THE AFRICAN DREAM

On 29th January, His Excellency the state president of the republic of Malawi launched his sixth book titled The African Dream at Sheraton Addis Ethiopia. Launched live on MBC and Ethiopia Television and relayed via satellite, 0ver 100 million people were for 1 hour engaged into an intellectual discourse on issues affecting them and were more finely honed into vivid and intelligently articulated construct and or manifesto which has originated from the mind of a rare political thinker.

In those brief moments, those present at the time of the launch and millions of Television viewers across Africa got inspired. They could realize a future in which many an African can finally begin to dream in audaciously bright colors of previously unimaginable possibilities without any mental constrain to perceive unlimited abundance.

The eloquent summary of the book by Hon Dr Ken Lipenga minister of tourism, wildlife and culture, a prolific writer and linguist himself summed up the African Dream as an impressive work of art.

He observed that “The African dream represents a watershed moment of dynamic and practical political leadership”
Going by his scholarly account ,Professor Bingu wa Mutharika is a unique mind and a rare African leader whose economic and political insights - captured in The African Dream - is set to catapult him into the records of Africa’s future history as an innovative custodian of a visionary, new beginning


The size of Martin Meridith’s book “The State of Africa ”, the 600 + paged book, is a recollection of the author’s life experiences that, seeks to challenge its reader to tap deep into an inner well of passion and aspiration. But unlike "The State of Africa", in which Meredith's writing has been described as authoritative and well-documented, despite the pessimism inherent in his subject matter; The African Dream represents a sequence of contemplative suggestions that seek to point the discerning African mind onto a lofty plain of emancipation and renewal.
The power of thought that is embedded in The African Dream will effectively drive Africa’s disciplined generational thinkers towards a unique and inspiring quantum of enlightenment based on which steadied steps towards true economic emancipation can be achieved.

Directing the launching ceremony of the book, the internationally renowned broadcaster Phil Molefe famous for directing proceedings at Nelson Mandela’s birthday party in Cape Town where the Hollywood actor Morgan Freeman was a guest of honour, declared in a valedictory narrative thus:“The African Dream is a powerful basket of thought that will stimulate the minds of Africa’s Visionary leadership into the origination of novel solutions for a needlessly hungry with a deep yearning for change and a dispirited continent that desperately wants to change for the better”

Phil was not alone for George Twumasi; CEO for Africa Broadcast network who flew all the way from London to witness the launch of the book alongside other international media gushapats like Jean Marc Belchi of radio france, William Wallis of financial Times, and Patrick Smith of Africa international who could not hide his excitement.”I have been looking for this moment” He said. “
”The African Dream represents a seminal point of introspective reflection, which mirrors Africa’s new reality of hope. It is the catalyst that will reframe Africa’s socio-economic and political dialogue. I like this man and his vision “George concluded.

In the eyes of the European, Virginia Woolf’s apt observation in her book A Room of One’s Own that
“one cannot think well, love well, sleep well, if one has not dined well” The African Dream has for far too long come to represent a disparaging reality of hopelessness which Africa must now overcome. To the American mind, the words of O. Henry, one of that country’s most prolific writers, “love and business and family and religion and art and patriotism are nothing but shadows of words when a man’s starving”

However in the African Dream, the author’s rhetorical question to Africa’s current and future leadership when simply rephrased is summed up as follows:
“Our people expect us to resolve issues of hunger and poverty once and for all within our lifetime.
Posterity will judge us harshly if we do not take action now. If not us then who?
If not now, when?”

Of the unease of being in the global world by adopting foreign habits and the precarious antidotes to its tedium, toil, and troubles; of living a life examined yet still not lived; of the entangled desire and reluctance to articulate obstacles standing in the way of a developing African continent, the author comes to agreeing on and believing in a common vision for the future when he observes:

“Of even greater importance is the search for new directions in Africa. A partial answer is to create a united front by defining a common identity. An identity provides the means by which a person, tribe, society, nation, country or continent is recognized and described. It is how an object is recognised as having characteristics distinct and separate from other objects.
True, Africa is not a homogeneous entity, but Africans do share common origins. Therefore, the African identity is how African people show and recognise who they are, how their cultural and traditional beliefs distinguish them from other people. It is also how they show or prove to other nations across the globe that Africa does exist, requires recognition, and has an important role to play in the shaping of human and world relations.”

When it comes to developmental frameworks,the author notes with impish wisdom,the issue of children as central theme to development.

“A child denotes a human being under the age of sixteen years. Children in any society, whether developed or underdeveloped, rich or poor, white or black, represent future human capital”

As a scholar, leader and observer of international politics, the author makes a brilliant observation , sharing a strong feeling of inequality and injustice by powerful nations of the global North against smaller nations from the global South:

“The struggle of small nation-states for their mere survival has become more complex. Political reforms, multi-party democracy and good governance, essentially motivated from the outside, have now been firmly imposed by donors as the main prerequisites for assistance.”

"The African Dream” is an incredible work that demonstrates relentless effort and abilities in four main intellectual disciplines, History, Economics, Politics and Philosophy. The application of the elements in these four disciplines to the continent of Africa by the author, culminates in a recital of the rich history of democracy and governance, the application of science and technology to life by early Africans as well as an in-depth analysis of the recent past and finally a prescription of how to align the factors of economics and politics in order to grow the tools that will achieve the African Dream of self reliance and an equal competitive player in the global market.

The author says something about every aspect of economic and political life, agriculture and production, mining and wealth creation, regional and sub regional economic integration, the future role of the African Armed forces, the role of women and youth, civil society and private sector, donor community and politics of ruling and opposition parties.

Towards the end of the book, the author asserts his authority by challenging the skeptics and critics when he says:“This is not a small dream, and it is not apologetic"
All of the conclusions drawn and the prescriptions offered spring from two points of strength: :
1-As an observer of the process.
2-As a participant in the process at the highest level as President of Malawi and Chair of the African Union. Launched simultaneously in French and English,The African Dream is available both paper back and hard cover. Certainly, a must read

JOHN CHILEMBWE THE MARTYR

Until some where around mid 90,3rd March was closely associated with John Chilembwe, the 1953 insurgency and Nyasaland’s state of emergency. For sure, John Chilembwe must be given credit historically for his effort to show the British rulers the independent spirit of the people of Nyasaland. But to the disappoint of most of my pan-African friends, in particular my American based good friend Dr Sharra who at 16 began his social consciousness, sharing a strong feeling of inequality and injustice by powerful nations of the global North against smaller nations from the global South, I have not been able to share the praise and the mellow dramatic nature of heroism often attributed to the legendary acts of John Chilembwe.

The more I reflect on what happened in mid January of 1915 and the tragic events that followed, the more I begin to appreciate the importance of planning .As Dr Banda would say “to be successful in politics, besides determination and leadership, one must have good planning, complete cooperation and dedication to the plan by others, and good timing.

Planning must be perfect down to the last detail and must consider carefully, alternatives or contingencies. Cooperation and dedication is essential between all; no jealousy, no tribalism, no secret cliques and finally there must be a ground-swell of support, complete support of all factions.

When John Chilembwe returned home as a minister, he was arguably angered by the racial divide and its associated injustices on his natives. He wasted no time and quickly organized himself into an army. Since he had no money and armory, his plan was to steal opponent’s weapons and this is where the whole plan cracks me up. We are told; about 12 guns were stolen from Mandala.

However a forensic study of pictures of executed Europeans during the uprising revealed that almost all colonial casualties had no bullet wounds, creating an impression that probably the stolen guns had no bullets and I have strong doubts as to whether any of them had any knowledge on how to use a gun. With 12 guns, probably without bullets, and no formal training on the part of the church goers now turned soldiers, war was declared against the white settlers. Believe me, I am a patriot to boot but this does not stop me from detecting a crazy plan.

And if you think this was the only crazy military plan on planet earth on how to fight oppression and injustices of the time, then wait until you hear the story of South Africa’s president Thabo Mbeki and Jacob Zuma’s fight against white supremacy whilst hiding in Swaziland. Weapons were scarce in those days and the liberation movement needed every gun it could lay its hands on.

Rumor had it that a certain white foreigner who used to go out with young Swazi woman had a pistol. When the boyfriend went abroad, news reached the ANC underground operatives in the area that he had left his pistol with her. And so the leaders of the ANC underground in Swaziland, Thabo Mbeki and Albert Dhlomo, instructed their most trusted cadre, Jacob Zuma, to get the gun. The plan, they told Zuma, was for him to woo her, get close to her and then find ways of acquiring the weapon through his seductive prowess with theft as a fall back position.

Even though “the woman was not beautiful as Zuma would recall, he followed the orders and proposed to her”. Within days, Zuma had charmed his way into her heart. Now as her lover he could freely ask her about her ex-boyfriend and his prized pistol.
The boyfriend had indeed left the gun with her, she told her new lover. But, to Zuma’s horror, she had also sold it just two days before he asked her about it.

Inculcated with modern warfare’s, military strategists of all times like author of the Chinese classic-The art of war –sun-tzu, great army commanders like Yamamoto,
T.E Lawrence,Shaka,Zulu,Genghis Khan,Napoleon Collin Powel and many others would have failed Chilembwe’s war strategy. Firstly, he allowed emotion to run his independence effort. Secondly his was a much localized activity; there was multi-factional or tribal jealousy, leadership rivalry and so many negative factors. But I do give John Chilembwe credit for clearly expressing discontent with the increasingly restrictive rule imposed on his country by the colonial power.

