Malawi Congress Party (MCP) president Lazarus Chakwera has lashed out at the Peter Mutharika led government for intimidating Judiciary support staff instead of resolving their concerns amicably.
Government on Monday warned the Judiciary employees they will not be paid if they continue striking and last week police officers invaded the courts in Mzuzu, Lilongwe and Blantyre where they evicted the support staff from court premises.
Chakwera on Monday however said if government ends the three-week strike using coercion, the support staff will likely hold another sit-in the future.
“By saying that ‘go to work or else…’ means that government is already using force. This is not about who has more power, but rather finding lasting solutions to the problems raised,” he said.
The opposition leader also advised government to stop using the police to bully Malawians saying Malawi is not a police state.
The support staff who include interpreters, drivers and court clerks are demanding government to start giving them house allowances.
But government insisted on Monday that the strike is illegal and the support staff are not entitled to house allowances.
Meanwhile, the workers have resolved to return to work.
its your job to oppose ngakhale mu zabwino zomwe Mr chakwera
BLESSING sukudziwa chomwe ukukamba