MANAonline
Government condemns continues abuse of Social media
By Sheminah Nkhoma
Lilongwe, July 9, Mana: Minister of Information and Digitalization, who is also Government Spokesperson, Moses Kunkuyu has condemned continued abuse of social media by some individuals who are deliberately engaging in misinformation and disinformation aimed at injuring innocent individuals and institutions.
A press statement from the ministry signed by the minister says government has noted with concern the increasing incidences of peddling of fake news on social media which has seen unscrupulous people creating fake news, fake pages, altering publications and pages among others.
Some people have, recently, been sharing fake article purporting that the government is unhappy with Catholic Bishops for apparently not participating in the National Service of Worship to mark Malawi’s 60th Independence anniversary held on Saturday at the Bingu International Convention Centre (BICC) in Lilongwe,” reads the statement in part.
“Therefore government wishes to remind the public that it has the right to protect every individual and institution against deliberate and malicious attacks through false posts on social media as that such acts are unacceptable, illegal and punishable under the laws of Malawi,” reads the statement in part.
Ministry of Information and Digitalization has, therefore, called for unity of purpose and patriotism from all citizenry as the country continues to celebrate 60 years of independence.
Man throws two biological children into deep well
By Naomi Langisi
Lilongwe, July 9, Mana: Lilongwe in Lilongwe, are keeping in custody a 32-year-old man for allegedly throwing his two biological children into a 30-meter deep well.
The children are a girl, 8, and a boy, 4, with intention of killing them, but miraculously survived a three-day stay, over disagreements with his wife, at Matapa Village in Likuni location in the district on July 6, 2024.
Lilongwe Police Public Relations Officer (PRO), Hastings Chigalu Monday said the suspect has been identified as Aubrey Madzinkusamba.
“On July 4, 2024 the suspect quarreled with his wife over family matters, and agreed to divorce each other. Then, fearing that after the divorce the wife will go away with the kids, the suspect planned to kill them so that neither the wife, nor him, benefit possession of the children,” he explained.
The PRO added that, “Without his wife knowing, same day, Madzinkusamba took the kids, and threw them into an unused 30-metre deep well, near Nkhalango Clinic within Likuni area, for the children to die.”
However, the sudden missing of the children brought suspicion to the mother.
Each time she asked for the whereabouts of the children, the suspect kept on saying that kids were safe somewhere.
So, after failing to trace the kids at any of their relations and friends' homes for three days, the wife decided to report the matter to Chinsapo Police Unit, where detectives detained, and grilled the man.
After hours of denying knowledge, he later revealed that he killed the children by throwing them into a well, so that none of them should have custody of the kids after divorce.
Immediately, the law enforcers, led by the suspect, rushed to the scene where they found the kids still holding on to their breath, with their heads just above the waters.
Police, jointly with members of the community, used a bucket that was tied to ropes, to hook the kids to safety, one by one. Immediately, they were rushed to Bwaila District Hospital for medical attention, and later referred to Kamuzu Central Hospital, where they are currently admitted.
Madzinkusamba who hails from Kasiya Village, Traditional Authority (TA) Khongoni in Lilongwe and will appear in court soon to answer a case of attempted murder.
DPP advices people to register for national IDs
By Emily Kaliwo
Chiradzulu, July 9, Mana: Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) has advised people in Chiradzulu District to register for the national Identification Cards for them to be in eligible to vote during next year’s tripartite elections.
DPP Regional Governor for the South, Thomson Kamangira made the remarks Monday at Nguludi Boys Primary School ground in Traditional Authority (TA) Likoswe where the party organized a mega rally with the intension to monitor Member of Parliament’s (MPs) performance.
“We want to encourage all the youth who are above 16 years old to go and register for national IDs regardless of challenges they are facing in this country for them to have an opportunity to vote in the 2025 general elections,” he said.
Kamangira added that without the ID nobody would be allowed to register in the voter’s roll and consequently denied the right to vote.
The Governor said it would be better if MPs would consider changing the constitution so that national IDs should not be the only document to allows a person to vote but also think of other items like the driver’s license or a letter from the chief, among others, to enable those who had no opportunity to register for the national ID to vote in such elections.
He thanked MP for Chiradzulu Central, McTimes Malowa for being instrumental in spearheading various development projects in the constituency.
