A by-election is an election held to fill a political office that has become vacant between regularly scheduled elections. Usually this occurs when the incumbent has died or resigned or when during the initial scheduled election did not take place due to some inconveniences.
But it may also occur when the incumbent becomes ineligible to continue in office, for example because of a recall or a sufficiently serious criminal conviction. By-elections may also be called as a result of the initial election being invalidated due to voting irregularities.
In 2005 just a year after Bingu wa Mutharika was first voted into power thereby becoming the second democratically elected leader of the republic of Malawi, by-elections were held in five constituencies where the ruling Democratic progressive party swept all the seats.
It was a party which had just onto the political scene some months before, and yet it proved to be a force to reckon with. And came the last 19 may general elections, the DPP continued proving that it had come in full throttle. The party amassed a record 140 seats in the national assembly and its torchbearer Bingu wa Mutharika shocked may conservative Malawians who still thought political intolerance would never cease in Malawi. He scooped the largest amount of votes in all the three regions of Malawi, a thing which had never happened before.
But during the August 14 by-elections held in Blantyre’s Ndirande and Zomba Malosa Constituency, people were shocked to the core when the ruling party which had already proved to be the people’s favourite failed to send its candidates to the national assembly.
Hence comments have emanated from different quarters that the DPP is losing its grip and the loss in the by-elections is a sign of people’s protest. Those who hold the view that the DPP is losing its grip argue that this is the case due to the way the DPP-dominated parliament conducted itself during the last sitting.
According to the view, people feel they have been taken for granted and those in blantyre and Zomba, who had a way of expressing themselves, decided to show through their voting power that they were protesting against the ruling party.
According to commentators who believe that DPP’s loss in the by-elections is a sign of people’s protest, Malawians feel shortchanged in many ways. One of the ways is that the ruling party is chairing most of the parliamentary committees, as aspect people feel is not good for democracy.
As a matter of fact, proponents of the aspect that the DPP is losing its grip have all the confidence that if there were another general election in Malawi today, the DPP would fare miserably. Worldwide, there is something peculiar about by-elections. The vast majority of them are taken to be unimportant to many and voter turnouts are seldom comparable with general elections.
According to international reports on by-elections, the ruling party normally has a solid cushion so that losing a handful of seats would not affect their position. The reports continue assessing that because by-elections usually have little influence on the general governance, voters feel freer to elect smaller fringe parties.
Parties on both the far right-wing and the far left-wing tend to do better in by-elections than in general elections. However, by-elections can become crucial when the ruling party has only a small margin. In parliamentary systems, party discipline is strong enough so that the one common scenario for a vote of no confidence to occur is after the governing party loses enough by-elections to become a minority government.
A UK example was the Labour government of James Callaghan 1976-79. By-elections can also be important if a minority party needs to gain one or more seats in order to gain official party status or the balance of power in a minority or coalition situation.
In Canada, in 1978, 15 by-elections were held on a single date, restoring the House of Commons from 249 to 264 members. The media called it a "mini-election", a test of the Liberal government's popularity with a general election due in less than a year. The 15 districts stretched from Newfoundland to British Columbia, and as is seen to be the case in Malawi now, produced some surprising results.
For example, an NDP candidate won in Newfoundland for the first time. This is one of the surprises which by-elections can bring. The situation in Canada did not mean that the ruling party was losing its grip, neither did it mean voters were protesting against government.
Political and media commentators often point to by-election victories as important signals, but very often by-elections hinge far more on local issues and the charisma of the candidates than on national issues or how the voters feel about the governing party.
Nonetheless it can be shown historically that a main opposition party which performs consistently poorly in by-elections is unlikely to be a serious contender for power at the subsequent general election. And when independent candidates seem to fare well during by-election, the ruling party can continue wallowing in the comfort zone.
Friday, October 02, 2009
Is Malawi Really Independent?
The aspect of many nations being under indirect rules of other nations has been taken into the centre stage by some writers – African writers in particular – who argue it is high time African countries got ‘really’ independent. In fact there is the notion of neocolonialism existing within the minds of many Africans including Malawians.
The term was coined by the first Ghanaian president Kwame Nkrumah who argued that Africa is just undergoing a new kind of colonialism with Europe still having a hand in the ruling of African countries.
African nations, Malawi inclusive, are said to be currently in a phase of neo-colonialism, which is a new form of imperial rule stage managed by the colonial powers to give the colonized the illusion of freedom.
At the 1961 All-African People’s Conference held in Cairo neocolonialism was defined as “the survival of the colonial system in spite of the formal recognition of political independence in emerging countries which become the victims of an indirect and subtle form of domination by political, economic, social, military or technical means.”
About two months ago, Malawians from all walks of life thronged the giant Kamuzu Stadium to cerebrate the country’s 45th independence anniversary. It was a rare occasion marked by new inventions of marking the day which had never been there before. As a matter of fact, forty-five years have passed since the British Administration in Malawi handed over power to native Malawians.
Ever since Malawi got independent, two types of governments have been experienced, namely the one-party system and the multiparty system. And now, forty-five years down the line, some people still believe our independence is not practical.
They go on to argue that in fact there are many countries in the world, with African countries topping the list, whose independence up to date is not practical, even though these countries appear to be independent theoretically.
Some people even reach the point of claiming that Malawi is just under a sophisticated type of colonialism with some underlying colonial masters hidden somewhere miles away.
This line of thought mainly emanates from the fact that the country relies extensively on donour funds for the majority of its development projects. Since some of the donations come in form of grants where there is an already defined purpose for the donation where the recipient only needs to implement it, some people argue that there are indirect ruling hands from outside Malawi which rule us.
That is why now, just because more than half of our National Budget comes from the donour community, some commentators feel that the aspect of Malawi being independent is only theoretical. They argue that there is nothing peculiar about Malawi’s independence apart from the fact that it has a native Malawian as the country’s president and that it has its own national flag and constitution.
They believe that as a practical thing, Malawi is not an independent state. However a deeper analysis of independent states proves that all the arguments advanced for the justification of the fact that Malawi is not independent are ill-conceived.
There is no denying that most developing countries rely on donour funds, but this does not conclusively imply that they are not independent. Many nationalists and commentators see the independence gained from the withdrawing colonial powers as only partial liberation. In other words, they argue that independence in its fullness is yet to dawn on Malawi. Some call it ‘false independence’.
Full or real freedom, they believe, will come with economic independence, that is the time when Malawi will be able to fund its own development projects using its own money. Yet there are many rich countries in the world that in certain cases rely on donations even from poorer countries when they have been caught napping in certain crises.
Malawi has ever made donations to other countries, but this cannot imply that those countries are not independent. In 1992, the donour community threatened that it would pull out its support to Malawi if the one-party government did not change on the government system which was there.
The donour community wanted Malawi to start practicing multiparty politics. Some people see that as an underlying rule where foreign countries dictated Malawi’s politics. I find this argument a little irrelevant as regards independence. Even the United States of America which is taken to be the world’s super-power will embrace advice from other nations.
In fact there are international organisations which nations belong to and these nations are supposed to abide by any rule that has been implemented by the organisations. And it is wrong to argue that the nations are under the rule of the organisations.
Some time back the United Nations and the Southern Africa Development Community (SADC) warned Zimbabwe president Robert Mugabe that it would impose sanctions on him once he did not comply to enforcing peace with the leader of main opposition party, but this did not mean Zimbabwe was not independent.
That Malawi is still under the control of Western powers with our rulers being either willing puppets or involuntary subordinate of these powers is misguided and a big misrepresentation of facts. The main economic theories supporting the concept of independent countries being ruled indirectly by other countries come from the dependency school developed in the late 1950s by Marxist economists.
Focusing our attention on misguided reasoning that our country is still under foreign rule has drawn our attention away from internal forces that are crucial to the understanding of our condition and which, unlike external conditions, needs to be altered by ourselves.
The fatalistic opinion that Malawi is stuck in ‘foreign hand ruling’ continues obstructing the growth of popular political movements for social and economic change in our beloved country.
In fact, the claim that Malawi is not independent is the one which is theoretical, because it only exists in the minds of some people. The fact of the matter cannot be changed and it remains that upon independence Malawi became a free nation, able to plan for its own future.
When considering the economic conditions of nations in the world it is wise to think of them as belonging to different levels in the global pyramid. At the bottom are the poorest of the poor; while at the top is a tiny minority of some rich countries.
And for the balance of the global market, there is need that some countries’ wealth is complimented by donour funds, yet this does not imply that they are being ruled by foreign powers indirectly.
If this is what donations meant, then not more than one percent of the world’s countries would be termed as independent states. Despite the fact that a nation may rely extensively on external assistance, as long as it has its own leader elected by the natives, its own constitution designed by its own natives, it is independent and as a practical thing, it is ruling itself.
There is nothing like theoretical independence. If at all, there are some individuals somewhere who feel they are ruling some countries indirectly, then they only miss the point. As a matter of fact, there is not country in the world which is being ruled by another country, and every country is independent – independence it its fullness, and never partial.
Even Iraq, which is under constant threat from the United States of America, is an independent state. It has its own president elected by native Iraqis. There are some brave individuals who fought relentlessly for Malawi to gain its independence and it would be mockery to these departed souls to claim that Malawi is still not independent.
Independence does not mean solitude. Perhaps those who feel Malawi is still not independent want us to live in absolute solitude without any external influence, which is an absurd thing. Just like any other state in the world, Malawi will continue interacting with other countries, and yet our independence will never cease to be.
Much as Malawi may receive funds from other countries, especially from the West, the government of Malawi has the final say. Even if it is a grant, the donour will not dictate other aspects. For example, the donour will not decide where the grant has to be implemented, though it has to be acknowledged that the purpose will not be changed.
To sum up, Malawi is an independent state just like any other country in the world. There is nothing more to being independent other than the fact that we have our own leader and a constitution written by native Malawians. And above all, we rule ourselves without any outer interference. That is why our president will not hesitate to chase away any foreign traders whom he feels have nothing good to offer Malawians. This is a great sign of our independence.
The term was coined by the first Ghanaian president Kwame Nkrumah who argued that Africa is just undergoing a new kind of colonialism with Europe still having a hand in the ruling of African countries.
African nations, Malawi inclusive, are said to be currently in a phase of neo-colonialism, which is a new form of imperial rule stage managed by the colonial powers to give the colonized the illusion of freedom.
At the 1961 All-African People’s Conference held in Cairo neocolonialism was defined as “the survival of the colonial system in spite of the formal recognition of political independence in emerging countries which become the victims of an indirect and subtle form of domination by political, economic, social, military or technical means.”
About two months ago, Malawians from all walks of life thronged the giant Kamuzu Stadium to cerebrate the country’s 45th independence anniversary. It was a rare occasion marked by new inventions of marking the day which had never been there before. As a matter of fact, forty-five years have passed since the British Administration in Malawi handed over power to native Malawians.
Ever since Malawi got independent, two types of governments have been experienced, namely the one-party system and the multiparty system. And now, forty-five years down the line, some people still believe our independence is not practical.
They go on to argue that in fact there are many countries in the world, with African countries topping the list, whose independence up to date is not practical, even though these countries appear to be independent theoretically.
Some people even reach the point of claiming that Malawi is just under a sophisticated type of colonialism with some underlying colonial masters hidden somewhere miles away.
This line of thought mainly emanates from the fact that the country relies extensively on donour funds for the majority of its development projects. Since some of the donations come in form of grants where there is an already defined purpose for the donation where the recipient only needs to implement it, some people argue that there are indirect ruling hands from outside Malawi which rule us.
That is why now, just because more than half of our National Budget comes from the donour community, some commentators feel that the aspect of Malawi being independent is only theoretical. They argue that there is nothing peculiar about Malawi’s independence apart from the fact that it has a native Malawian as the country’s president and that it has its own national flag and constitution.
They believe that as a practical thing, Malawi is not an independent state. However a deeper analysis of independent states proves that all the arguments advanced for the justification of the fact that Malawi is not independent are ill-conceived.
There is no denying that most developing countries rely on donour funds, but this does not conclusively imply that they are not independent. Many nationalists and commentators see the independence gained from the withdrawing colonial powers as only partial liberation. In other words, they argue that independence in its fullness is yet to dawn on Malawi. Some call it ‘false independence’.
Full or real freedom, they believe, will come with economic independence, that is the time when Malawi will be able to fund its own development projects using its own money. Yet there are many rich countries in the world that in certain cases rely on donations even from poorer countries when they have been caught napping in certain crises.
Malawi has ever made donations to other countries, but this cannot imply that those countries are not independent. In 1992, the donour community threatened that it would pull out its support to Malawi if the one-party government did not change on the government system which was there.
The donour community wanted Malawi to start practicing multiparty politics. Some people see that as an underlying rule where foreign countries dictated Malawi’s politics. I find this argument a little irrelevant as regards independence. Even the United States of America which is taken to be the world’s super-power will embrace advice from other nations.
In fact there are international organisations which nations belong to and these nations are supposed to abide by any rule that has been implemented by the organisations. And it is wrong to argue that the nations are under the rule of the organisations.
Some time back the United Nations and the Southern Africa Development Community (SADC) warned Zimbabwe president Robert Mugabe that it would impose sanctions on him once he did not comply to enforcing peace with the leader of main opposition party, but this did not mean Zimbabwe was not independent.
