Minister of Energy, Ibrahim Matola, has called on Malawians to be patriotic and avoid vandalising transformers and other ESCOM machinery.

Matola made the plea at a presser in Lilongwe under the Government Faces the Press Platform.

He said vandalism is costly and affects the economy of the country.

The minister added that the country is still recovering from the 129 megawatts deficit incurred due to cyclones that hit the country a few months ago.

On his part, Kamkwamba Kumwenda, Chief Executive Officer for ESCOM, admits that there are backlogs of power connections at their institution.

According to Kumwenda, there is need to shorten procurement procedures that they have to follow in a quest to be able to purchase some materials without hitches.