Violet Chakwera, the daughter of President Lazarus Chakwera, has started working at the Malawi High Commission in United Kingdom.
Pictures shared on social media show Violet, her children and her husband visiting Buckingham Palace following their relocation to the United Kingdom and reports indicate that she has started working today.
“Violet Chakwera. The Daughter of President Lazarus Chakwera is now in the Office. Working in Our Mission in London as 1st Secretary Responsible for Investments,” said social commentator Joshua Chisa Mbele.
Confirmation of Violet’s new role comes months after Chakwera dismissed reports that he had appointed his daughter as a diplomat to be based in Brussels, Belgium.
He claimed that his daughter was not on the list of people appointed as diplomats and challenged those making allegations to check their facts.
“I am amazed that someone like you can make such allegations. No, she is not going to Brussels,” said the President in an interview with the BBC in July last year during a UK trip in which Violet had tagged along.
Minister of Information Gospel Kazako claimed that Violet travelled with the president in her capacity as the personal assistant to First Lady Monica Chakwera.
In September last year, in an interview with CNN, Chakwera was also asked about the appointment of Violet as a diplomat and this time the president appeared to concede that his daughter had been appointed as a diplomat.
He wondered why people were complaining about his daughter becoming a diplomat when they did not complain when she campaigned for him.
“People did not say anything at all when I crisscrossed this country with my daughter campaigning and she taking care of those who were doing that,” said President Chakwera who won the 2020 elections after amassing about 2.6 million votes.
He, however, distanced himself from the appointment saying it was the Ministry of Foreign Affairs which appoints people in other diplomatic positions as he only appoints ambassadors and deputy ambassadors.
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.
Meanwhile, Malawians on social media have accused the president of not being honest about the appointment of his daughter.
“The Question is; What kind of leadership is this that the whole President tells blatant and brazen lies?” asked Joshua Chisa Mbele in a Facebook post.
“Chakwera is not Honest… He says this and does something different. Too much lip service,” said a commenter on the post.
