Friday marked exactly four years since the Tonse Alliance came to power – with the taking of oath of office by President Lazarus Chakwera as Malawi’s new leader on June 28, 2020. We went on the ground to ask people in the villages what they make of their government’s performance this far
By Malawi News correspondents:
Exactly four years after the Tonse Alliance came to power, the public evaluation of the government’s performance in that period is largely negative, according to the views we have gathered from ordinary people.
Using our network of correspondents, Malawi News randomly spoke with common citizens in Mzimba, Dowa, Dedza, Salima, Ntcheu, Machinga, Thyolo, Nsanje, Chikwawa, Chiradzulu and Mulanje districts for them to assess their government of the past four years.
We asked the people to evaluate the government on these issues: economic management, cost of living, public service delivery, job creation, fighting corruption and implementation of development projects.
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The views shared shows a varied rating – a mixture of positives and negatives – but largely tilting towards the negative. This is because not only did the people gave the government zero rating in some cases, they also expressed overall dissatisfaction in others where they gave the government a pass mark.
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But we also gathered extreme comments from some who said the Tonse Alliance government has failed in everything.
They accused the alliance of not living up to every bit of the expectation it built in people ahead of its coming to power.
What has worked?
In Salima, Liness Ndelemani told us that under the four years of the Tonse alliance, Malawi is seeing serious maintenance of the Salima-Nkhotakota road which has for decades been a nightmare to travel along.
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“Once it is completed, it will be a great development to the area,” said Ndelemani.
She also commended the Tonse government for the improved packagaes and beneficiary numbers in the social cash transfer programme which she said is supporting people in the face of rough economic conditions the country is reeling in.
Thokozani Makhwira of Migano Village of Traditional Katunga in Chikwawa said in terms of public services, the government has performed “relatively well” in the education sector.
She hailed the administration for opening a number of new teacher training colleges, increasing intake into public and private universities and supporting needy students in these universities with loans for tuition and upkeep allowances.
In Dedza, Hestone Nalikole said the performance of the Tonse Alliance government in the past four years has been tempered by crises such as Covid-19, cholera and natural disasters like Cyclone Freddy.
“So, in the past four years, the performance has been a mixed bag especially in terms of the economy.
“On paper, it may show as if the performance is positive; on the ground, the ordinary man sees a negative change due to escalating costs of commodities. People are failing to get basic amenities,” he said.
Andrew Salima of Selemani Village, Traditional Authority Mpama in Chiradzulu the Tonse administration has achieved 50 percent cracking down on corruption. But he said the government has been selective on who to take to task and who to exempt, a practice he said has favoured the elites and politicians.
‘Everyone is crying’
On the scales of the review, negative rating has outweighed the positives, from the comment we got, with high cost of living an overarching concern among all the people we spoke with.
Mwatero Banda of Namaona Village, Traditional Authority Njema in Mulanje said the Tonse Alliance has failed on key matters of corruption, healthcare, agriculture and economy.
“Everyone in these villages knows that the economy is struggling. Even a four-year-old can tell you that K50 is not enough for mandasi and sweets.
“I grew up not knowing terms like devaluation and inflation, but in the past four years under the Tonse Alliance government, these have become daily issues. This situation has caused the downfall of small-scale businesses, forcing many people to turn to illegal activities to make ends meet. The only ones benefiting from this era are those connected to the ruling party, not us,” he said.
For Moses Nkhana in Mzimba, this was his judgement:
“Tonse administration has failed completely in all aspects. I can give it 20 percent. What is happening is total rubbish. People are struggling to get fees for their children and food.
“The cost of living is unbearable despite the government assurances that we would have a better life.
“We do not have farm inputs. We are faced with hunger.
“All that we get from the leaders is assuring us that they are fixing the economy. We cannot eat perseverance. Everyone is crying,” he said.
Byson Kalulu of Thunga village, TA Bvumbwe in Thyolo said his life has deteriorated in the past four years owing to the ailing state of the economy such that he is now struggling to look after his children in school.
“Despite free primary education, my children often miss classes due to unpaid funds for development, exams and other costs. Furthermore, my secondary school children rely on well-wishers for their fees, which is disheartening as we no longer receive government bursaries.
“Despite our economy’s reliance on agriculture, farm input prices have steadily risen over the past four years. How can I afford a 50-kilogramme bag costing K90, 000?” he said.
In Mulanje, Patrick Kachulu of Sochera Village, Traditional Authority Chikumbu, lamented drug shortage at the main public hospital in the district.
“Last week, my younger brother and sister went to Mulanje District Hospital on different days, Monday and Tuesday, to get treatment. They were told to buy drugs from pharmacies. If we investigate, it is likely that the drugs they bought from the pharmacy is the same medicine we used to get from government hospitals,” he said.
Fixing the country
All our interviews said the situation is fixable.
For Chimwemwe Chikafa in Dedza, “it all revolves around leadership”.
“The President has to make tough decisions to improve things,” she said.
Kaidu Mulumbe in Salima asked the Tonse government should listen to the cries of the people of Malawi and come up with proper strategies that ensure that Malawians do not suffer from hunger and that their welfare improves.
“Government has departments and agencies that provide public services. Our request is for the leaders to have interest to hear what the common man is saying.
“The leaders should not pay lip service to their commitments. When they promise that that they are fixing the economy, they should fix the economy. They should also visit the local markets, as they used to do during campaign, and see how bad things are. Many people have no shoes. Many cannot afford a decent meal,” Mulumbe said.