“Let me advise people gathered to remain in the party with their MP for them to be in a better position to change things in the country through their vote in 2025,” Kamangira said.
Senior Chief Likoswe urged Malowa to report to President about the hunger situation that has affected his area.
“Food insecurity is the biggest challenge in my area. People are stranded as you aware that they came empty handed from their fields due to drought,” he said.
In his remarks, Malowa thanked his constituents for working closely with him for the past five years and promised to fulfill all his campaign promises regardless of what has already been achieved.
Notable people who attended the rally which was spiced by performances from Phalombe’s Gibo Pearson and King James Phiri included DPP Secretary General, Dr. Clement Mwale, DPP’s Director of Women, Mary Mainja and MP for Chiradzulu South, Joseph Mwanamvekha.
Chintheche United FC shown exit door from FDH Cup
By Mphatso Ngwira
Mzuzu, July 9, Mana: Moyale Barracks FC through a stunning performance on Sunday booted out Chintheche United FC from FDH Cup in round of 32 in a match of a decisive 7-1 victory which was held at Mzuzu Stadium.
The victory comes as a significant morale boost for the Lions of Kaning’ina after suffering consecutive defeats in the current TNM Super League.
The game saw Moyale Barracks FC dominate from the onset with four goals scored in the first half.
Demonstrating remarkable offensive prowess and teamwork, Moyale continued their onslaught in the second half, adding three more goals to their tally hence the Lions of Kaning’ina proceeding to round of 16 of the cup.
Chintheche United FC through Kondwani Jere managed to net the only and consolation goal in the closing minutes of the match, but it was too little, too late.
Moyale's performance was a testament to their determination and skill, effectively bouncing back from their recent setbacks in the league.
Fans were thrilled to see their team back in best form, delivering an unforgettable display of football prowess.
Speaking after the game Head Coach for Chintheche United FC, Macmillan Banda said they lost the game because his charges were respecting their opponents.
“It was for the first time for some of our players to play at Mzuzu Stadium. We are however going back home to sort things out,” said Banda.
According to Prichard Mwansa who is Head Coach for the Lions of Kaning’ina, the team was happy to have qualified for the next round.
“We have won the game because my players followed instructions. Our aim is to go back to our winning ways and take home the trophy,” said Mwansa.
Lilongwe Police recovers stolen vehicle, rescues victim
By Gomezgani Msiska
Lilongwe, July 08, Mana: Lilongwe Police Station vehicle patrol team, on Independence Day, July 6, recovered a Nissan NP200 motor vehicle that unknown criminals stole from a certain pharmacist, near Mchinji roundabout, along the Lilongwe bypass road, and rescued its victim after he was severely wounded by thugs, at around 20:30 hours.
Inspector Hastings chigalu said on the said night, certain man (name withheld), was driving a Nissan vehicle registration number BR 4386, from Likuni heading Area 47, via the Lilongwe bypass road.
“Upon arrival at a place between the Lilongwe Grand Business Park and Mchinji roundabout along the Bypass road, his vehicle ran out of fuel. He parked it by the roadside, and went to buy fuel at Kaunda filling station on a hired motorcycle.
“But after refueling it, before he started off, four unknown thugs while armed with panga knives, emerged from the bush, and smashed both the driver, and passenger's glasses. They then pulled the driver out of the vehicle, and hacked him severely before letting him to escape,” explained Chigalu.
“However, soon after the thugs took control of the vehicle, before they could start off, Lilongwe Police Rapid Response Team that was on normal vehicle patrols on the said night arrived at the scene, a thing that made the thugs to immediately abandon the vehicle and disappeared into the darkness,” Chigalu further added.
Chigalu said: “Later on, after the law enforcers had already taken the vehicle to the station, without knowing who the owner was, the team then came across the victim in Area 46. He was shouting for help, while bleeding heavily.
“This is when he narrated his ordeal, before police revealed the good news to him that his vehicle was successfully recovered from the thugs. Meanwhile, a manhunt for the suspects who only went away with an itel cellphone, and K7, 000 cash, is underway.”
In the meantime, Lilongwe Police wishes to assure people that it has put in place various strategies that will curb crime so that there is maximum safety and security of both residents and visitors in the capital city.
