Why do we like finding excuses for our failures?

Why do we always want to find excuses for our failures? We can’t fund hospitals, schools and infrastructure projects—we blame it on development partners who, we whimper, have withdrawn budgetary support.

We have gays in our society? Yes, silly, it is the Western influence. As if Westerners come to Malawi to hold homosexual orientation—or is it radicalisation—and recruitment conferences!

We have so many excuses, but the latest is ridiculous. Why are our young people drinking so much? Our lazy answer: It is the liquor packaged in sachets, stupid!

They make our children drink too much, thereby turning them into cabbages, or so we think.

Are we serious as a people? Do these companies go about people’s homes in search of young folks to dish out the drinks to?

Or do the companies pay these young fellows money so that they can buy their alcoholic sachets?

Why do we always dig out excuses for our failures? Why should the companies suffer simply because parents and guardians take their eyes off their children and, consequently, they end up consuming liquor, any liquor, excessively?

Why should government and society’s failure to create jobs for its youth—the lack of which keeps them idle enough to start searching for alcoholic drinks—be blamed on sachet-packaged makers?

As I said, we are busy looking for excuses for failing the young people. And I know why. These companies are easy prey—they do not have enough votes to make politicians pause.

I wish government would apply the same vehemence on kachasu brewers in our peri-urban areas and villages nationwide and rid communities of a local distil that is even more dangerous alcoholically and in terms of hygiene than the well-packaged sachets from the companies.

On top of that, these companies pay billions of kwachas in taxes that help to support even the kachasu brewers that government and the politicians behind the ridiculous ban, are coddling for the sake of votes.

How I wish government would act with the same ruthlessness to deal with charcoal burners and traders of the same, most of whom are littered all over the M1 road and other major roads nationwide.

The charcoal traders are even in formal markets, yet government is pretending that they are not there.

And guess what, government is so impressed with the charcoal makers’ destructive ways that Capital Hill has even decided to give them licences to cut more trees, burn more and contribute even massively to environmental degradation and the worsening climate change situation that brings drought and floods that recently killed hundreds of people as well as animals and displaced hundreds of thousands.

If only government would be similarly decisive on the scores of companies that are spilling toxic substances into the environment of communities they operate in, this country would be a much better place to live in.

Malawi has bigger and more complicated problems that need more government energy than its current fruitless crusade against sachet-packaged liquor makers.

But no, government has decided to expend its precious few kilojoules on something that should be prevented by households and consumers themselves—if they put their mind to it.

When a government thinks it can take over parents’ and guardians’ responsibilities and control all spheres of private lives that have no criminal elements in them, then as a nation we must be afraid, very afraid.

I mean, do you really want to kill a company like Malawi Distilleries Limited, manufacturers of Premier Brandy, Malawi Gin, Powers No. 1 and Malawi Vodka simply because people like their products so much?

There are other liquor sachet manufacturers that employ thousands of people, which are facing a similar fate.

What about the several entrepreneurs that have set up shops at every major trading centre across the country in all the 28 districts?

Get me right. I am not saying that industries should not be regulated. All I am saying is that we need common sense regulation, not that which acts on the emotional whims that comes with personal and societal failures as well as political expediency like this one.

At a time we are reforming to get rid of undue encumbrances to business in the country, we are busy adding layers on layers of ridiculous regulations.

And we think we can attract investors just because we have set up a so-called one stop centre? Please!

The point is I don’t know what these folks are trying to achieve with the sachet-packaged liquor ban.

The issue that must worry government should not be the packaging—it should be the content, which is what makes the product dangerous.

You ban sachets and the companies may simply innovate and come up with different packages, maybe very small bottles—who know? And the youths will keep consuming.

The only thing is that government will only be forcing the companies to incur more costs of doing business in Malawi, a measure, if you ask the World Bank we are in the bottom of the class of investment destinations partly because of this.

Why we are so full of excuses is something that always beats me.

And who told government that it is only the youths who are taking these sachets? In fact, there are more adults than youths taking this liquid in these small packets not because they want to, but because that is what they can afford in an economy the very same government has failed to lift. In the end, it is also the economy, stupid!