That Malawi is still under the control of Western powers with our rulers being either willing puppets or involuntary subordinate of these powers is misguided and a big misrepresentation of facts. The main economic theories supporting the concept of independent countries being ruled indirectly by other countries come from the dependency school developed in the late 1950s by Marxist economists.
Focusing our attention on misguided reasoning that our country is still under foreign rule has drawn our attention away from internal forces that are crucial to the understanding of our condition and which, unlike external conditions, needs to be altered by ourselves.
The fatalistic opinion that Malawi is stuck in ‘foreign hand ruling’ continues obstructing the growth of popular political movements for social and economic change in our beloved country.
In fact, the claim that Malawi is not independent is the one which is theoretical, because it only exists in the minds of some people. The fact of the matter cannot be changed and it remains that upon independence Malawi became a free nation, able to plan for its own future.
When considering the economic conditions of nations in the world it is wise to think of them as belonging to different levels in the global pyramid. At the bottom are the poorest of the poor; while at the top is a tiny minority of some rich countries.
And for the balance of the global market, there is need that some countries’ wealth is complimented by donour funds, yet this does not imply that they are being ruled by foreign powers indirectly.
If this is what donations meant, then not more than one percent of the world’s countries would be termed as independent states. Despite the fact that a nation may rely extensively on external assistance, as long as it has its own leader elected by the natives, its own constitution designed by its own natives, it is independent and as a practical thing, it is ruling itself.
There is nothing like theoretical independence. If at all, there are some individuals somewhere who feel they are ruling some countries indirectly, then they only miss the point. As a matter of fact, there is not country in the world which is being ruled by another country, and every country is independent – independence it its fullness, and never partial.
Even Iraq, which is under constant threat from the United States of America, is an independent state. It has its own president elected by native Iraqis. There are some brave individuals who fought relentlessly for Malawi to gain its independence and it would be mockery to these departed souls to claim that Malawi is still not independent.
Independence does not mean solitude. Perhaps those who feel Malawi is still not independent want us to live in absolute solitude without any external influence, which is an absurd thing. Just like any other state in the world, Malawi will continue interacting with other countries, and yet our independence will never cease to be.
Much as Malawi may receive funds from other countries, especially from the West, the government of Malawi has the final say. Even if it is a grant, the donour will not dictate other aspects. For example, the donour will not decide where the grant has to be implemented, though it has to be acknowledged that the purpose will not be changed.
To sum up, Malawi is an independent state just like any other country in the world. There is nothing more to being independent other than the fact that we have our own leader and a constitution written by native Malawians. And above all, we rule ourselves without any outer interference. That is why our president will not hesitate to chase away any foreign traders whom he feels have nothing good to offer Malawians. This is a great sign of our independence.
Ndakatulo: Undilole
Undilole iwe m’Malawi
Amene uwonetsa khalidwe loyipa
Pochotsa kukongola kwachilengedwe
Komwe Namalenga analininkha
Dziko lokongola lino la Malawi
Undilole kuti ndikudzudzule mosapsyatira
Chifukwa chodula mitengo
Yokongoletsa Malawi wathu Undilole.
Undilole iwe m’Malawi
Woyipitsa fuko lako
Pogwirira tiana tongosiya kumene kuyamwa
Pokhalira malo amodzi ndi chipaso chako
Wasautsiranji dziko iwe m’Malawi
Wasautsiranji mtendere wa Malawi
Undilole kuti ndikumasule
Kuti ndikuuze choonadi undilole
Popeza wanyanzitsa dziko lako
Dziko la mtendere la Malawi
Undilolebe iwe m’Malawi
Wosanyadira uMalawi wako
Taona ulakalaka utakhala mzungu
Nunyoza zakwanu kuMalawi
Zodzala ndi kunzuna kwachilengedwe
Undilole nditsutsane nawe
Kuti mayiko ndi onse
Koma kwanu ndi kuMalawi
Ku Malawi dziko la mtendere.
Undilolenso iwe m’Malawi wopanda chikondi
Wofuna kukolola posalima
Iwe m’Malawi wa ulesi
Wofwamba olimbikira
Wopanda chikondi
Cholamulidwa ndi Leza wam’mwambamwamba
Iye wofuna iwe uleze mtima
Nanga bwanji uchotsa lamulo
Lokonda mzako monga udzikonda mwini
Koma undilole ndikudzudzule
Kuti Malawi wathu akhalebe Malawi wamtendere.
Amene uwonetsa khalidwe loyipa
Pochotsa kukongola kwachilengedwe
Komwe Namalenga analininkha
Dziko lokongola lino la Malawi
Undilole kuti ndikudzudzule mosapsyatira
Chifukwa chodula mitengo
Yokongoletsa Malawi wathu Undilole.
Undilole iwe m’Malawi
Woyipitsa fuko lako
Pogwirira tiana tongosiya kumene kuyamwa
Pokhalira malo amodzi ndi chipaso chako
Wasautsiranji dziko iwe m’Malawi
Wasautsiranji mtendere wa Malawi
Undilole kuti ndikumasule
Kuti ndikuuze choonadi undilole
Popeza wanyanzitsa dziko lako
Dziko la mtendere la Malawi
Undilolebe iwe m’Malawi
Wosanyadira uMalawi wako
Taona ulakalaka utakhala mzungu
Nunyoza zakwanu kuMalawi
Zodzala ndi kunzuna kwachilengedwe
Undilole nditsutsane nawe
Kuti mayiko ndi onse
Koma kwanu ndi kuMalawi
Ku Malawi dziko la mtendere.
Undilolenso iwe m’Malawi wopanda chikondi
Wofuna kukolola posalima
Iwe m’Malawi wa ulesi
Wofwamba olimbikira
Wopanda chikondi
Cholamulidwa ndi Leza wam’mwambamwamba
Iye wofuna iwe uleze mtima
Nanga bwanji uchotsa lamulo
Lokonda mzako monga udzikonda mwini
Koma undilole ndikudzudzule
Kuti Malawi wathu akhalebe Malawi wamtendere.
On Individual Passion, Dissolving Clubs
The Presidential Sports Initiative is back. The whole purpose remains to unearth hidden talent that would have otherwise remained underlying. The fact that the initiative is the president’s own brainchild continues to vindicate his earlier claim that he wants to see sports rise to greater heights in the country, in due course, of course.
Well, the president must have had untold expectations from earlier his initiative. He must have expected to see a great breakthrough in sports, particularly in football. But this is not necessarily the case as things stand today. Most of the teams that did better are the ones that are already known. The initiative did not manage to exploit all the hidden talent.
But anyway, it is not my aim to write anything on this otherwise sticky topic. One thing that should not be discounted is that we should continue applauding those individuals and stakeholders that extend good gestures.
The point of focus of this article is how individuals and individual clubs can contribute towards the development or retardation of sports in Malawi, especially football. Many well-wishing people and stakeholders might do their damnedest to develop sports in Malawi but if the sports men and women themselves lack willingness, the whole initiatives will be but in vain.
Sometimes we fail to develop sports in Malawi because we have terrible money-oriented mindsets. It is not wrong to anticipate money in sports but it should not override our passion for the game.
Many aspiring sports men and women have a very big problem. They want to get so much just at the onset of their careers. Now, because of this mindset, their passion for sports is overridden by their desire for money.
Many clubs that had just organized themselves after hearing about the initial Presidential Sports Initiative, particularly the Football Cup, vanished into thin air after failing to make it to greater heights.
Other clubs were dissolved because “they did not benefit anything from the cup”. I stand to be corrected, but I should think the Presidential Sports Initiative is not only aimed at developing sports by unearthing hidden talent but also by establishing clubs, this is in the case of football.
And it is a huge frustration to football if clubs get dissolved after losing. However, credit must still be given to some football clubs that just organized themselves after hearing about the Presidential Cup and have not dissolved after failing to make it beyond the district level.
It would be very painful for some talented players in such clubs if the clubs got dissolved after being booted out of the tournament. Zomba Medicals is one football club that has made it to the Super League.
But if you try to dig out the history of the club, you will find that it started on a very small note. It never just picked players and registered in the Southern Region Football League. They first had to try their lack in Division One. And then they made it to the Premier Division, the SRFL, and now they have made it to the country’s top flight league.
A journey of 1000 miles starts with a single step, but not a reluctant step. There are many clubs that only come out when there is a tournament and disappear after failing to make it or at the end of the tournament.
If football, let alone any kind of sports, was only meant for tournaments, then there would by nothing about it now. Clubs’ managements should not have myopic visions. They should plan beyond the tournaments and they will one day reach a point where they will spoilt for choice when it comes to tournaments.
They should not just expect to cruise their way to the top. No! It cannot happen. There are steps that have to be followed without much as choice. In fact, if each and every football club got dissolved immediately after losing or after the end of the tournament, then many of the teams that get relegated from leagues would have been disbanded long before.
But because they have a passion for football, they work hard so that they retain their lost glory. Now that the Presidential Sports Initiative is here, again, clubs should come to stay and players should not wriggle out of sports after failing to make it to greater heights.
Well, the president must have had untold expectations from earlier his initiative. He must have expected to see a great breakthrough in sports, particularly in football. But this is not necessarily the case as things stand today. Most of the teams that did better are the ones that are already known. The initiative did not manage to exploit all the hidden talent.
But anyway, it is not my aim to write anything on this otherwise sticky topic. One thing that should not be discounted is that we should continue applauding those individuals and stakeholders that extend good gestures.
The point of focus of this article is how individuals and individual clubs can contribute towards the development or retardation of sports in Malawi, especially football. Many well-wishing people and stakeholders might do their damnedest to develop sports in Malawi but if the sports men and women themselves lack willingness, the whole initiatives will be but in vain.
Sometimes we fail to develop sports in Malawi because we have terrible money-oriented mindsets. It is not wrong to anticipate money in sports but it should not override our passion for the game.
Many aspiring sports men and women have a very big problem. They want to get so much just at the onset of their careers. Now, because of this mindset, their passion for sports is overridden by their desire for money.
Many clubs that had just organized themselves after hearing about the initial Presidential Sports Initiative, particularly the Football Cup, vanished into thin air after failing to make it to greater heights.
Other clubs were dissolved because “they did not benefit anything from the cup”. I stand to be corrected, but I should think the Presidential Sports Initiative is not only aimed at developing sports by unearthing hidden talent but also by establishing clubs, this is in the case of football.
And it is a huge frustration to football if clubs get dissolved after losing. However, credit must still be given to some football clubs that just organized themselves after hearing about the Presidential Cup and have not dissolved after failing to make it beyond the district level.
It would be very painful for some talented players in such clubs if the clubs got dissolved after being booted out of the tournament. Zomba Medicals is one football club that has made it to the Super League.
But if you try to dig out the history of the club, you will find that it started on a very small note. It never just picked players and registered in the Southern Region Football League. They first had to try their lack in Division One. And then they made it to the Premier Division, the SRFL, and now they have made it to the country’s top flight league.
A journey of 1000 miles starts with a single step, but not a reluctant step. There are many clubs that only come out when there is a tournament and disappear after failing to make it or at the end of the tournament.
If football, let alone any kind of sports, was only meant for tournaments, then there would by nothing about it now. Clubs’ managements should not have myopic visions. They should plan beyond the tournaments and they will one day reach a point where they will spoilt for choice when it comes to tournaments.
They should not just expect to cruise their way to the top. No! It cannot happen. There are steps that have to be followed without much as choice. In fact, if each and every football club got dissolved immediately after losing or after the end of the tournament, then many of the teams that get relegated from leagues would have been disbanded long before.
But because they have a passion for football, they work hard so that they retain their lost glory. Now that the Presidential Sports Initiative is here, again, clubs should come to stay and players should not wriggle out of sports after failing to make it to greater heights.
Short Story: Mysterious Disappearance
(this short story was published in the Malawi News)
Pastor Samson was one of the numerous people who had received the chain letters. It was a one-paged letter that explained that it originated from The Silent Island. Radio stations across the length and breadth of the earth were broadcasting news about these mysterious letters.
The place itself did not exist on the most detailed world map but most people believed the letters through the conviction that no one would know every place in the world or that the place might have just acquired a new name.
The letters had no detailed addresses of origin. Promises, once the recipient fulfilled the task as directed, ranged from air tickets to desired destinations to millions of dollars. The task appeared to be very simple: just writing twenty copies of the original letter and sending them to twenty of one’s friends.
Pastor Samson spread the letter on his bed.
“This letter originates from The Silent Island…. As long as you write twenty copies of this letter to twenty of your friends, you stand a chance of winning millions of dollars,” went on the letter. “This is the whole procedure: stick no posting stamp of the envelope – luck doesn’t have a price. Put nothing else in the envelope apart from the copy. The letter should be a perfect replica. Include not your name in the letter.”
Who was Pastor Samson to ignore the letter? He thought. That night, he hunched over his reading desk in his study and began to write the letters. Although he didn’t really understand what the letters meant, he made the copies anyway. What mattered was that he should receive the money. After all, he had founded his church because of want of money and here was a grand opportunity he could not pass over.
