Government through Minister of Information and Communications Technology Nicholas Dausi has accused the religious grouping Public Affairs Committee (PAC) of joining forces with opposition Malawi Congress Party (MCP) President Dr. Lazarus Chakwera and former President Dr. Joyce Banda to cause anarchy in the country.

The accusation follows the recent assessment by PAC that Malawi was currently experiencing mediocrity as poverty levels have been deeply entrenched among ordinary Malawians.

“After a careful examination on incidents of corruption,we note that the DPP administration has been greatly characterized by corrupt practices, financial indiscipline and selective justice,” PAC chairperson the Very Reverend Felix Chingota said.

“As Malawians seek for the realisation of justice and law enforcement, we note that the DPP administration continues to embark on selective justice in the pursuit of cashgate cases,” he added.

PAC also expressed doubt in Mutharika’s administration, saying the Party cannot turn around the economy in the remaining years to Mutharika’s term.

Instead of reacting to the claims raised by PAC, Mutharika has launched a vicious attack on PAC, accusing the religious body of being used by the opposition.

“In echoing Lazarus Chakwera who chooses to see no development happening, PAC has also chosen to ignore any positive developments, including revival of the economy devastated by Cashgate, in order to make a biased conclusion in their statement. In their desire to exaggerate the perception of corruption, PAC is supporting misrepresentations of the procurement of the Zambian maize in which Daily Times literally lied that K9 billion was stolen and shared.

“Every honest Malawian now knows that no money was stolen and it is sheer crookedness for the religious leaders of PAC to use the maize procurement as one reason for instigating revolt and anarchy in our peaceful country. In fact, the crooked thinking of our religious men is evident in deliberately avoiding to acknowledge that the President was the first to appoint a Commission of Enquiry and democratically allowed the Commission to declare the truth of what they had found to the public,” reads in part the statement by Dausi.

Dausi went further by accusing PAC of diverting from its objectives.

“The above political biases only reinforce everybody’s view that PAC has lost its way and has been captured by the Opposition. Given its departure from the principles and reason of its existence, Government calls upon the trustees of PAC to re-examine this organization which has been the pride of our democracy for many years.

“We cannot have a PAC that has rebelled against itself by divorcing its own principles, the very reason of its existence, national building values and losing the integrity of independence simply because its executive leadership wants to play politics the wrong way,” added the statement.