Unknown thugs are reportedly attacked Counsel Pempho Likongwe, one of the lawyers representing Malawi Congress Party (MCP) President Dr Lazarus Chakwera, in the ongoing Constitutional court.
Confirming the thuggery, another member of Chakwera’s legal team, Counsel Lalley Mita, has said the attack happened last night right at Likongwe’s residence in Blantyre.
MCP lawyer; Pempho Likongwe
Counsel Mita has said the thugs managed to bolt with a laptop, a briefcase and mobile phones and Counsel Likongwe got physically hurt in the process.
However, Counsel Mita has refused to speculate that the attack is in connection with the case involving Dr Lazarus Chakwera, an opposition party leader.
Lately, there have been attacks on the property of members of Malawi Congress Party (MCP); latest cases being petrol bombing of the office of MCP Vice president, Sidik Mia and the vehicle of the party’s Director of campaign, Honouble Moses Kunkuyu; both in Blantyre
President Arthur Peter Mutharika, who is also Commander-In-Chief of the Malawi Defence Force (MDF), has promoted two military officers, Corporal George Salimu and Lance Corporal Gift Tatani Nkhoma, who went missing in DRC but managed to return to the camp during a peace keeping mission George Salimu has been promoted to Staff Sergeant while Gift Tatani Nkhoma has risen to Sergeant. The two were part of the team that got ambushed in DRC on November 12 2018, resulting into the death of six Malawian soldiers.
During the operation, five soldiers went missing, three of which-who included Salimu and Tatani have since returned. Decorating the two at Kamuzu Palace in Lilongwe on Wednesday, President Mutharika described the two as “symbols of courage and heroism”.
Said President Mutharika:“And we would like to honour them today. They are the symbols of peace that we all love as a country. I am proud that we have a patriotic military that is ready to defend peace in this country and elsewhere. This patriotic defense for peace is seen everywhere.”
The Malawi leader also seized the moment to commend the country’s security forces for defending the peace during violent demontrations tha Human Rights Defenders Coalition, in collaboration with opposition political leaders continue to organize in the country.
“In this country, there are people who have decided to ignore all the democratic and legal processes that we have built since we rejected political terrorism and victimization of innocent Malawians 25 years ago. These people are vandalizing schools and terrorizing school children; attacking innocent people in their homes; breaking cars of innocent Malawians and stealing from shops in organized looting. They are taking away our property.
“I would like to call upon Opposition leaders that, for once, just for once, they must think about this country instead of thinking of themselves. The destruction we have caused in the last few months will take us years to rebuild this country. Once again, I want to thank and commend our security forces for defending the peace of defenseless people. Keep it up! You have shown that the peace keeping you are doing in other countries is an extension of our peace loving spirit. To all Malawians, let me say let us continue being peace lovers,” he said.
Malawi Defence Force is rated as one of the best peace keepers in the world.APM decorates two DRC Peace Keeping heros: These are symbols of courage and heroism
President Arthur Peter Mutharika, who is also Commander-In-Chief of the Malawi Defence Force (MDF), has promoted two military officers, Corporal George Salimu and Lance Corporal Gift Tatani Nkhoma, who went missing in DRC but managed to return to the camp during a peace keeping mission.
George Salimu has been promoted to Staff Sergeant while Gift Tatani Nkhoma has risen to Sergeant. The two were part of the team that got ambushed in DRC on November 12 2018, resulting into the death of six Malawian soldiers.
During the operation, five soldiers went missing, three of which-who included Salimu and Tatani have since returned. Decorating the two at Kamuzu Palace in Lilongwe on Wednesday, President Mutharika described the two as “symbols of courage and heroism”.
Said President Mutharika:“And we would like to honour them today. They are the symbols of peace that we all love as a country. I am proud that we have a patriotic military that is ready to defend peace in this country and elsewhere. This patriotic defense for peace is seen everywhere.” The Malawi leader also seized the moment to commend the country’s security forces for defending the peace during violent demontrations tha Human Rights Defenders Coalition, in collaboration with opposition political leaders continue to organize in the country.
“In this country, there are people who have decided to ignore all the democratic and legal processes that we have built since we rejected political terrorism and victimization of innocent Malawians 25 years ago. These people are vandalizing schools and terrorizing school children; attacking innocent people in their homes; breaking cars of innocent Malawians and stealing from shops in organized looting. They are taking away our property.
