President Lazarus Chakwera has refused to mention the qualifications which enabled his daughter Violet Chakwera to be appointed as a diplomat, saying he was not involved in the appointment process.
Chakwera who was in Ethiopia for the African Union (AU) summit earlier this week was interviewed by the BBC.
Hi daughter Violet is currently working as first secretary responsible for investments at the Malawi mission in the United Kingdom.
BBC Africa correspondent Catherine Byaruhanga asked Chakwera the qualifications which Violet has.
“Then that’s the thing that those who saw fit, for her to be engaged in that way should be asked. Not a president because I never got involved in the process,” said Chakwera.
Last year in July it was revealed that Violet was going to Brussels, Belgium to work as a third secretary at the Malawi mission. State House defended her appointment saying she was “qualified and capable to do the job”.
However, a few days later, Chakwera in an interview with BBC denied that his daughter had been appointed as a diplomat. He asked the interviewer to check her facts.
But in January this year, pictures of Violet with her family in the United Kingdom were shared on social media and the Ministry of Foreign Affairs confirmed to the local media that she was indeed in London working as first Secretary Responsible for Investments.
Byaruhanga in this week’s interview noted that some Malawians are upset about that because it goes against everything what the president has been saying.
Chakwera in response said: “One could understand that, but you also need to dig into the background, of all the things that I have been able to do, my family has been able to do and this particular person you are referring to, is the only one that has worked with government of all my children.”
According to Violet’s LinkedIn profile, she obtained her degree from a ‘Jerusalem’ University banned in the country for operating without accreditation. She also claims on her profile to have an IATA training certification. She previously worked as reservation sales agent for Kenyan Airways and Malawi airlines.
