What crime did we commit?

Whenever I hear or see things that border on unbridled deficiency in our government leadership, I always ask myself what crime Malawians committed in the eyes of God to deserve this mediocrity that seems to replace itself whenever there is some semblance of change at the top?

Take Khumbo Kachali, as an example, a man who the late Bingu wa Mutharika threw into the political wilderness to rot, only for the hand of fate to restore him, not through vote, but by chance of being out in the cold at the same time as President Joyce Banda, yet today he wants to be a prick on the sides of Malawians.

Kachali is so much drank and high on power that he can afford to order Minister of Justice Ralph Kasambara to arrest Cama’s John Kapito on a charge which was dropped by police for its lack of sting even during the Mutharika administration which was renowned for exacting vendetta on political foes using the law.

The whole idea is to cow Kapito into submission so that he stops organising the January 17 protests against bad economic governance.

Credit to Kasambara for putting Kachali in his proper place, but the question still stands: What crime did we Malawians commit to deserve leaders such as Kachali who cannot see and think beyond their noses and appreciate that Malawi belongs to all Malawians and that if any citizen has an issue against their government in the name of accountability and transparency, they are entitled to go on the streets and demonstrate peacefully to make their point?

We all had high hopes in the Joyce Banda administration in April after getting tired of the excesses of the Mutharika regime.

We thought a new chapter of trust, transparency, accountability and total commitment to democratic ideas had opened in Malawi. But alas! It is Mutharika all over again!

Cama wants to lead consumers on January 17 to demonstrate against their lack of protection in the IMF economic package the current government has adopted to the last letter, but has made Malawians live a life of constant horror and excruciating pain because of daily rises of prices of essential goods and services.

Instead of listening and allowing the protests in the name of accepted democratic ideas, this government is repeating the same Mutharika mistakes before July 20 2011 protests, launching a blitz of propaganda in both electronic and print media to condemn the demonstrations as if they are not guaranteed in the Constitution.

And so every day, PP diehards, fortune-seekers or mere enthusiasts are being hurled in front of TV cameras, denouncing the protests as bad, all of a sudden becoming champions of dialogue and peaceful conflict resolution.

Result? The atmosphere in the country has been raised to feverish pitch and January 17 has been painted as doomsday with its threat of gnashing of teeth and brimstone fire to consume Malawi if marchers go on the streets.

These are the same mistakes that led to July 20 deaths and JB’s government should be the last to do this because it is the beneficiary of Malawians telling their government the truth through protests.

Malawians sided with Joyce Banda when she was being mistreated by the Mutharika administration.

But, today, Kachali wants to turn against Malawians and abuse power and use arrests as a weapon to stop citizens from exercising their democratic rights.

In some countries this is an impeachable offence because it is blatant abuse of political power for selfish ends.

But in Malawi it will soon be forgotten as empty podium talk and water under the bridge.

But we must worry that if Kachali can say such vile and illegal things openly, what does he say and do in private against the interests of Malawians to achieve selfish motives?

What crime did we commit to deserve such morally bankrupt leadership which does not seem to know its right from its left?