By Vincent Gunde
Social commentator Onjezani Kenani has taken a food for thought to his face book page a message to all public servants in Malawi that it is a painful moment that starting December, 2025 salaries will go down and income taxes rises in line with fiscal discipline the new government of the DPP has taken.
President Dr. Lazarus Chakwera in a quest to woo voters across the country to vote for him in the 16th September, 2025 presidential elections promoted primary and secondary school teachers to various grades in government as well as employing new teachers of IPTE 14 to 17.
The president did the same with the Malawi Police and MDF soldiers, Nurses and Doctors, Health Surveillance Assistants (HSAs) and Agricultural Extension Development Officers (AEDOs) making many people especially the youth, happy.
However, the coming in of the new government of the DPP and President Professor Arthur Peter Mutharika has established that many of these promoted and employed, protocol was not followed and as a result, the wage bill has increased at an alarming stage.
Making matters worse, over K3.4 trillion disappeared from government coffers in just 3 months to the 16th September, 2025 general elections speaking for itself that the MCP led government was doubtful for its coming back into government.
Two years ago, the disappeared K3.4 trillion was a national budget for the whole financial year to procure essential drugs to all the country’s health facilities, providing food to patients in hospitals and paying salaries to public servants, among others.
Ever since 1994, each and every government that comes after the elections in Malawi has been singing the popular song “WE FOUND NOTHING IN GOVERNMENT,” meaning that the new government has to start from the scratch for it to deliver the social services to the citizens.
The DPP government of President Professor Arthur Peter Mutharika when leaving office in 2020 left 1 billion US Dollars forex, abundant fuel in all service stations and maize in grain reserves to last for the whole year in the same language “WE FOUND NOTHING IN GOVERNMENT.”
In order to cope up with the challenges government is going through as per the wage bill, Minister of Finance and Economic Planning Hon. Joseph Mwanamvekha announced in Parliament of the new fiscal discipline with President Professor Arthur Peter Mutharika leading by example.
Social commentator Onjezani Kenani said salaries going down and taxes rises is what reform does, it is never a fun saying if reform cannot be seen and touched, then, it is not reform at all, expressing hope that it is going to be well-managed.
“Any thieving or corrupt elements are going to be swiftly arrested and brought to trial,’ reads Kenani’s writings on the wall.
On his part, social media influencer Mneneli Joshua Chisa Mbele, says what has emerged is the opposite, it has pushed many into poverty brackets advising the new government to reverse or revise the punitive income tax on individuals.
“These people have sailed through pain and sufferings for 5 years and their monies were stolen without mercy, as of now, one cannot afford decent meal, will never afford a new phone, can’t send a child to a better school and can’t afford a car or House,” reads Chisa Mbele’s writings on the wall.
