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Interim spokesperson for the Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) Hetherwick Ntaba has defended his party over the use of parastatal vehicles to ferry women clad in blue and white to Queen Elizabeth Central Hospital where President Bingu wa Mutharika opened an eye hospital last Saturday.
In an interview on Monday Ntaba said the opening of the eye hospital was a government function and he did not see anything wrong with using parastatal vehicles to carry women who wanted to attend a government function presided over by the President.
“It was a government function and government resources were used. There were people of different parties at the function and why should DPP women be singled out?
“If there is somebody who wants to believe that public resources were abused let it be so but parastatal vehicles were used for the President’s function and the hospital does not treat DPP supporters only,” said Ntaba.
Vehicles belonging to Malawi Housing Corporation (MHC), Electricity Supply Corporation of Malawi Limited (Escom) and Blantyre Water Board were seen carrying women to the function while they were chanting party slogans and Mutharika’s praises.
But Malawi Economic Justice Network (Mejn) national coordinator Collins Magalasi said ferrying party women to a government function is a move that does not fit Mutharika who was praised sky-high for his sound economic policies.
“I do not mind which parties the women belong to but government should stop using vehicles belonging to Escom and other parastatals otherwise its a drain on our small budget.
“Ferrying women to government functions does not fit the President at all because he has spoken several times that he wants his government to be efficient and he is expected to do just that,” said Magalasi.
Comptroller of statutory corporations Southwood Ng’oma said it is a cabinet directive that parastatal vehicles be provided to carry people to presidential functions.
“It does not matter what kind of people are ferried, whether politicians or not, but it is a cabinet directive that parastatals should provide vehicles to ferry people for the President’s functions,” Ng’oma said.
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