Secretary General for the Episcopal Conference of Malawi Fr. Henry Saindi says the Catholic Church would want to see government showing leadership to transform the current challenges into economic opportunities for the majority Malawians.
“We refuse to agree that we are destined to poverty. Let government inspire a change of mindset and work ethics. Our poverty is by choice and not by design. We challenge our leadership to design economic policies that opt out of poverty. As Church, we shall side with the poor and encourage the spirit of hard working,” he said in an interview with The Daily Times on how the church perceives 2015 and its expectation of 2016.
Saindi, who took up the mantle of the Secretary General in the just ended year, said the church expect Malawians to say “No to easy money” in the form of Cash-gate.
“Let thieves, big or small be prosecuted and punished severely. No one should be protected. We expects government to stand firm preserving and safeguarding our laws, cultural values and religious beliefs in the face of renewed campaign for foreign values and practices. The Scriptures say, “Without a vision the people perish” (Proverb 29:18). As Catholic Church, we shall remain solid and faithful to the Church’s teaching on these matters,” Saindi said.
He added: “We expect that public reform programme, if followed to the letter, might bring in much needed confidence and improved service delivery currently lacking in most sectors such as energy, water, education. Equitable and inclusive service delivery would ensure that communities across the country find their quest of belonging to the state than to tribal and regional affiliations.”
But in his New Year message to Malawians, President Peter Mutharika said he believed the worst of times are gone, “And the best for us is yet to come.
“Inspite of the challenges [faced by the nation], development programmes never stopped. Within our limited means, we kept government running…we kept building roads, we have been renovating university campuses from our local resources,” he said
Added Mutharika: “And those who prayed “to the unknown god” that my government must collapse will live to be disappointed. Those who wrongly think of transformation as an event will be impatient and disappointed. But those who understand transformation as a process… also understand that Malawi is moving forward.”
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