Malawi president Mutharika’s approval ratings turn positive: Measures to cushion the poor
President Peter Mutharika’s approval rating has edged into positive ahead of a fresh presidential election on July 2 with more Malawians on Saturday including opposition social media loud-mouths lavishing praise to the Malawi leader who announced he will take a 10% salary cut together with his Cabinet and redirect the money towards the fight against coronavirus.
Mutharika announced a number of measures aimed at cushioning small- and medium-sized businesses, including tax breaks and an increase of Malawi Enterprise Development Fund (Medf) loans allocation from K13 billion to K15 billion.
President Mutharika also ordered a reduction in fuel allowances, an increase in risk allowances for health workers and an increase of nutrition allowance payable to civil servants with foundational medical conditions by 50 percent.
“We have an unprecedented situation. Government has taken these measures to ensure continuity,” he said.
Amongst other measures, Mutharika directed the Reserve Bank of Malawi to allow banks to offer a three-month moratorium on interest payments on loans to small- and medium-sized businesses.
“ Under this arrangement the Registrar will encourage commercial banks to restructure loans to this sector in order to extend their repayment to more than a year,” said Mutharika.
The President also asked the Central Bank to cushion the foreign exchange market to ensure availability of forex and stability of the foreign exchange rate.
Mutharika also ordered the country’s tobacco markets to be opened and allowed to operate without disruption to protect small farmers and bolster foreign currency receipts. Tobacco is Malawi’s chief foreign currency earner.
“The government will continue monitoring and review situation as it unfolds,” Mutharika said.
Private practice lawyer David Kanyenda simply described Mutharika’s directives as “bold, decisive and pragmatic.”
Most of opposition social media commentators took a sudden change of heart on Saturday when they praised Mutharika that he has shown leadership in the gravity of the situation the country is in following the coronavirus threat.
Opposition leaders could not immediately comment on Mutharika’s address but its is expected they will provide constructive response and work with the government to confront the pandemic and not engage in opposition for opposition’s sake.
On Thursday, Malawi recorded its first three confirmed cases of the coronavirus. On Saturday, the number rose to four.
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That’s the type of leadership we want in Malawi congratulations for the strategies put in place long live H.E.God bless you and the whole Malawi.
Bravo APM we love and we will continue praying for your Leadership I know that your enemies will still hate you and they will not appreciate the wonders that you have done to this nation – Mfiti ndi mfiti basi singayamike but be strong and of good courage God is with you and may God bless you.
Blind loyalty……..kususka basi…..praying for dictatorship and deception…….
That’s what failures do – they do not see when there’s something good and even if they see they would not appreciate they are full of jealous and hatred and they are the true sons of the EVIL one Satan. This is your true picture JONI you are the son of the Devil and in the end you shall reap what you sow – Why can’t you follow what others are doing look at the world at large how people have appreciated the move taken by our wise President APM even HRDC guys are appreciating – surely mfiti yokha ndiyomwe… Read more »
WHAT IS MUTHALIKA TALKING ABOUT IS JARGON.
There is Nothing in these measures that talks about how the country is prepared or how they will deal with those people who will be infected with coronavirus…. Do we have enough intensive care beds for Covid 19 cases, do we have enough ventilators, do we have enough PPE for our doctors… the answer is obvious no. Why is the president talking about reducing or removing duty tax on PPE now after people have started testing positive for covid 19 when we have had weeks and months to prepare? It seems to me that the president is more interested in… Read more »
A President athu APM timakunyadilani you are a smart thinker.
Was he waiting for the worst to happen to be praised by poorer Malawians? after all this money is not coming from his pocket, in the name of donations and aids we don’t even know the amount given we just clapping after this pandemic will start facing the same issues of no proper medication in our general hospitals school facilities and the likes. If he is good enough to handle the problems Malawi is facing should not only wait for Crisis.
I have been relieved by the measures that H.E has put in place. The red flag is that the measures are only mitigating in nature and on the economic side of the coin. Worth reminding each other that this crisis has 2 components; the economic and the health component. The health is the source. We need to also harshly deal with the source. very soft measures have been put in place. I understand that very harsh health measures can obliterate all economic mitigating measures. We need to be creative to come up with social distancing measures that will contain this… Read more »
Some people are so gullible, why has the ”president” suddenly started to pretend he cares about the people now that he has lost the presidential chair that he refuses to move out of? When the people of Malawi told him they were dying of starvation, he told them to eat dirt and rats…If he cares about the people, why does he not give the people some of the millions that are being donated for the people instead of living a luxurious lifestyle at their expense. I have been working in Malawi for 16 years and I know what I am… Read more »
I read somewhere that VP salary is $50,000 a month. I assume the president get somewhere around $100,000 a month. What difference will it make if the president gets $90,000 a month for 3 months? Mind you this is the age of information sharing and we know everything. By the way, the president of the United States of America gets $400,000 a year yet the president of the poorest nation on earth gets over a million US Dollars a year. How sad is that?
Excellent economic, social and health plan.