Shadreck Chikoti
The biggest problem we face in politics, the one that truly stalls national development, is partisanship.
In politics, there is a philosophy which says: if you belong to Party A, and the opposing Party B does something good, you must not praise it. Because if you praise it, people might begin to like that other party.
Meaning, if I support MCP, I am expected not to acknowledge anything good done by DPP. Likewise, a DPP supporter must always find something negative to say about MCP.
But do you know what this mentality does?
It drags development backwards. It sets our country behind. And sadly, this mindset is found in many citizens.
I once heard a case of an ordinary man, someone who no one was even helping, (yekha ndithu) who deliberately cut electricity lines and toppled poles simply so that people in his area would be in the dark and start blaming the government. Those power lines served his own community.
I have also seen civilians rejoicing when fuel shortages occur, because such crises “boost the morale” of their political party.
In another area, a shadow (parliamentary candidate) tried to donate money to support development projects. The people rejected it and even chased him away, saying that accepting his help would make him more popular than their own party’s shadow.
Why can’t we love our country more than our politics?
Imagine if politics ended at the campaign. After elections, we would all unite and say: this is the leader we as well as God has chosen, let us support him. And the leaders, too, would recognise that they have been put in office by Malawians, and therefore must work with everyone, those in opposition and those in government, encouraging each other, planning together in love. We would have progressed far by now.
But no, campaigns are political, development is political, everything is political. That cannot work.
And as I speak about this, I must also highlight something people will remember about Chakwera, his patience, his kindness, his refusal to retaliate, and his love for the country rather than for politics.
Much of what he did was profound, not based on tribe, and driven by a genuine desire for all of us to move forward. Everyone has weaknesses, of course. But right now we cannot see the good because our hearts are filled with political anger, and our eyes are covered with political lenses. Political lenses are not lenses of love for our country.
God bless Malawi and preserve our peace.
Bless our leader, each and every one who is called Malawian.
One day, in the future, may our children live in a better nation, free from corruption, free from tribalism, a nation where politics is not a certificate for privilege or access to basic needs. A nation where they will not have to queue endlessly at hospitals, filling stations, police stations, immigration offices, water points, grinding mills, or other places.
Lord, prepare for our children a future founded on love.
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