Member of Parliament for Rumphi East Kamlepo Kalua has bemoaned the declining standards of Malawi’s democratic values a scenario he said has helped retard national development since the inception of multiparty democracy.
Kaluwa made the remarks Thursday in an interview with the Malawi News Agency on the side-lines of an orientation training organized for newly elected Members of Parliament in Lilongwe.
Kalua who has just been re-elected Rumphi East MP for the second time expressed disappointment at what is happening in the political arena in the country saying the multiparty democratic values in Malawi were being looted.
“It seems we have abandoned the needs of the people and instead put in place policies that will benefit a few individuals,” Kalua lamented.
The Rumphi East Legislator said policies that advocate for the benefit of individuals are the ones destroying the future of this country.
Kamlepo said some people have misunderstood multiparty democracy by thinking that it is a promotion of certain tribes or regions.
On this point Kalua denounced politics of regionalism and tribalism in the country calling upon all Malawians practicing it to graduate to nationalism and patriotism so that the country fully benefits from the various development initiatives multiparty democracy brings.
He then warned Malawians to tread with care if Malawi is to be at par development wise with its neighbouring countries.
Commenting on politics of regionalism, Mathews Ngwale, a just elected Independent Member of Parliament for Chiradzulu East said political parties in Malawi have failed to become national parties.
“Political parties are comfortable to be where they are known to be strong as such they tend to be regionalistic rather than nationalistic,” Ngwale told Mana in a separate interview.
He said political parties need to invest in marketing their parties in areas they are not visible if they to attain the national status.