If people are living in terrible conditions for whatever reason, they become desperate and desperate people will risk everything in a fight. Already defeated by circumstances, they have nothing to loose.

In the search for success in life, people tend to rely on things that seem simple and easy or that have worked before. Everything can take away from you and generally will be spent at some point. Your wealth vanishes, the latest gadgetry suddenly becomes passé, your allies desert you and so fourth but when your mind is armed with a sense of pride and personal Identity, there is no power that can take that away. In the middle of a crisis, your mind will find its way to the right solution and there in lies the strength of John Chilembwe.

By 1900,he was already educated and with a little more time in class perfecting his intellect and knowledge, he could have easily joined the wave of earliest African scholars and educationist, the likes of Booker Washington, William Dubois, Martin Hughes, Tolson and James Farmer sr to mention a few.

But earning himself scholarly achievements while his natives were being oppressed by a tyranny of a majority elite was too much of a pill to swallow.
He wanted to refuse them the freedom of time and space they need for their mayhem against his natives.
In crowning John Chilembwe as a symbol of martyrdom, we do so in recognition of the latter spirit, the spirit of resistance. As prof. Thandeka Mkandawire once said, “We have a laudable history of resistance”

As anyone can imagine, chilembwe’s struggle for equality met insurmountable challenges. Waging an uprising at a time when the British colonial office was entertaining John Cecil Rhodes’s commercial empire was not easy but his love for humanity taught us something.

In a country where facts were blurred by superstition and denial, where mothers were separated from their children and prevention was hamstrung by divisive racial politics, pulpit ceremonies of loving people, touching them, hold their hands and finally becoming symbol of resistance was by far the greatest of all achievements.

It took the courage of young Chilembwe a middle income earner to hatch a plan that would change the plight of his peasant natives. They had no capital hill or parliament to discuss it.Future martyrs, the likes of Dunduzu Chisiza,Ching’oli Chirwa,Attati Mpakati,Mkwapatira Mhango,Chief Gomani,John Grey Kufa and many others long gone, were the salt of our new found freedom,Future pillars of struggle for equality.

Their willingness to challenge the injustices of the time and the inhuman nature of the manner in which their natives were being treated were not ordinary acts.Malawi may not be experiencing the wrath of racism and the degree of imperial injustices of 1915, 1953.1959 and the ninety’s.

There is no doubt that what Malawi has accomplished within this short period is both impressive and inspiring. Among African nations, we remain a model for representative democracy - a place where many different ethnic factions have found a way to live and work together in peace and stability.

But for all the progress that has been made, we must surely acknowledge that we have not yet fulfilled our potential - that the hopefulness of the post-colonial era was replaced by repression is a regrettable fact.

That a post repressive administration was replaced by a decade of corruption and mob justice is another sad reality and that political despair, and that true economic freedom has not yet been won for those struggling to live on less than a few dollars a day, for those who have fallen prey to HIV/AIDS or malaria, to those ordinary citizens who continue to find themselves trapped in the crossfire of political depression needs a united front that brings the nation together.

In each case, what has been required to meet the challenges we face has been good judgment and clear vision from our leader, and a fundamental seriousness and engagement on the part of the Malawian people – a willingness on the part of each of us to look past what is petty and small and sensational, and look ahead to what is necessary and purposeful.

SPEECH AT THE FIRST TVM AWARDS

Your Excellency Sire

All protocols observed,
We are here to witness history. We are here to experience what it means to dream in color. What it means to tap into the heavenly resources of wisdom through creativity and well focused visionary minds. We are making history.

Your Excellency,

it has become an irrefutable truth of immense proportions which will remain as a heritage for all to retrieve .Indeed History will be able to speak about it at great length and where possible assign responsibilities more clearly to the future generation ,that there once lived a man who seriously thought that there was only one way in which we could address our economic challenges and that that one way would not be found in throwing mud at each other through petty arguments bent on cheap popularity but that the only way we can move forward as a nation is to bang our heads together and come out with HOME GROWN SOLUTIONS to address the challenges of our time and that man was Ngwazi Dr Bingu Wamutharika.

Your Excellency
Today is one such a day where our country will in a few minutes from now be recognizing men and women who have done just that.
Allow me to share with all who are in here and beyond that it was your vision to honor ordinary men and women who have done allot without knowing it and have improved the lives of others.

Perhaps I did not mention it to you Sir that after conceptualizing your idea of recognizing men and women who’ve done a lot without knowing it, I made an attempt to sell the idea to a few people where I was told point blank that whatever plan I had regarding this event was wishful thinking and that it couldn’t work particularly so in Malawi and while you encouraged me to soldier on, I was told by a media mogul that I was brazenly crazy and Your Excellency this, to some extent did put me off temporarily .

However, on reflection, I dismissed his hell bent sentiments towards frustrating me, though to some extent he probably would have been partially correct for craziness is a necessary ingredient for creativity and invention to forge ahead,for as you may be aware sir, through history, a man of humble achievements and yet in this very point the former leader of Burkina Faso namely Tomas Sankara once said that “You cannot carry out fundamental change without a certain amount of madness.

in this case, it comes from nonconformity, the courage to turn your back on the old formulas, the courage to invent the future, thus he went to say that“ It took the madmen of yesterday for us to be able to act with extreme clarity today. I want to be one of those madmen. We must dare to invent the future."

In tonight’s show, we have a sample of men and women drawn from all regional corners of this country through a research process which saw us coming into contact with a mother and daughter forming a new understanding of each other, bonding as never before.

There are in tonight’s program stunning stories about the sacrifices made to keep a family together. They showed a community where buildings can be damaged and even destroyed while living our spirit indestructible. They too make us proud of the extraordinary resilience of ordinary Malawian people.

Government officers in a district yet to be recognized in a few minutes from now showed remarkable concern over those we consider to be the outcasts due to their mental illness when they together went to work to clean up the streets, shaved and bathed the mental patients , Long after the society considered them to be a nuance.

But tested again and again the resilience of the awardees has been a powerful proof of the character of our country. And lastly your excellence, my father Ben Everson Malopa is a Minister of the Seventh - Day Adventist Church.

Although he is a Pastor, I don’t recall all the sermons my father preached Sabbath after Sabbath, but I will never forget a phrase in one of his sermons that “we must be givers as well as getters” and learn the art of Putting something back, And by doing so make a difference. All awardees fit into this criteria, thus they gave their onself to better others while making a difference in the process

To the power of Television and the spirit of tomorrow,
I now present to you, Your Excellency, the people of Malawi and Africa
the 2009 tv Awards- OUR PEOPLE OUR PRIDE

ON BEING APPOINTED DEPUTY CEO FOR MBC

A response to government appointment of Bright Malopa as deputy director general of Malawi Broadcasting Corporation. Entitled BYE-BYE BRITANIA,it was posted on malawitalk in january 2007.

http://www.mailtalk.ac.uk/cgi-bin/webadmin?A2=ind0701&L=MALAWITALK&T=0&F=&S=&P=294391

Friends and critics,

I have no words to express the warmth and support my family and two little children have received from friends,relatives and the people of the republic of Malawi. Expressions of support have come from as far as government officials to my village headman.In this season of goodwill and fellowship I am well aware of the expectations my appointment alongside that of my colleague Mr Patrick Khoza has generated .

Iam also aware of the many calls there have already been on those who are not wishing us well. But I want to draw your attention to the plight of a victim scarcely less deserving than the causes for which you recently rang and wrote –“The Malawian mindset”One that seems to suggest that only those that have a background in journalism should have a monopoly to enjoy managerial positions at the nation’s broadcasting house, a position laughably being pursued by NAMISA ..Sadly this is a mentality that has led our nation’s broadcasting house into this sorry state.

A sorry state that seek to believe in running a media house in an ever growing demand driven environment using journalistic theories and article scribbling experiences as opposed to best business practices.A sorry state that has seen the current DG and the DDG inheriting their offices without handovers.A sorry state where the nation broadcasting house’s has news reporters and their senior managers isolated from the cyber world,A sorry state where support officers went as far as going outside office complex to engage in car washing “ganyus” during working hours And finally a sorry state where all vehicles are grounded except 3 with none in the central and northern regions.

As some of you may know, in contrast to the DG, and to several other senior managers at MBC, I'm a relative newcomer to the topic of public broadcasting and its role in contributing to the development of civil society. But like so many of you who have invested your trust and confidence in me, I have been brought to it by both the demands of my work as a professional marketer, and my personal experience as the former moderator of Malawitalk.

Ever since I obtained my first Malawian passport some 15 years ago, I've devoted my life to the notion of “malawianness”, and I've had my eyes and heart opened as I traveled through emerging democracies , a thing which has been a motivating factor whenever an opportunity arise to contribute to the development of my country be it in my private or official capacity.

Now that the government of Malawi through the ministry of statutory corporations and the board members of Malawi broadcasting corporation gave me a rare opportunity to steer this organization to safety lands , I feel a real sense of urgency about changing not only MBC’s mindset but also that of its listeners so we can breed and cultivate , a culture of enterprise that encourages people to get on as far as they can, with decent public services and a net beneath which no one can fall.

