(MENAFN- The Maravi Post) Senior Chief Kachindamoto: awarded
It was at once a serious tragedy and a comedy of Shakespearean proportions.
The spectacle of the whole United Nations (UN) failing to see the tragic irony in parading President Mutharika as the hero behind the 'End Child Marriages' campaign in Malawi, and using this dubious stunt as a yardstick to qualify him as a successful president and hence the right septuagenarian to rule Malawi is one I will never forget.
In my opinion, the UN and especially UN Women can take that charade held on the margins of the 72nd session of the UN General Assembly and shove it.
The UN, if it wants to be accorded a modicum of respect, should seriously reconsider such tragicomic displays of dreadful judgment.
For the record, I fully support the 'End Child Marriages' campaign. But I am one who believes in giving credit where it is due and deserved. I submit therefore that Chief Kwataine is really doing a great job in this area and there is no need to crowd her podium of success with the excess baggage called Mutharika as a way of window-dressing his failed presidency.
Credit should be earned. Just as it is said and written: 'Render unto Caesar what belongs to Caesar'; I hereby demand: render unto Chief Kwataine what is due to Chief Kwataine!
Mutharika should not, under any circumstances or pretence, be given leeway to Gatecrash onto the industrious chief's success.
That is shameless robbery on the part of the president, pure and simple.
Due to this grave anomaly, I would like to propose to the United Nations never again to invite any Malawian president to General Assembly until matters of corruption and especially the failures to sort out the electricity blackout problem in the country have been fully resolved.
Let us tarry a while on this matter.
Over the past 15 years, Malawi has had electricity blackout problems that have severely damaged the country's prospects to attract investors. The same challenges adversely impact students, including the girls UN Women purports to advocate for.
The result at the macro level has been a dwindling economy, which has caused parents to give out their young children – who are struggling with education anyway due to blackouts - to willing rich men as child brides in order to somehow deal with their poverty.
Yes, friends, do not think that the child marriages are not connected to our poverty and economic troubles, which are directly connected to our failures to sort our energy situation and especially electricity.
To help you understand, I will add another perspective. Take a moment to consider how much money has been spent on UNGA trips over the past 15 years.
Every trip has costed the Malawian taxpayers no less than US$10 million.
That is US$150 million which if put towards solving our electricity problems, could go a very long way indeed! And I have not even taken into consideration the fact that, like last year, our presidents sometimes use these UNGA trips as medical check-up trips and add even more costs to that total sum.
You only need to recall last year's trip, when Mutharika lost himself in a New York medical centre for weeks after the event was done and gone, to the point that even his ministers and spokespersons didn't have any clue where he was. The evidence was that arm that came back in a sling, and that long delay we had for him to give an explanation as to what had happened.
Now instead of helping Malawians deal with this kind of wayward leadership, as it should, what does the United Nations do?
Thinking the blackouts have made us all blind and we cannot see, it attempts to justify our itinerant president's proclivities and validate these pointless trips.
It is not like the idea of not an African president not going to the UNGA has no precedence.
Our first President, Kamuzu Banda only went there once or twice.
)-Tanzania's President John Magufuli
In recent times, President Magufuli of Tanzania has wisely decided not to attend the pointless backslapping sessions because he sees them for what they are: i.e. a total waste of important public resources in money and time.
Now I know that we cannot expect Peter Mutharika to think as astutely as Magufuli given Malawi's penchant for abusing resources. This is precisely why we do not need the UN to be encouraging him into thinking that he just has to attend the Assembly as he might miss some accolades on the 'end Child Marriages' campaign.
'We cannot harvest the best potential unless we stop early marriage,' said President Mutharika at the event. 'Every child must be given empowerment and wings of hope to fly very high. We must invest more in our young people.'
What a load!
Well, Mr President, we cannot harvest Malawi's best potential unless we solve the energy problems. I should have you know, sir, that Every Malawian, young and old, must be given the empowerment and the wings to fly very high indeed, and that must start with the basic necessities.
Electricity is among those necessities.
Make this your mission, sir! Give us power. 24 hours a day, and not these blackouts you are mindlessly condoning while somehow continuing to believe that your leadership amounts to something even as your private sector shrinks and your people suffer in poverty.
Give us power. Now!
Last time he was in New York, our president had his general health examined and he came back with his arm in a sling. On arrival back home, claimed he had had an attack of rheumatism and that he was feeling well after treatment.
I would like to suggest that this time around, he should have his brain examined so that perhaps on his return, he will have his head out of the sand and we will have a president who understands that continuous electricity that is available 24 hours a day is so important to economic development that it justifies cancelling UNGA trips to save funds so that a poor country can develop.
Z Allan Ntata
MENAFN2409201701610000ID1095893295
Legal Disclaimer:
MENAFN provides the information “as is” without warranty of any kind. We do not accept any responsibility or liability for the accuracy, content, images, videos, licenses, completeness, legality, or reliability of the information contained in this article. If you have any complaints or copyright issues related to this article, kindly contact the provider above.