LILONGWE (Malawi Democrat) -The Church and Society Programme of the CCAP Nkhoma Synod has attacked Malawi President Bingu wa Mutharika’s government over declining democratic values, observing that Malawians are being held hostage by people in power and leadership positions.
The synod, which on June 5 this year received a K10 million (about $65 789) donation from Mutharika during a Big Sunday Fund-raising Event in Lilongwe, said in their strongest attack to DPP government that the centrality of the law is fading every day and that the law is being used to protect those in power and not all Malawians.
“Those in leadership seem to be bent on satisfying personal and sectarian interests and not the common good. This is at variance with the popular view and expectation that those in positions of public authority have to lead in a just manner in pursuit of the common good,” the synod says in the statement signed by 32 members of the synod’s clergy.
The Nkhoma statement, which the clerics say is in solidarity with the Catholic bishops last Pastoral Letter Reading the Signs of the Times, also criticised President Wa Mutharika for practising nepotism by giving top positions in government to people from his home district, relatives or his tribesmen.
The statement has attracted an editorial comment from The Nation newspaper which says the attack does “not come as a surprise to anyone, as different quarters in the country have expressed similar concerns in one way or another.”
“We recall the Catholic bishops’ Pastoral Letter that opened a can of worms, pointing out areas where government was not getting it right and recommending change. This was not far from the issues the Nkhoma Synod clerics are raising today. But the DPP government only did what it knows best—being defensive and bashing its critics for underrating the powers that be. The same thing happened with the Muslim Association of Malawi after their statement on similar concerns, which again fell on deaf ears,” reads the editorial comment of the daily.
“Over the past months, we have heard civil society, donors, the Public Affairs Committee (PAC) and Malawi citizens in general complaining about the apparent lack of respect for the rule of law by government, human rights abuses, the forex and fuel shortages, to name but a few. But government either calls them ‘stupid’ or dismisses the issues as baseless.”

The paper said “It is the Church and civil society that are in touch with the grass roots and, therefore, they know what Malawians want from their government. Civil society and the faith groups have nothing to lose and government could do well to listen to this free advice instead of continuing to display the ‘Executive arrogance’ that Malawians have now come to detest. ”
Government has said it needs time before commenting on the issues raised.