Like many of you, we at MBC want to make a difference. We are currently re-evaluating our strategy and role. We want to identify where in the world it is important for us to be, and to join forces with other organizations that can help make our presence useful and effective, with the resources available.

We have received enormous amount of support from government and have been told no any other advice other than to uplift the organization from its current mess and direct it towards self financing.As public service broadcaster, MBC has helped build civil society and democratic institutions in our country. Many of its listeners have also contributed to social development outside their own borders. I have tremendous admiration for the work that many of the serving broadcasters at MBC have done and are doing in this regard.

Personally, I accepted the offer fully aware of its challenges. I accepted the offer for the very simple reason that it is a hard job. As others have suggested, It could have been a good idea to secure employment with foreign office so I could work at one of Malawi’s leading embassies as its trade attaché. But doing that would have been doing what I together with other friends –the likes of Watipaso Mkandawire,Dr Lweya,Levie Nkunika,Mr and Mrs Kandulu and many others were already doing in trying to shape the future of Malawi’s foreign investment with the direction and guidance of Malawi’s mission representative to the UK Dr Francis Moto.

Going for an appointment whose tasks were evolving around something I was already doing in my spare time was a demotivating factor. And so I did it intentionally because easy jobs are for light minds and those who are not willing to take risks, not that I have a tough mind although I may agree with anyone who may say so.I accepted the offer well knowingly that despite few comforts it may bring, by and large the nature of the DDG office has envy, jealousies, gossiping and backbiting as its occupational hazards.

There is plenty of evidence on nyasanet and open display of envy by a minority, but a minority that possesses a characteristic human psychological deformity and can't stand the pettiness of intellectual consistency. They want it all ways, and are capable of holding two mutually contradictory positions at once. Thus they can wish you well in the first posting only to be irritated by a sea of those that are joining them in wishing you well and are capable of not only destroying the spirit, trust and confidence of others but can go all the way to the point of wishing others dead.

I do not fear being killed for the simple reason that I was born a Malawian, raised a Malawian and will probably die a Malawian. If Malawians were to decide or plot to kill me for holding a differing view than that of their own, such an act though not acceptable to my close friends and family members will serve as an honorable act to the decency of my high held views At which point my epitaph will read thus:"THERE LIES A MAN WHOSE NATIVES FAILED TO DESTROY HIS CONVICTIONS"

For those that are concerned with the path negativists and agents of mendacity are pursuing, I wish to assure you that I have done my homework, and I have come up with a far more effective solution.

As ever, I have consulted the ancient texts, and have been reminded that the Greeks and Romans were also convinced of the importance of making a sacrifice before any tricky voyage. You will recall that the Greek task force for Troy actually killed Iphigenia, daughter of Agamemnon, in the hope of guaranteeing good sailing weather -- with bad consequences for Agamemnon's conjugal relations. I too have made a sacrifice and have since killed my fears death in the hope that I should serve my country and my government because they hold view - one which I happen to share - that for Malawi to develop, there is a great need for a certain degree of patriotism and that a mindset where ambitions and dreams can flourish should be given room to grow .My role at MBC is simply to provide business direction and where possible propel confidence and a spirit of malawianness.

I also believe that changing technologies and markets are opening opportunities for us to fill that need around the world. As a quasi university, I together with my boss- a veteran broadcaster one Patrick Khoza will make all efforts and see to it that our 36 months reign at MBC are served in the interest of the nation in line with government’s millennium goals .

I am convinced that the government of Malawi and its people will look back at MBC and stare at us in ways that makes one to say: "There once live a DG and his DDG whose contribution to the broadcasting house will be a source of inspiration to future generations as well as a model of business to struggling state run corporations."

I have no reason to doubt that I have managed to leave this mark on Malawitalk.Now that Malawitalk has managed to position itself in the society and is considered a serious source of information and ideas,, I have all the hope and trust that the M-Team currently being managed by David Mkwambisi,Timothy Sukali and Isaac Ziba will work on my weakness to provide direction which may appeal to reason and not emotions. Sadly, though, internet is painfully slow in Malawi such that I may not be able to respond to best wishes sent to me both on the forum and in private now reaching 800. May God continue to bless you in your various endeavors

Bright Mac Everson Malopa

Deputy Director Genaral-MBC

ON BEING APPOINTED TVM's CEO

Firstly I am thanking His Excellency the state president through the ministry of statutory corporations for considering and entrusting me with a responsibility to manage the images and aspirations of Malawians through visual footages at Television Malawi. What His Excellency the state president has done in this regard has changed the sad verses and chapters of our history where young people’s contribution to their country was to beat their elders and break their knees into numbness. It is the rarest of administrative phenomena- a collective change of hearts towards the youth of this country and I will for ever cherish the pleasure to take more responsibilities government may wish to assign me.

I also wish to add that I am just one of the many citizens of youthful years both in Malawi and outside looking forward to cut their teeth and try their trade in public service in a fashion that proves to the world that the love of our country beckons us, that the things that matters aught to be worked for and that with a bit of mindset change, a bright and prosperous future cannot be found across distant hills but rather within the corridors of our self courage ,confidence and determination.

As I leave MBC, to head TVM my approach will be to pursue and work on a high quality, distinctively Malawian program which reinforces both the degree of audience engagement with Malawian content and the TVM’s role in producing it. These I believe are the broadcasting measures designed to build a better sense of public ownership of the TVM.

I believe that our country has gone through an impressive economic turnaround and that the media in particular Television can transform people’s lives and participate effectively in the development of the country. I see Television as an important tool to reach out to the masses and to promote a positive sense of Malawian ness.

I also see the media as effective partners in reducing poverty and that media houses such as TVM should actively be taking part in developmental issues. My job at TVM will not be to be the boss of these virtues but nurture talent that can deliver them. I believe there is talent out there in particular the print media where brave sons and daughters of this nation have risen above their qualifications to claim awards of international repute as has been the case with our State President.

I am also aware of the world focus now zeroing in on this country economic successes and predictions not least expectations the world at large has on Malawi. With the presence of satellite, our program content has to match that and create a sense of Malawi we can all be proud of, where talent can be groomed and given room to rise. At each and every stage, we will be seeking the views and advice about the sort of TVM we all want to build. And when that happens, I will be the happiest Malawian on planet earth.

Your messages of good will are in order.

CHANGE WE CAN BELIEVE IN

Barack Obama has opened another page in the books of world politics where against all odds; he has become the first black man to be elected America’s president.
He put up a spirited fight from the word go taking each and every advantage to put himself in the lime light whilst developing his campaign around people’s participation. With the help of chief strategist David Axelrod known for his political magic, The Illinois senator built his decisive win on three leadership principles: a clear vision, clean execution, and friends in high places.

While his opponent John McCain is a great American war veteran whose economic platform made better sense for business, especially in terms of free trade, tax policy, and job creation, Obama's message was inspirational in its simplicity. He talked about the failings of George W. Bush. He talked about change and hope and health care for all. Over and over, he painted a picture of the future that excited people with a clear and consistent vision of a change they can believe in. The result was a tremendous success.

It gave American people hope. Rekindled late Martin Luther King’s dream of an America where people will not be judged by the colour of their skin, gave Africa someone to relate to but above all it made people believe that they will have someone who can listen to their concerns. This gospel of change seems not to escape anyone such that even people who have never changed like honourable Tembo are now talking of change.Whilst questions have been asked as regards to what exactly will change, it seems unlike Barack Obama, hon Tembo’s change is something no one can believe in.

The question, however, is not about whether hon Tembo’s change should be believed in or not but rather the relevance of the Malawi congress party as a political fabric in the history of Malawi. Where is the change when Hon. Tembo still presides over the MCP, squashing and trampling upon the spirit of the people who built it through its tenets? Where is the change when those who died for MCP would rise only to be confronted with the sad reality that has seen it degrading itself into a regional and personal estate?
The only change worth mentioning is the change from a truly national Party to a party where all top positions are exclusively predestined for one region, apparently operating from a personal residence and in the process permanently installing Hon. Tembo as chief landlord of MCP. Is this a change Malawians can believe in?

The MCP is neither transparent in its dealings nor fully accountable to its wider membership. Furthermore, the current leadership’s trend of clogging the whole hierarchy with people from one region has failed in its political function to inspire the nation and attract support from other regions. Frustrated with this and many other issues, people from other regions no longer find it worthwhile to belong to MCP. The MCP has out of its own accord, created a vicious cycle in which MCP itself often finds it hard to truly inform the national electorate about policy decisions. Certainly, and i repeat, certainly, this is not change we can believe in.

As history will attest, The MYP and the police under the instruction of the MCP political leadership were empowered to detain anyone without trial. Others were tried in traditional courts without legal representation and some were even murdered in fabricated “car accidents” In 1976 the religious denomination of Jehovah’s witnesses was declared an unlawful society. Its members were targets of massive repression and thousands were imprisoned.

Civil and political rights did not exist. Basic rights such as freedom of expression, freedom of information and the rule of law were barbarically and unashamedly violated. The censorship act and the information monopoly of the regime compromised the right of free access to information more over the reporting of false or damaging information about Malawi was considered a criminal offence punishable with life time imprisonment.
Rightly or wrongly, one name that has been associated to all these mis-hapennings has been that of hon Tembo because of his life-long desire to be the leader of this country.
If Hon is a changed man, then he has given up this life-long desire to always be in leadership. That is a change we will believe in.

