Tag Archives: Mchinji

District News

ILO, Labour Ministry launch effort to protect children

Chisomo Phiri

By Chisomo Phiri

BLANTYRE-(MaraviPost )-The Ministry of Labour and the International Labour Organisation (ILO) on Tuesday launched an initiative aimed at harmonizing child labour and child protection committee activities in four key districts of Mchinji, Mzimba, Kasungu, and Lilongwe.

In an interview with journalists, Chief Labour Officer and Head of the Child Labour Unit, Francis Kwenda, said the effort aims to strengthen coordination and ensure effective protection for children.

On his part, ILO National Project Officer under the ADDRESS program,Ndamyo Kabuye,emphasized that the initiative will help reduce duplication of efforts and improve coordination in eliminating child labour.

According to the 2015 National Child Labour Survey,38 percent of Malawi’s children between the ages of 5 and 17, representing 2.1 million children, are into child labour across the country.

Health, Law and order

Mchinji woman commits suicide over missing FISP coupons

Maravi Post Author

By Mtisunge Kagomo

The Malawi Police in the boarder district of Mchinji have confirmed the death of Olive Gaudesio from Mkumba Village T/A Zulu who killed herself by consuming deadly pesticides following the missing of her Farm Input Subsidy Program (FISP) coupons

Olive Gausedo was one of this year’s Fisp beneficiaries and after receiving the coupons she misplaced them

According to the deceased son, Robert Lumbani ,the development did not go well with her which made her visit a Traditional healer because she believed that there were some magic involved

Lumbani further explained that she kept on complaining and they went to report the matter to the village headman who suggested a thorough search in her house and the coupons were later found

This made the Chief fine her a chicken but the idea did not go well with her,She left the place in anger and was later found unconscious and before her last breath she confessed of swallowing Acephate powder

A post mortem conducted at Mchinji district hospital confirmed that she died of poisoning

Meanwhile the Police has expressed its sadness over the increase in suicide cases in the district and appeals to the Nation to avoid killing themselves as a way of solving their problems.

Law and order

Bizarre: Mchinji attempted to commit suicide by cutting, swallowing razor blades in police custody

Maravi Post Reporter

A 27-year-od, Dickson Mandala is answering charges of attempted suicide whilst in police custody, where he was awaiting to appear before court for another case.

Mandala, was arrested on allegations of cattle theft.

His case was adjourned to a further date, after which he was placed in police custody at Kamwendo Police Station in Mchinji.

Police spokesperson, Lubrino Kaitano said on Saturday that Mandala unlawfully accessed razor blades when he was appearing before court and sneaked them into police cells.

According to Mchinji Police, Mandala woke up in the middle of the night when his inmates were asleep and started lacerating his skin.“He cut himself with the razor blades all over his body and later crushed them into small pieces before swallowing them,” explained Kaitano.

Kaitano continued saying, “One of the inmates saw what was happening and immediately, informed policeofficers on duty.

“The Police rushed Mandala to Mchinji District Hospital,where he was treated as an outpatient”.

Mandala will soon be taken to court to answer attempted suicide case.

Health

Ministry Of health opens isolation centers for contagious diseases

Patience Mandowa

By Alick Junior Sichali

Ministry of health (MOH) with help from the World Health Organisations (WHO) and different stakeholders has opened isolation centres where doctors will be treating people suffering from contagious diseases.

Health Minister, Atupele Muluzi disclosed this during the opening of one the built isolation centres at Kameza, Blantyre.

Muluzi said the isolation centres is one way of government’s alertness for any disease outbreaks such as Ebola and Cholera.

The health minister said the development will now enable local medical personnel to examine and provide assistance to patients suffering from strange diseases.

“The centres which we have built with help from different stakeholders including WHO will help doctors in the country through the centres treat people suffering from infectious diseases which in the past was not happening,” Muluzi said.

The isolation centres have been built in the districts of Karonga, Mzuzu, Blantyre, Dedza, Ntcheu and Mchinji.

Meanwhile, MOH says will start screening visitors from outside the countries at boarders and airports of the country.

