Goodall should apologise—Youth CSOs
Finance Minister Goodall Gondwe’s remarks that the youth are babies and lack experience to govern this country have drawn fire from youth bodies, accussing him of insulting them and demanded that he should apologise.
But Gondwe yesterday said he will not apologise, saying he does not see anything wrong in what he said because he was not the first person to make such a statement in reference to the youth.
Young Politicians Union (YPU) national director Clement Makuwa said in an interview yesterday: “Gondwe’s remarks are unfortunate and uncalled for in the multiparty dispensation. The DPP should resolve its internal issues without insulting the youth of this country. He must retract and apologise to youths of this country.”
Gondwe, who will clock 82 this year, made the remarks during the opening of a meeting of senior Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) officials at Katoto Secondary School Hall in Mzuzu on Wednesday.
His remarks follow what former first lady Callista Mutharika said last week, that President Mutharika, at 79, would be too old to carry on as President as he would be 84 years old at the time of leaving office in 2024, if re-elected next year.
Callista said Vice-President Saulos Chilima was better placed to lead the DPP in the 2019 elections.
But Makuwa said Gondwe’s sentiments defeat the African Union Youth Charter which encourages meaningful participation of young people in politics and governance spaces.
Another youth leader Gift Numeri, who is executive director for Network for Youth Development (NFYD), described Gondwe’s sentiments as a mockery to young people in the country who, he said, are in majority.
He said while working for the World Bank, Gondwe was able to rise up the ranks because he was not looked at as a baby.
Numeri said the minister has done his part and needs to start encouraging the younger generation to start aspiring for key leadership positions in government and not block them.
“Young people today are knowledgeable and need to be accorded a platform where they can contribute meaningfully to the development of the country. It just shows that people like Goodall are ignorant of this and not ready to embrace the wave of change sweeping across the continent,” he said.
For his part, Youth and Society executive director Charles Kajoloweka said Gondwe’s remarks contradict what President Mutharika has been preaching about on youth empowerment.
He, therefore, called upon the leadership of the DPP to condemn one of their own, for what he said is, “an embarrassment” to the ruling party.
“Goodall has served his country for a long time. We don’t want our leaders to be wheel-chaired in offices when there are competent young people around to take over. DPP should not forget that the majority of voters in the country are young people,” Kajoloweka said.
But in a telephone interview Gondwe claimed he is not the first person to make such remarks, saying the first former president Kamuzu Banda, also made the same sentiments and was not told to apologise.
He said: “Why should I apologise? People like Kamuzu said the same thing and I am only repeating what was said before.”
He refused to take further questions.
