2017 open letter to President Peter Mutharika from Samafo, Peremo and Mzika za mdziko movement

Your Excellency! In the name of Malawi the above movements would want to greet you in this beginning of the year.

It’s about three years ever since you ascended to power. In every leadership or regime there are always pros and cons. You may not satisfy or please everyone but you should and must protect the nation’s territorial integrity and nation’s assets as well as property. You may have noticed by now that not all of us citizens are happy with your presidency not because we hate your personal looks but the integrity of your actions.

Manifestos can be changed due to circumstances and situations but mandate of a president does not. Your Excellency since you became a president corruption in Malawi has become the worst. Citizens ordinary and officials do not fear your government, from 2014 to date it appears as if citizens have concluded that you are a thief and corrupt there is no way you can turn and bite your own tail. In reaction towards this vice it seems you are sending a message to the World and citizens that ” a thief cannot apprehend himself and hand himself to the police”. This is the picture you have painted and still painting in the country and abroad.

This is the scenario because you have acted professionally in dealing with this matter forgetting that police do not act professionally when they want to catch a suspect or seek confession. The village of advisors you have Mr. President have distanced you with the people thus making it impossible for you to reconnect your umbilical cord with the citizens. The destruction of your track record and conduct must be blamed on your own ministers and advisors. You are a president that cannot be separated from the involvement of scams and clandestine issues of corruption under your older brother’s regime. You were supposed to trade carefully with Malawians to reshape and rebuild your lost glory in the country. Your reputation and image against corruption and state theft in Malawi has been tarnished and destroyed badly,  you were supposed to pull up your socks in order to claim it back or remake it. Your brother did the best for the country but eventually destroyed himself when he thought “old chillies can have taste.” As the brother of the president that showed this country two different characters you could copy the presidency of his formative years and shy away from his last years.

Doing this you were going to tie the knot with citizens while at the sametime sticking to your blood relationship. Last time I heard you talking sense was when you said “Bingu may  be a bad leader but was not an evil”. This was your best policy departure where you could separate yourself from your brother in deeds not blood but you stained yourself when you feared to expose his corrupt deals for fear that you too could be flamed.

This is where you destroyed the entire legacy of your presidency instead you have become a ploy of defence. Your presidency is now bent on refutations and deniability . Instead of becoming the fighter of corruption you have become the defender of corruption.

Your professionalism in dealing with evidence first before curbing and rooting corruption has tainted your true picture and become an accomplice of corruption and state theft. Being a president that has a problem with speeching, lack of eloquence on your mouth has created a dangerous animosity with the citizens.

The rampant corruption, excessive state theft that have not bitten up anyone is cause for concern as citizens are asking, “with such so much cry against corruption and volumes of media coverage why is no one being arrested?

With all the sources of corruption scandals being reported why are big fish meaning ministers not being fired or suspended?

George Chaponda has destroyed your political career as well as your reputation Mr. President.

The reason we are writing this letter is to enlighten you with Earthly wisdom that says” Small sugar cannot be traced or tasted in a glass of water than a drop of poison in a drum of the same water”. You can be a good president in other things but keeping quite on corruption and state theft is very dangerous for the better of the country. Under you and your brother state property and state funds have been insecure as fire has gutted more sacred properties of state and dirty hands have stolen chunks of money belonging to the people without anyone being apprehended.

There is no government that can lose such billions and lose volumes of property without apprehending the arsonists and thieves.

On these you have failed Mr. President. Your mandate number one is to protect state integrity meaning you are a failure because citizens do not fear you that is why they are torching very important structures and stealing quantities of cash because they don’t fear you. The public belief now is that you are part and parcel of the syndicate this is why you are failing deliberately to arrest and punish the offenders.

This has earned you a worst and dangerous reputation. You are a failed president and a shame of our future nation state. You are an enemy of the state you swear to protect and defend, under you state house is not safe and so is capital hill the seat of government.

The fire that gutted offices of the ministry of agriculture, ESCOM and various markets and the mad man who found his way into state house are signs of bad leadership. Yes! you have signed ATI bill but what will it change? Section 65 a gospel in our constitution is still not recognized and respected.

Your followers are praising you for signing ATI bill and the paper praise of IMF and other lending institutions about the inflation status. What you are forgetting is that the situation and the reality on the ground is different. When the lenders say inflation is down have  prices of commodities gone down or are going up by day?

Joyce Banda was fooled by these very lending institutions and their political correct magazines that gave false predictions about her victory in the 2014 elections. Whatever newspapers and papers from overseas are reporting about Malawi isn’t the physical picture on the ground.

However we urge you to launch blanket campaign against corruption and state theft in Malawi. Introduce punitive punishment to offenders so that Malawi can undress the image of the most corrupt nation and become a nation of accountability and zero tolerance on corruption.

Though you are late but if you begin now citizens can give you a concession towards the end of your term.

The entire nation is looking forward to seeing you playing a game changer that will turn around our economic and social status.

We are a laughing stock of SADC and a joke of the continent. We treat Malawi as if it is a borrowed nation or as if our country is ruled by an impostor. You are a citizen please be patriotic and love your country and people.

Saunders Jumah the Utopian
SAVE MALAWI FOUNDATION  [SAMAFO]
Peoples Movement for the Restoration of Malawi  [PEREMO]
Malawi Freedom Network  [MFN]
Mzika Za Mdziko Movement  [MZM]and
Malawi Watch.
in the absence of accountability, transparency, patriotism and integrity we are doomed as a nation.