The Bishop of Karonga diocese Martine Mtumbuka says the May 21 general elections provide a rare platform to the country’s citizenry to elect development conscious leaders who have the passion to transform the socio-economic status of Malawi.
Mtumbuka said this on Tuesday during the Chrism Mass Service (CMS) he conducted at St. Joseph the Worker Cathedral in Karonga district where 15 priests from the nine parishes of the diocese renewed their vows and commitments of priestly services.
The Bishop said it is sad that 55 years after independence Malawi is the third poorest country on the land due to its poor leadership that does not put interests of the people at heart.
“Let us not cheat each other. The country is reeling in extreme poverty and we need political leaders who will bail out the misery and bondage that the people of Malawi more especially women are subjected to.
“Therefore, I urge everyone to seize this opportunity and vote for leaders who are compassionate about Malawi, leaders who will not plunder public resources and in return forget to stock public health facilities with drugs and medical supplies, never vote for leaders based on their parties, region or names as this will take us nowhere,” Mtumbuka said.
Taking his turn, Karonga Diocese Laity Council (KDLC) chairperson John Mtambo thanked the congregants for their generous contributions of cash amounting to close to K775-thousand and non-food items that will go towards flood victims in Zomba and Chikwawa dioceses.
He said as Christians they felt obliged to help brothers and sisters who are in need of various items due to floods that damaged their houses, property and crops due to floods.
“The word of God teaches us to love one another. Therefore, we mobilized our resources to help our brethren who have lost a lot of valuable property. These things will cushion them as they are recovering from the traumatic events that fell over them,” Mtambo said.
