Tempted to write nothing
The temptation was to write, again, that President Lazarus Chakwera is spending so much time in the air. That would not make any sense, since he would not listen.
That is not from the air, our President has little time to listen even to his own advice. Not so long ago, he told ministers and other top government officials to minimise on travels as part of austerity measures.
Saying that the travel to Luanda, Angola, for the Southern African Development Community Heads of State and Government Ordinary Summit would not make any sense. The President would beg to differ that this is the 43rd time leaders in the region have engaged in such talk shows, he would tell you this is an opportunity to build on the region’s positive and address the bottlenecks it faces.
While the temptation was to expound further that further travel to South Africa for the Brics (Brazil, Russia, India, China and South Africa) meet would be a further drain those around him will tell you that it will be an opportune moment for him to meet the Russian leader Vladmir Putin to help sort out Malawi’s fertilizer woes. Never mind the hangers-on because the President will have the last laugh after the photo-op with Putin.
Much as I am not given to write about the President’s foreign travel, all I can say is on his way back, he has to look with an open mind as the plane descends at Kamuzu International Airport. He has to really think deeply about the country’s situation which is much evident when the plane touches down and compare that with the picture when he is arriving in other countries. The touch down at Chileka or KIA may be the reason Chakwera seizes every opportunity to go abroad, again.
The other temptation was to write about the fuel shortages. That, again, is a tired one. The solutions to this problem are so hard to find as finding the Holy Grail. Never mind, some Cabinet ministers tried to explain when and how soon fuel would be available. And the hangers-on had a field day, claiming foreign exchange problems are faced all over Africa. They will go further to make the claim that the DPP stocked the reserves with loaned dollars from an international bank.
Do I need to say how much hungry Malawians are going? Do I need to say that I hold to be true the saying that a hungry man is an angry man? I will not do that, because Minister of Agriculture Sam Kawale will tell you that maize will be available in Admarc markets next week. A tired story as well.
At least there is something good to write home about. The Malawi National Examinations Board (Maneb) and the Ministry of Education must be hailed in the way the Primary School Leaving Certificate of Education (PSLCE) and Junior Certificate of Education (JCE) were conducted.
There were no reports of leakages this year. The pass rates are satisfactory. The release of the results way before September 11 means parents and learners will prepare and open at the same time as their colleagues. Smell your flowers.
But then, again, the temptation was to write that the release of the results showed how we propel tribal tendencies. The temptation was to write how some people felt the best came from their district of origin and not the other. That impasse was broken only when Maneb released the list of the top 10.
The temptation again was to question whether consideration was given for students in the Southern Region since their studies were affected during the Tropical Cyclone Freddy. Classes were disrupted; some lost all their school materials while schools in the Centre and the North were progressing.
But then, I am tempted to write nothing at all about that.