The former head of state himself repeatedly detested any idea that would see hon Tembo becoming a leader, changed man or not! MCP’s idea of only reserving the presidential candidacy to hon Tembo is a serious threat the theory of change and to MCP’s own chances of reclaiming government. Over a short period in which he has been leader of MCP, he has inspired and provoked nothing but contempt. His performance over the last 5 years has made it even worse.
He presided over a brutal and egoistic section 65 position where he, himself won nothing and changed nothing, but only succeeded in denting the political image of his ably young and upcoming parliamentarians who are going to lose en masse.

When the president was fighting for a change in the tobacco prices for farmers most of them proud residents of the central region where remainings of his party are confined, this changed man blocked and ridiculed the president’s proposal as unworkable. Today farmers from Ntchisi, Kasungu ,Dowa and Lilongwe have regained their glorious past. Their lives can boast a change they can believe in. What is even more disappointing is not that he has been leader of MCP by decree for so long, but that he has been at the centre of breaking the very same ideals and values upon which MCP was founded- NATIONALISM.

When MCP was founded, it attracted young nationalists the likes of Masopera Gondwe, Stenings Msiska, Mikeka Mkandawire, Gomire Kuntumanji, Lali Lubani, Abdulla Thabi, Thengo Maloya, Hatwel Solomoni and many others now turning in their graves. These young men were inspired by the love of their country such that without any money, they often walked long distances preaching the gospel of nationalism and the coming of independence and a change they could believe in.

They did so often on empty stomachs. Their health steadily declined, they were dragged through the mud, tried and persecuted, castigated and ostracised, and dismissed as rouble-rousers and agitators, but they refused to abandon the cause because their belief in nationalism and a change they could believe in was greater than the enormity of challenges they experienced. Sadly the independence that MCP helped in bringing has had its celebrations boycotted by the allegedly changed MCP Ayatollah now assured of once again being its candidate.

Times have changed. Hon John Tembo has not.
People may be less desperate than in history, but they have more focused interests, they are more professional as advocates and they have stronger tools at their disposal. There must be amidst all the confusions and happenings in the MCP party at present undisturbed remnant MCP honest people who still have within them, a vision of a change Malawians can believe in. These change agents are not purveyors of coercion and violence. They are change advocates who are willing to stand alone if it is necessary for the way of peace and are able to identify themselves as advocates of progress and meaningful development.

These are such young and intelligent people as Ishmael Chafukira- minus his love for allowances; upcoming politicians such as Nancy Tembo who has been making objective contributions in the chamber; maverick and radical politicians like Willard Gwengwe; Fatherly and honest politicians like hon Kamoto-a kindhearted politician who stood for Maltida Katopola in the face of strong opposition from his colleagues and many others. These are the future leaders of a changed MCP.

There was a time when Malawi Congress party was a mighty party. They were holding their meetings and caucuses at their party offices and in conference rooms. Now they meet in somebody’s house. There was a time when MCP had membership across the country. It was rich in resources and manpower. Now it has been reduced to a party that is hunting for running mates. We don’t know whether that is desirable change.

The Malawian community may have strongly held opinions on both the presenting issues and their underlying causes. In this new Malawi we have not been afraid to discuss those views openly and honestly in our efforts to understand the machinations of government and politics. But equal to all of this is our central belief that forty-two years ago, democracy was perceived as dissenting but now its part of an integral system and because of our past , We must not loose site of the challenges currently facing our country and that any attempt to preach the gospel of change should be based on our values and belief in a better Malawi free of plotting and conjectures and responsibility, a Malawi where leaders can address our problems with scientific approaches as opposed to empty political hectoring

At a time when there are fresh and intelligent entrants into the political scene, when Malawi can see itself as a country where dreams and ambitions can be realised, a future Malawi of sky scrapers, Olympic stadiums and green revolution, it is a sad reality that the MCP convention was bullied into endorsing a leadership that has outlived its usefulness and that cannot contribute anything of value to our country.
This is not a change we can believe in.

THE SPIRIT OF DR ROBERT LAWS

This article was presented before 600 delegates, Reverends and leaders of Livingstonia Synod at their Synod General Session on 6th august 2008. It was a wonderful ocasion the pleasure for which I will for ever cherish.Reverend Nkhoma,Mezua Banda,Nyondo and Maurice Munthali were gracious to me.Here with please enjoy a reproduced verbatim of my speech titled:

"THE SPIRIT OF DR ROBERT LAWS"

I appreciate the opportunity to speak here at the call to witness the opening of the Livingstonia synod general session. As I am expressing my appreciation, I want the outgoing general secretary and the general synod at large to know that I was moved and continue to be deeply moved by the sincere gesture shown to me through an invitation forwarded to me by the general secretary Rev. Matiya Nkhoma.I must confess here ,that much as I was going to honor the invitation one way or the other, the fact that it was going to be here at Livingstonia paralyzed any excuse that would have gone in the direction of turning down the offer.

I say so because I have heard quite a lot about this place. Some of the Braviest sons and daughters of this nation had their character modeled to an extent where they became an influence to be recon with.Such names include late Rodwel Munyenyembe whose last word on earth was order! Order, Desmond Dudwa Phiri Malawi’s accomplished writer, eminent orators such as Clement Kadali the trade unionist whose work is much more respected by the ruling ANC in south Africa than his Nkhatabay natives, eminent scholars like Mpalive Msiska,Gwebe Nyirenda,Goodal Gondwe,Lewis Mughogho and finally my mentor the award winning novelist Legson Kayira a young man who was inspired by the Livingstonia’s mission motto” I WILL TRY”He trekked to Sudan on foot in pursuit of knowledge. Year’s letter, he wrote an autobiography in memory of this place’s motto I WILL TRY.

Famous for his extensively quoted quotation thus: “I learned that I was not as what other Africans think, a victim of circumstances but rather a master of them” his achievements symbolizes the greatness of Livingstonia mission. It is a place that makes one to discover the warmth and sense of community that the people of Malawi possess - their sense of hopefulness even in the face of great difficulty. As I was coming here, I was enjoying the scenery, the meandering 19 or is it 21 corners and up here, I discovered the beauty of the land, a beauty that haunts you long after you've left.But when warned that I might be asked to say a word or too, I was gob smacked and a little bit numb.

I was not too sure of what to say before this large body of Gods workers. Certainly I couldn’t dare to enter into the un chartered terrain of scriptures in the mistaken belief that I will talk sense to the men of God, themselves masters of that revered art.At first, I entertained the idea of centering the theme of my presentation on the connection between religion and politics and perhaps offer some thoughts about how we can sort through some of the often bitter arguments that we've been seeing over the last several years.

I thought this would be easy on my part, as you all know, we can affirm the importance of poverty in the Bible; As a media man, I thought the religious Malawi could get some advice from little gained experience in the media and link it to the press as part of the church’s strategic growth stratagem and from there we could discuss the religious call to address poverty and environmental stewardship and where time permits us, tackle head-on the mutual suspicion that sometimes exist between religious Malawi and secular Malawi.Political divide in this country has fallen sharply along religious lines.

Indeed, the single biggest "gap" in party affiliation among Malawians today is not between men and women, or those who reside in so-called regional blocks and the phenomena of the tribal belt, but between those who attend church regularly and those who don’t. A religious body that is backing candidate A vs a religious body denouncing Candidate B.But when my mind reflected on the history of this nation, in particular how history recalled a kind hearted person upon whom this synod is named after, a full citation of his famous quote made in 1857 at the Senate House in Cambridge, England knocked my heart, I could hear his echoing melodramatic voice from a distant horizon, it was a voice of hope full of inspiration, a voice that saved us from becoming Portuguese speaking natives, but above all a voice that resembles true commitment to humanity.

His words and I quote. ”I go back to Africa to make an open path for commerce and Christianity. Do you carry on the work I have begun? I leave it to you.” End of quote.Immediately after recalling this historic event, my focus changed from the mighty subject of religion to the life sketches of a missionary worker and by extension a gospel minister in plentiful site here.I've had the opportunity to take a look at their work experience in Malawi and by extension the challenges faced by the present church regardless of denomination. It is filled with outstanding achievements in the domain of doing greater good to the nation moral wise and prescriptions for much of what ails this country.But over the long haul, I think we make a mistake when we fail to acknowledge the power of faith in people's lives -- in the lives of the Malawian people -- and I think it's time that we join a serious debate about how to reconcile faith with our modern, pluralistic democracy.

From a purely personal point of view, frankly speaking I don’t share the idea of mixing religion and politics. Religion and politics are a deadly, explosive mixture. Religion becomes more important than individual rights and political power provides belief enforcement.History is replete with examples of over zealous religious beliefs becoming the law of the land because that person had the power to enforce those beliefs. Do not get me wrong, I am not against religion in favor of government or government in favor of religion. In fact I am a practicing Christian. Government and religion are both highly desired by the majority of people.The type of government or religion varies but both are usually deemed necessary in some form. Government is necessary to prevent chaos, to provide services, to provide some form of justice, and to provide direction for the individual but more so for the group through its laws and rules.

