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Malawi’s CSOs speak out on divisions over JB

Civil society organisations that issued a critical assessment of Malawi President Joyce Banda’s 100 days in office have vowed to engage government based on principles to avoid being compromised.

Centre for Human Rights and Rehabilitation (CHRR), Centre for the Development of People (Cedep) and Pan African Civic Educators Network (Pacenet) were reacting to reports that some civil society leaders, who met Banda in Mzuzu, disowned their assessment on the basis that the three organisations do not speak on behalf of the entire civil society.

It is also alleged that some non-governmental organisations (NGO) leaders told the President to ignore the campaign on sexual minority rights run by CHRR and Cedep, arguing that Malawians were not ready to accept homosexuals.

But Council for the Non Governmental Organisations in Malawi (Congoma) chairperson Voice Mhone denied the allegations, saying the President was not told to ignore the assessment because they have a right to issue such a statement.

Pacenet executive director Steven Duwa said it would be improper for the CSOs to repeat the mistakes that were done during former president Bingu wa Mutharika’s time when they overpraised him during his first term of office.

“It is my considered view that as CSOs, we need not repeat mistakes we have done in the past whereby we overpraised our leaders to the extent of hero-worshiping them,” said Duwa.

“I believe it is incumbent on us CSOs to provide an objective assessment of the current government and indeed any other government’s performance without compromising on our neutrality,” he said.

Duwa said President Banda should draw lessons from the issues raised in their assessment statement and avoid being surrounded by praise-singers because they would be the same people to laugh at her when she fails.

“I wish to remind the current government and fellow Malawians that during the DPP government, CSOs raised so many criticisms for the sake of wanting a better Malawi.

“We were not against Bingu as a person, but the policies and systems his government had put in place and were bringing miseries to the people. Some of us will not stop providing checks and balances on this government and any future government for fear of reverting to another dictatorial regime,” he said.

Cedep executive director Gift Trapence said this was not the first time CSOs have disowned them as during the previous government, the sexual minority issue brought divisions again.

Trapence said even during the July 20 demonstrations, most of the organisations came to support the idea at the eleventh hour because of the same attitude of trying to play good boy to government.

“Already, sentiments coming from the society is that the civil society is sleeping. What CSOs should do is offer constructive criticisms and recommendations to the government,” he said. 

CHRR executive director Undule Mwakasungula said it was wrong for the civil society leaders to misinform the President that individual NGOs could not issue statements.

Mwakasungula also said it was wrong for the civil society to be sympathetic to JB government even when it was making mistakes because a country cannot be governed based on sympathy.

“As CSOs, we need to engage with government, but that should not make us compromise our principles by wrongly advising government. Let’s work with government but based on principles,” said Mwakasungula. 

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