It was four days later and Pastor Samson had received 10 million kwacha the previous day. Having received the money, he found everything to be literally useless. His church was trivial; his flock was useless and everyone was but nothing. In his phantasms, he could see himself being elevated to the level of the most prominent figures in the country.
The night was cold and still. That January was just like in the heart of the month of June. Everyone, except those baying for the blood of their fellow mankind, was already in bed. Occasionally, low noises could be heard from the chirping of crickets and hooting of owls, pronouncing their nocturnal freedom.
Curled in a thick duvet, the pastor’s wife was peering at her husband who was in deep slumber. It was as though she was trying to see where his nightmares were coming from. He had had terrible nightmares the past two nights. One night, in a nightmare, his clothes had been soaked in his own blood after he had been struck with a double-edged rapier by an imaginary figure.
Then the other night, someone with blood drawings of dragons on his body had cut the pastor’s head off. Then the pastor’s eyes had seen his own trunk being draped with a black piece of cloth and blood had been slowly dribbling from his neck.
The pastor’s wife’s eyes were wide open. It appeared she would not afford a nap until she saw where her hubby’s bad dreams were emanating from. She was tired of his alarming screams, but did she really expect to see the origin of a dream?
The bedside lamps were switched on and she went on to switch the main lights as well.
All of a sudden, the pastor began to twist and whimper. His other half glanced at the wall clock – it had started around the same time the other two nights, but time did not matter now. She swung away her thick duvet and peered at him. His face was gleaming with perspiration. Her heart lurched.
“This is becoming too much for me. How do I have to deal with it? He is going to dream himself to death.” It was a nightmare scenario to her. She shook him vigorously but he did not wake up. Horrific. Enigmatic. Energy streamed out of her body as she watched his face bathe in more and more sweat and his body twist like a dying snake. She picked her phone and in less than 20 seconds, the pastor’s closest friend was on the line. She told him to come quickly.
“But this is midnight,” he said through the mouthpiece.
“I know, but come quickly,” she responded tremulously. She ended the call even before the pastor’s friend finished talking.
Meanwhile, she was shaking with fear and she swayed onto her bed. Like in the previous dreams, the pastor had now rested to the hilt and his wife was staring at him bleakly. Her heart was freezing. She walked towards the main door and stood in front of it, waiting for the pastor’s friend. He came and she led him into their bedroom where her husband was. At first, he was reluctant but when he saw his friend lying on his bed silently, with his hands and legs slanted loosely, he hastened into the room and stopped by his bed. He seemed to be producing no breath.
“What happened?” the pastor’s friend asked.
“He can’t answer me.” She was sobbing. “He was twisting and whining. I think it was a very bad dream. He was doing that for the third time.”
The pastor’s friend touched the pastor’s sweating countenance. It was hot. He had never seen a person with such a body temperature. The pastor’s situation was strange. As he tried to roll him, a flash of light blinded him and the pastor’s wife and it was followed by a deafening sound like a thunderclap. Then the whole room was filled with pitch darkness. The switches had not been flicked but all the bulbs gave no light. It was just like an earthquake but in the annals of seismology no earthquake had ever come with a light flash.
In absolute horror, the two dashed out of the house for dear life. Within a short time, they were outside a house that was a few metres from the pastor’s. The pastor’s friend knocked at the door with his trembling fist.
A hulking man, in a night attire, answered the door. The pastor’s wife almost jumped into the house.
“What is wrong?” the man asked, trying his utmost to focus on those two people standing in front of him. The security bulb was clearly showing their horrified
“You mean nothing happened here?” the pastor’s friend asked in response. “A blinding flash of light struck in the pastor’s house followed by a deafening sound.”
“It’s news to me as you can see. It might be lightning,” he said drowsily. “Where is the man of God himself?”
“He might be dead,” the pastor’s wife said instantaneously.
“Let’s go there,” the man said, loathing wasting time.
After some resistance, the pastor’s wife and the friend finally budged, but there was a terrible degree of horror in them. What had happened was strange but the pastor’s wife was able to connect it with the chain letters.
The other man, other than the pastor’s friend, entered first into the pastor’s house. Then the two who were frightened like grasshoppers followed. In the bedroom, the lights were on and the pastor had disappeared. But lo and behold! On his bed was a paper bearing: he is where he belongs. He had a desire for money so he has to be where there is money.
Pastor Samson was one of the numerous people who had received the chain letters. It was a one-paged letter that explained that it originated from The Silent Island. Radio stations across the length and breadth of the earth were broadcasting news about these mysterious letters.
The place itself did not exist on the most detailed world map but most people believed the letters through the conviction that no one would know every place in the world or that the place might have just acquired a new name.
The letters had no detailed addresses of origin. Promises, once the recipient fulfilled the task as directed, ranged from air tickets to desired destinations to millions of dollars. The task appeared to be very simple: just writing twenty copies of the original letter and sending them to twenty of one’s friends.
Pastor Samson spread the letter on his bed.
“This letter originates from The Silent Island…. As long as you write twenty copies of this letter to twenty of your friends, you stand a chance of winning millions of dollars,” went on the letter. “This is the whole procedure: stick no posting stamp of the envelope – luck doesn’t have a price. Put nothing else in the envelope apart from the copy. The letter should be a perfect replica. Include not your name in the letter.”
Who was Pastor Samson to ignore the letter? He thought. That night, he hunched over his reading desk in his study and began to write the letters. Although he didn’t really understand what the letters meant, he made the copies anyway. What mattered was that he should receive the money. After all, he had founded his church because of want of money and here was a grand opportunity he could not pass over.
It was four days later and Pastor Samson had received 10 million kwacha the previous day. Having received the money, he found everything to be literally useless. His church was trivial; his flock was useless and everyone was but nothing. In his phantasms, he could see himself being elevated to the level of the most prominent figures in the country.
The night was cold and still. That January was just like in the heart of the month of June. Everyone, except those baying for the blood of their fellow mankind, was already in bed. Occasionally, low noises could be heard from the chirping of crickets and hooting of owls, pronouncing their nocturnal freedom.
Curled in a thick duvet, the pastor’s wife was peering at her husband who was in deep slumber. It was as though she was trying to see where his nightmares were coming from. He had had terrible nightmares the past two nights. One night, in a nightmare, his clothes had been soaked in his own blood after he had been struck with a double-edged rapier by an imaginary figure.
Then the other night, someone with blood drawings of dragons on his body had cut the pastor’s head off. Then the pastor’s eyes had seen his own trunk being draped with a black piece of cloth and blood had been slowly dribbling from his neck.
The pastor’s wife’s eyes were wide open. It appeared she would not afford a nap until she saw where her hubby’s bad dreams were emanating from. She was tired of his alarming screams, but did she really expect to see the origin of a dream?
The bedside lamps were switched on and she went on to switch the main lights as well.
All of a sudden, the pastor began to twist and whimper. His other half glanced at the wall clock – it had started around the same time the other two nights, but time did not matter now. She swung away her thick duvet and peered at him. His face was gleaming with perspiration. Her heart lurched.
“This is becoming too much for me. How do I have to deal with it? He is going to dream himself to death.” It was a nightmare scenario to her. She shook him vigorously but he did not wake up. Horrific. Enigmatic. Energy streamed out of her body as she watched his face bathe in more and more sweat and his body twist like a dying snake. She picked her phone and in less than 20 seconds, the pastor’s closest friend was on the line. She told him to come quickly.
“But this is midnight,” he said through the mouthpiece.
“I know, but come quickly,” she responded tremulously. She ended the call even before the pastor’s friend finished talking.
Meanwhile, she was shaking with fear and she swayed onto her bed. Like in the previous dreams, the pastor had now rested to the hilt and his wife was staring at him bleakly. Her heart was freezing. She walked towards the main door and stood in front of it, waiting for the pastor’s friend. He came and she led him into their bedroom where her husband was. At first, he was reluctant but when he saw his friend lying on his bed silently, with his hands and legs slanted loosely, he hastened into the room and stopped by his bed. He seemed to be producing no breath.
“What happened?” the pastor’s friend asked.
“He can’t answer me.” She was sobbing. “He was twisting and whining. I think it was a very bad dream. He was doing that for the third time.”
The pastor’s friend touched the pastor’s sweating countenance. It was hot. He had never seen a person with such a body temperature. The pastor’s situation was strange. As he tried to roll him, a flash of light blinded him and the pastor’s wife and it was followed by a deafening sound like a thunderclap. Then the whole room was filled with pitch darkness. The switches had not been flicked but all the bulbs gave no light. It was just like an earthquake but in the annals of seismology no earthquake had ever come with a light flash.
In absolute horror, the two dashed out of the house for dear life. Within a short time, they were outside a house that was a few metres from the pastor’s. The pastor’s friend knocked at the door with his trembling fist.
A hulking man, in a night attire, answered the door. The pastor’s wife almost jumped into the house.
“What is wrong?” the man asked, trying his utmost to focus on those two people standing in front of him. The security bulb was clearly showing their horrified
“You mean nothing happened here?” the pastor’s friend asked in response. “A blinding flash of light struck in the pastor’s house followed by a deafening sound.”
“It’s news to me as you can see. It might be lightning,” he said drowsily. “Where is the man of God himself?”
“He might be dead,” the pastor’s wife said instantaneously.
“Let’s go there,” the man said, loathing wasting time.
After some resistance, the pastor’s wife and the friend finally budged, but there was a terrible degree of horror in them. What had happened was strange but the pastor’s wife was able to connect it with the chain letters.
The other man, other than the pastor’s friend, entered first into the pastor’s house. Then the two who were frightened like grasshoppers followed. In the bedroom, the lights were on and the pastor had disappeared. But lo and behold! On his bed was a paper bearing: he is where he belongs. He had a desire for money so he has to be where there is money.
Muluzi: The Sword That Sweeps
(THIS ARTICLE WAS PUBLISHED IN PART BY THE NATION ON SUNDAY)
In his article titled ‘A beautiful flame that kills’ which appeared in The Nation of July 16, 2007, Mzati Nkolokosa made a very clear evaluation of what happens to individuals that have at a certain point worked with the former head of state Mr. Bakili Muluzi. He described the politician as being so attractive, an irresistible, little flame that attracts moths while in real sense it is a flame that suffocates and all who do not realise early enough, die.
This former head of state will indeed go down the annals of Malawi politics as a politician whose greater contribution in the political circles has been propelling the downfall of others. There might only be only a few people who really detect this kind of Muluzi’s contribution in politics.
The man was firstly considered as a very significant lot in Malawi politics during the one-party-to-multiparty political transition when he fought fervently against the one party government and emerged the president of the country. Of course there were many other brave men and women who fought for a good cause and were very central to the democratic transition, but after assuming power, Muluzi practically chose to tramp over their images.
These are fighters who, many believe should have been the first to rule Malawi in the country’s democracy, but the former head of state fought so much for his own self-recognition which he thought would not come forward if other names were also vivid that he almost thrust the names of people like Chakufwa Chihana into the mist of history.
Then after Muluzi assumed power from Dr. Kamuzu Banda, he started to associate with individuals who mostly were supposed to hold different positions in his administration where they would serve him and not necessarily in their respective capacities.
Those who served in their respective capacities without necessarily serving him are the ones who at least still survive politically to this day. But those who ultimately associated with him, and him alone, faced a lot of challenges as long as their political careers were concerned. Only a few who realised quickly that the man has so much intelligence when the destruction of others’ political careers is concerned were spared the wrath of the former head of state.
There appears to be something peculiar about associating with Muluzi, the self-acclaimed political engineer, whose politics lack principles and sound ideologies which are essential for politics in a democratic regime. Individuals who mostly suffer by virtue of associating with Muluzi might have never realised they were associating with a deadly man.
Some politicians who are conspicuously missing from the political scene or will soon be missing and are disappearing into the mist of time because of associating with Muluzi in very intimate ways are: Gwanda Chakuwamba, Sam Mpasu, Maxwell Milanzi and the recent ones are clement Stambuli and John Tembo, among many others.
There is Gwanda Chakuwamba, a once very great politician whose survival from the Kamuzu administration was of profound significance to the Malawi Congress Party that time since he never gave up even after losing in the 1999 general elections.
But the Lower Shire man, who is now in the fishing industry, made the biggest political blunder when he thought of associating with Muluzi. The same happened with other politicians, even those whose political careers had just been blossoming like Lucius Banda. The Balaka based music icon was so much controlled by Muluzi that he even did what was considered as the worst in Parliament, just to please such a dangerous master.
Other victims of Muluzi’s destroying magic like Sam Mpasu and Maxwell Milanzi also made blunders by being too loyal to the former head of state at one point in time. They almost worshiped the ground Muluzi walked on, yet what he had in store for them was a terrible sword threatening to destroy their political careers and the sword swept just in time before they could escape.
The recent victims of Muluzi’s destroying-associates’ proficiency are conspicuously Clement Stambuli and John Zenus Ungapake Tembo. With Stambuli, it might be understandable since his association with Muluzi was never clearly defined other than allegiance to the chairman of the party.
The young politician tried to frustrate a number of the previous government’s programs just to please Muluzi and what followed was his constituents’ loss of confidence in him. But when it comes to honourable Tembo, one loudly wonders whether the 35 plus years the man has been in politics have not taught him anything, including something about Muluzi’s ability to propel the downfall of his associates. This is where the real folly of humankind in politics is detected. How could the central region politician, out of all the political experience he has, fail to recognize a subsequent fall which comes as a result of associating with Muluzi?