“I would like to call upon Opposition leaders that, for once, just for once, they must think about this country instead of thinking of themselves. The destruction we have caused in the last few months will take us years to rebuild this country. Once again, I want to thank and commend our security forces for defending the peace of defenseless people. Keep it up! You have shown that the peace keeping you are doing in other countries is an extension of our peace loving spirit. To all Malawians, let me say let us continue being peace lovers,” he said.
Malawi Defence Force is rated as one of the best peace keepers in the world.
Football Association of Malawi (FAM) president Walter Nyamilandu’s decision to seek a fifth term at the association’s elections in December has drawn mixed reactions.
His critics say the Fifa Council member has nothing more to offer to the football fraternity while those for him believe he needs to stay on and complete his projects.
Since the FAM president declared his interest to seek re-election via a televised statement on major media houses on Tuesday evening, the social media has been awash with opinions on the matter.
Nyamilandu
Nyamilandu, who has been FAM president for 15 years, stated that he wants to finish his projects and also to ensure that his term at Fifa Council runs simultaneously with his presidency at FAM so that the country can benefit through football development.
“My decision to seek re-election has also been reinforced by the desire to continue to make significant contributions to my beloved country following my appointment as a member of the Fifa Council,” he said.
Former Nyasa Big Bullets general secretary Higger Mkandawire punched holes into Nyamilandu’s reasoning that he needs to be FAM president in order to be Fifa Council member or that his position at the world football governing body has benefitted Malawi.
“We have other Fifa Council members who are not FA presidents. Tarek Bouchamaoui, Almamy Kabele Camara, Lydia Nsekera, Constant Omari Selemani, Hany Abo Rida are not FA presidents in their respective countries.
“On claims that Malawi will benefit from his position at Fifa, can he be specific on what we have benefitted or stand to benefit in future. Otherwise, all we are seeing here is a personnal ambition and not for the country,” he said.
Questions have also arisen on the FAM president’s trustworthiness having repeatedly said he is bowing out at the end of his fourth term in December.
Soccer analyst George Chiusiwa observed that Nyamilandu had betrayed people’s trust.
“When you have politicians in football leadership you can’t just trust them. But the common good in our football should have been a primary consideration,” he said.
Commenting on the FAM president’s statement posted on Nation Facebook page, Charles Muuni Kabambe wondered whether the incumbent can bring any difference after 15 years in power.
He said: “What is it that he has done that has completely turned around our football? We are still struggling even to win the Cosafa Cup, qualify for African Nations Championship [Chan]. Our junior teams are a laughing stock. Now we are beaten by Lesotho, Tanzania, Mauritius, Seychelles and anyone who dares us. The sponsorship he is boasting about is good, but what has changed afterwards?”
But Andrew Jamu felt Nyamilandu still deserves another term to complete his mission.
“You deserve another term Walter. The work of your hands speaks for you. We were there when our football was almost at zero in 2004 but you took us to Africa Cup of Nations in 2010, the under-17 to the Fifa World Cup as well as getting sponsorship from TNM, Airtel, Fisd and FDH.
“Don’t forget Mpira Village and Chiwembe Technical Centre. You also introduced youth football leagues. You are already a tested president and you have shown to us your capabilities of taking football to greater heights,” he said.
Nyamilandu has been commended for initiating infrastructure development, especially at Chiwembe’s Mpira Village in Blantyre and also for bringing corporate governance at the secretariat.
However, William Soko felt this is not enough since Malawi national football team is still an underdog in the region.
“People need Malawi football action on the ground to improve and not the buildings. If he wants to take Malawi football to the next level where was he for the past 15 good years?” he said.
But Given Kazembe holds the view that since Nyamilandu is eligible to contest, the affiliates have a choice whether to elect him or not.
“They vote for him, he carries the day, they don’t, off he goes,” he said.
Others that have shown interest in the FAM presidency are FAM first vice-president James Mwenda, former first vice-president Moses Mkandawire and Karonga United chairperson Alufeyo Chipanga Banda.
The Constitutional Court on Wednesday rebuffed a notice by lawyer representing President Peter Mutharika to use a Malawi Electoral Commission (MEC) checklist of electoral materials in cross-examination.
The court, which is hearing a petition seeking nullification of presidential election results, has since adjourned proceedings to Friday this week.
It advised Frank Mbeta, lawyer representing Mutharika as the first respondent, to make a formal application to use the MEC checklist.
The court’s position followed its ruling on September 25 that documents would be accepted in the case by way of application and not through notices.
Mbeta told the court he would make a formal application to allow him use the document and should he succeed, Richard Chapweteka, witness for the second petitioner and Malawi Congress Party (MCP) president Lazarus Chakwera, would be recalled for cross-examination.
