on Friday, 23rd February, 2024.
During the President’s questions and answers session, Chakwera assured Malawians that the Immigration Department will soon start issuing passports, which was a query from an MP.
He announced that he directed the Immigration Department to find a temporary solution in three weeks time for Malawians to start accessing passport services in the country while finding the lasting solution.
However, President Chakwera has also sent a strong warning to hackers who are requesting for a ransom from the Malawi government to get back in the system, that they will face the law.
“As long as I am the Commander in Chief of this country, I will not sleep untill those who have hacked our system get caught,” he said.
Responding to a question why government is not selling the gold bought by Reserve Bank of Malawi (RBM) to boost forex reserves and whether the gold will be sold in raw or processed form, the President said his adminstration established the gold market through RBM due to the availability of gold deposits which he described as a national treasure.
He disclosed that since the establishment of structured markets, government through RBM has bought 187kgs of gold equivalent to K19.2 billion and that the process of gold purification has already started and is being done locally — and once finalised, the refined gold will be stocked in the country’s national reserves to enhance the economy of country.
Chakwera stressed that government will continue to develop the county through the agriculture,tourism & mining (ATM) strategy to improve the livelihoods of Malawians and attain the MW2063 national vision.
He also had a question on mega farm and he assured that the initiative, was put in place to supplement rain-fed agriculture and with support from development partners, his administration is implementing the Agriculture Infrastructure Support Project, Programme for Rural Irrigation Development, the Shire Valley Transformation Programme and the Agriculture and Commercialisation project to revamp the agriculture sector.
Under construction Shire Valley irrigation project
He further said government is rehabilitating irrigation schemes across the country to ensure that there is adequate supply of water for irrigation throughout the season.
He was responding to a question on the measures that government has put in place to adopt the irrigation farming systems apart from the Shire Valley Transformation Project in the Lower Shire.
President Chakwera added that government is implementing the food resilient programme and that, through the Ministry of Agriculture, it is providing extension services with the help of development partners in ensuring that Malawi is not only relying on rain fed agriculture.
On the transfer of holding accounts for state owned enterprises (SOEs) from commercial banks to RBM, he also assured that this decision will not paralyse commercial banks as they will be lending to private sector to realise profits.
The Reserve Bank of Malawi
He added that all holding accounts for the SOEs will be gradually transferred to the Central Bank to avoid disrupting their operations and that being at the RBM, the public funds will not get looted as anybody making that attempt will be brought to book.
On the current dry spells and erratic rains, which may lead to lower production of crops resulting into hunger and therefore demanding government’s intervention, President Chakwera acknowledged the situation and said currently government is making an assessment to establish the extent and impact.
He said government will come up with interventions to see the country having enough food despite erratic rains and dry spells — adding that 57,065 hectares of land belonging to smallholder farmers will be put under supplementary irrigation to boost production in the 2023/24 growing season.
He added that the national service under the Malawi Defence Force, Greenbelt Initiative and Malawi Prison Services are also being involved in the mass production of food through irrigation — emphasizing that the food deficit to be realised after these interventions will be imported to ensure no Malawian dies of hunger.
On increase cases of voluntary retirement by civil servants, which has escalated into retirees queuing up to claim their gratuities, Chakwera said his government has increased the allocation towards that — from K133 to K182 billion in order to adequately reach to the intended beneficiaries.
He also disclosed that he has directed the Ministry of Finance to find lasting solutions into the raised matter of concern.
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