President Dr. Lazarus McCarthy Chakwera and his Vice, Dr. Saulosi Klaus Chilima pledged to Malawians in their campaign trail that once voted into power, they will end nepotism which blanketed the previous presidents.
Malawians were attracted by the song of the two leaders on the podium, ‘’Malawi watsopano wokomela tonse’’ thinking that what the Tonse Alliance Government will be making will be a complete departure from what the immediate past Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) was doing but, mistakes of the DPP have been rubber stamped by the Tonse Alliance Government.
President Dr. Chakwera first had a litmus test when Malawians criticized him for appointing family members and friends of his party and relatives of relatives into his cabinet in July, 2020, out of the 32-member cabinet, 18 were from Lilongwe alone.
The appointment of parastatal board members was another disaster when Dr. Chakwera was also criticized for repeating the same mistake he had made during the appointment of members to his cabinet, relatives of relatives were appointed and these people started recruiting own relatives of relatives to the dismay of Malawians questioning Dr. Chakwera and Dr. Chilima that is this what they meant of Malawi wokomela wonse?
There have been calls by many Malawians asking President Dr. Chakwera to reshuffle his cabinet and appoint new faces, but this ended into the wrong ears of the President and his vice, who did not find anything wrong to their cabinet, to them and others in the Tonse Alliance, had all the expectations that the appointed members are the best to serve the wishes and aspirations of Malawians in Malawi wokomela tonse.
President Dr. Chakwera’s daughter, Violet Chakwera-Mwasinga is among the 40 people appointed to serve as Malawi’s diplomat to Brussels- Belgium and on the other hand, Vice President’s mother in law, was appointed to serve as a diplomat for Malawi in Lusaka-Zambia on the basis that they have qualifications to back them for those appointments.
One of the social media commentators, Onjezani Kenani has written on his face book page that at the podium, they took turns accusing former President Professor Peter Mutharika of practicing nepotism, what they meant was nepotism was bad for only as long as those being put into Government positions were not their own family members.
Kenani says once they were voted into power, we are now told that it’s not nepotism because the relatives they are appointing have qualifications questioning them that did those people Professor Mutharika appoint not have the so-called qualifications?
“Professor Peter Mutharika never appointed any son or daughter of his to any taxpayer-funded position, his daughters are lawyers with their own legal firms, he also never appointed any in-law to any taxpayer-funded position, one would have thought he was the worst nepotist that ever walked the earth, why should your nepotism be considered better than Professor Peter Mutharika’s nepotism? reads the question by Onjezani Kenani on his wall.
On his part, Idriss Ali Nassah writing on his official face book page is reminding President Dr. Chakwera that he must know that Malawi is not his family farm to be employing his relatives.
“What then happens to qualified people not related to him?” reads the question by Nassah on the wall.
Chakwera became Malawi president in June, 2020 after defeating Peter Mutharika in court ordered fresh presidential polls.
