Government Unions Threaten Strike & more – 21st Dec 2023

Muli bwanji from BA! This is the Rorshok Malawi Update from the 21st of December twenty twenty-three A quick summary of what's going down in Malawi.

Several government ministries, departments, and agencies have threatened to go on strike if the executive doesn’t meet their demands for increased monthly salaries and wages.

The government set a ten percent cap for salary increases, but Trade Unions think it is small compared to the forty-four percent Kwacha devaluation.

For instance, the staff unions at the Electricity Supply Corporation of Malawi, the National Organization of Nurses and Midwives, and the Physician Assistants Union of Malawi issued ultimatums expiring at the end of this month.

The government is planning to engage the union leaders, with the Ombudsman and the Malawi Human Rights Commission acting as mediators.

Ever since Pope Francis announced that Roman Catholic priests could bless same-sex unions, many Catholics and other Christians have been in disarray. The Pope’s move was called into question. Some Catholics said on social media that they decided to leave the church, while others said they were confused or in disbelief.

The Episcopal Conference of Malawi wrote a statement to clarify the Declaration on the Pastoral Meaning of Blessings by the Pope, having noted “erroneous interpretations that have generated interest, fears, and worries amongst Catholics.”

It clarified that the Declaration does not endorse same-sex unions but same-sex union’s ability to ask for and receive God’s blessings, though non-liturgical.

Despite this clarification, the church has taken several hits this week.

Last month, police arrested forty-year-old Prophet Christopher Phiri of the Supernatural Embassy Ministry for allegedly sleeping with his sixteen-year-old biological daughter. The girl’s parents are divorced. She was staying with her mom until this September, when Phiri requested that she stay with him instead.

Amina Tepani Daudi, Spokesperson for Mangochi Police, said they found nude pictures and pornographic videos of the two in Phiri’s phone. When questioned, the girl revealed that Phiri threatened to stop paying her school fees.


On Tuesday the 19th, the Senior Resident Magistrate Court in Mangochi charged Phiri with indecent assault and having sexual activity with a minor. He is currently in police custody awaiting his sentencing, scheduled for Friday the 29th.

Meanwhile, another Prophet is trending for accusing his followers of failing to take care of him. Perhaps this one has it easy since his identity is unknown.

On Monday the 18th, the prophet, in a WhatsApp voice note, accused his followers of not being “good children” to him, their “father” and “god.” He demanded that they leave their commitments to cater to him when he wanted something. The four-minute voice note sounds like a parent scolding a child. The audio has been played eighty-five thousand times on one Facebook page.

The audio was called into question, as he was accused of being selfish and a fake prophet.

Despite these unfortunate trends, miracles do occur. Take, for instance, one couple from the Soche township in Blantyre who reunited with their three children after they went missing during Cyclone FREDDY in March. The parents believed floodwaters had swept away their children. While searching for them, they found three faceless bodies whose features looked like their children’s, so they conducted a funeral and buried them, believing they were their own kids.

But, on the 10th of November, all three children appeared at their home. They were all unharmed. One local television station, the Times, said they would air a program revealing what happened.

Residents of Mulanje district heard that Akatswiri Mining Company is conducting mining activities on Mulanje Mountain, and they are angry. They are upset because the company did not engage with communities and because Mulanje Mountain is one of Malawi’s biggest tourism treasures.

There are fears that the mining will lead to a loss of revenue generated from tourist activities. It may also change the course of water flow, leading to flash floods in surrounding villages.

Intercity Buses, launched on Wednesday the 20th, might bring Lilongwe less stressful commutes.

For the first time in Malawi, passengers will pay daily, weekly, or monthly subscriptions through mobile money platforms, Airtel Money and Mpamba. According to Louis Chipofya, General Manager for Intercity Buses, “the buses will have pre-defined routes from neighborhoods with high transport demands from their homes to their places of work and trade.”

Later on, Intercity intends to introduce airport shuttles and school runs.

Malawi joins other African countries like Rwanda, South Africa, and Botswana in having intercity commutes.


When it comes to international travel, Malawian Airlines has flights to Mozambique and Rwanda, and local flights to and from Blantyre and Lilongwe. But, on Friday the 15th, the airline announced they would add flights to Johannesburg, South Africa, from Lilongwe, and vice versa, following “high demand” from the public, which makes sense since most locals living in South Africa like going home for the holidays.

But there’s a catch—their new flights will only be operational on specific dates. Unfortunately, these don’t include Christmas Day or New Year’s Eve.

For more information, follow the link in the show notes.

In some sports news…The Football Association of Malawi (or FAM) has a new president for the first time in nineteen years. On Saturday the 16th, Fleetwood Haiya took over the FAM President role from Walter Nyamilandu after winning twenty-three to thirteen votes during the Elective General Assembly held in Mzuzu.

The parity in the votes was a fresh occurrence, since Nyamilandu had won with a landslide victory in the last four elections.

Notable persons have been congratulating Haiya, including Gianni Infantino, the FIFA President. He sent Haiya a congratulatory letter on Sunday the 17th and also extended an invitation to meet and “officially welcome him to the international football family.”

Haiya departed for Saudi Arabia to meet Infantino on Wednesday the 20th. He is also expected to attend the FIFA World Club Championship and the FIFA Football Summit, and make his return on Saturday the 23rd.

Meanwhile, the Super League of Malawi (or Sulom) is planning to find a new president. Haiya served as Sulom’s president, but stepped down following his FAM presidency.

When asked what would happen to his Sulom presidency after his FAM election win, Haiya told the media that Gilbert Mittawa, the Vice President for Sulom, would take over. But in an interview on Tuesday the 19th, Williams Banda, the Sulom General Secretary, said Mittawa would take over in an acting capacity only, and that the new Sulom president will be determined at the League’s next annual general meeting.

Some companies have already started looking into next year’s entertainment. The Dart Association of Malawi (or DAM) announced a national tournament scheduled for January. They’ve already started receiving corporate support.


For instance, on Wednesday the 20th, the CDH Investment Bank donated five million Kwacha, or three thousand dollars, to DAM. Sunganani Mkandawire, the Bank’s Chief Credit Officer, said “they appreciate the association's efforts in developing the sport.”

Preston Matanda, the General Secretary for DAM, said that the CDH bank has been sponsoring them for the past three years.

In our last bit of news, a local developer, Mallick Mnela, has created a local version of ChatGTP that uses Chichewa—Malawi’s main language—to communicate. It’s called ChewaGPT. It’s not as fast as ChatGTP, and it uses WhatsApp and Telegram as its apps. It is quickly becoming a fun pastime for locals. To check it out, follow the link in our show notes.

Aaand that's it for this week!

If you haven’t got your holiday presents yet, recommending this podcast would make an amazing and thoughtful gift. Or not. But please tell your friends about us. We’re very nice people.

If you are feeling super generous this season, you can support us financially with the link in the show notes.

Pitani bwino!