Religion is necessary to provide hope, to provide direction, and to control the individual as well as the group through its tenets. Government and religion are often a mirror image of each other and one can to some degree substitute for the other in bringing a just society. However, my understanding of the two is that they should be kept separate and should not share platforms at any cost for the simple reason that religion and politics often promote a narrow view of life while promoting absolute concepts.In order for one to be right in religion or politics, opposing views must be wrong or at the very least not as correct. Combining religion and politics in one person only serves to narrow the view even more; if you add power to enforce that view, the end result is a dictatorship of thought, deeds, and actions."Thankfully, Livingstonia synod has been a model church in as far as handling issues of this nature is concerned.

This model in my view has not been simply the result of successful marketing by skilled preachers and the strategic wits of its secretariat, or the draw of popular mega-churches. In fact, it speaks to a hunger that's deeper than that - a hunger that goes beyond any particular issue or cause.And if it weren't for the particular attributes of Dr David Livingston, John Dickson, Scudamore and Dr Robert Laws, I may have accepted this fate.For one thing, I believed and still believe in the power of the biblical tradition to spur social change, a power made real by some of the church leaders here today from the eighties and nineties political shenanigans . Because of its missionary past, the Livingstonia synod understands in an intimate way the Biblical call to feed the hungry and cloth the naked and challenge powers and principalities.

And in its historical struggles for freedom and the rights of man with the likes of Dr. Mazunda, late Rev.Aaron Longwe, Rev. Matiya Nkhoma, Rev. Mphande and many others to mention a few, I was able to see faith as only being more than just a comfort to the weary or a hedge against death, but rather as an active, palpable agent in the world. As a source of hope. And perhaps it was out of this intimate knowledge of hardship -- the grounding of faith in struggle -- that the church offered me a second insight, one that I think is important to emphasize today.My first encounter goes back to the time when Dr Livingstone entered Nyasaland.

Of particular interest was the reception offered to him by a local chief Chibisa in Chikwawa.At the time when foreign nations were blamed for wars and slavery, at the time when locals were highly suspicious of foreigners, Dr David Livingston was an exception.According to Dr. King [The story of medicine and diseases in Malawi]Dr. David Livingston was warmly welcomed by Chief Chibisa, whom Livingstone described as “a jolly person who could laugh easily”.When you are a man of God, it does not matter whether one is foreign or native. It does not even matter whether one speaks one’s language or not.A man of God is a peace maker and perhaps this was why chief chibisa could laugh easily in the presence of Dr. David Livingston.

He did not feel threatened.Dr. David Livingstone was the last member of the Zambesi Expedition to leave in 1863, after several had died of Malaria. On his last journey down the Shire River, he passed the graves of Richard Thornton at Kapichira Falls, of Dickinson and Scudamore at Chibisa’s Village, of Ferger in the Elephant Marsh, of Bishop Mackenzie at Chiromo, and of his beloved wife Mary, at Shupunga. He was not defeated by these disasters. The problems of the local people, who were beset by a brutal slave trade, by tribal conflicts, by starvation, and by disease, strengthened his determination to help them.

When God calls you, the challenges that one may face strengthens one’s spirit.On March 17th 1863 “dear devoted Dickinson, after a severe illness of eight days, had died. Livingstone and Kirk had been called from the Pioneer to his assistance, but arrived half an hour too late. He was buried beside Scudamore at Chibisa’s Village. The graves are to the south of the modern Blantyre to Chikwawa road, on the west bank of the Shire River close to the bridge.13 years later, the graves were visited by Young who in 1876 wrote “we paid a visit to the graves of Henry Scudamore and John Dickinson at Chibisa’s Village, only to find the same deep respect evidenced for their preservation.

He went on to say “future generations will come to hear of these men who wrenched the slave sticks from their fathers and mothers, and who endured the hard days of famine and destruction with them”.Where is the faith of our missionary, one may argue.Where is the commitment and dedication earlier shown to us by the early missionaries?When God does not answer out prayers there is a reason-always. Often we are that reason.

Even if our prayers is for something that is clearly God’s will, it may be hindered because there is something in our lives that makes it impossible for God to do what He wishes to do. Part of prevailing prayer consists of examining ourselves and clearing away that which hinders God from working.

Indeed one cannot conclude the history of this church without mentioning the legendary missionary and man of God Dr. Robert Laws.He made a personal commitment to work for God in 1870 after surviving a fatal smallpox attack.His quickly craved a personal motto thus:“When God wills something to be done, He will give us the means to do it”.It was a simple faith with fundamental optimism.

In 1874, the Church of Scotland released the Rev. Dr. Robert Laws to go to Lake Nyasa for two years only. He stayed for 53 years to achieve some of the most impressive medical mission work in Africa.Immediately they set to, to build a bungalow 50 feet by 25 feet. On the first day 200 trees were cut down. Laws worked with the rest, digging holes.Back at Cape Maclear in December 1875, malaria was rife, and Dr. Laws suffered 15 attacks in a few months. Often he had to crawl from his mattress to tend others. The beauty of doing Gods work depend less on preaching powerful ceremonies or condemning sinners but it rather depends on one’s ability to serve those in need. “All those who profess to be followers of Christ as Ellen G white once said must first love all for whom Christ died for”

In September 1877, Dr. Black arrived to take charge of the Mission, in a party with John Gunn (farmer), Robert Ross (engineer), A.C Miller (weaver), and Dr. James Stewart. Black survived only 7 months at Cape Maclear before dying of malaria. Then Shadrach Nguna and John Mackay (boatman) died of tuberculosis But Dr. Laws tended them devotedly.In December 1879, they sailed together to explore the north end of Lake Nyasa, His wife Mary was sleeping on the deck and in heavy rain and strong winds, spread her skirt over the engine. One dark stormy night, the Doctor went forward to where she stood clinging to the rigging: “Well, are you afraid?” asked Dr. Laws” No… replied Mrs. Laws and when Dr. Laws asked why???Mrs. Laws smiled and replied: “because you are at the helm.”

You see when a man of God is within the community, society feels safe because he or she is at the helm. When misguided politics reaps us apart, when men of cloth are sometimes palpably seen to be bought, true men of God usually stands out to instill confidence to the heartbroken society. There are times when the land of our dreams recedes from us - when we are lost, wandering spirits, content with our suspicions and our angers, our long-held grudges and petty disputes, our frantic diversions and tribal allegiances.

But when God is allowed to be at the helm of the church, all becomes well.Equally ,when a God fearing man or woman is incharge,society should feel self,because God himself is at the helm.When Dr. and Mrs. Laws Returned to Cape Maclear in 1880, they were both very ill with malaria, and then, the Master of the Ilala, Captain Benzie, and John Gunn from Caithness both suddenly died of fever. The Doctor tended Gunn for three days: “the temperature rapidly increased, he vomited blood (coffee grounds), petechial spots appeared rapidly over his body. About 1 pm he began talking in Gaelic, and spoke no more English, nor was he conscious afterwards. At 5.5 pm he passed away. The Laws were devastated by these deaths. There were now five Mission graves at Cape Maclear. Yet Dr. Laws could see a distinct way forward. He regained his faith and positioned his spirit to do Gods work.

It was the sort of spirit that gives courage to the faint of heart, by dint of vision, and determination, and most of all, faith in the redeeming power of God. The spirit that endures the humiliation of mosquito attacks, the loneliness of a grieving couple, the constant threats by Arabic slave traders, until it finally inspired expedition to transform itself, and begin to live up to the meaning of its creed through a personal motto inscribed in his heart.“When God wills something to be done, He will give us the means to do it”.On March 29th 1881 Dr. and Mrs. Laws sailed north from Cape Maclear to go to the Tonga, Tumbuka, and Ngoni people who wanted their help.Captain E.D Young had first encountered the Ngoni by the Shire River in 1877. They were a branch of the Zulu tribe which had migrated to escape from Chaka’s butchery, and still spoke the Zulu language.

Young described them as “a merciless horde, and yet as merciless as they were, they had learned of a Good Man by the name of Dr. Laws such that In 1879, Chief M’mbelwa summoned Dr. Laws to his cattle kraal at Njuyu, four days walking from Nkhata Bay.The next day Chief M’mbelwa at last appeared to a huge assembly of warriors shouting” Bayete”(hail). He looked slowly at Dr. Laws, and at once a bond of mutual respect was established between these two strong men. Then he said.“We are disappointed that you have not come and settled with us Ngoni. Why do you like the Lake? Can you milk fish?” Laws promised to send Mission teachers to them in due course.

Before he left Njuyu Village, a lion was killed and the warriors danced the fearsome Lion Dance in celebration.In April 1882 Dr. Laws, with Dr. Hannington and William Koyi (the Zulu missionary), went again to visit Chief M’mbelwa at Njuyu. Laws asked to meet all the sub-chiefs and waited nine days for all these Indunas to arrive.

When a man of God is charged with a mediation process, where his services are required, he must be prepared to be patient. There’s nothing like a deadline because God himself is not in a hurry. And so did Dr Laws. He waited for nine solid days for the Ngoni indunas and finally to the joy of Dr Laws, they all arrived.They were addressed first by the handsome Chief Mtwalo who asked Dr. Laws to leave the Lake and settle in the hills with the Ngoni. Laws, was very ill with fever, but went on and said he wished to preach Christianity so that all the people might be happy and strong. “The mission wanted to teach children how to read the Bible and to give medicines to the sick. This would be better than war”. Chief Mtwalo was impressed and Chief M’mbelwa made a formal pledge of protection for the Tonga of Bandawe ratified by an exchange of cattle and blankets.

