DPP’s one year a nightmare —Opposition parties
Opposition political parties in the country have faulted the Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) government for failing to perform according to people’s expectations during the one year it has been in office.
The opposition parties’ spokespersons made the remarks after they were asked to rate the performance of the DPP administration since it was voted into power in May last year.
Meanwhile, DPP spokesperson Francis Kasaila has said the party is doing the best it can to satisfy the needs of Malawians.
But speaking in an interview yesterday, the Malawi Congress Party (MCP), United Democratic Front (UDF) and People’s Party (PP) said government is struggling to improve the living standards of people.
MCP spokesperson Jesse Kabwila on Sunday said the DPP government has failed to deliver.
“Major indicators are how people are suffering in the country. Corruption levels are very high and a lot of Malawians are struggling even to have food in their homes. The DPP administration is even failing to create job opportunities for people so that they can be financially stable. This is a nightmare for Malawians and I do not even know how to rate DPP,” she said.
Kabwila also said the health and education sectors in the country are in a big crisis as government is failing to address their challenges.
She also said crime rate in the country is high, adding that people with albinism no longer feel safe.
The MCP publicist further said the country’s economy is in shambles.
She said despite the DPP government providing fertiliser coupons to people, it is sad to note that some Malawians failed to buy fertiliser.
Kabwila also faulted government for politicising a lot of issues, including Cashgate and the recent floods instead of taking a holistic approach to deal with the issues.
She also said the party has failed to bring back donor confidence, adding that even the current reforms in civil service leave a lot to be desired.
Commenting on the issue, UDF spokesperson Ken Ndanga said the DPP administration is struggling to deliver because there are currently a lot of challenges that government is facing.
“The DPP government needs to improve in terms of engagement when making decisions because there is an outcry that the administration has not been forthcoming on different issues that have been happening in the country,” he said.
On the other hand, Ndanga said the other biggest challenge is the economy.
He said the country is struggling economically because of its donor reliance.
The UDF publicist also said such being the case, government is failing to provide essential services to the citizens.
PP spokesperson Ken Msonda also said the party has not delivered and there is more that should be done.
“The economy is very bad. There is a problem of unavailability of drugs in hospitals and, honestly, things are not going in the right direction at the moment. The DPP administration is not even aware of how people are suffering in rural areas,” he said.
Msonda also said the scarcity of potable water and frequent electricity blackouts are signs that things are not going on well.
He also said the ruling party is struggling to fulfill promises it made during the campaign period ahead of the May 2014 Tripartite Elections.
But DPP spokesperson Kasaila said government is not supposed to satisfy other political parties but the wishes of Malawians.
“We are not working to please other political parties. Our focus is to work to the benefit of Malawians. We cannot expect opposition political parties to appreciate us because we are like in a competition and they will always look for the dark side of us,” he said.
Kasaila, however, said the party knows there are many challenges in the country.
He said government will work together with Malawians to achieve what DPP promised. The DPP publicist also said the administration has already started fulfilling some of its promises made during the campaign period.
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