The Episcopal Conference of Malawi – ECM says the state of Malawi’s economic situation has become far worse than it was four years ago due to lack of visionary leadership under President Lazarus Chakwera.
The ECM, which comprises all the Catholic Bishops for the eight dioceses plus two auxiliary bishops, has said this in a pastoral letter released today, the second day of lent.
According to the Bishops, it is clear that the story that the Tonse Alliance Government told Malawians before being elected into government is not being realised.
The bishops have mentioned corruption, hunger, attacks against journalists, poor infrastructure and corrupt judges as some of the concerning issues which have made Malawians to lose hope in the Tonse Government and its leadership.
“In spite of all the excitement that the Tonse Government would lead Malawians to the promised land, only four years later, to the disappointment of all except the few well-connected people, Malawi has ended up at Bagamoyo – a city on the east coast of Tanzania, which when a slave arrived there he or she lost all hope of being free again.
“Instead of reaching the promised land of prosperity we are bogged down in the same land we wanted to leave, namely the land of hunger, disease, poverty, corruption and a like,” reads part of the letter.
It adds that most Malawians, except the very few well connected ones, feel strongly that there is nothing else the current leaders can do to turn around the country or improve the deteriorating living conditions.
“They fail to see anybody in the current Government who cares about them or who is able to improve their situation,” the bishops say.
The bishops have also expressed concern over divisions in the opposition Democratic Progresive Party (DPP) saying the squabbles are actions that are driving democracy backwards and have the potential to throw this country into chaos and further dehumanizing poverty.
“Are these individuals or groupings fighting for an opportunity to serve the interest of Malawians or to forge opportunities to take up advantageous positions and satisfy their own interests? Malawians are crying out for political parties that put the interests of the nation before their own interests,” the bishops say.
The Catholic Church through the ECM has since urged Malawi’s leaders to stop being greedy and serve the people that put them in power.
“We are witnessing a serious lack of credible and visionary leadership in the country. This is the root cause of all the problems we now face. Unless the leadership stops being greedy, gets serious about governing and vigorously tackles corruption, we will not only remain stuck in the very spot we find ourselves in now, but will sink even further.”
As the 2025 presidential elections draw closer, the Bishops have also called on Malawians to vote for leaders who are capable of governing the country properly.