Tonga and Tumbuka memories of Robert Laws at Bandawe were:“Dotolozi was a charmer; he charmed the whole district so that the Ngoni would not come near us.”When he came, he stopped all fighting between the chiefs.” When a believer enters a place, his or her main job is to bring peace. If people were fighting, their fighting should come to a standstill and the Tongas remembered him for that.In 1894, the Laws, with Yuriah Chirwa, at last moved their work to a hill station at Kondowe where we are, 4,500 feet above sea level, looking down on Lake Nyasa. The Ngoni people came to help the Mission, leveling roads, building houses, and bringing their children to school. The vicious tribe to which I am a member laid down their armory and helped in building a mission station.Mawerela Tembo son of the feared witchcraft doctor became the first Ngoni to be converted to Christianity.

The Laws’ first house was blown down by a tornado the night after its completion. But he was not discouraged.Then the “jiggers” epidemic arrived, causing bad ulcers. One day Laws removed 12 matekenya from his own toes but it only strengthened his determination.In 1904 the Ngoni gathered in their thousands, Chiefs, Indunas, and Impis of warriors, with shields and spears, to see the British Governor Sharpe with Dr. Laws. They had come to surrender their old wild way of life, to submit to authority and taxation. With the Doctor’s help, the Ngoni agreed to be a part of the Nyasaland Protectorate, with their own police.A Nyasa plea reached Scotland in 1908; if Dr. Laws is to stay in Scotland, the whole of our land will weep, and catch him, and stop his loads going to us by God.

They are not Europeans now, they are Africans.” For once a tribe only described as a merciless horde by many were now crying for a missionary man. This had to do with his character.This was later reflected in one of his writings and I quote.“It is often said that the highest qualifications are not required for the missionary to Africa. The opposite is the case. It needs also the finest character. It is not one’s preaching and work that tells on people, but the example of one’s life.”As Robert Laws left Nyasaland in 1928 there were many tributes: “He has appeared to Africans as a man of daring spirit. He had a message to deliver and that he accomplished. He is a wonderful man in his humility, meekness, patience, and compassion.” Sadly, Dr Robert Laws died on August 6th 1934 in London.

Often has my heart been ready to sink. Many times, when wondering in the forests of praise and criticism, in the pelting rain of fear for doing what is just, or on the deck of a struggling broadcasting ship, on a dark, stormy nights alone, far from home, I have almost accused myself of madness and folly to sacrifice the peace of my family and all the hopes of life, for what might prove, after all, but a dream. I have seen my companions one after another fall by my side, and feared I, too, might not live to see the end after being a recipient of unwarranted and un provoked threats. And yet, one hope has led me on; and I have prayed that I might not taste death till my contribution towards my country how small it may be gets accomplished. Thankfully this prayer is often answered.” But chief amongst the inspiration has been the story of Dr Robert Laws.The story of Dr Robert Laws and other missionaries gone long before him and after, is a lesson to the present day Livingstonia Synod.

It is a rallying call upon which the church can renew its commitment to society and the nation at large.It is the sort of calls that keeps each one of us, asking the questions, what if, why, and why not? The one that keeps you always searching for answers to those questions. The one that makes you say,"I don't have to be content with the present, because I have a role in changing the lives of others”. Next year, this nation will go through an important excise the elections. If the reports by the media are anything to go by, it appears like certain personalities are being targeted and at worse religious organization too.As a practicing Christian, I sometimes get disappointed when I hear rev A or B abandoning this sacred profession in pursuit of monetary gains offered by political entities.

There is no logic in denying that Society is becoming more and more corrupt these days, and one of the clearest evidences of this degeneration is the tendency for people, even so-called Christians, to sell themselves – if the price is right.Every time I see such a headline or come across such a rumor, I often ask myself a question as to whether Exodus 23:8 -was completely deleted from his or her bible for it says:” Thou shall take no bribe: for a bribe blindeth them that have sight, and perverteth the words of the righteous”.The saying “Every man has his price,” ascribed to Sir Robert Walpole, Former prime minister of England, is not strictly true, and it should never be true of a Christian.

What is it that enables a Christian to turn down a bribe, even if he should be offered the whole world? The answer is simple: His affections are set on things above. Why? Because his treasure is laid up in heaven.I am reminded of a story I once read from one of my devotional booksWhen the managers of Standard Oil of New Jersey were looking for a representative to promote their products in china, they turned to Dr. R. A. Jaffrey, a missionary, who not only spoke Chinese fluently but also had the confidence of the people. A company agent offered him a salary of $5,000 a year if he would work for Standard Oil. At the time he was earning a mere $300 a year. He turned them down. They came back with an offer of $10,000, then $20,000, but he still refused. But the company was persistent.

They instructed their agent to “get him at any price.” Kindly, but firmly, Dr. Jaffrey told the agent, “I cannot accept any offer. You are offering me a big salary with a little job. I have a big job with a small salary, but I am content.” Such absolute dedication to God’s cause is rare these days.Livingstonia synod has a big job with or without money. The church is not and should not be offered for sale. As a church, is it teaching its followers to lay their treasures in heaven? Is the church setting its affections on things above so that it can teach its followers to refuse the most attractive bribe?As stated earlier, the church plays a complimentary role to government and we must protect the integrity of the church from those whose only means to anything is through dangling monetary carrots. We must protect our democracy too. And gladly in this very point, Livingstonia synod has been modest.

By sustaining the democratic spirit no matter how fragile it has been, we have proved the warring, divided and toned nations, that the love of our country beckons us, and that we will find it not across distant hills or within some hidden valley to go the other African way, but rather we will find it somewhere in our hearts.That there’s progress in all fronts, that though with teething problems, our democracy is growing and that whenever there are differences, we resort to settle our differences in courts as opposed to machetes and pangas.But for all the progress that has been made, we must surely acknowledge that we have not yet fulfilled our potential - that the hopefulness of the post-colonial era replaced by repression is a regrettable fact.

That a post repressive administration was replaced by a decade of corruption and mob justice is another sad reality and that political despair, and that true economic freedom has not yet been won for those struggling to live on less than a few dollars a day, for those who have fallen prey to HIV/AIDS or malaria, to those ordinary citizens who continue to find themselves trapped in the crossfire of political depression needs a church’s united front that brings the nation together by turning down any offers that may come prior to elections.There is no doubt that what Malawi has accomplished within this short period is both impressive and inspiring. Among African nations, we remain a model for representative democracy - a place where many different ethnic factions have found a way to live and work together in peace and stability. We enjoy a robust civil society; a press that's free, and a strong independent judiciary.

When people are judged by contribution, not background, when the best and brightest can lead the country, people will work hard, and the entire economy will grow - everyone will benefit and more resources will be available for all, not just selected groups.In today's Malawi - a Malawi already more open and less repressive than in the past is the envy and pride of many –It is a Malawi that has been courageous enough to confront its past. A Malawi we can ably stand for and defend it in the international scenes .This sort of Malawi needs the church’s protection from political agents of mendacity who does not wish this country well. Its time to respond to the national duty of raising the flag and tell the world that Malawi is indeed the warm heart of Africa, without doubt in mind. Such an act would have attracted a standing ovation from Dr. Robert Laws.

I thank you all for listening.

References:

Pachai: The Early History of Malawi, Elizabeth Colson and Masc. Gluckman: Seven Tribes of British Central Africa, , W.P Livingston: Laws of Livingstonia, Fredrick Moir: after Livingstone, Margret Read: The ngoni of Nyasaland, D.D Phiri: History of Malawi, T. Collen Young: The history of the Tumbuka – Kamanga people. Shephersien: Independent African, R. Mackenzie,W.A. Elmslie: Among The wild Angoni, Bible: Exodus 23:8,Gelfard Michae l–Lakeside Pioneers,Robert Laws: Reminisce of Livingstonia, Legson Kayira: I Will Try, Ransford Oliver: Livingstone’s Lake, E.D Young: The Search after Livingstone/A journal of Adventures, Michael & Elspeth King – The Story of Medicine and Disease in Malawi, Masiye Tembo: Touched by His Grace, Malopa Bright: Where Islam Acts in Silence, Elley G. White: Messages to Young People,Peter G Forster:T.Culen Young –missionary anthropologist.

BON VOYAGE ALEKE -TRUE STATESMANSHIP

Recent reports that Honorable Aleke Banda MP a veteran, acutely perceptive and stewart player on the Malawian political scene has decided to retire from active politics to devote his time to the promotion of cancer awareness and related causes has to be received with commendation.

There are moments in life when the courage of a person epitomizes the will of the future. In that breadth, also comes a time in every politician’s life when he must recognize that the old wineskins are no longer good enough for the new political wine. It is important when such moments arrive to accept the inevitable and go out with dignity. This is the mark of a true statesmanship.

It is curious and sometimes even tragic that many a politician refuse to accept their call to statesmanship and prefer, instead, to paint ugly blemishes on their otherwise distinguished career walls by clinging to a political career that is clearly past its sell date. It is sad to see clearly clueless politicians still believing they can contribute their old and outdated ideas to the contemporary and rapidly changing political agenda particularly when those politicians have been tried on the Malawian political scene, and found desperately wanting.

