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| National |
| Kamuzu’s mausoleum in 2004/05 budget |
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by
Zainah Liwanda, 01 September 2004
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12:33:18
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Government has allocated K20 million ($185,185) in the 2004/2005 budget to be presented by Finance Minister Goodall Gondwe in Parliament on Friday for the construction of a mausoleum for the former head of state, late Kamuzu Banda.
Sports and Culture Minister Henry Chimunthu-Banda said in an interview on Monday he was optimistic that this time around the project would be funded because it falls under the Public Sector Investment Programme (PSIP).
Chimunthu Banda said the construction of the mausoleum is expected to start as soon as the budget is approved by Parliament.
“I am very optimistic that the project will kick off very soon because, unlike in the past, this time around it has been included in the PSIP hence assured of funding because all programmes that fall under PSIP are government priorities,” said Chimunthu-Banda.
He said the construction of mausoleum was supposed to be done in phases, the first being the tour by stakeholders to countries such as Ghana and Kenya to see how other mausoleums were built.
The second phase, according to Chimunthu-Banda, was the designing which involved architectural landscaping estimated to have cost about K10 million in 2002.
“The third phase is the actual construction of the mausoleum which will among other things include a museum, office block, library, VIP lounge, recreation centre and a statute of the late Banda,” he added.
Chimunthu Banda said the mausoleum project is intended to highlight the history of Malawi from the time the country was under colonial rule to the death of the former head of state.
“This will include the struggle of our country to break from the federation of Rhodesia and Nyasaland, the state of emergency of 1958 and attainment of independence from colonial powers. This will assist school children to visualise and conceptualise the history of Malawi before 1994,” he added.
The construction of the mausoleum for the late Kamuzu Banda has sparked controversy with other people saying it is not a priority and others, especially the Malawi Congress party (MCP) arguing that as father and founder of the Malawi nation, Kamuzu deserves a better place to rest.
Leader of opposition in Parliament, who is also MCP president John Tembo was recently quoted in the media as saying he would take advantage of the budget meeting that opened on Monday to remind government of its promise to build a mausoleum for late Banda.
The previous government under Bakili Muluzi promised to build a mausoleum for the former head of state but failed, citing financial constraints as a major hindrance.
The construction of the mausoleum was supposed to start in 2001.
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