Council struggling to address illegal vending
By Maranatha Chirwa
Mzuzu, July 7, Mana: Mzuzu City Council (MCC) has disclosed that it was facing challenges in addressing illegal vending, which has turned almost each and every corner of the City a market place.
According to Public Relations Officer (PRO) for MCC, MacDonald Gondwe, the City has the highest population growth rate at almost 5 percent as compared all the cities in the country, hence increased number of people venturing into businesses for their livelihoods.
Whilst acknowledging rampart of illegal vending in the City, he said to reduce pressure on business space, the Council has Mzuzu Main Market and has established Zigwagwa Fare Market and Katawa Market which he said are underutilized due to illegal vending.
“The problem can be sorted out if illegal vendors relocate to these markets and we are currently strategizing on how we can address the situation after several failed attempts.
By law, the Council is supposed to confiscate the vendors merchandize and thereafter they are supposed to be prosecuted, but on a humanitarian basis, the council usually prioritizes contact and dialogue,” Gondwe said.
According to a businesswoman in Mzuzu City Main Market. Esther Longwe, most customers opt to buy from vendors who conduct their trade outside the market than by purchasing from the vendors in market which pay market fees as our obligation on daily basis.
“We have been pleading with the City Council for years to relocate these vendors to designated markets for fare business operations amongst all of us,” she said.
A Business lady, Benedetta Msowoya said most vendors refuse to relocate to designated markets, describing the market cites as not suitable for business.
A Fruit seller along streets in the City for four years, Daniel Msongole said he takes the risk because there was no favourable place where he could relocate to with his business.
Chairperson for Mzuzu City Main Market, Alexander Sikwese said efforts by both Council and the market’s committee to address the issues have not yielded anything.
President pardons 35 convicted prisoners
By Hastings Yobe
Lilongwe, July 6, Mana: President, Dr. Lazarus Chakwera has pardoned 35 convicted prisoners as part of the 60th Independence Day anniversary celebrations in a gesture of mercy and compassion.
According to a Statement released by the Ministry of Homeland Security, the pardoned prisoners include those who have served half of their sentences, chronically ill, elderly, and female convicts who were accompanied by their children to prison.
The Prisoners were selected based on their good behaviour and demonstration of reform while serving their sentences, in line with the Guidelines for the Granting of Pardon to Convicted Prisoners.
In addition to the pardon, the President has granted a general amnesty to convicted prisoners serving determinate sentences, reducing their respective sentences by nine months.
This Move aims to decongest the prisons and demonstrates the President's commitment to justice and rehabilitation.
The Ministry of Homeland Security hailed the President's decision as an act of mercy, reuniting the pardoned prisoners with their families and loved ones effective immediately.
Youths to be engaged in environmental management
By Welington Sibale
Neno, July 6, Mana: Government has urged citizens in the country to engage young people to take a leading role in championing environmental conservation.
Principal Secretary (Administration) in the Ministry of Natural Resources and Climate Change, Richard Perekamoyo made the remarks on Friday in Neno during the joint commemoration of the World Biological Diversity and the World Environment Day.
He said failure to conserve the environment has adverse effects; hence, the need to engage the youth in various efforts considering that young people constitute a large population in the country.
“The youth are part and parcel of the development of Malawi and therefore, some of the programmes that we have planned, going forward, should involve the youth as active participants,” Perekamoyo said.
He said the event was aimed at raising awareness on the critical role of biodiversity in maintaining ecological balance, providing essential services and supporting human livelihoods.
The Principal Secretary said government was working on conducting civic education campaigns on the importance of conserving the environment so that people should get educated to change their behaviours towards nature.
“The challenge that we have is the competition for resources and people have to survive and they have to have livelihoods. Several initiatives have been put in place to make sure that people focus on meaningful ventures rather than going into the forest to cut down trees,” he added.
Perekamoyo called for collective efforts from all sectors including the private sector to address diverse effects of climate change.
District Commissioner (DC) for Neno, Rosemary Nawasha said the Council has devised several strategies and projects to make sure that they mitigate the cutting down of trees.
She said such interventions include tree planting.
“We are also discouraging charcoal production in totality. We have our forest guards making sure that those producing charcoal should be stopped because charcoal production is one of the activities that depletes trees,” Nawasha said.