Honourable Aleke Banda has done well to follow the dignified example set by such luminaries as Bill Clinton, Nelson Mandela and even our very own Justin Malewezi who retired from active politics to become an advocate on HIV/AIDS related issues.

There are many altruistic causes in our beloved country that would similarly benefit if more of our veteran politicians followed suit. Opening the political doors to the younger generation. The reason most of the young and intelligent people in this country are not interested in politics is that it has long held a demented view though it patently is that Malawian politics wears the image of being the career of people that were already in politics when Malawi gained independence in 1964.
For instance, isn’t it time for politicians who evidently no longer have anything of value to contribute such as Bakili Muluzi and JohnTembo to turn their eyes away from politics and focus on various charitable and noble causes to champion rather than focusing on how to grasp political power?

The only justification a veteran politician can have for remaining in politics is if they can point to a track record of performance and achievement in the rapidly changing economic environment.
But just as even the respectable and feared but ageing war general must sooner or later come to terms with reality .admit his time for close combat is over and surrender his rifle, the true political patriot must accept when it is time to put down the microphone, step off the podium and take an advisory rather than leading role in politics.

Echoing this same very point is senator John McCain who in his most recent book, "Hard Call," explains why knowledge of history particularly when to quit matters is important: He goes on to say that "Great statesmen who have been praised for their ability to see around the corner of history knew their history before they looked beyond it, and they understood the forces that drove it in one direction or another." If there is evidence that Dr Bakili Muluzi, Hon John Tembo and Mr. Gwanda Chakuamba have that understanding, it is yet to emerge.

Very embarrassing indeed in the case of Mr. Muluzi whom desperation has pushed to a begging edge where he is scheduled to seek alms from retired former Tanzanian leader. Basically a pensioner asking alms from another pensioner.

As Masauko Chipembere once observed in his book “hero of the nation”, their parties are now faced with a situation in which their leaders are inspiring and provoking nothing but contempt; and their habit of yelling against their opponent instead of creating hopes to the nation through their program of governance with them as leaders of the 21st century in their respective parties is a terrifying prospect. Malawi is facing a lot of challenges such as capacity building, sustainable development, population pressures and other social economic related issues. None of the above challenges can be overcome by their heroics and frantic yelling.

The example set by many before like Dr Kahumbe, Robson Watayachanga Chirwa, Mfunjo Mwanjasi Mwakikunga, Dr Justine Chimera Malewezi and followed by Hon Aleke Banda is a timely reminder to these veteran politicians who must realize that even in politics ,there is always an expiry date to one’s political usefulness. It is a reminder that there are better causes to dedicate their time to instead of clinging to politics.

Wouldn’t various campaigns and social causes such as the fight against domestic violence and child molestation consider themselves truly blessed if they had someone as eloquent as Bakili Muluzi yelling out their cause on their behalf?
Wouldn’t John Tembo receive recognition by championing the reform of witchcraft laws seeing witchcraft is such a menace in Malawian society today?

And certainly Mr. Chakuamba a retired retiree who cant tell the difference but resigned from government on an ideology based on anti-number plate changing principle and values. Understandably, he got annoyed when government changed his number plate from MG3 to MG5 therefore could in fact become a road traffic advocate making sure that politicians are not allowed to change number plates Willy Nilly for it confuses petrol attendants and road block Brigadiers.

This example might be hard to follow, but it is the only realistic one for all spent politicians. If they decide to stay on the peripherals of politics advising and assisting the younger generation of pursuing altruistic causes, they would ensure respectability and would eventually go down in Malawian history as true patriots .They would spend happy days wallowing in the glory of recognition as respectable statesmen.

But statesmanship is not easy to attain. It requires sacrifices and tough decisions. However it has its rewards. It ensures a retirement filled with glorified memoirs and respectability among nations and save your reputation from being linked to a party that sends snakes to chiefs and critics.
BON VOYAGE ALEKE, WE LOVE YOU ,MALAWI LOVE YOU

The Babel that is DPP-WRONG ARGUMENT

In his column MUCKRAKING ON SUNDAY of 3rd December 2006[sunday times-malawi],http://www.mailtalk.ac.uk/cgi-bin/webadmin?A2=ind0612&L=malawitalk&D=1&O=D&F=&S=&X=4244D93C0AEA19DE64&Y=malawitalk%40hotmail.com&P=15525
columnist Raphael tenthani open his article with a misplaced title thus "The Babel that is DPP" Quite strange indeed that he quotes several verses of chapter 11 in the biblical book of Genesis where a narrative of a tower built by a united humanity to reach the heavens.

Mr.Tenthani without putting the sacred writings in context then draws misplaced conclusions to the effect that the said biblical narrative refers to the DPP. The writer does not take into account the context in which the DPP was formed and events leading to the construction of the Tower of Babel. For me, there are profound ethical and philosophical reasons to take issue with the writer's general approach on the matter.
But, crucially, there is a more important reason why we should all reject the instincts of out of context arguments like this article-"The Babel that is DPP"

DPP unlike the architects of the Tower of Babel was formed by UDF break away protest group not out of personal wish and greed,but because of the need to challenge the settled orthodoxies of Malawian politics in particular the UDF where the then state of political machinations were made in such a way that an elected president and defender of the constitution could not govern without receiving instructions from a non elected party oligarch.

In so doing,architects of the DPP party were trying to break away from this clueless doctrine which could only work in heaven where they dont need it or hell where they have it already, by coming with an organization where they could not only draw on enduring social democratic principles but also ready to apply them in a rapidly changing world. To the contrary architects of the Tower of babel main objective was to make a name for themselves instead of worshipping the God who created them. Because of this open defiance, God stopped their efforts by confusing languages so that the builders could not understand one another.

As a result, they could no longer communicate and the work was halted. The builders were then scattered to different parts of Earth. By its very nature the author's attempts to draw comparisons between DPP a political organisation in Malawi and the Tower of Babel an accient narrative needing theological contextualisation is not only misguided but moraly inappropriate. The tower of Babel story is used to explain the existence of many different languages and races and not to explain individual differences between dedicated members of the same organization who are committed to serve their country.

The author while not being clear, makes some considerable attempts to highlight some isolated individualistic cases in a party of opportunity, aspiration and ambition.He conveniently ignores that the very fact that opportunities aspirations and ambitions are made available to followers,competition cannot be ruled out. The writer, by contrast, is presenting isolated incidents where believing them would imply constricting human freedom, to direct human energies down specific approved paths, a common occurrence in parties like MCP and UDF where followers surrender their God given intellect to their party leadership based on diminution in individual freedom, a squeezing-out of innovation, difference, diversity and creativity and end in the dogmatic pursuit of targets which recent economic events have long rendered redundant.

The writer suggest that the recent cavorting is because the DPP cadres do not have one root, one voice - but only a common mission - the result is the daily fights we are witnessing nowadays.He further alleges that the DPP was an accident waiting to happen. This according to him is due to the fact that certain members of the DPP party like the likes of Heatherwick Ntaba, Samson Msosa, Uladi Mussa, Green Lulilo Mwamondwe, Patricia Kaliati, Goodall Gondwe, Alefa Wenzulo and the like all in one basket. In a grand contradiction one could ever imagine,the author concludes thus "Like paraffin and water such characters cannot mix."

What the writer will not say is that these people did interact and were at one point working together through alliances and party affiliations way before the DPP was formed. Where does he put his notion of "Like paraffin and water such characters cannot mix" Dr Wamutharika, is of course different from his opponents.So far he has managed to provide inspirational leadership which has allowed our country to renew itself after years of drift and decline by equipping us with the freedoms and national self-confidence to shape the future.

The essence of DPP it seems has always been a belief in human nature as distinct from abstract ideology. And the essence of human nature is adaptability, flexibility, ingenuity. I have no reason to doubt that the DPP policies throughout the last two years have been designed to give these virtues room to grow.As individuals who are experiencing new found freedoms in their quest to fulfill their dreams,ambitions and potential,some of the things rightly mentioned by columnist Raphael Tenthani but wrongly contrasted to an accident biblical narrative of the Tower of Babel are symptoms of a growing democracy.

Wasting our energies and resources amidst getting worried over them only holds us back from making the changes we need to make to respond to the real challenges of Malawi's 21st century.

CAN MALAWIANS OF YOUTHFUL YEARS DO SOMETHING?

A couple of days ago, Dr Steve Sharra posted an article on Malawitalk,following Prime Minister Tony Blair's comments on slave trade.
He did not say anything but knowing Dr Sharra who at 16 began his social consciousness, sharing a strong feeling of inequality and injustice by powerful nations of the global North against smaller nations from the global South,http://mlauzi.blogspot.com/2006/05/bob-marley-and-continuing-struggle-for_11.html ,I reckoned his posting meant something and true to my gut feelings the title was self explanatory
"Blair: Britain's 'sorrow' for shame of slave trade"
The article had a historic statement by Prime minister Blair who was condemning slave trade and or slavery as’ crime against humanity'http://observer.guardian.co.uk/politics/story/0,,1957278,00.html

As I went through the link provided by Steve, I soon developed an interest in the story.
A man of my race should know about slave trade. We were taught about it at school and were forced to memorize all the stories in order to pass history exams.
Never at one point did it occur to me that what happened then, was a heinous crime until I started reading each and every link provided by the guardian and other papers.

