|
British High Commissioner Norman Ling on Tuesday called on government to fight corruption which he said is the major cause for increased poverty in the country in recent years.
He added that fighting poverty is also key for Malawi to get any new aid from his country.
Ling was speaking during the celebration of Queen Elizabeth birthday at his residence in Lilongwe.
Ling said Malawi has for years failed to achieve growth rates needed to make an impact on the appalling poverty of its people. He said the country is very far from meeting Millennium Development Goals compared to more than a decade ago when the goals were set.
“And there is little prospect of any improvement so long as national expenditure exceeds the national income,” said Ling whose government is the biggest bilateral donor to Malawi. Britain also supports the activities of the Anti Corruption Bureau.
Vice President Cassim Chilumpha said government is aware of the problems that continue to beset the country’s economy saying “we still have many obstacles to the full entrenchment of a constitutional and democratic order in this country.
“Similarly we know that despite the many reforms that have been carried out during the last decade, sound economic management and the reduction of poverty remain major challenges to government,” he said.
Chilumpha added: “Malawians are looking for action not fine speeches. Time for political pep talk is over. It’s now time for action”.
Ling said his government plans to double aid to developing countries like Malawi over the next five to ten years but emphasised that it’s up to the government to ensure good political and economic governance to benefit from it.
He said greater commitment needs to be shown to sound economic management and tackling corruption, which he said is getting worse “and gradually eating away at the fabric of Malawian society”.
“In recent years Malawi has tumbled down the Transparency International league table. In 2000 it was on 43rd place with a reputation as one of the least corrupt countries in Africa. By last year it had slipped to 83 on the list.
“Some have tried to dismiss the perceptions index as unscientific and unrepresentative. That is wrong. The trend is clear. Corruption is getting worse and gradually eating away at the fabric of Malawian society,” said Ling.
Ling also said the Malawi Electoral Commission struggled to meet its obligations in administering the just ended general elections, whose outcome did not please everyone, because of serious weaknesses as highlighted by international observers.
He said the commission needs to urgently address the problems identified by the international observers before next year’s local elections and the by-elections that may be held before then.
Ling also highlighted the biased performance of Malawi Broadcasting Corporation (MBC) and Television Malawi (TVM) which, he said, showed lack of editorial independence.
He said the two organisations must fully comply with the requirements of the Communications Act and provide balanced and impartial news coverage at all times “not just to free up the airwaves a fraction during the sixty days before an election”.
|