Tembo should have known Muluzi’s true implications on a politician’s career since he had ever worked with the Kapoloma man some time in the Kamuzu administration. Even if the once central region political maestro did not recognize how dangerous Muluzi is in the Kamuzu era, he should have recognized it during the former head of state’s past 15 years of politics.
Now Tembo associated with Muluzi by forming a coalition that was aimed at removing Mutharika from power. Tembo thought he shared the same aspirations with Muluzi, not knowing that Muluzi wanted that if it was UDF’s loss, it should be MCP’s loss as well and if it was MCP’s win it should be UDF’s win as well.
Tembo had a shock of his life when his partner-in-politics immediately congratulated Mutharika even when the official results from the Electoral Commission were not out. Muluzi never agreed with Tembo to concede defeat. That is the character of the Machinga man: he can easily propel the fall of others. And now Tembo is tittering on the blink of complete downfall.
Above all, he has already fallen enough for his desire to rule Malawi will never come to pass. His political future is now fraying around the edges, yet he was, just recently, one of the biggest politicians in Malawi. Such is the price for associating with Muluzi. One needs to be aware of Muluzi, otherwise most people who associate with him end like curtains.
The Kapoloma man himself has stood upright for quite a long time despite fuelling the downfall of many politicians. He might deem himself as a very influential man who causes the end of others’ political careers without falling himself. But for him as well there is a price to pay. He is unconsciously set to cause his own downfall.
In his article titled ‘A beautiful flame that kills’ which appeared in The Nation of July 16, 2007, Mzati Nkolokosa made a very clear evaluation of what happens to individuals that have at a certain point worked with the former head of state Mr. Bakili Muluzi. He described the politician as being so attractive, an irresistible, little flame that attracts moths while in real sense it is a flame that suffocates and all who do not realise early enough, die.
This former head of state will indeed go down the annals of Malawi politics as a politician whose greater contribution in the political circles has been propelling the downfall of others. There might only be only a few people who really detect this kind of Muluzi’s contribution in politics.
The man was firstly considered as a very significant lot in Malawi politics during the one-party-to-multiparty political transition when he fought fervently against the one party government and emerged the president of the country. Of course there were many other brave men and women who fought for a good cause and were very central to the democratic transition, but after assuming power, Muluzi practically chose to tramp over their images.
These are fighters who, many believe should have been the first to rule Malawi in the country’s democracy, but the former head of state fought so much for his own self-recognition which he thought would not come forward if other names were also vivid that he almost thrust the names of people like Chakufwa Chihana into the mist of history.
Then after Muluzi assumed power from Dr. Kamuzu Banda, he started to associate with individuals who mostly were supposed to hold different positions in his administration where they would serve him and not necessarily in their respective capacities.
Those who served in their respective capacities without necessarily serving him are the ones who at least still survive politically to this day. But those who ultimately associated with him, and him alone, faced a lot of challenges as long as their political careers were concerned. Only a few who realised quickly that the man has so much intelligence when the destruction of others’ political careers is concerned were spared the wrath of the former head of state.
There appears to be something peculiar about associating with Muluzi, the self-acclaimed political engineer, whose politics lack principles and sound ideologies which are essential for politics in a democratic regime. Individuals who mostly suffer by virtue of associating with Muluzi might have never realised they were associating with a deadly man.
Some politicians who are conspicuously missing from the political scene or will soon be missing and are disappearing into the mist of time because of associating with Muluzi in very intimate ways are: Gwanda Chakuwamba, Sam Mpasu, Maxwell Milanzi and the recent ones are clement Stambuli and John Tembo, among many others.
There is Gwanda Chakuwamba, a once very great politician whose survival from the Kamuzu administration was of profound significance to the Malawi Congress Party that time since he never gave up even after losing in the 1999 general elections.
But the Lower Shire man, who is now in the fishing industry, made the biggest political blunder when he thought of associating with Muluzi. The same happened with other politicians, even those whose political careers had just been blossoming like Lucius Banda. The Balaka based music icon was so much controlled by Muluzi that he even did what was considered as the worst in Parliament, just to please such a dangerous master.
Other victims of Muluzi’s destroying magic like Sam Mpasu and Maxwell Milanzi also made blunders by being too loyal to the former head of state at one point in time. They almost worshiped the ground Muluzi walked on, yet what he had in store for them was a terrible sword threatening to destroy their political careers and the sword swept just in time before they could escape.
The recent victims of Muluzi’s destroying-associates’ proficiency are conspicuously Clement Stambuli and John Zenus Ungapake Tembo. With Stambuli, it might be understandable since his association with Muluzi was never clearly defined other than allegiance to the chairman of the party.
The young politician tried to frustrate a number of the previous government’s programs just to please Muluzi and what followed was his constituents’ loss of confidence in him. But when it comes to honourable Tembo, one loudly wonders whether the 35 plus years the man has been in politics have not taught him anything, including something about Muluzi’s ability to propel the downfall of his associates. This is where the real folly of humankind in politics is detected. How could the central region politician, out of all the political experience he has, fail to recognize a subsequent fall which comes as a result of associating with Muluzi?
Tembo should have known Muluzi’s true implications on a politician’s career since he had ever worked with the Kapoloma man some time in the Kamuzu administration. Even if the once central region political maestro did not recognize how dangerous Muluzi is in the Kamuzu era, he should have recognized it during the former head of state’s past 15 years of politics.
Now Tembo associated with Muluzi by forming a coalition that was aimed at removing Mutharika from power. Tembo thought he shared the same aspirations with Muluzi, not knowing that Muluzi wanted that if it was UDF’s loss, it should be MCP’s loss as well and if it was MCP’s win it should be UDF’s win as well.
Tembo had a shock of his life when his partner-in-politics immediately congratulated Mutharika even when the official results from the Electoral Commission were not out. Muluzi never agreed with Tembo to concede defeat. That is the character of the Machinga man: he can easily propel the fall of others. And now Tembo is tittering on the blink of complete downfall.
Above all, he has already fallen enough for his desire to rule Malawi will never come to pass. His political future is now fraying around the edges, yet he was, just recently, one of the biggest politicians in Malawi. Such is the price for associating with Muluzi. One needs to be aware of Muluzi, otherwise most people who associate with him end like curtains.
The Kapoloma man himself has stood upright for quite a long time despite fuelling the downfall of many politicians. He might deem himself as a very influential man who causes the end of others’ political careers without falling himself. But for him as well there is a price to pay. He is unconsciously set to cause his own downfall.
Law Contradictions in the Madonna Cases
On Thursday 12 June Malawi's highest court, the Supreme Court of Appeal finally granted American pop diva Madonna the right to adopt a second child from the country after a barrage of disapprovals from human rights activists who argued Madonna was not eligible of adopting another child from Malawi.
Madonna has since the adoption of David dragged Malawi into the centre of world attention due to her adoption gestures. Just prior to her visit to Malawi to adopt James, the Western media were laden with news about her adoption bid. The pop diva is now mother to two Malawian children, David Banda and Mercy James.
Supreme court Chief Justice Lovemore Munro said in his ruling that in the view of the Court, Chifundo James is better taken care of by being adopted by foreign parents who will give her ultimate love and affection. Munro further said Madonna was financially stable and could care for the three-year-old, whose name means Mercy. Therefore the court granted Madonna the adoption right.
It may not be very needful to resuscitate the Madonna issue now, but for the sake of posterity it cannot be completely wiped out. The Supreme Court ruling was after the High Court had blocked Madonna's adoption bid, saying that she had failed to meet an 18-month residency requirement in Malawi. Here is where laws regarding child adoption become ambiguous.
It beats any sound mind which are the best interpretations of our laws and how such interpretations matter in the legal fraternity. When Madonna adopted David Banda in 2006, that requirement which the High Court used to block the us diva’s adoption bid was waived but child welfare groups still argued that the residency rule was central to adoptions, and that it could not be compromised.
Malawian parents should be sought before placing children overseas, the groups argued. However this argument tends to imply that if no Malawian parents come forward to offer to adopt vulnerable Malawian children then international adoptions might come in.
Again there was a lot of fuss over Madonna’s bid to adopt another vulnerable child from Malawi, mainly from human rights activists. Of course these activists might still not be satisfied, but the fact of the matter is that they do not have any option now that the highest court of the land has made the final ruling.
The whole issue is now a dead letter. But the fact of the matter appears to be how laws that govern the adoption of children in Malawi are being interpreted by members of the law fraternity. Law is one of the recognized noble professions in Malawi because, on one part, its applications deal with human life. The implication is that a lawyer may or may not save the life of a person who has been hauled up before a court of law and might be sentenced to death if not defended competently.
It is for this reason that due to the intensity of the case, individuals with certain law qualifications may or may not be eligible to handle some cases. Now the Madonna cases have created some doubts as to whether Malawi laws are followed with the application of similar or at least similar interpretations, or they can easily adjust according to the situation.
The interpretation of a number of provisions in the legal system continues to be a matter that is never complete. Lawyers oftentimes tend to differ on the interpretations, yet they all deem their understandings to be the most proper. Legal language is a kind of language that elevates the normal level of language clarity to one which becomes filled with terrible ambiguities.
Professional translators fail to come with clear translations because different understandings are created, stemming from the ambiguities. Translation of the same legal document into the same target language, at least in Malawi, is bound to bring forth different finished products of the same with different meanings.
It might be the ambiguities that are there in our legal provisions that prompt one judge to find innocent an individual who was initially convicted by another court of law. Usually the lower courts are said to have erred in their judgments, which begs the question of when one may know whether the lower court has erred or not. It is no denying fact that the only court of law that does not err in its rulings is the Supreme Court.
Well, the aspect of natural justice is significant in law, especially where aspects of moral axioms are deemed to be present. But this aspect needs not to undermine the documented provisions which are already clear.
It is also quite true that no legal provision operates independently without other references and attachments. But the references and attachments need to be in concurrence with the legal provision, not to crush it. There are a number of legal provisions in our constitutions that are filled with so many ambiguities that one wonders which one is their right interpretation.
Most of them come into focus when someone wants to crush an argument that has been advanced by their opponent. It is also the ambiguities of the legal provisions which results in cases taking so much time to be concluded.
Perhaps the Malawi Law Commission needs to do something so that the laws are clear, just for the sake of the future, in case Madonna comes again to adopt another child.
Madonna has since the adoption of David dragged Malawi into the centre of world attention due to her adoption gestures. Just prior to her visit to Malawi to adopt James, the Western media were laden with news about her adoption bid. The pop diva is now mother to two Malawian children, David Banda and Mercy James.
Supreme court Chief Justice Lovemore Munro said in his ruling that in the view of the Court, Chifundo James is better taken care of by being adopted by foreign parents who will give her ultimate love and affection. Munro further said Madonna was financially stable and could care for the three-year-old, whose name means Mercy. Therefore the court granted Madonna the adoption right.
It may not be very needful to resuscitate the Madonna issue now, but for the sake of posterity it cannot be completely wiped out. The Supreme Court ruling was after the High Court had blocked Madonna's adoption bid, saying that she had failed to meet an 18-month residency requirement in Malawi. Here is where laws regarding child adoption become ambiguous.
It beats any sound mind which are the best interpretations of our laws and how such interpretations matter in the legal fraternity. When Madonna adopted David Banda in 2006, that requirement which the High Court used to block the us diva’s adoption bid was waived but child welfare groups still argued that the residency rule was central to adoptions, and that it could not be compromised.
Malawian parents should be sought before placing children overseas, the groups argued. However this argument tends to imply that if no Malawian parents come forward to offer to adopt vulnerable Malawian children then international adoptions might come in.
Again there was a lot of fuss over Madonna’s bid to adopt another vulnerable child from Malawi, mainly from human rights activists. Of course these activists might still not be satisfied, but the fact of the matter is that they do not have any option now that the highest court of the land has made the final ruling.
The whole issue is now a dead letter. But the fact of the matter appears to be how laws that govern the adoption of children in Malawi are being interpreted by members of the law fraternity. Law is one of the recognized noble professions in Malawi because, on one part, its applications deal with human life. The implication is that a lawyer may or may not save the life of a person who has been hauled up before a court of law and might be sentenced to death if not defended competently.
It is for this reason that due to the intensity of the case, individuals with certain law qualifications may or may not be eligible to handle some cases. Now the Madonna cases have created some doubts as to whether Malawi laws are followed with the application of similar or at least similar interpretations, or they can easily adjust according to the situation.
The interpretation of a number of provisions in the legal system continues to be a matter that is never complete. Lawyers oftentimes tend to differ on the interpretations, yet they all deem their understandings to be the most proper. Legal language is a kind of language that elevates the normal level of language clarity to one which becomes filled with terrible ambiguities.
Professional translators fail to come with clear translations because different understandings are created, stemming from the ambiguities. Translation of the same legal document into the same target language, at least in Malawi, is bound to bring forth different finished products of the same with different meanings.
It might be the ambiguities that are there in our legal provisions that prompt one judge to find innocent an individual who was initially convicted by another court of law. Usually the lower courts are said to have erred in their judgments, which begs the question of when one may know whether the lower court has erred or not. It is no denying fact that the only court of law that does not err in its rulings is the Supreme Court.