The 2024 World Environment and Biodiversity Day focused on land restoration, desertification, and drought resilience.
Land restoration is a key pillar of the UN Decade on Ecosystem Restoration (2021-2030), a rallying call for the protection and revival of ecosystems all around the world, which is critical to achieving Sustainable Development Goals.
The event was held under the theme: “Be part of the plan. Our land, our future,” marking the 30th anniversary of the United Nations Convention to Combat Desertification (UNCCD).
The International Day for Biological Diversity was adopted by the United Nations General Assembly in 2000 to increase the understanding and action for biological diversity. The day is globally commemorated on May 22 every year while the World Environment Day is commemorated on June 5.
Lilongwe community embrace digital banking system
By Rennie Tembo & Andrew Mkonda
Lilongwe, July 6, Mana; Communities in Lilongwe have hailed government for its plans to gradually phase out usage of cash to digital banking and electronic transactions services.
Speaking Friday during awareness campaign organized by government through the Reserve Bank of Malawi (RBM), Senior Group Village Nthumba of Traditional Authority (TA) Kabudula said the initiative would assist to curb fraud and money laundering among others.
He said that, “With digital transactions, people, especially farmers will no longer be carrying huge sums of cash to and from the bank where in most cases, farmers have been robbed their cash and others even losing their lives.
“This electronic system will help individuals to manage their finances more effectively, such as paying their utility bills while in their homes without losing any money on transport,” Nthumba said.
He urged his subjects to embrace the digital banking services saying it was in line with government blue print of Malawi 2063.
A Shop owner in the area, Patrick Saulo thanked government for the initiative saying he would no longer be carrying huge sums of money when he wants to purchase some goods in town.
He asked government to consider sealing a deal with mobile service providers and banks so that they reduce the charges on digital transactions that people are currently paying.
Digital Financial Services Coordinator for Lilongwe and Kasungu, Dr. Ella Kangaude expressed satisfaction with the overwhelming patronage of the people.
She said many people would like to graduate from use of cash to digital system.
“What we have noted is that people are not completely blank on digital finance services, but they just want to gather more information and knowledge about the system,” Kangaude added.
The DFS awareness campaign is taking place on pilot phase in Chikwawa and Machinga in southern region, Lilongwe and Kasungu in central region and Karonga and Chitipa in the northern region.
National Bank dates Kasungu SMEs
By Wanangwa Tembo
Kasungu, July 6, Mana: National Bank of Malawi (NBM) has said most of challenges that Small to Medium Enterprises (SMEs) face in the course of their businesses are a result of lacking information about opportunities available in the banking sector.
The Bank’s Head of Retail Banking Division, Oswin Kasunda said this on Saturday during an SME customer interaction session in Kasungu.
He said SMEs are the drivers of the economy contributing about 40 percent of the Gross Domestic Product (GDP) hence must be empowered with financial information that could be used to make important business decisions.
“We are excited to have come to meet one of the segments of our customers which we consider as very important because of its critical role in the economy.
“SMEs need information. They must develop keen interest to seek information which can help them make good decisions that can grow their businesses,” Kasunda said.
He said in the face of global occurrences that bring about economic shocks, businesses must be innovative enough to survive such calamities.
The Head of Retail Banking said, “We have faced natural disasters like cyclones, droughts and at some point there was COVID-19 which heavily affected our businesses and the effects are still being felt today.
“But the question is: when that happens, how do we move forward. This is where we need to be innovative enough to find solutions.”
Kasunda said SMEs must develop trust in NBM which he said has various solutions for their financing needs.
A representative of the SMEs, Chifundo Mwafulirwa, applauded NBM for the interaction saying it was an eye opener on the many opportunities available at the banks that could be exploited to grow their businesses.
“One important issue that has been raised is access to loans. We have challenges to accessing loans but through this interaction, we have learnt about the several financing options that are available for us.
“The other issue concerns forex. We fail to access forex in good time and this affects our businesses especially when we want to import something,” she said.
The interaction highlighted non-payment of loans, lack of planning and managerial experience, poor record keeping and lack of understanding financial information as some other major challenges common to most SMEs.
The session which was conducted under the theme ‘Synergy in success: building financial milestones together’, was organised to act as a feedback forum for both the Bank and the SMEs.
