Quench the fire on the mountain

Malawi is a country on fire, and it has to be quenched before the fire sweeps the system from its very roots. Check the media. ‘Country in crisis as irate pupils march and block roads in Blantyre’ screams one headline; ‘MCP faults government on governance’ shouts another on the same day. On the next, ‘400 students shun Luanar selection’ in one paper and in another ‘423 million kwacha payment to an officer for false accusations and loss of income’.

In between the loud headlines and the depressing stories they carry, you have in both papers ‘end of the road’ as the national team bids farewell to a continental tournament. Meanwhile, everybody in public service, ranging from teachers to judicial workers, Parliament orderlies to university staffs, demand pay rise from a Treasury stuck in red territory.

The largest flame in this incandescent nation is the near bankruptcy of the government, which has to pay billions to part with senior public servants in retirement dues and in the spirit of Vice-President Saulos Klaus Chilima’s public reform drive, as well as hundreds of millions in compensation to grossly manhandled officers, courtesy of vindictive leadership styles.

Cashgate opportunists are under the radar and many will be in the dock, but as leader of opposition Lazarus Chakwera observes, “the process seems extremely slow and heavily politicised”.

Meanwhile, the kwacha is tumbling. ‘Rentals are up, school fees and foodstuffs are all going up; government gave civil servants a salary increase but it will have no effect now’, notes Malawi Congress Party (MCP) spokesperson, Jessie Kabwila.

Since the judicial workers’ strike, police cells have reached the brim with suspects. The justice treadmill has ground to a halt. The IG can release suspects but fears letting out hard core criminals one cannot trust with bail, and has to ensure a balance between denigrating human conditions in the cells and public safety.

Talking of security, it is nightmarish as the country slides back to post-1994 when even animals were at risk of trafficking, let alone vehicles which crossed borders with incredible ease. So bad have things become that the Vice-President and ministers guarded by armed police are just as vulnerable. Not that they are any more important mortals than any Malawian, it just signals the sure collapse of a system.

In Chakwera’s words “something is terribly wrong with Malawi’s security systems”. Yes Sir, there is and it is that historically the police are routinely underfunded, now at a time the society is sinking deeper into crime breeding desperation. Police staff welfare receives little attention and they cannot obtain recognition through group action because they are ‘disciplined forces’.

Weak financial base aggravated by poor prioritisation thwarts efforts at increased fresh recruitment, re-skilling, promotion, awards or international exposure, in spite of how critical it is to sustain high levels of discipline, motivation and service quality. High risk jobs such as security require a touch of human emotion too from leaders and those in command to make the officers feel good and appreciated.

Malawi may not be at war, but it is not at peace either to be able to move forwards gallantly in unity with faith and hope. Far too many disheartening things are happening, detracting from people’s confidence, imagination and enterprise. At the pace of things investment is likely to slow down, confidence to work hard will dissipate and poverty will grow.

Teachers won’t teach because they are not paid in time or not at all for unacceptable periods of time. This is illegal by labour laws, and it compounds the already huge deterrents to quality education: lack of upgrading, refresher training, routine capacity development, not to talk of promotion. When teachers are promoted it is after a war of nerves and often riding on the self-promotion of political leaders.

How do you keep teachers at the mercy of politicians and indifferent public servants and hope to develop a high quality education system? Little wonder it takes small school children to see the gravity of teachers’ situation and exert mercenary pressure to get the teachers paid, the second time in just a few years.

Meanwhile staff of University of Malawi declined a 14 percent pay hike, demanding 45 instead. This is wildfire likely to spread to all cadres. How does government hope to raise standards of higher education if the most basic input, the human being, feels exploited and is eternally up in arms?

There is fire on the mountain Mr President. Again, I advise you to get into the habit of State of the Nation addresses. Talk to the people. Put government cards on the table fairly and realistically. Count on my support!