Chakwera to reshuffle the Cabinet this month
The State President, Dr. Lazarus McCarthy Chakwera has announced that he will reshuffle his cabinet this month as he intends to bring in fresh minds that would deliver on his development agenda.
Dr. Chakwera announced on January 1, 2023, in Lilongwe, Kamuzu Palace during the Presidential New Year address saying he intends to rope in a cabinet focused on delivery.
Consumers Association of Malawi, and the Malawi Human Rights Commission all once demanded the reshuffle of the cabinet saying that a promise for a Cabinet Reshuffle had been one of the many frequently made promises by the President since he came into power and that it created a lot of expectations from people.
“The current leadership in these Ministries and institutions is the weakest link in your efforts to improve the lives of poor Malawians. These are key Ministries that can drive your vision and deliver your Hi-5 Agenda unfortunately over time these key Ministries and institutions are struggling and suffering from poor leadership despite their importance to the development of Malawians
“The State President needs the support of an effective, capable, and professional Cabinet that can transform his vision and deliver his Hi-5 Agenda to Malawians which unfortunately the current Cabinet has failed as can be evidenced by the current poor quality of service delivery from various Government departments,” said Cama Director General, John Kapito.
During the address on Sunday, Chakwera said the Cabinet to be appointed will be focused on maximizing Malawi’s limited resources.
“The new configuration is at an advanced stage, and so as was the case with the last reshuffle last January, my office will be announcing a new configuration of Cabinet this January,” said the President.
He added: “What you can expect to see when the announcement is made is a leaner Cabinet, one that is focused on maximizing our nation’s limited resources on improving public service delivery, fast-tracking
public works projects under construction, and unlocking the sectors of our economy that have the greatest potential for inclusive growth and shared prosperity, especially agriculture, tourism, and mining.
“In short, what you will see is a Cabinet focused on delivery. This is because I believe that giving our energies and resources a renewed focus on delivery is necessary for us as a nation this year to sustain and expedite our progress on the path of economic recovery that we embarked on a year ago.”
Chakwera made the last reshuffle of his cabinet in January this year after some of his ministers were implicated in corruption charges.
President Chakwera said that he had decided to allow the three ministers and other public officers accused of corruption to account for their charges.
The three cabinet ministers include Lands Minister Kezzie Msukwa, who is accused of benefitting from land deals involving a UK-based Malawian businessman, Labour Minister Ken Kandodo accused of diverting COVID-19 funds, and Energy Minister Newton Kambala accused of meddling in the awarding of fuel import deals.