In no time, the exact picture of what slavery was, started to emerge. I remember coming a cross a certain passage on one link which had my face buried in shame. The passage was talking about the conditions on a slave ship in the 1700s-They were barbaric.
All what was important was profit as they packed people like sardines.
In the pages that follow, I could not control my emotions, as I found myself twitching the muscles of my face as if I had been exposed to an awful site yet in this very passage, these merciless slave traders and shippers had made slaves who happen to be people of my color to lie on their own excrement. http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/aia/part1/1narr4.html

As I went further reading this awful past of our former cousins, I came across another passage quoting a surgeon on a British slave ship who noted that the floor slave hold was covered in blood and mucus which had proceeded from them in consequence of dysentery resembled a slaughter house." The air was so foul that a candle would not light in it" he concluded.

On another link, the writer claimed thus:" on the worst voyages, skippered by men too drunk or too callous to take care of their charges, slaves attempted to jump overboard as others tried to kill themselves by refusing food, in which case the slave was forced to his knees and a burning coal was applied to his mouth to make him scream, then a metal implement called a speculum oris was forced between his jaws so that food could be emptied down his throat.

For good or bad reasons, this xerographic analysis was never discussed in any of the history books that I read during my primary and secondary school history tuition. As my head was full of questions, "How could people be so cruel? And what would force them to behave in this way, were there any laws against this heinous crime" Yes, there were laws, the second paragraph would reveal, just that it was lawful. http://www.afbis.com/analysis/slave.htm
It was legal. It brought millions of pounds into the British economy. Most of the big kahuna's were involved directly and or indirectly.

Cities like Bristol ,http://www.discoveringbristol.org.uk/subIndex.php?sit_id=1 had an almost 60% of its economy dependent on slave trade but towards late spring of 1787, something happened under an “oak tree” on pit estate in holwood Kent.[please keep the word oak tree as I shall come back to it]

It started by 3 young men aged 28 namely Pitt, his cousin William Greniville and their friend William Wilberforce. What was discussed under that “Oak tree” by those twenty eight year olds would change the cause of history. It was the rarest of political phenomena- a collective change of hearts towards humanity by twenty eight year olds. Over two hundred years have gone since then. The trio, Pitt and the two Williams are long gone, but the “oak tree” stump is still there, marked with a plaque.

From then on, a series of campaign started which included parliamentary motions, congregational speeches and William Wilberfoce's best selling book-A PRACTICAL VIEW OF CHRISTIANITY in which he illustrated how religious faith could guide the habits, attitudes and politics of a nation. I must admit, reading through this marvelous book, I felt reading one of my own essays-THE POLITICS OF NKWEZULE.

As anyone can imagine, these brave young men, met insurmountable challenges. Old and experienced politicians first demanded evidence, when evidence was provided, they claimed "SLAVES WERE BETTER,HAPPIER,HEATHIER AND CLOSER TO GOD ON SUGAR PLANTATION THAN THEY WOULD HAVE BEEN IN PAGAN AFRICA.

Lord Nelson, a respected figure in British politics raged against an inexperienced young William dubbings his friends-hypocritical allies”. The then Royal family was not pleased with these youngsters cause and they utterly opposed it through the future King William 1V in the House of Lords. http://www.american.edu/TED/slave.htm

But as time fly past, things started changing. The young men were growing in strength and wisdom. They were getting organized two. By 1807, the government of the day, had had enough as most of the speeches were in favor of slave trade abolition bill followed by the solicitor general of the time who defined William Wilberforce as
"THE MODEL ENGLISHMAN WHO WOULD GO TO BED THAT NIGHT CONCIOUS OF HAVING PRESERVED SO MANY MILLIONS OF HIS FELLOW CREATURES"

And when the bill passed, the whole house rose in a scene almost unprecedented to cheer Wilberforce. They threw their hearts and sticks as a form of respect but much to their surprise, the man who was supposed to be hero of the hour sat with his head bowed as tears were streaming down his face, crying for a race that was not his, amidst sharing their anger, pain and despair. Not surprising indeed that at west minister abbey to day, his epitaph reads:
IN AN AGE AND COUNTRY FERTILE IN GREAT AND GOOD MEN,HE WAS AMONG THE FOREMOST OF THOSE WHO FIXED THE CHARACTER OF OUR TIME"

Immediately after reading this, I talked to myself and said,” thank you Dr Steve Sharra. Through your link on slave trade, I have managed to revisit my past and found it failing. I tried to recall, what I did when I was 28 and was sorry of my failure and own inadequacy to stand for injustices of my era .I had done nothing for my country apart from planning a long journey to the west to enrich myself.

As I look back at my trails to England, I saw my self crossing the same oceans where those born two hundred years before me had pass in a hold with some sleeping on their poop and own urine. I was drinking tomatoes juice and my favorite guava in the prestigious Austrian Airlines yet two hundred years ago, people of my race were on strike, wanting to die as they could not handle the degree of inhumanity.

It took the courage of young men who were rich and financially stable to hatch a plan that would change the world.
They did not meet on a cruise line or business class. They did not meet in a posh hotel or palace. These young men were rich and could afford life at Dorchester, but instead,
THEY MET UNDER THE OAK TREE .At 28; they sparked a debate that would soon change the whole world.

These people were the salt of the new found freedom and were the pillars of struggle for equality. Their willingness to challenge the injustices of the time and the inhuman nature of the manner in which people of my race were being treated were not ordinary acts.
Malawi may not be experiencing the wrath of slavery and the degree of injustices of the seventeenth centuries.

There is no doubt that what Malawi has accomplished within this short period is both impressive and inspiring. Among African nations, we remain a model for representative democracy - a place where many different ethnic factions have found a way to live and work together in peace and stability.

But for all the progress that has been made, we must surely acknowledge that we have not yet fulfilled our potential - that the hopefulness of the post-colonial era replaced by repression is a regrettable fact. That a post repressive administration was replaced by a decade of corruption and mob justice is another sad reality and that political despair, and that true economic freedom has not yet been won for those struggling to live on less than a few dollars a day, for those who have fallen prey to HIV/AIDS or malaria, to those ordinary citizens who continue to find themselves trapped in the crossfire of political depression needs a united front that brings the nation together.

Large parts of Malawi strike similar resemblance to those of the 17th century.

As did William and his friends under the OAK Tree that would change the tide of history, Malawians of youthful years also need to establish their own “OAK TREES” where issues of development and progress can be discussed.
As David Mkwambisi once said:" people should avoid shouting from the stands without themselves contributing to the development of the countryhttp://www.mailtalk.ac.uk/cgi-bin/webadmin?A2=ind0611&L=malawitalk&D=1&O=D&F=&S=&X=5F7D796D3A07600326&Y=malawitalk%40hotmail.com&P=107223

There are parts in Malawi that are as poor as those in the days of Wilberforce and friends. Instead of looking to government for help, let’s seek personal means of lifting the spirits of our brothers and sisters.
Lets discuss humanity in the context of Dr Ken Lweya when he said:“ It is about treating others as we would to be treated. It is about a sense of sharing, belong and togetherness including the fact that no human being is an island. http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/uk_news/magazine/5388182.stm

Those of us that have been lucky to escape grinding poverty from our homes in urban cities and villages, Its high time we start paying attention to what Yona Matemba said on Malawitalk when he said," Lets use our BA's and Bsc's to create jobs and not use them in hunt jobs"
The calls of Yona Matemba and those before him are the foundations of Malawi's much needed "oak trees" wherever Malawians of youthful years meet.
Yona Matemba's calls goes deeper than tests and grades, varsity letters and service awards. It is the sort of calls that keeps each of one of us, asking the questions, what if, why, and why not? The one that keeps you always searching for answers to those questions. The one that makes you say,
"I don't have to be content with the present, because I have a role in changing the lives of others”
Yona Matemba's calls join other youthful thinkers like Dr Steve Sharra who argues that "defining development as buildings and infrastructure does capture the hopes and aspirations of many Malawians, but its narrowness and insufficiency comes from its inability to encourage the reconciliation of our endogenous institutions, traditions and cultures with our desire for change. http://www.mlauzi.blogspot.com/

I am in my mid 30s now and may not reverse history back to my 28 youthful days like the likes of Rhodrick Kalumpha,Greenwell Matchaya and Dr Mtumbuka to mention afew, but Malawi's OAK TREES calls for those with new ideas and just youngs ones, those who can propel the winds of industry, those who can take advantage of the current government's sound economic policies by tapping into readily available resources in our financial institutions and invest in areas that can create mass employement and pioneer the spirit of mass export.
There is a great need for men and women, young and old, who cannot use their scholarly and material achievements as weapons of intimidation.

After wining the biggest moral argument the world has ever seen, as his friends were cheering him in honor, Wilberforce sat down with his head bowed as tears were streaming down his face, crying for a race that was not his.
Why can’t we do the same, why not take a seat and reflect on the degree of poverty going on in our villages and do something about it?

Why can’t we use our resources and take time to constantly look around our impoverished nation and seek new ways to improve our situation, to embrace change as the inevitable engine of progress.

CAN MALAWIANS OF YOUTHFUL YEARS DO SOMETHING?
WHERE IS YOUR OAK TREE