By Vincent Gunde
A woman of Kasasire in Nkhatabay North broke into tears listening from Bon Kalindo’s very touching speech that slavery beside being abolished world -wide, it is still happening in Malawi as evidenced with the people of Kasasire and Buju whose land was confiscated by the Malawi Defense Force (MDF) as theirs.
The people of Kasasire and Buju have been living at their places since 1945 and the previous governments found them there and the coming in of the MCP led government of President Dr. Lazarus Chakwera ordered the MDF to force these people out of the area.
In the course of relocating them to unknown destinations, the people of Kasasire and Buju were beaten up by MDF soldiers forcing them to accommodate themselves at a place the Livingstonia CCAP Synod gave them as a temporary home.
Speaking at the Malawi First function of distributing free maize flour to the people of Kasasire in Nkhatabay on Tuesday, Political activist Bon Kalindo described the camp where these people are living as next to Dzaleka Refugee Camp in Dowa that Malawians are abusing their fellow Malawians.
Kalindo thanked the Livingstonia CCAP Synod and Bishop Martin Mtumbuka of the Roman Catholic Church for their tireless support in addressing the needs of the Kasasire people saying had it been that the church leaders did not came with their support, the people could have all perished with hunger.
He said looking at the way the people of Kasasire are living, it is speaking for itself that the country has useless leaders who are abusing the citizens forgetting that these are the votes and on the 16th September, 2025 elections, they will need the same people to vote for them into power
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The activist said the story of Kasasire is heartbreaking thanking JB and his friends in the USA for the support through Malawi First appealing to former Presidents, Dr. Bakili Muluzi, Professor Arthur Peter Mutharika and Dr. Joyce Banda to visit the area to see the inhuman development.
He appealed to well- wishers in the MCP led government to have an emergency meeting to go to MDF Commander General Dr. Paul Velentino Phiri for a change of heart claiming that what these people of Kasasire need is not money but to go back to their land.
Kalindo has also extended his appeal for support for the people of Kasasire in Nkhatabay to Prophet Shephered Bushiri, Pastor Dr. David Mbewe, Malawi Human Rights Commission (MHRC) to go there if not, provide their support through Malawi First to reach out to the people there.
“The people are sleeping in a small church without windows, no bathrooms, no tents, adolescent girls have no sanitary pads,” he said.
He said the people of Kasasire are claiming that they went to the court for their land but it has taken time for the court to come to their rescue suspecting that court judges are fearing to preside over this case as it involves the MDF and the citizens.
On a special note, Kalindo has thanked Member of Parliament for Nkhatabay North Chrissy Kanyasho for sparing her time to visit the people of Kasasire and allowing Malawi First to distribute bags of maize flour to the affected people.
Malawi First planned to distribute free bags of maize flour to the people of Likoma but its District Commissioner ordered the Group to write him a letter which the Group refused on the argument that the hungry people are the ones to write the claimed letter to the District Commissioner.
