Malawi national football team blossoming defender Charles Petro proved his worth for Moldova National Division side Sherif Tiraspol FC after scoring in a 4-1 win over Petrocub on Wednesday night.
Petro came off the bench in the second half to open his account for the European side in the 64th minute with his left foot outside the penalty box.
Gabriel Boban hammered a first half brace for Sheriff before Frank Castaneda and Petro added a goal each. Dan Taras scored Petrocub’s face saver in the 52nd
Petro said he was excited to score his first goal for Sherif.
“It feels great to score my first goal. I will continue working hard so that I further improve my performance. My target is to help the team to win the league title this season. It was a tough match because we were playing against a team on position two in the league but the good thing is that we collected maximum points,” he said.
Charles Petro in Moldova
Flames Coach Meck Mwase said he was excited with his player’s exploits.
“The sky is the limit for anyone who works hard. Petro has a good attitude and his work rate is always top notch. I have all the hope that he will do well in Moldova,” Mwase said.
Following the victory, Sherif have maintained top spot on the table with 24 points from 8 games, five points above second-placed Petrocub.
Petro is a versatile player who can be deployed as a defensive midfielder or a centre-back and has made seven first-team appearances for Sherif after joining from Nyasa Big Bullets in February this year.
He was promoted from Bullets Reserve last season to replace captain John Lanjesi who had sustained a knee injury.
Petro, who signed a three-year deal with Sherif, was instrumental in helping Bullets to lift the TNM Super League title as he played every game of the 2019 season.
His contribution to Bullets’ success did not go unnoticed as he was named best defender of the season.
The People’s Team lifted the title after collecting 70 points.
Public Affairs Committee (Pac), a quasi-religious grouping, has advised President Lazarus Chakwera not to take the path of executive arrogance, saying such tendency has affected the country’s development.
The sentiments were made during the first meeting that Chakwera had with Pac since he ascended to presidency following the fresh presidential elections.
In a statement read to Chakwera by Pac’s Chairperson Monsignor Patrick Thawale, the committee cautioned the president saying, with the past regimes, executive arrogance became a weapon against those who express divergent views.
“They feel Malawi is their property and therefore no constructive criticism should be expressed. This attitude ought to be checked because it is one of the biggest problems Malawi has witnessed.
“Pac wishes to caution Tonse Alliance that generations have changed and Malawians are not the same as they were 10 years ago. They have just given you a chance. As an alliance, you must stick to the principles and values you agreed to jointly develop this country,” reads the statement.
Pac also warned Chakwera to refrain from nepotism, tribalism and regionalism saying the president should appoint capable people regardless of districts or regions of origin.
“It has been a trend for governments to award positions to people from areas where they amassed more votes. Pac knows that you are aware about these issues. We are just emphasising [the advice] so that they are at the back of your mind,” reads the statement.
Chakwera with PAC members
Pac said another challenge that has led to the downfall of presidents is believing in ‘backyard cabinets’ which make decisions behind the formal Cabinet.
“While it inevitable that each leadership may have people he/she trusts more, too much reliance on ‘backyard cabinets’ may guide you into a wrong direction because of the interest they may have,” Thawale said.
In matters of national interest, Pac queried the size and composition of President Chakwera’s maiden Cabinet, talked about Covid-19 response, the fight against corruption, public sector reforms, legislative reforms, and religious freedom.
Pac reminded Chakwera of his observation during an interface they had with him in 2014 where he [Chakwera] said once in government, MCP would have a lean Cabinet of between 14 and 20 ministers.
“Your Excellency, the speech you delivered during inauguration ceremony was magnificent. Pac rates you highly on those remarks which were unifying and gave a sense of our direction the country ought to take. The public at large positively welcomed your speech within and beyond.
“However, your approach to appointment of Cabinet members may have left a dent in your administration. We are aware that you attempted to clarify the matter by stating that cabinet members will be assessed and were appointed on merit, and in 5-months period the cabinet could be changed. Malawi will wait for your action since you have promised them. While we appreciate that there are several parties operating under Tonse Alliance, Pac suggests that you revisit the size of the cabinet,” Thawale said.
Among others, Pac commended the government for its efforts in fighting against coronavirus (Covid-19), the zeal to fight corruption and bring to book culprits who misused public funds and the initiatives taken to implement the public sector reforms.
“As Pac, we are contributing to the fight against the pandemic [Covid-19] through both electronic and print media. We therefore kindly request you as we did with the immediate former head of state to be recorded with your Vice President to read Pac Covid-19 messages which would ran as adverts on the TV Stations,” Thawale said.
State House Director of Communication and Executive Assistant to the President Sean Kampondeni said Chakwera commended Pac for its continued commitment towards the welfare of the country.
