Back Bencher

Why APM needs ‘robust health’

Hon Folks, it beggars belief that the APM government, elected 20 years after the adoption of the Constitution which pegs the exercise of power of State to “the sustained trust of the people…only maintained through open, accountable and transparent government…”, manages  public information no better than the one-party dictatorship we ditched in 1993.

The bungled communication on the health status of APM is a case in point. The President and God-knows-how -many others fly to New York, saying no more than “we are attending a UN General Assembly.

Minister of Foreign Affairs Francis Kasaila asked about the size and composition of the entourage—an issue in these hard economic times—does not just refuse to disclose but goes on to say government reports to Parliament, therefore, giving such information through the media would be “irregular” (Malawi News, September 24. P2).

In this 21st century, Kasaila—the face of the nation to the international community by virtue of his portfolio—likens the media to a “parallel structure” to the three arms of government! Kamuzu Banda must be turning in his grave saying: “I told you so, Malawi isn’t ready for ’multiparty-ism’.”

But my bones were shaken to the core Monday afternoon when I saw pictures of APM alighting from his chartered plane at Kamuzu International Airport, looking frail and sickly. The President could not even lift his right hand when waving to the multitude that came to give him a tumultuous welcome.

He waved with both hands when departing for the US a month earlier. As if that was not enough, APM, who is indisputably right-handed, greeted dignitaries with his left hand. Yet, Malison Ndau, the Information Minister who doubles as government’s publicist, had just lied to Malawians days earlier that the President was “enjoying robust health”!

Not just robust health, Ndau further said APM had to stay on after the UNGA to meet donors and investors.  This is the kind of cook-up that definitely isn’t meant for the media. Kasaila should tip Ndau on where to lie to avoid creating parallel reporting structures!

Then presidential press secretary, Ngeme Kalilani, dutifully explained the oddity by saying he was not aware that APM was unwell, really?  So, use of the left hand was a Barack Obama style learned while meeting the development partners?

The US president may be left-handed but he still greets people with his right hand. Ngeme should have realised that spin-doctors don’t deny the unpalatable obvious, rather they try hard to make the obvious palatable, call it damage control.  Instead, he sounded like a politician devoid of integrity and credibility.

It’s by design that the APM government has gone dictatorial on public information. The media, the Fourth Estate and an integral part of any functional democracy, is sideline, justifying that warped thinking by describing it as a parallel structure. DPP has a lot to hate about our Constitution.

But governments don’t just become averse to free press for no good cause. That happens when there’s too much rot in the cupboard to let the watchdog sniff and bark at.

But in the APM government, it appears it’s not just the media being given a raw deal. There appears to be scant information flowing on the supply side as well, hence, the waffling and contradictions we savour when ministers and spin-doctors open their mouths.

Either they are confronted with questions for which they don’t have answers or they fear what they may release in the public domain will anger the boss.  Fear of this nature breeds indecisiveness. People simply resign to hand-clapping, leaving the decision-making to the power-hungry boss.

Kamuzu enjoyed such a status if only because every success was attributed to him and him alone. Of course, that worked because dictatorship obscures failures, so nobody talked about failures. But whether he likes it or not, APM won’t enjoy that luxury.

The issue right now is that government is failing to make ends meet as Finance Minister Goodall Gondwe admitted in an interview recently  and desperately needs IMF’s Extended Credit Facility (ECF) which is also key to  the release of the much sought after budget support by the World Bank, African Development Bank and the EU.

That ECF is dependent on Malawi government reducing its expenditure by 30 percent.  This is a game-changer which, in the prevailing cheerleading culture, requires APM to personally shake things up the John Magufuli style.

Unless he enjoys “robust health” to steer the ship all the way, we just might end up being dumped by both the donor and investor in the hour of greatest need. n

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