Well, the aspect of natural justice is significant in law, especially where aspects of moral axioms are deemed to be present. But this aspect needs not to undermine the documented provisions which are already clear.
It is also quite true that no legal provision operates independently without other references and attachments. But the references and attachments need to be in concurrence with the legal provision, not to crush it. There are a number of legal provisions in our constitutions that are filled with so many ambiguities that one wonders which one is their right interpretation.
Most of them come into focus when someone wants to crush an argument that has been advanced by their opponent. It is also the ambiguities of the legal provisions which results in cases taking so much time to be concluded.
Perhaps the Malawi Law Commission needs to do something so that the laws are clear, just for the sake of the future, in case Madonna comes again to adopt another child.
SPORTS
Chanco thrashes Health Sciences 10-0 BY ANANIYA ALICK PONJE
Five first half goals and another half a unit second half goals earned Chancellor College (Chanco) a classic win over Malawi College of Health Sciences Zomba Campus in a game which was played at Chirunga Stadium, Chanco’s home ground, on Saturday. The game was both teams’ first encounter in the TESSAM tournament which is being sponsored by Chibuku products. The tournament attracts all colleges in Malawi and it is being held every year.
Four of the first half goals came from Madalitso ‘Wire’ Mussa, who was player of the months many times in the last season’s Southern Region Football League which was being sponsored by Arkay Plastics. The aggressive striker converted his first goal just about eight minutes after kick-off before adding another within five minutes to make the score-line 2-0.
The third goal came from Andy Banda, another upcoming striker who is already proving a force to reckon with. Then before halftime Mussa scored again twice to earn himself a hat-trick plus one, making it 5-0 in favour of the hosts.
Just a minute into the second half a Health Sciences player missed a grand opportunity of scoring into an unguarded goal opening after Chanco goal tender shifted from the goal. The striker shot wide, attracting boos both from his fellow teammates and from supporters.
For many times Health Sciences players seemed to show that they had come into the second half with full force by threatening the hosts’ goalkeeper for a number of times but he could not just allow them to send the ball behind the net.
About ten minutes into the second half, a direct free kick taken about 25 metres away from the goal post made the score-line 6-0. This was after a Health Sciences defender fouled a Chanco striker who appeared to be on his way to score a goal after beating an offside trap.
And within a minute, the hosts scored again through another striker to make it 7-0. They continued to press for another goal again which they deservedly got in the 30th minute of the second half.
By now, Health Sciences realized that they would not come back and register a win and they began to defend fervently, perhaps to avoid more embarrassment. But a stubborn Chanco which seemed to take every advantage of any mistake made by their opponents, scored another goal from the spot after Precious Mkoka was fouled in the 18-yard box making it 8-0. The penalty was converted by Andy Banda as the goalkeeper did not even attempt to show any effort to save the kick. Perhaps he had lost hope and decided that any kind of loss was necessary now.
After Health Sciences discovered that their defense had also been penetrated for times without number after thinking they had strengthened it, they just resorted to shooting from far, so that maybe they could get a consolation goal which, but, never came.
The ninth goal came in the 38th minute followed by another which came in the 40th minute to seal the 10-0 score-line.
Soon after the game, the visitor’s coach said that the loss was a real test that had shown them that they had an uphill task ahead of them. He however added that it did not mean that they were not a good side. “Guys, we still need to fight on. We have so many games remaining and we have to rectify a number of problems. We also need to train extra hard,” he said to his boys.
Conspicuously missing in the Chanco squad was Peter ‘Pido’Pindani who signed a contract with Big Bullets and would therefore not play for Chanco in any competitive match. During the last SRFL season Pindani was player of the month many times when he was playing for Chanco, who are still in the regional league. On Sunday, they were away in Blantyre playing against Chichiri Hammers at ESCOM Ground.
Other colleges in the same group as Chanco and Malawi College of Health Sciences Zomba Campus are Blantyre Teachers Training College, Soche Technical College and Mulanje Mission College. The team that tops the group will proceed to the quarter finals.
Five first half goals and another half a unit second half goals earned Chancellor College (Chanco) a classic win over Malawi College of Health Sciences Zomba Campus in a game which was played at Chirunga Stadium, Chanco’s home ground, on Saturday. The game was both teams’ first encounter in the TESSAM tournament which is being sponsored by Chibuku products. The tournament attracts all colleges in Malawi and it is being held every year.
Four of the first half goals came from Madalitso ‘Wire’ Mussa, who was player of the months many times in the last season’s Southern Region Football League which was being sponsored by Arkay Plastics. The aggressive striker converted his first goal just about eight minutes after kick-off before adding another within five minutes to make the score-line 2-0.
The third goal came from Andy Banda, another upcoming striker who is already proving a force to reckon with. Then before halftime Mussa scored again twice to earn himself a hat-trick plus one, making it 5-0 in favour of the hosts.
Just a minute into the second half a Health Sciences player missed a grand opportunity of scoring into an unguarded goal opening after Chanco goal tender shifted from the goal. The striker shot wide, attracting boos both from his fellow teammates and from supporters.
For many times Health Sciences players seemed to show that they had come into the second half with full force by threatening the hosts’ goalkeeper for a number of times but he could not just allow them to send the ball behind the net.
About ten minutes into the second half, a direct free kick taken about 25 metres away from the goal post made the score-line 6-0. This was after a Health Sciences defender fouled a Chanco striker who appeared to be on his way to score a goal after beating an offside trap.
And within a minute, the hosts scored again through another striker to make it 7-0. They continued to press for another goal again which they deservedly got in the 30th minute of the second half.
By now, Health Sciences realized that they would not come back and register a win and they began to defend fervently, perhaps to avoid more embarrassment. But a stubborn Chanco which seemed to take every advantage of any mistake made by their opponents, scored another goal from the spot after Precious Mkoka was fouled in the 18-yard box making it 8-0. The penalty was converted by Andy Banda as the goalkeeper did not even attempt to show any effort to save the kick. Perhaps he had lost hope and decided that any kind of loss was necessary now.
After Health Sciences discovered that their defense had also been penetrated for times without number after thinking they had strengthened it, they just resorted to shooting from far, so that maybe they could get a consolation goal which, but, never came.
The ninth goal came in the 38th minute followed by another which came in the 40th minute to seal the 10-0 score-line.
Soon after the game, the visitor’s coach said that the loss was a real test that had shown them that they had an uphill task ahead of them. He however added that it did not mean that they were not a good side. “Guys, we still need to fight on. We have so many games remaining and we have to rectify a number of problems. We also need to train extra hard,” he said to his boys.
Conspicuously missing in the Chanco squad was Peter ‘Pido’Pindani who signed a contract with Big Bullets and would therefore not play for Chanco in any competitive match. During the last SRFL season Pindani was player of the month many times when he was playing for Chanco, who are still in the regional league. On Sunday, they were away in Blantyre playing against Chichiri Hammers at ESCOM Ground.
Other colleges in the same group as Chanco and Malawi College of Health Sciences Zomba Campus are Blantyre Teachers Training College, Soche Technical College and Mulanje Mission College. The team that tops the group will proceed to the quarter finals.
POEM - I WILL CARRY ON
I WILL MARRY YOU (THIS POEM WAS PUBLISHED IN THE MALAWI NEWS)
By Ananiya Alick Ponje
I will carry on and marry you
So wipe those tears
That are prickling your eyes
Let the wind carry their words
For we are living in different worlds
Love is truly understood when
We struggle to love for love
And not for fame or wealth
We tie the knot for sickness or health.
If God made you with one hand
Love me you with that brand
Disabled though you are I love you
And I don’t take myself as a fool
You I will take and marry
For you are the only one I can carry
Through this involving life journey
Droop not your head
Because of comments people have made
Let your eyes only look ahead
To a future together we have to make
For love is between you and me
Others may wish to see
How together we will live
Because they still cant believe
That disability is never inability
That true love lacks fragility.
FATE HATH NO CHOICE - SHORT STORY
FATE HATH NO CHOICE
Short Story by ANANIYA ALICK PONJE
Above the cold silence, the wailing was very piercing. Nakana, the mother of the diseased, narrated between her wailing how much she had expected from her son, her only child who was now peacefully resting in a gleaming coffin that was coated with white Formica and was partly draped with a white linen.
To the poor bereaved woman, life meant nothing in the absence of her only child, her only pillar of hope. She had banked all her pride on him, but now he was a corpse waiting to be interred in no more than an hour.
She remembered how much she had struggled single-handedly to send him to school – those winter mornings when she could cover distances of not less than ten kilometers on bare foot to look for piece-works just to make sure her only child got the best education so far. Her husband had only been spending the little money he had had on drink.
She also remembered those gentle jokes her son would crack when he returned from school. They were all gone. His soft smiles would never be seen on any other human being’s face. They were gone.
“What shall I do?” lamented Nakana. “Richard, my only son, you should have waited and depart a little later. Why this to me now? Why? Who sent you, my son?” The lamentation was a complete story that narrated how the young man lying breathless in the coffin had come to the end of his twenty-two-year chapter.
“It is not long ago since your father closed his eyes eternally and you have decided to go and join him, my son. You should have told me and I would have organized a farewell party in this life. What do I have to do now? I am left with nothing. What should I live for?” Those trying to comfort her had a hard task and their efforts came up against a brick wall.
The wailing reached the climax when finally the coffin bearing the remains of Richard was being lowered into his final resting place. His school mates lowered their heads in sorrow and paid their last respect to their departed colleague as her mother jumped in ultimate sorrow.
“…dust to dust…,” bellowed the Reverend.
Nakana was now banging her frail hands on the wreaths laid on the fresh tomb. She wished it were a nightmare from which she could wake up and breathe a sigh of relief. Why would lightning strike in the same place twice? Only three months ago, she had been sitting at the breakfast table with her husband who had revealed nothing about his failing health or that he would be visiting his doctor. He had been diagnosed with a disease of the inflammation of lungs and he had not told his wife either.
When she had arrived at the hospital three hours later, her husband had been lying there on the hospital bed that had become his deathbed, breathless, eyes closed and a thick black lined wrapped around his belly. Stains of blood had been clear on the linen. It had been an unsuccessful medical operation. His facial features which had looked so strained at the breakfast table five hours earlier or so had relaxed.
And now it was her only child – from whom much had been expected since much had been given. Above all, life meant everything. All her dreams had been shattered into smithereens. What a painful and sad return for her unwavering efforts to educate her only child.
“…death saddens the heart but it is a perfect tool of sharpening our understanding. When man is born, all is left of him is to die. Birth is life’s most wonderful moment; death life’s most painful reality,” the Reverend preached as the burial ceremony was approaching the end.
The preaching only exacerbated Nakana’s sorrow and now her eyes were becoming turgid. Tears could no longer flow from them. Picking her late son’s necklace, she slipped its pendant between her fragile fingers. The object was going to be the epitaph to the twenty-one years she had spent with her son and now she was sorrowing with every fibre of her being.
“But death has no choice,” Nakana whispered through the cool atmosphere.
As the sun was setting, Richard’s death was an absolute reality to his mother. She decided that she had to live to make a virtue of necessity for she did not find the deep essence of living.
Richard was an awfully principled man. He was also a hard-worker when it came to school. After being selected to college, many people from his village had challenged him that he would finally succumb to peer pressure and lose all his sound principles but he proved them wrong until when he was in his fourth year.
As he walked in corridors, girls stood still, feasting their eyes on him. Handsome and always smart, he had no parallel. When the temptations of the fresh came his way, he did not fight tooth and nail to deal with them. The statement ‘I am on a mission’ would comfortably escape from his mouth and waft into his tempters’ ears. That was all – he was on a mission and he had to accomplish it.
“What is your mission, Richard?” his room-mate asked him one calm night before the two drifted off to sleep.
Richard smiled and cleared his throat as if he was about to address a very big rapt audience. “You see, mesho, I want to leave by example. This college is associated with all sorts of nasty things. People here drink like fish and the place is a den of all disreputable people and you know what – when you go out there and tell people you are from this college, they have no respect for you. All they see in you is hell.” He paused as though allowing his room-mate to absorb what he had said.
The moon shone fitfully in the heavens and partly illumined Richard’s bed. He heaved a deep sigh as though a heavy load had been taken off his shoulder.
“The kind of freedom that we have should not be something to make us go astray. We have to make good choices out of our own free will. There is a big cattle ranch in Iponjola but it has no fence. People always wonder why the cattle never wander away. It is because of the green pastures on the ranch. We should not go astray in virtue of freedom but we should look at the good things that surround us. They should pull us towards where they are.”
Richard’s room-mate nodded in approval.
Exactly three weeks before writing his final year exam, Richard’s friend, Luntha, visited him after being tied up with assignments for about a month. He put up in another hall of residence. He appeared to be a young man who was in perfect harmony with his soul.
“Have you heard that we are demonstrating against the government’s delay to give us our book and stationery loans?” Luntha asked with keen interest.
“Of course I do.”
“So what are you here for?”
“I am on a mission.”