When proceedings commenced on Wednesday, Mbeta hinted that he wanted to refer to MEC’s checklist of materials printed and brought into Malawi from Dubai which Chapweteka had referred to during earlier cross-examination.
But Modecai Msisha, one of the lawyers representing Chakwera, objected to the request, saying Mbeta could not be allowed to use it.
To which, Mbeta and Malawi Electoral Commission (MEC) lead lawyer Tamando Chokotho counter-argued and made reference to various pieces of law on how the court should allow them to use the checklist.
Msisha stood his ground, stressing it was the court’s order that documents should be introduced by way of application and not notices.
He also accused MEC of appearing to discuss a lot of issues with the first respondent’s lawyers, saying the electoral body was supposed to be independent.
When Msisha closed re-examination of Chapweteka, the court expected him to proceed with an application to allow other witnesses for Chakwera, namely Peter Lackson and Anthony Bendulo, to make some changes in their sworn statements. But Msisha said he needed to reorganise the sworn statements.
The court was not amused with Msisha’s request, with Judge Ivy Kamanga saying that would affect progress of the case and Judge Redson Kapindu urging Msisha and his team to be diligent as these were their own documents
Power outages are back to haunt Malawians as Electricity Supply Corporation of Malawi (Escom) has revived a six-hour rolling loadshedding due to reduced supply and generation from Electricity Generation Company (Egenco).
In a statement dated October 1 2019, Escom attributed inadequate availability of power to failure of two of Egenco’s generation machines at Kapichira Hydro Power Station in Chikwawa and 20 megawatts (MW) diesel-powered generators at Mapanga in Blantyre.
Reads Escom’s statement in part: “Currently, Aggreko diesel generators are online, but our main power supplier Egenco is experiencing restrictions to supply Escom due to failure of their two machines at Kapichira and also failure of 20MW diesel generators at Mapanga. This, combined with further decline in water flow, has resulted in reduction of available power by 86.48MW.
“As such, Escom has been forced to implement a six-hour rolling power rationing from 5am. Customers have been divided into three groups, A, B and C, with one group starting from 5am to 11am, followed by a 10am to 2pm group and the last load shedding period is from 3pm to 9pm”.
Escom public relations manager Innocent Chitosi indicated in an interview last evening that as of Tuesday, the power supplier had 263MW at peak hour against a demand of 303.1MW. This represents a 40MW deficit.
In a written response last evening, Egenco spokesperson Moses Gwaza confirmed that Kapichira units 1 and 2 are on emergency outage to replace obsolete and worn-out excitation systems.
He attributed the persistent breakage of the plant to the old equipment at the site. The development has taken 64.8MW from Kapichira I Hydro Power Station off the national grid.
Gwaza said Egenco plans to complete maintenance works by October 12.
Reacting to the resurfacing of power outages, Consumers Association of Malawi (Cama) executive director John Kapito expressed anger over the introduction of six-hour load shedding.
He described it as “disheartening” as power outages affect the economy of the country.
Kapito stressed the need for the country to find a lasting solution on issues to do with electricity generation, adding that Escom cannot supply what is not being generated.
He said: “I am very surprised to hear that the same plant we were told about a week ago that power has come back is down.
“But now to be told again that it is down is very unfortunate and this is costing a lot of money to the economy. They are also bringing a lot of inconveniences to households. It is something we would have loved to find a lasting solution to these problems of power outages”.
Malawi Chambers of Commerce and Industry (MCCI) is on record as having said load shedding cost negatively impacts the economy as it slows down economic growth.
Last year, captains of industry reported shrinking production attributed to power outages. Ministry of Finance, Economic Planning and Development was also compelled to revise downwards economic growth rate due to power outages.
During the launch of the 55MW capacity diesel generators to boost power supply at the height of loadshedding which hit a record 25 hours a day in January 2018, President Peter Mutharika said government planned to increase power generation.
He said: “Within five years, we will be able to generate over 1 400MW of coal-fired, about 700MW of hydro-power and 70MW of solar energy.
“We will do that in the next two to three years.”
Mutharika also said by this year, 2019, his administration was determined to add an extra 300MW of electricity to the national grid “more than the 351MW we have had for the past 53 years”.
In its 2017 Malawi Business Climate Survey, MCCCI highlighted electricity as the most problematic sector.
Malawi continues to face power supply challenges from the national grid despite several independent power producers (IPPs) being licensed.
Most of the licensed IPPs are yet to rollout. Some of them, including one each in Dedza and Salima, were expected to take off by August this year but are yet to add their power to the grid.
Escom has set a target of 2022 as the time when power supply will meet demand.