“The president thanked Pac for its diligence in fulfilling its mandate in the welfare of the country. He reiterated his commitment to listen to all stakeholders and continue discussing with Pac on the matters raised,” he said.
In recent weeks, President Chakwera has been meeting various stakeholders on matters of national importance.
Government says Malawi has potential for growth in the agricultural sector as it is endowed with both human and natural resources for improved agricultural practices and socio-economic development.
Minister of Agriculture Hon. Lobin Lowe, MP said this when he visited Chikwawa and Nsanje districts on a familiarisation tour to appreciate some of the efforts being done by the ministry aimed at improving food security in Malawi.
Lowe who was accompanied by Deputy Minister in the Ministry, Hon. Agness Nkusa Nkhoma and some ministry officials explained that the lower shire districts have potential for increased irrigation farming, fish and livestock production, which may feed the whole southern region. “This area has potential for improved irrigation farming, fish farming and livestock production.
As government all we need to do is to support the farmers with inputs such as fertilisers through the Affordable Inputs Programme and also look into ways on how we can empower the livestock farmers and the Fisheries sector. There is also need for good extension services and enhanced quality agricultural practices,” said Lowe.
The Minister further said that its high time that Malawi stops importing fish from neghbouring countries as the potential to raise different species of fish in ponds is there. During the familiarisation tour, the two ministers visited Nkhate, Chilengo and Tiyanjane Irrigation schemes, Kasinthula Fish Farm and Khama Cattle Ranch.
The Malawi Government, through the Minister of Civic Education and National Unity (CENU),Timothy Mtambo, has appealed to the religious and faithful community in the country to preach and practice co-existence and tolerance as one way of attaining peace and unity in the country.
The Minister’s appeal comes in light of misunderstanding between the Moslems and Christians over the former’s billboard erected in Blantyre, purportedly to encourage the citizens to read the Quran.
The bill-board has since been pulled down by unknown people, just a day after the Evangelical Association of Malawi (EAM) wrote Blantyre City Council, describing the message on the bill-board as “offensive to the Christian faith.”
Read the message on the bill-board: “If you have read the old and the new testament, now read the last testament-the Quran.”
Billboard at the centre of controversy
Meanwhile, the CENU Minister, who was copied in the EAM letter to Blantyre City Council, has in a statement released on Thursday, called upon all the Public Affairs Committee (PAC), the country’s quasi-religious body, to “urgently intervene and initiate dialogue meeting aimed at achieving quick diffusion of the apparent tension with the view to amicably resolve the matter at hand”
“Recognizing that this matter turns on peace, religious rights, and most importantly, national unity, my office has deemed it pertinent to approach your office, considering that both Islamic and Christian faith communities are affiliated to your principles and objectives that promote peaceful co-existence of different faith communities among others,” reads the statement in part.
Mtambo has further indicated his availability for a dialogue meeting on the matter at the request of PAC.
Illovo Sugar Malawi says plans are at an advanced stage to enter the energy sector as the company strategises to wean itself from being a net user and become an exporter of electricity to the national grid.
This has been disclosed by the company’s managing director Lekani Katandula on the sidelines of a familiarization tour by Minister of Labour Ken Kandodo.
Kandodo said his Ministry is engaging key stakeholders in the drive to create a million jobs as promised by the Tonse Administration. The Minister first engaged management of Press Corporation Limited and finished the day at Illovo Sugar group saying the two firms have a big role and potential to play in the process. He said the management talks helps to bring the two sides to a common ground on how this objective could be realised efficiently.
Minister Ken Kandodo Meeting Illovo executive
“Press Corporation Limited is one of the largest companies in Malawi who are employing a lot of people through their subsidiary companies. We came to brief them on the 1 million jobs that this Government is pursuing and see where they can fit in. We have been assured that the Press Group is going to support this initiative.
“We had a similar meeting with Illovo as you know Illovo is another huge company employing over 14 thousand people but with yet another opportunity to create more jobs. We are also happy to know that they are considering diversifying into the energy sector which will also lead to more job creation in our country so the visit was really important,” said Kandodo.
On his part Katandula, said over the years they have been affected by power outages. He said this has had a negative impact on their business as such the company has taken an initiative to start producing electricity and export the excess to the national grid.
He said: “Inconsistent supply of electricity has been our biggest challenge that is why now we are saying we shouldn’t just be spectators but we should be part of the solution. So we plan to set up a photovoltaic (solar) system in Nchalo and also we’ll invest in coal and biogas. This will give us an output of over 40 megawatts that will suffice our energy requirements and export the excess to the national grid.”