“You have always said that, Richard. Come on; let us be part of it. After all, what sort of mission would be greater than the mission to fight for a good cause? Moreover, it is going to be just a peaceful demonstration,” he tried to convince him, blinding him with all sorts of philosophies. Richard tried to resist but he could not find enough ground on which to base his refusal. And so he finally gave in to his friend’s wish.
What was supposed to be a peaceful demonstration turned into a horrible violence. The students went on rampage, vandalizing everything within their vicinity. The police tried to contain the violence by threatening them by shooting in the air. It never worked.
Meanwhile, the students attacked the police themselves. One policeman lowered his gun and shot several times at the demonstrating students. As they dispersed, three of them were lying on the ground, blood oozing from different parts of their bodies.
Two hours later, news about the death of the three students was disseminating like wildfire. Among them was Richard, the man on a mission.
LOSING IS NORMAL
Losing is normal (this article was published in The Daily Times)
By Ananiya Alick Ponje
In any kind of competition where there is supposed to be one ultimate winner, and two or more people are competing, the stark reality is that the rest become losers after the winner has been identified. This is something that cannot be compromised. Therefore it beats any level of rationality how two or more people can become ultimate winners in a competition whose sole aim is to find one winner.
Victory is indeed a very inspiring and sweet thing in almost every life circumstance and loss probably is the hardest thing. Loss becomes even more painful if one cannot instantly accept it. Yet there appears to be no defined remedy for a loser other than the individual will to accept it as a necessary aspect in a competition. One just needs to accept it and move forward, for such is the greatest wisdom a loser can display.
If every person who loses in a competition never accepted defeat, then the essence of competitions would be non-existent. It would be as good as not having competitions at all, otherwise why waste time and energy having competitions where no one will accept defeat. But to date, competitions or elections, to be more technical, are the best process of choosing a leader and there appears to be no direct theory which can disapprove of this.
In 1994, father and founder of Malawi, the late Dr. Hastings Kamuzu Banda must have stunned many Malawians, especially those who think it is imprudent to concede defeat. He conceded defeat in the presidential elections and congratulated Bakili Muluzi even before the official results were out.
It is no denying fact that Kamuzu showed the greatest extent of statesmanship when he made such a very 'unusual' gesture. It was a gesture which many other individuals, especially politicians, are supposed to imitate. Yet today, there are many instances where losers fail to concede defeat.
After winners in the 19 presidential and parliamentary elections were announced, some disgruntled losers in a number of constituencies failed to concede defeat. They took their grievances to courts of law instead of accepting that they had lost and that it was time to move forward. They are busy with cases, where in most cases it is usually unlikely that the victory medal may be taken from their colleagues who were initially announced as winners and be given to them.
In such cases where losers do not accept defeat even after the courts have ruled against them, they will still hold grudges against their victorious colleagues and this will subsequently create enmity between or among them. Yet what is required is that losers and winners should work together for the sake of the citizens.
In other situations, innocent people become victims of circumstances, especially in cases where the two individual's factions engage in fighting. This is really very pathetic - people dying just because someone cannot concede defeat.
Thousands of people died in the Kenyan post-election violence just because someone could not concede defeat. Sometimes for the sake of lives of citizens, conceding defeat is the best thing even if doubts on the victory of the announced winner are founded.
After the results of the 1999 presidential elections were out, violence erupted in the major cities of this country just because Gwanda Chakuwamba could not concede defeat. And the scenario culminated into the death of one innocent kid in Blantyre's Chilobwe Township by the name of Epiphania Bonjesi. The ten-year-old girl had nothing to do with politics - she was years away from the legitimate age of voting, but she paid the price for profane desires of some disgruntled politicians who could not concede defeat.
Voters also need to accept their candidate's defeat. In fact it is absurd to expect that everyone will vote for your candidate. It is competition, that it why there are competitors.
Some parliamentary candidates who lost in the recent by-elections are still disgruntled about their colleague's victories. But the best thing they can do is to concede defeat. That is what is required for our country to move forward.
Mayimbidwe apusitsa
Mayimbidwe apusitsa
Wolemba: ANANIYA ALICK PONJE
Mawu amene Yohane adawamva kuchokera mnyumba yomwe idayandikana ndi nyumba yake adali ozuna m’mapirikaniro mwake. Zidangokhala ngati woyimba nyimboyo adali mngelo wotsika kuchokera kumwamba. Mawu ake adali a nthetemya ngati a mwana wa mbalame ndipo akamayimba nyimbo yakeyo Yohane adalakalaka kuti woyimbayo azingoyimbabe.
Adaganiza zoti apite kunyumba komwe kunkachokera mawuwo ndi cholinga choti akathe kucheza komanso mwina kupalana ubwenzi ndi woyimbayo yemwe Yohane sadakayike kuti adali mtsikana wokongola ngati dzuwa. Chomwe Yohaneyo amadziwa chidali choti mnyumba yoyandikana ndi yakeyo mmene mmachokera mayimbidwe okomawo mudalowa mzimayi winawake masiku atatu apitawo. Sadaonepo mtsikana wina aliyense pamalopo komabe adadzitsimikizira yekha kuti mwina mtsikanayo adali atangofika kumene.
Poyamba Yohane adaganiza kuti woyimbayo adali mzimayi yemwe adamuthandiza kulowetsa katundu mnyumbamo koma adazindikira kuti sadali iyeyo atamva kuyimbako ngakhale pamene mziwayi adali panja pa nyumba akutsuka mbale. Sadafune kufunsa funso lirilonse mzimayiyo lokhuzana ndi munthu wodalitsidwa ndi mphatso yamayimbidweyo. Iye adaganiza kuti adapite kunyumbako mzimayiko akapita kuntchito ndi cholinga choti apeze mpata wokwanira kuti acheze ndi namwali woyimba mogometsayo.
Mmalingaliro ake adaona kamtsikana kokongola kolapitsa katakhala mnyumba mwake ndiponso kakumwetulira ngati duwa longomasula kumene. Mtima wake udadumphadumpha ndipo adangogwedeza mutu wake wopanda nyanga atadzidzi ndikuzindikira kuti zokoma zonsezo zidali malingaliro chabe. Adaganiza zoti akakumane ndi namwali woyimba ngati mbalame za mmunda wa Edeni mawa lake ndi cholinga choti adziwane bwinobwino ndiponso kuti mwinanso amuuze mawu a chikondi ngati kudali koyenera kutero.
Adayima pafupi ndi zenera la kuchipinda kwake ndikumamvetsera mayimbidwe okoma ochokera ku nyumba ija. Panopa zidangokhala ngati woyimbayo wawakonza mawu aja kokwana kasanu. Amamveka ngati kuti akuchokera muchoyimbira chongogulidwa kumene.
Mmawa mwake Yohane adalimba mtima. Atakhala pakhonde la nyumba yake kwakanthawi adaganiza zopita kunyumba komwe kumachokera mayimbidwe okoma kuja omwe panthawiyo adali ataleka. Adayenda mwakachetechete ngati mlenje woopa kuvumbulutsa nyama kuthengo.
Atatsala pang’ono kuti afike pakhomo lanyumbayo Yohane adaganiza zoti abwerere. Thupi lake lidali lodzadzidwa ndi chikayiko. “Ndikayamba bwanji popeza namwaliyo wasiya kuyimba. Bola akadakhala kuti akuyimbabe ndikadamulowa ndiyomuyamikira kuti amayimba bwino. Nanga pano ndikafika ndiyotani?” adaziyankhulira yekha Yohane.
Adabwereradi ndipo atangofika pakhomo la nyumba yake kuyimba koziziritsa mtima wa mwamuna wolusa ngati mkango wa njala kudayambanso ndipo panopa kumamveka pamwamba kwambiri ngati kulira kwa mwana wakhanda. Timawu ta woyimbayo tidali todzala ndi ulemerero.
Yohane adavutika kwambiri tsiku limenelo. Usiku udafika mochedwa kwambiri moti maola awiri adangokhala ngati mulungu wathunthu. Malingaliro a mmene mtsikana woyimbayo angakhale mkazi wachikondi chosasimbika adampangitsa Yohane kuyiwala kuti adali ndi bwenzi lake kumudzi lomwe adagwirizana nalo kale kuti adzamanga nalo banja. Iyeyo adaganiza kuti imeneyo siidali nthawi yomalimbana ndi atsikana a kumudzi omwe kwa iyeyo adali osasamba ndipo adalitchayira lamya bwenzi lakelo kuliuza kuti chibwenzi chawo chatha.
Adali atabwera kutawuniko zaka ziwiri zapitazo ndipo sadaganizepo zofuna kumusiya Nganile, mkazi yemwe ngakhale makolo kumudzi amadziwa kuti ndi amene atadzasamale mwana wawo, koma lero maganizowo adamubwerera. Adasiya nkhwali atamva kulira kwa kwa nkhanga.
Tsiku limenelo kudacha bwino ndipo kadzuwa kamawala mwa apo ndi apo. Nakonso kamphepo kayaziyazi kamaomba moyiwalitsa mavuto. Yohane adali limodzi ndi namwali wa mayimbidwe ozuna uja ndipo awiriwo adayamba kucheza.
“Dzina lako ndani?” adafunsa Yohane.
Ndipo mtsikanayo adayankha kuti dzina lake lidali Lusungu. Adaonjezeranso kuti adali ndi zaka makumi awiri. Yohane adangoti laponda lamphawi. Amangosiyana chaka chimodzi ndi iyeyo ndipo Yohane adaganiza kuti uyu ndiye adali mkazi woti amange naye banja.
“Lusungu ndimafuna ineyo ndi iweyo timange banja,” adayankhula mosapsyatira Yohane koma Lusungu asadayankhe Yohaneyo adadzidzimuka. Adali maloto chabe.
Mawa lake Yohane adalimba mtima ngati Davide pamaso pachimphona cha ku Filisiti ndikupita kunyumba komwe kumachokera mayimbidwe ozuna aja. Maloto amene adalota usiku wathawo adamulimbitsa mtima. Kuyimba kudali kumveka ndipo Yohane adagogoda pachitseko motsitsa. Kuyimba kuja kudasiya ndipo chitseko chidatseguka. Patsogolo pake padayima nkhalamba yomwe mmutu mwake mudali mutayereratu ndi imvi. Yohane adakhumudwa kotheratu. Nthawi yonseyo adangodikira madzi a mphutsi.
“Ndimati ndikuyamikireni kuti mumayimba bwino,” adayankhula Yohane mwamanyazi kuyiwuza nkhalamba ija.
“Zikomo kwambiri,” idayankha nkhalamba ija ndipo isadamalize kuyankhula Yohane adaliyatsa liwiro lobwerera kunyumba kwake. Adangofika ndi kudziponya pampando. Kuyimba konzuna kuja kudali kumvekabe. Adasiya bwenzi lake lakumudzi chifukwa chomva mayimbidwe okoma amunthu yemwe adali asadamuone. Adataya nkhwali chifukwa chongomva kulira kwa nkhanga.
Clarifying on Mzuni
Clarifying on Mzuni
BY ANANIYA ALICK PONJE (Second Year student at Chancellor College)
University of Malawi (Unima) Council’s decision to re-introduce quota system in selecting students into it various constituent colleges has attracted a lot of controversy since the media broke the news. It has brought into the picture some arguments which create very irrelevant implications.
I am not interested in commenting on this otherwise thorny issue but on a certain set of arguments that have emanated from different commentators who have said something on the quota system issue. My concern is mostly on some arguments which tend to imply that Mzuzu University (Mzuni) is inferior to Unima.
There have been arguments like: “Students who fail to be admitted into Unima constituent colleges on a residential basis can join the colleges on a non-residential basis. Still more, the remaining ones may join Mzuzu University. It is the phrase “the remaining ones” which I feel is erroneous and leads to a very misconceived conclusion.
From this line of argument, it may be appropriately inferred that Mzuni is for those who have qualified for university selection but cannot be recruited into Unima constituent colleges due to limited bed space. It is like Mzuni is for remnants, something which is absolutely not the case. Far from that!
Mzuni plays no second fiddle to Unima. It is a university in its own and by all means and never sub-standard. While it has to be appreciated that Mzuni was only established about a decade ago, we have to be mindful of the fact that the university does have all necessary resources and courses that make it no lesser than Unima.
Unima is indeed an old established institution that has done numerous researches for its own good governance and choice of that should be followed as regards some of its courses offered by its constituent colleges, but that does not mean that Mzuni is inferior.
Though the fact of how established an institution is matters, the courses that are offered and their relevance in the corporate world is one aspect that is at the centre of consideration. Mzuni offers some courses which are also offered by Unima and this does not make it any lesser.
In fact, there are some courses which are offered by international colleges or universities which are not offered by any other institution in Malawi other than Mzuni. Most of these are new courses which have just come onto the scene and cannot be easily adopted into the old systems.
Now there is a directive that a student who has been selected to Mzuni cannot be selected to Unima constituent colleges as well. (But it appears this directive is not yet practical). This is to level the playing field so that some students are not shortchanged. In the past, a Mzuni student would write University of Malawi entrance exams and find their way into Unima and vice versa. This was even if the student had been withdrawn on academic grounds.
Last year, a good number of Mzuni students left the university and joined Unima because of the picture that is being painted about Mzuni, which implies that it is inferior to Unima.
