Zomba Prison warders on strike

 

By Liness Gunde, MANA

Prison warders at the Zomba Maximum staged a strike on Thursday pressurizing their management to address their grievances which, among others, include promotions and Coronavirus (COVID-19) risk allowances.

The warders warned that they would only resume work once government, through the Ministry of Homeland Security, responds to their demands dating back to 2017.

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In an interview with Malawi News Agency (Mana), one of the concerned prison warders, who asked not to be identified, said the Ministry should, for once, act on their grievances or expect a prolonged closure of the prisons.

“Our colleagues in other security institutions like the Malawi Defence Force, Malawi Police Service are promoted every year and I fail to understand why it is so difficult for us,” he claimed.

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“We have been asking management why this is like that but they kept giving us excuses but we are now tired of dancing to their tunes.

“I have worked on the same position for 34 years now and what explanation could be given for such stagnation. What we need now are promotions and not dialogues,” he said.

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On the risk allowance, the warders said, just like health workers, they too are subjected to a group of people who might be infected by the Coronavirus.

Malawi Prison spokesperson, Chimwemwe Shawa said the management would do its best to make sure that the concerns of the warders are addressed so that business goes back to normal.

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He said doing a strike is not prohibited but asked the warders to follow security laws.