Friday, March 9, 2012

Waiting for March

It is March already, but, taking a cue from the sentiments emanating from The New State House in Malawi's capital, Lilongwe, March ain't started.
President Bingu wa Mutharika, who must, surely, know another March than we are in, has smelt danger.
Danger in the air.
Danger in the home.
Danger in hotels.
Danger in lodges.

But the danger is not invisible. The danger is so visible- visible in the Civil Society Organisations', and Non-Governmental Organisations,top boss-faces.
Mutharika told a mammoth crowd in his home district of Thyolo that Civil Society Organisations are planning July 20, 2011-like demonstrations.
Mutharika went a step further, saying he knew the financiers of such an obnoxious act: development partners.
Now, that is strange. Development partners have become anarchy partners (with the NGOs and CSOs)?
It has become a strange world. This.
Not only this (world), though. There is a strange world. Another world.
The world in the mind of the President. And the ruling class. What with two professors ruling Malawi! Two professors using the same chopper.
This world, the two professors world, is a strange world.
And that's all there is to their unity. A strange world.
The two professors are different. One had students, the other has none.
He stands proud on the mountain of a 'gift' paper from Mainland China. One overzealous Chinese University made the mistake of offering Mutharika the Elder Brother (Bingu) some title: Professor.
It seems like Mutharika the Elder Brother always wanted to become professor: the real professorship, with students.
Somehow, he must have missed the train.
Somehow, Peter Mutharika the Younger Brother got hold of the train. And, therefore, the professorship.
Professor with students.
Real students.
And there, in both professorships, lies Malawi's tragedy.
Now the two professors have started living in their own world, an imaginary world.
The two professors, at their imaginary best, can see fish where only mosquitoes fly, and see electoral victory when even the flies are running away from the scene of defeat.
President Mutharika shocked all and sundry when he said, before all the world, that Malawi's development partners are planning to fan and fund confusion in the Southern African Development Community Member state.
But CSOs and NGOs have butted down such claims, saying they know nothing about it.
Now government is planning to thwart the Public Affairs Committee meeting slated for Mount Soche in Blantyre on March 18 and 19.
Government suspects that just such a meeting is what the President foresaw in his vision of anarchy (call it Vision- Anarchy)last week.
But organisers of the meeting have promised to press on, saying there is nothing sinister they will discuss. After all, you do not organise sinister meetings at such open fora as Sunbird Mount Soche Hotel in Blantyre.
But government and State agents are having none of it.
It is a world of visions,theirs.

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