The trend of students switching universities at their free will continues exploiting university education where some shift whenever they feel like doing so while others fail to find themselves in the public universities. This is because there is no second selection for university education, at least in Malawi, and the moment one shifts the gap remains unfilled forever.
The students who shift from one university/college to another “spend in vain” government resources which would be used for others. Just imagine, some students are first recruited at the Malawi College of Health Sciences (MCHS), then they apply for admission at Mzuni and they are successful. Then after some time, they apply for admission into Unima and they make it.
The spaces that they leave behind would be filled by some students who failed to make it due to limited space but this is not the case because there is no second selection. Perhaps with MCHS, there always is a waiting list in cases of those who fail to report for classes. But this anomaly cannot be addressed if the student has attended classes for a whole year only to abandon the college.
A student who has been selected to Mzuni is in no way inferior to the one who is in Unima. Qualification for Unima is not different from qualification for Mzuni, barring the fact that Unima conducts entrance examinations. Otherwise, it is the same six credits including English at MSCE.
The only distinction might be in the academic calendar. It is this distinction in the academic calendar that tempts some students to switch from Mzuni to Unima and vice versa. The fact of the matter is that both of them offer degrees as academic qualifications and are under the same Chancellor. They are both universities, after all.
Therefore, my appeal to authorities is that they should make sure that some students are not allowed to exploit university education at the expense of others. It is absurd to see some students find themselves at three different public institutions of higher learning within the same year while their colleagues lack the same. This is usually “in search of the best”.
Thursday, October 01, 2009
OF MARRIAGE AGE
Of marriage age (THIS ARTICLE WAS FIRST PUBLISHED IN THE NATION)
BY ANANIYA ALICK PONJE
The issue of 16 years being the legal marriage age when girls may marry with the consent of their parents or guardians has been at the centre of public attention since the last sitting of Parliament passed the Amendment Bill containing the same.
Parliament is being accused of being callous and inconsiderate. Many individuals and the civil society feel Parliament showed the greatest level of imprudence by unanimously resolving that a girl may be married off at the age of 16.
During a meeting which the Legal Affairs Committee of Parliament held recently in Lilongwe, Malawi Law Society (MLS) assistant chief law reform officer, Chizaso Nyirongo, argued that results of a research which the Law Commission conducted in 1998 showed that people in the rural areas did not find anything wrong with a girl-child marrying at the age of even 14 and less.
He added that since the age was initially at 15, then it had to be shifted to 16 as a matter of ‘striking the balance’. In other words, the law body felt that since people in the rural areas disagreed with their urban counterparts, it was imperative that the legal marriage age be pegged in the middle so that it should not ultimately favour anyone.
The issue of marriage age has been on the Order Paper since 1998, only to resurface a decade later, and the Law Commission feels that research which was conducted more than a decade ago is still valid.
In essence, when the research on when girls may be married off was being conducted, this country was experiencing a low maternal mortality rate as compared to how the situation is now. And perhaps, as a result, people did not care much about the legal marriage age. It was a time when girls were not as easily lured into immoral behaviours as they do now. Of course, the situation might have been there, but it was not as intense as it is now.
Now that the modern girl-child seems to be easily consumed by dangerous immoral desires, the Law Commission should have conducted another research to find out if those people in the rural areas who held with the idea that girls may be married off at 16 will still approve of it. I declare without fear of contradiction that they would retract their earlier decision.
The Law Commission should also have put into consideration the fact that before a decade ago once girls got married, the marriages lasted while most modern day girls do not take long to separate with their husbands. This is something that cannot be fully explained scientifically, but it is just as a result of the fluctuating changes instituted by nature.
Now when these girls break up with their husbands, they begin to indulge in immoral behaviours which is a dangerous thing for their lives in this era of HIV/AIDS prevalence. Hence, the 1998 research is rendered invalid now.
In certain situations, it is not always prudent to legalise something just because the majority has approved of it. There is need for the application of a certain kind of rationality. Much as democracy favours the majority, there are instances which would need to be compromised. That is why even in legal proceedings natural justice may supersede outright defined provisions.
Certain basic legal principles are required by nature, or so obvious that they should be applied universally without needing to be enacted into law by the majority. In fact those people who approve that their girl children could be married off at the age of 16 might have not been received any sensitization on the demerits of the move in this era. They might not have been able to figure out the repercussions that would come with the act.
After all, the 1998 MLS research showed that they are rural people (who are rarely exposed to general civic education on issues to do with the general welfare of the girl-child). Their urban counterparts have misgivings towards the issue because they have access to general sensitization on many issues.
In fact, the law commission should have considered some of the most significant rights of the girl-child before presenting the enactment. The girl child just like any other child has the right to education and by allowing her to get married at 16, the Law Commission smothered this universal right.
Above everything, since it is more than a decade ago since the last research on the marriage age was conducted, the Law Commission should have conducted another research now before presenting the enactment. There are many changes which nature brings, and a 1998 research may not be valid now.
(I am a second year student at Chancellor College)
BEING A REPORTER IN MALAWI
Being a journalist in democratic Malawi
BY ANANIYA ALICK PONJE
Journalism is defined as the timely reporting of events at the local, regional, national and international levels. This reporting involves the gathering of information through interviewing and research, the results of which are turned into a fair and balanced story for publication or for television or radio broadcast.
Journalists have the right to report whatever issue they feel like reporting as long as it is of national importance. While there are instances where journalists may be required to obtain permission before they report on a certain issue, in other instances, especially where they are raking the evils of society, they may report without acquiring permission. Otherwise many ills of society would remain underlying.
There isn’t much denial that the press in democratic Malawi ‘just’ to a little extent has been granted some leeway to operate. It has not necessarily been given the ultimate protection it must have to fulfill its essential role in our democracy.
The press is to serve the led, not the leaders. Even the government has no powers to censor the press in certain circumstances, while the press has the power to censor government. The press is supposed to be protected so that it can bare the ill secrets of institutions and inform the people. Only a free and unrestrained press can effectively expose the ills of the society.
Yet journalists have found themselves at the receiving end of oppression and repression. During the Muluzi era journalists who exposed the deteriorating standards of government institutions became victims of oppression both from the police and young democrats and some of them had to go into hiding for fear of their lives. Yet the perpetrators were not punished and impunity continues prevailing broadly in this country which is otherwise called the Warm Heart of Africa while being never warm to the journalist.
The press has the duty of ensuring that citizens who read, watch and/or listen to their content are fully informed, not only of the operation of public officials and offices, but the issues crafted that affect them. Journalism schools around the world teach students reporting and editing skills, ethics and applicable law; what may be lacking is purpose. That is why some issues may be disregarded by journalists on ethical grounds.
Government is not supposed to make any law abridging the freedom of the press. And yet now journalists sometimes are forced to become too afraid to fully embrace the notion that they have the right to report without abridgement even if it means raking the ills of high profile individuals.
Currently journalists suffer terrible oppression in different countries, risking their lives on a daily basis to report the truth in the most dangerous work environment known to mankind while rights bodies just continue paying attention to other areas ignoring the media sector.
It appears that in Malawi, it is only journalists who work with state broadcasters whose rights are guarded. Private media houses journalists are oppressed now and then as if they are in a foreign country. And most of the times their crime is simply that they are reporting the truth. Worldwide, journalists continue having been targeted, brutalized and sometimes killed by the enemies of press freedom. They are being pressured politically, socially and economically and are being manipulated not to tell the truth.
Journalists help in assisting government in developing the idea of democracy and it is important that they operate in comfort.
But they have been subjectively arrested in different parts of Malawi just as part of the arbitrary nature of weakening courageousness and energy of journalists to tell the story for their people in a fair and independent manner. These media people are not given enough explanations regarding the reasons for their detention. So far in the history of Malawi’s democracy a media house has ever been briefly shut down just as part of a sophisticated kind of intimidation. The moves have only been a maneuver by the government to silence them, and to erode the role of private media.
Journalists whose independent reporting is not liked by the powers that be are subjected to threats and severe hindrances to their journalistic tasks. Yet it is in this peaceful country where journalists were supposed to operate without any intimidation. It is pathetic that journalists are still widely vulnerable to reprisals. They are systematically exposed to physical attacks. Yet most serious crimes against journalists are not prosecuted and brought to trial no matter how serious they may be.
For times without number journalists have learned that if they intend to report professionally they are being considered as sympathizers of the opposing force. They are only providers of truth and they cannot flinch from fulfilling their duty. I, personally, believe that Journalism is about someone finding out information that people would not know about and informing them about it. On another note, it is about keeping an eye on business and government and keeping them accountable for their actions.
Whatever quarter they come from, journalists have a lot in common: the commitment to accuracy, to fairness and balance, to reflecting the diversity of their readership, to always approaching reporting with an open mind, to having their primary commitment to the reader and no one else.
Some time back the International Federation of Journalists (IFJ) sounded the alarm at the widespread violation of journalists' rights to mark the 60th anniversary of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights. Paco Audije, IFJ Deputy General Secretary said that journalists are witnessing the steady erosion of the respect for their rights, in particular the most basic ones such as the right to life and to press freedom. He added that each year, the IFJ records unacceptably high numbers of journalists from around the world who are killed, detained and intimidated for the lawful exercise of their profession.
UNIMA INTRODUCES MEDICAL SCHEME
UNIMA introduces medical scheme (THIS ARTICLE WAS PUBLISHED IN THE NATION WITH SOME EDITING)
By ANANIYA ALICK PONJE
The University of Malawi (UNIMA) has introduced a medical scheme for its students and academic and administrative staff. The scheme is called University of Malawi Medical Scheme (UNIMED) and its aim is to give the students and staff a chance to access the best kind of medical services once they fall ill.
In a meeting with Chancellor College students which was convened in the Great Hall last Monday evening (31st August) at the institution, University Office officials highlighted some of the significant aspects of the scheme which got implemented on 1st August this year. According to the officials one begins to have access to medication under UNIMED the moment they become a member.
The officials also clarified on the requirements for someone to become a member, especially students. However, there was controversy among students who initially thought they were required to cough something from their pockets to pay for membership.
It is not a compulsory thing that every student becomes a member of UNIMED, hence those who already belong to other medical schemes may opt to change or not.
The officials clarified that the students are not required to pay anything, but that the money would be deducted from their school fees. Thus, calm returned. Non-residential students will also pay through their usual medical contribution.
According to documents from the University Office, the scheme has three levels of cover namely the Comprehensive Cover, the Standard Cover and the Student Cover.
The Comprehensive Cover is the highest level of cover for the scheme and is open to UNIMA administrative and academic staff and their dependants and Clerical Technical and Support staff (CTS) in salary grades H, I and J. The monthly contribution of K2, 875 for the Comprehensive Cover is paid in full by the University for the employee and 50 percent of the employee’s registered dependants.
The Standard Cover provides benefits to CTS staff in grades A to G together with their dependants. The contribution is K1, 105 per month and conditions of are the same as those of the Comprehensive Cover.
The last cover, the Student Cover is meant for undergraduate and post-graduate students from all the five constituent colleges of UNIMA. The monthly contribution is K550 and is paid in full by the University for all residential students.
For non-residential, mature entry and post-graduate students, the contribution will be received by colleges together with other fees and the colleges will remit the contribution to the scheme. This means that student’s fears are duly quelled – they do not need to pay any extra money apart from what they have been paying all along.
According to the University Office officials, the scheme is going to be beneficial to all UNIMA college clinics which have since been declared self-sustaining.
“For instance, your college clinic no longer has an allocation from the college funds. So UNIMED will make sure you get the best medication at the clinic and other listed hospitals,” said an official from the University Office, speaking to the students.
And his colleague added: “You will be allowed to visit government hospitals, Banja la Mtsogolo clinics and two general medical practitioners whom you will nominate upon your application for membership.
Apart from college clinics, BLM and MASM clinics are countrywide UNIMED service providers. Among others, Blantyre has Blantyre Adventist hospital, Chitawira Private Hospital, City Health Centre and Dr. Thejopal as service providers.
Lilongwe and Zomba have Adventist Health Centre, Likuni Mission Hospital, Family Dental Clinic, Dr. S.S. Hiwa and CCK Health Clinic and St. Luke’s Hospital, Zomba Central Hospital and Lions Sight First Eye Hospital respectively. Family Dental Clinic and Lions Sight First Eye Hospital offer dental and optical services only respectively.
Students and all those on the scheme will access services from qualified medical practitioners and will have a wider selection of hospitals from around 30 of them that are on the approved list.
UNIMED members also have access to the scheme’s Emergency Hotline 24 hours everyday.
In an interview after the presentation, one of the University Office officials said the scheme has already been implemented with academic and administrative staff members including students at Kamuzu College of Nursing.
“CHANCO students were on vacation. That is why it was impossible for them to apply for membership. But those who were here have filled the (application) forms,” he said.
For students, all services are covered, except specialized dentistry, maternal delivery and post-natal maternity. The scheme also does not cover for foreign treatment both for the Standard Cover and the Student Cover; while it only covers 50 percent on the same if the patient on Comprehensive Cover has been referred from Malawi.
For verification of the story, you may call the following numbers: 01524282, 0152357.
Or the Medical Service Director on: 01524282, 01524456, and 01526622.
