By Durell Namasani

First Lady Madam Monica Chakwera has appealed to the elderly in the country, to consider assisting their grandchildren to grow with good values and culture.

Speaking when she hosted the elderly women within Mangochi Boma on Tuesday, Madam Chakwera said, as people who are custodians of culture, the elderly are crucial for shaping their grandchildren with good morals.

“I decided to invite you here at the State Lodge in this Christmas season, because I consider you as my friends. We are here in order to celebrate together, but most importantly, for us to share stories as we used to be doing in the past.

“I encourage you to reflect on how our grandchildren are living in this modern era, let us continue having ample time with our grandchildren and share them stories that would assist them to grow with good values,” she said.

She urged the senior citizens in the country to encourage their grandchildren to pursue education, in order for them to excel in life.

Through her ‘shaping our future foundation’, the First Lady is assisting vulnerable girls with school amenities.

The First lady also bemoaned the tendency by some community members who associate senior citizens to witches, saying that they are rather a blessing to the society, as God loved them to stay for more years.

Apart from interacting with the elderly, the First Lady also provided them with Christmas gifts.

Minister of Gender, Community Development and Social Welfare Jean Sendeza echoed with the First Lady, by challenging communities to change their negative mindset towards the elderly.

In her remarks, Presidential Advisor on Women and Child Development, Dorothy Chirambo commended the First Lady for being exemplary in promoting the welfare of the elderly in the country.

Over 120 elderly women around Chikoko Bay and other areas in Mangochi attended the gathering.

By Evance Chisiano

Vice President, Michael Usi has called on Chiradzulku District Council and other local authorities in the country to do thorough registration of vulnerable people to reflect true pictures of those that deserve to benefit from Lean Season Food Insecurity Response programmes and other social protection programmes.

Usi made the call on Tuesday at Chingoma Primary School ground, Traditional Authority Mpunga where he monitored relief maize distribution to vulnerable households as the Department of Disaster Management Affairs (DODMA) distributed bags of maize.

“Let us do proper work to register all people who deserve to receive humanitarian support. I know some other people deserve to be registered for humanitarian assistance,” the Vice President added.

He therefore called on people in Chiradzulu to openly tell their problems to authorities so that their problems can be addressed on time.

“Be open enough to tell those in authority your problems. We are here to solve peoples problems,” Usi said and commended Traditional Authority Mpunga for openly telling her subjects problems in the face of the current food situation.

He said was impressed that Traditional Authority Mpunga explained openly the extent of hunger situation in her area where the food situation is critical.

Traditional Authority Mpunga has since called on government to increase the number of people who should benefit from the Lean Response Food Insecurity programme and other interventions that should improve people’s livelihood citing Social Cash Transfers and Climate Enhanced Climate Smart Public Works Programme.

She said the food situation in her area is worse as most households have nothing to depend on other than handouts while repeatedly calling for the authorities to increase more households for the relief food.

“There are many households that deserve relief food. It is just unfortunate that some deserving households are not registered to receive relief food,” Traditional Authority Mpunga added as 3,873 people are expected to receive food in her area.

DoDMA Commissioner, Charles Kalemba said the department was aware of the food situation in the country and was mandated to provide food assistance to affected households through Lean Season Food Insecurity Response progrmme which is currently taking place in drought affected districts.

Before visiting Chiradzulu, the Vice President also monitored the Lean Season Food Insecurity Response Programme in Mangochi, Balaka and Zomba on Monday and Tuesday.

He said DoDMA is working according to Malawi Vulnerability Assessment Committee (MVAC) reports that show the food situation in the country.

“We will continue providing relief maize to affected households,” Kalemba assured people in Chiradzulu.

Chiradzulu District Commissioner, Francis Matewere discloses that 26,413 people in the district need humanitarian food assistance.
The Vice President is expected to visit Chikwawa on Thursday to monitor relief food distribution.