The ministry is also working together with Malawi Defence Force (MDF) and that it has embark on exercise of screening soldiers arriving in the country from their peace keeping mission in DRC where there is Ebola outbreak.

Lifestyle

National registration exercise Phase 2 record 3.8 million Malawians – NRB

Lloyd M’bwana

Malawi National ID
A Malawian lady getting registered by an officer from the National Registration Bureau (NRB) in Mchinji district

LILONGWE-(MaraviPost) – The National Registration Bureau (NRB) on Wednesday disclosed that it has registered 3.8 million people in the first two phases of the national registration exercise.

 

The exercise that started in May this year, covered nearly the projected population the bureau hoped to register in the 10 districts of phases one and two of the exercise. Continue reading National registration exercise Phase 2 record 3.8 million Malawians – NRB →

Malawi

Five children reported missing at transit center in Mchinji

Maravi Post correspondent

Officials at the Salvation Army Transit Center in Mchinji district, are searching for five children, under the ages of 14 and 15 years. The reports reaching the Maravi Post say the children have been missing since Tuesday.

One of the senior officers at the Transit Center, who spoke on condition of anonymity, confirmed on Wednesday saying the five are suspected to have jumped the Center’s brick fence in the early hours of the Tuesday.

The development has heightened fears of child trafficking in the district.

Among the escapees according to our source, are two girls, one from Mzimba district and the other one from Dowa, and three boys, one from Lilongwe and two from Kasungu.

 

“Yes, five children are missed here and we believe that they jumped our fence. However, we suspect that this was with influence from someone, therefore we cannot conclude that it was child trafficking, ” said the source.

The source, however added that the Center together with the Police, immediately launched a search and an investigation on the matter.

Records show that the escapees have been at the Transit Center for just 2 to 3 months, after they were rescued from traffickers with different intentions.

Mchinji police are yet to issue a comment on the matter.

District News, Malawi

Mchinji man arrested for hacking own father: killing over witchcraft allegations 

Maravi Post correspondent
Malawi

Senior Chief Zulu’s house gutted; Malawi continue to be on fire 

Maravi Post correspondent

Zulu’s house on fire

House fires are becoming the order of the day in the country with government and experts failing to find its main cause or measures of controlling it. A recent fire incident involves the house of Senior Chief Zulu of Mchinji which on Monday became the latest statistic as fire gutted his house.

According to a source of The Maravi Post source, the cause of the fire, which started in the afternoon hours is yet to be established.

“The whole house is on fire and we don’t know whether properties will be rescued,” said our source.

The surround community tried to put out the blaze, but to no avail. The fire fighters arrived at the scene although late due to the distance from Lilongwe.

District Commissioner for Mchinji Rosemary Nawasha, was out of reach to issue a comment on the matter when contacted. This comes after fires gutted the house of Lilongwe High Court Judge Charles Mkandawire, and office of Agriculture Minister respectively last month.

During the 2016 to 2017 mid-year review budget, Parliament agreed to hire foreign experts to investigate the causes of the mysterious fires in the country. Welcoming this, opposition  law makers argued that the local experts and government has failed Malawians on fire issues.

Business

Chinese business people killing small Mchinji residents’ small scale businesses

Maravi Post correspondent

Battle line has been drawn between the Mchinji residents and Chinese nationals over business operations, Maravi Post can reveal.

This is because the Chinese nationals are also carrying small scale businesses such as that of selling second hand clothes (Kaunjika) which is occupied by the district’s residents, according to our reliable source.

Business operators selling their goods

The development has angered the local business operators who petitioned the district council.

“We are buying our goods such plastic bags and kaunjika from the same Chinese nationals in their shops in Lilongwe. Surprisingly, the same Chinese nationals have flocked here doing the exact business we are doing,” said one of the local business operator..

According to the local business operators, they are now making less profit because of the conduct of the Chinese nationals.

The residents have therefore asked the council to stop the Chinese from operating their businesses in the villages through their petition.

They have also threatened to take a stern action if the grievances are not solved accordingly.

Mchinji district Human Resource Officer Martin Chigumato, while receiving the petition, asked the concerned group to give them more time for consultation with relevant authorities.

The development comes amid cordial relationship between Malawi and the Peoples Republic of China.