RELIGION - CSO CHOIR CUTS ALBUM
When students forget books
BY ANANIYA ALICK PONJE
Worldwide, singing has become one of the most effective ways of disseminating messages. And this does not exclude gospel music. This kind of music has taken centre state and it continues being used extensively to compliment ‘actual’ ways of preaching and teaching the word of God.
Gospel music appeals to the senses deeply and it provokes a great deal of thought. It also may act as a catharsis during moments of crises. Even David the Psalmist used music to comfort himself and to invoke God’s protection when he was in the wilderness.
He composed his Psalms and sang them: “The Lord is my Shepherd, I shall not be in want…. Though I walk in the valley of the shadow of death, I shall fear no evil.”
That is why Chancellor College Catholic Students Organisation (CSO) Choir decided to release their third gospel album during this time when the world is facing a lot of atrocities. The religious grouping released their first album titled Paulendo wanga in 2003 and their second one titled Mundilengere mtima in 2006.
They feel that despite the fact that college education demands a great deal of dedication, it is significant that they spare some time to sing for the Lord, thereby preaching His word.
The just released album is titled Munthawi yake and was produced at Ralph Records under the expertise of Felix Ziyade and Montfort Manyozo.
According to the singing group’s Deputy Publicity Secretary, Boniface Dokotala, recording the album started in July this year and ended the following month.
Some of the key tracks on the album include Ndionetseni njira, Mbusa wabwino, Lankhulani and I watch the sunrise. Dokotala said most of the tracks emphasise on patience as led by the title track.
“Our main aim is to reach out to may souls. Music has become one of the best ways of preaching the gospel and we take advantage of this. Our songs mostly emphasise on patience – waiting upon the Lord. The title track is a manifestation of this,” said Dokotala, a second year student at the tertiary institution.
He added that the group believes that God gives everything at His own right time and that He knows everything, patience on the part of the created order being what matters.
“Let’s make an allusion to the Bible where Jesus said that a father will not give a snake to his child who asks for an egg. Thus, we believe God knows everything that is good for us. Therefore, we have to look to him for our needs. After all, He is above everything and the sustainer of our lives,” he said.
CSO Vice Secretary Vincent Kavala said music is a great ministry and is bearing great fruits, especially in this era of soaring rates of technology.
“We decided to take advantage of the high levels of technology to minister to people,” he said.
One of the choir members Gerald kagona said he takes it as a rare opportunity to preach God’s message through music. He added that it is also a way of meditating upon the word of God.
“We feel that it is good for us because he who sings prays twice,” said Kagona.
CSO choir is first launching the newly released album at St. Charles Lwanga parish in Zomba on 13 September and among other gospel artists and groups, Favoured Sisters of the Akukusunga ndi cholinga fame will perform during the launch.
After the Zomba launch, the album will be launched again in Blantyre on 27 September before the final launch on October 4 in Lilongwe.
SHORT STORY - THINGS FALL APART
CONFUSION
BY ANANIYA ALICK PONJE
Joel’s conversion was an unanticipated thing to many. Those who had known him since the days of his boyhood could not believe that such a drunkard, a drug abuser and an armed robber would ever think of biding goodbye to all those evil things. His name was constantly synonymous with evil. He had reached a point where many thought he was beyond redemption. He had his own tag line that he used in his undertakings. To him, life had to be made then or never.
He had been to rehabilitation centres for more than five times but it was as if the correctional facilities had only shaped him into a worse citizen. He had become a hardcore criminal who did not care about human life.
He claimed with the courage of his conviction that there was no progress without opposition. He blandly told those who attempted to bring him into the right lane that if everyone in the world was doing what everyone else was doing, then the world would be a very dull place to live in.
He had his own line-up of philosophies that he presented to justify his wicked acts. The more people talked about him, the more he thought he was having an impact on their lives and he found that to be a great achievement.
Now he proclaimed with total vigour that he had bidden farewell to his ugly past. He made it clear to all and sundry that he was now the changed Paul who had carried the cross of Christ ready to follow him.
“Brothers ands sisters, in every human being’s I have realized that there is a turning point. What matters most is to embrace it. We perhaps only choose to ignore it,” Joel was preaching at the market square one calm evening.
He had entered into a deep ministry of preaching the word of God to the masses who usually never went to church or any other religious gathering. He had been one of them at one point and he understood them quite well. He slowly started believing that his church’s doctrines were archaic and that they did not comfort to the changes of time.
Within three months, he abandoned the church where he belonged to when he was under the auspices of his parents. He was a new soul that could not hold with the archaic teachings of this old church. Thus, he thought that it would only be by starting his own church that he would excel in his ministry. He named his newly found church Salvation Day and he was its pastor and founder.
The Salvation Day Church was growing at a rate of knots. Many people left their bonafide churches to join this new church because of Joel’s moving testimonies. They were the kind of testimonies that moved even hearts that were hard like flint.
In a bid to win more souls, the pastor sometimes had to make up testimonies. He decided that that was by fair means or foul. His heart convinced him that he was only making a virtue of necessity because the whole purpose was that he should win more souls.
The church had even expanded to other distant areas and it had been recorded as one of the fastest growing churches in the country.
During one Festive Season, Pastor Joel targeted those who spent their times at beet drinking places. He had been one of them in the near past and he knew how to approach them. Winning to the love of God as many drunkards as possible would be a great testimony, Joel assured himself.
His first destination was Spot 16 Club, a beer drinking joint situated at Mauni Trading Centre. The place was a favourite for many and he knew his message would reach a substantial number of drunkards, from whom he was cocksure some would abandon their past desires.
At the beer-drinking place, he found so many people who had been his close friends during his time of ignorance. He believed that it was the time when God had turned His eyes to the other side so that He could not look at the filthy deeds of His prodigal child.
When those who had been Pastor Joel’s booze mates saw him, they were terribly shocked. News had reached them that their colleague had received the good news of salvation and that he was a transformed man now.
One of the drunkards looked at Joel and said to him: “What does a man of God seek in the midst of sinners?”
And his colleagues shrieked with laughter.
“Maybe God has betrayed him,” another one said.
Pastor Joel laughed noiselessly. He placed his briefcase on the counter and unzipped it. Looking at the many people who were in the pub, both men and prostitutes, he walked towards them and stopped in their midst.
“Children of God, I have come here to preach the good message from God. Today you can receive this good news and be baptized like the Eunuch,” he said and paused for a comment, but none came along.
And he continued: “Count this a very rare opportunity, for your friends in other areas lack this news. Others have hankered for good news like this but they have passed on without receiving it. Evil shall never go unpunished.”
Pastor Joel read many verses from the Bible and condemned beer drinking in the uttermost way possible. He also talked of how those who loved wine became poor.
“What shall a man gain by finding all the pleasure in this world while losing his life? Remember that pleasure of this world is just transitory. It never lasts. Therefore, consider coming to the Lord. Seek ye first the kingdom of God and his righteousness and everything shall be added unto you,” he preached.
He went forward towards the counter and picked three bottles of beer. He feigned drunkenness and asked the people in the pub what they gained by being in the state that he was demonstrating. By that time, one of the drunkards was busy recording everything, without the pastor’s knowledge.
Hell broke loose the following Sunday. As Pastor Joel was standing behind the pulpit preaching, the drunkards to whom he had preached the good message of salvation stormed the church like a herd of buffalos. They had bottles of beer in their hands.
The congregants were shocked to the bone upon seeing the drunkards. It was a thing that hard never happened before even in their former churches. After all, it was a holy sanctuary that was to be regarded with the utmost respect. How could such a sacrilegious thing happen to the Salvation Day Church?
The pastor stopped in mid-air as the drunken people invaded the church with their reek of beer and cigarettes.
One of the drunkards was carrying a DVD player and another had a television screen. The two walked deftly towards the platform and connected the equipment to an electric socket. All the people in the church were just watching with both amazement and shock. They could not understand what was happening.
“People of God, this is high time you knew the truth which has to set you free. Your pastor is a trickster. Why are you still in darkness? Can’t you see that this pastor of yours is robbing you of the little that you have? You have eyes but you cannot see. He uses your hard-earned money to drink beer and here you are listening to his message. Poor souls! And you believe that he is leading you to salvation. Which salvation?” one of the drunken men said.
The pastor just smiled. He believed that it was all the devil’s work and he told himself that no one in the church would believe those sons of the devil. As he tried to tell the congregation what he had gone to the beer-drinking place for, the DVD began to play and everyone’s focus was at the screen.
The congregants were shocked to see their pastor staggering to and fro while holding bottles of beer in one hand with the Bible in another. That was the only part which was shown and one after another, people began to walk out of the church building. Pastor Joel tried to make an explanation but all in vain.
The people kept asking themselves: “But in the first place, was it wise for the man of God to visit the place?”
Untold confusion was finally loosed upon all the 28 branches of the Salvation Day Church. News about what had happened at the headquarters of the church was disseminating like wildfire and people could have trust in Pastor Joel no more. And all the 28 flocks scattered to the four winds.
CHANCO DIVIDED ON QUOTA
Chanco divided on quota
BY ANANIYA ALICK PONJE
Chancellor College students are divided as to whether or not they should express their stand on the reintroduction of the controversial quota system of selecting students into the University of Malawi. During a General Assembly convened in the Great Hall last Thursday, contributors to the motion “Do we need to take a stand on quota” differed, with some arguing that there is little information about quota and that “it is ridiculous to act on something without first digging out enough information”.
However, some students still thought the information that has been disseminated through the media was enough and that “it is being unrealistic for a whole intellectual to argue that there isn’t enough information on quota when the issue was already there last year only to resurface under the guise of equitable access to university education”.
Despite suggestions that Chanco should maintain a neutral stand on quota, exclusive interviews with a number of students indicated that the majority was against the implementation of the system, with most of them centering their arguments on the idea that the system is discriminatory and that it nullifies the whole essence of hard work.
Still more, some students observed that “equity” is a very significant thing as long as the limited space in the public universities is concerned. They argued that no section of society should be allowed to monopolize university education.
“University education is supposed to be accessed by diverse parts of the country. It is unfair for one part to monopolize it,” said one student.
Other students who argued for the implementation of quota could not justify their stand other than that “we also want our siblings to come here.”
In a circular inviting the students to declare their stand as regards the system, Students Union of Chancellor College (Succ) Speaker Vieson Pinanyaza Thawani said “Time has arrived for us to speak once more as regards the quota system. Now that the debate on the proposed quota system has once more shaken the psyche of our national conscious, silence would be a betrayal to future generations. Only participatory democracy can once and for all settle this rigorous debate. In a nation like ours where freedom of speech is a birthright for all, it would be betrayal to this right if we, as intellectuals, failed to voice our views.”
Last year, the Council wanted to use the system but was restrained by the courts. But rumours have it that the system was still used, though it was not made public. Some people argue that in the previous Unima selection list there were traces of quota at work.
Michael Mutisala, a student at the institution said that quota system may result into people changing their names and districts of origin just to find their way to the university. He added that as a matter of fact, quota means merit is useless.
“In education, success is supposed to be given out solely on merit grounds and quota compromises this. This has come at a time when people out there are blaming Unima of not producing efficient graduates. And it can be a mockery to Unima as a whole if quota were implemented,” said Mutisala.
A member of the Students Union Executive who opted for anonymity said that the reintroduction of quota is against the amendment act of Unima which condemns any sort of discrimination in the selection of students.
The act stipulates that the Council shall not discriminate against any person because of race, ethnic origin, political affiliation or opinion, religion or sex in respect of registration of any person as a student of the university.
“The current development means that the act no longer matters. This was not supposed to be the case. It is a provision that has to be respected whatever the case,” he said.
Commenting on Minister of Education Dr. George Chaponda’s assertion that the aim of quota is to ensure that there is equity so that no region has a greater chance of sending its citizens to the university, the Succ member said that it means the Minister looks at Malawians regarding their areas of origin.
“We are all Malawians before we become northerners, southerners and centrals. Merit in the education system is the only monopoly and nothing is supposed to compromise it,” she said.
Most of the interviewed students argued that the most practical way of ensuring that there is equity as regards university education is by making sure schools have the same teaching and learning materials. They said it is ridiculous to argue that some schools perform better than others because they have all the necessary equipment and staffing.
“Why can’t government just level the playing field instead of punishing hard-workers because of working hard? Is it very difficult for government to ensure that all schools in Malawi have the same opportunities when it comes to teaching and learning?” argued one student.
Former Succ Speaker Timothy Pagonacho Mtambo observed that it was sad that his fellow students were pretending that they did not have much information on the issue when it has been publicized in the media many times. He added that the current “version” of quota is not different from that of last year where the students marched to Zomba District Assembly offices where they presented a petition which rejected the system.
While maintaining his neutral position on the matter, Mickeus Luciano, a Second Year Law student said there might be both the good and the bad sides of the system.
The students are supposed to have a secret ballot where they will express their stand on the matter.
Last year, the University Council and academics that consisted of deans of faculties as well as heads of departments at the University of Malawi disagreed over this controversial system which the council wanted to use when selecting students. The senate agreed to implement quota system if it was going to take poverty and disability into consideration, not the districts students came from.
The academics feared that quota system might recruit into the colleges mediocre students, thereby dwindling the standards of university education and giving lecturers a tough time. It was reported that finally students were selected on merit.
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