Lessons we should keep learning from Malawi
By Aaron Ng’ambi
To think that Malawi would still be a constant reference point for arguably what some would consider major lessons in politics, governance issues and doing the right thing for the common good, is rather unexpected but unavoidable.
It is true that the events of this tiny south-east African country make it extremely difficult for us to ignore the affairs of our neighbours since the nullification of their presidential elections in February 2020. This historical landmark decision by the Malawi Constitutional Court, which overturned the election results of May 2019, subsequently brought about the end of an era for the then ruling Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) led by Peter Mutharika. And ushered in the reign of the Tonse Alliance, which constitutes among others political parties of the current President Lazarus Chakwera from the Malawi Congress Party (MCP) and the United Transformation Movement (UTM) of the current Vice-President Dr Saulos Chilima. Both the decision handed down by the Constitutional Court of Malawi and eventually the election of the Tonse Alliance were well received by the people of Malawi, with many expressing how this new era of governance represented the hopes and dreams of all Malawians. The first lesson for Zambia from the events of February 2020, proceeding from the Malawi Constitutional Court, is that our country needs a truly independent and impartial Constitutional Court to adjudicate on all constitutional matters without fear or favour. In fact, we have to state herewith that perhaps one of the few positives that came out of the Patriotic Front (PF) regime was the 2016 constitutional amendments which established the Constitutional Court but also provided for the running mate clause in a presidential election; something that Malawi had already worked on long before we ever anticipated of such developments.
There are other indicators that clearly show that Zambia can indeed take a leaf from this seemingly smaller country in comparison to us. The people of Malawi voted for a female vice-president under the DPP, long before we thought of it as fashionable to have a female Republican Vice-President. In fact, the same female vice-president of Malawi (Joyce Banda) then went on to become the country’s first ever female Republican President from April 07, 2012, to May 31, 2014, and Zambia is yet to record her first female president. This surely is a fundamental lesson for our time in this era of gender parity.
Now, I have been to Malawi, and it is true that as you step off the plane at Kamuzu Banda International Airport, one cannot help but think that you have landed at a small airstrip in Kalulushi or some rural extension of a province in Zambia. The poverty levels of Malawi are shockingly highly, with poor infrastructure even in the heart of the country’s capital city Lilongwe. But be that as it may, Malawi definitely seems to be more advanced and progressive as a democratic society, with struggling but functional institutions of governance which by and large operate independently. And that to me is a solid foundation for development in every sense. To make this case for Malawi, we will do well to examine the recent scandals which have emerged in the current government of the Tonse Alliance led by President Chakwera.
In the last few months, allegations of senior government officials receiving bribes from a British national (Zuneth Sattar) have made headlines in Malawi and across the globe. These headlines and the report published by the Anti-Corruption Bureau (ACB) forced the President of Malawi to address the nation over the same issues of corruption. Among those implicated in these allegations are 13 top government officials, the Inspector General of Police including the current Vice-President.
This is very disappointing for many Malawians, because while in opposition the Tonse Alliance demonised their opponents, calling them all sorts of names and firmly stating that the DPP regime was corrupt. The leaders of MCP and UTM told the people of Malawi that Peter Mutharika and his government were essentially good for nothing, and unfit to lead the country. This was an effective campaign that led to countrywide protests before the courts nullified the election results of May 2019. Here we must draw parrels, and timely advise our very own United Party for National Development (UPND) and its Alliance partners, who are the present government of the Republic of Zambia that; as you rightly pointed fingers at all the corruption allegations against PF, please be sure to be without blemish collectively as you govern and move the country forward. Otherwise, anything short of this expectation will be a huge disappointment for the Zambian people and will be politically costly for you in the coming years.
However, going back to the report produced by the ACB of Malawi, what we can learn from this process is twofold. Number one, the director general of the Anti-Corruption Bureau of Malawi is a courageous woman and must be saluted. Martha Chizuma has provided what many will consider as evidence of corruption against current government officials, with the Vice-President of the country on that list. This is unprecedent and quiet revealing of the character of this woman, and the Anti-Corruption Commission (ACC) of Zambia will do well to learn from her. The ACC which will now be chaired by Musa Mwenye should be bold enough to emulate madam Chizuma’s act of grave patriotism and duty to one’s country. Already, we have begun hearing rumurs of corruption allegations creeping in within the new dawn administration, even at the level of cabinet ministers and officials at State House. Hence, Mr Mwenye, make no mistakes about this; the Zambian people are more alert now than ever and shall hold the ACC’s feet to the fire to do the needful for our country’s sake. My advice to you, sir, is simply that you do everything within your powers to bring honour to the name Anti-Corruption Commission (ACC).
For all practical purposes, the current state of affairs in Malawi demonstrates that the doctrine of separation of powers can indeed work if government institutions are void of political interference.
The head of the Anti-Corruption Bureau in Malawi is appointed by the President, but yet in executing her functions she had the courage to investigate siting government officials and presented her findings to the President, the Speaker of the National Assembly, and the Chief Justice. In reaction to this report, one could not help it but observe that President Chakwera was not so happy with the report being availed to the other arms of government (the Speaker and the Chief Justice). Nonetheless, it was the right thing to do because some of the people mentioned in this scandalous report included members of parliament which are under the jurisdiction of the Speaker; and some members of the judiciary as well appear on this report, thus the Chief Justice is with no exceptions an interested party to this matter. But after all is said and done, the people of Malawi and their collective institutions of governance have proven to Africa and the world over that they care about justice and doing the right thing for the country. This is a lesson for us, and especially for the Southern African Development Community (SADC) whose chairmanship is with President Chakwera.
In 2020, at the height of the Malawian revolution when the Constitutional Court nullified the presidential elections and the country went to an election of which the Tonse Alliance won overwhelmingly, I wrote an article for The Mast newspaper entitled “Are the winds of change from the east blowing in our direction?” This was a significant analysis to make at the time, considering that Zambia would be going to the polls the following year in August. And my conclusion, and argument in that newspaper publication was that indeed, with the corruption levels in the PF, cadreism, nepotism, and other vices at play then, Zambia was destined to catch the fever from the east (Malawi) and that meant a possible regime change for us as well.
Today, Malawi has passed a law that will now require full disclosure of all political party funding, in an attempt to arrest corruption and state capture. This too, should be one of the many lessons we should learn from the politics of Malawi, because evidently most of our politicians are captured by those who give them huge campaign contributions. Therefore, these politicians no longer serve the interests of the people who voted for them, but they become answerable to their pay masters.
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