‘Malawians will prevail in 2012’

The resilience shown by Malawians who underwent a series of crises has given hope of a brighter 2012, but Malawi Government should listen to voices of reason to avoid a repeat of the problems, opposition leaders have said.

Leader of opposition and Malawi Congress Party president John Tembo said in an interview on Thursday the country performed miserably on governance that its impact spilled into crises not seen since the country gained independence.

“There was an apparent collapse of the welfare of all Malawians. We were plunged into disaster for failing to listen. I hope the lesson that government should listen to the people, their problems and act according to the rule of law will be part of the New Year,” he said.

United Democratic Front (UDF) deputy leader in Parliament Atupele Muluzi said Malawians faced numerous economic challenges in 2011.

“There is hope for 2012 given the resilience people showed last year. They are a determined people, peace loving and they give you hope that they will rise again and determine their future,” said Muluzi.

Blantyre Rural East MP Henry Phoya (independent), who was expelled from the ruling Democratic Progressive Party (DPP), said 2011 was characterised by poor governance.

“We failed in governance pretty bad. Intra-party democracy serves as a building block to consolidating national democracy. The parties we have allowed to govern simply reverted to their habits once given a chance at national platform,” said Phoya.

DPP secretary general Wakuda Kamanga said the pains of 2011 offered lessons for 2012, adding the country had gone through a rebirth process.

“The year was a turning point for Malawi. We are living in a global village and we have seen how intertwined challenges are especially consequences to local economies. But to us, they created that opportunity for all Malawians to reflect on the future and see what we want for the country,” said Kamanga.

He claimed some groups might be planning to further make the ruling party unpopular, but said as July 20 2011 proved, the effects of any ill-advised strategy could cost more to everybody.

“We have positive expectation that from the pain of 2012, we will all become focused in creating a better Malawi. The challenges are for all of us to solve and find lasting solutions,” said Kamanga.