By Vincent Gunde
Political activist Bon Kalindo has hailed Minister of Lands Chimwemwe Chipungu and Home Affairs Security Peter Mukhito for issuing a 14 day’s ultimatum to all land grabbers in the country to surrender the land back to owners.
Kalindo said this is a good move to earn commendations that the Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) government is a listening one expressing hope that it will do more to walk together with Malawians that voted for it into government.
He said the issue of grabbing land by force started with Malawi Congress Party (MCP) youth who gave themselves power over police to be grabbing land in the company of panga wielding thugs making the owners of the land to surrender it to the thugs.
The activist said when DPP was voted back into government on the 16th September, 2025 some DPP youth gave themselves powers, they continued from where the MCP stopped, land was grabbed by force with them selling it in millions of Kwachas.
He has claimed that some ministers in both DPP and MCP and senior government officials have benefited from the land which was grabbed by force, observing that others have built mansions and shops while others, have built houses for rents.
The political activist has thanked the two Ministers for giving powers to police to arrest anyone behind the land grabbing by force whether they are DPP or MCP saying this is a very good decision coming from a caring government.
He has advised government to extend arrests to chiefs who also grab land by force and sale it to rich people for buildings and shops observing that issues of land grabbing are a worrisome development to most of the communities.
Kalindo gave an example of the people of Kasasire in northern Nkhatabay who were forced to move out from their land at gun-points by MDF soldiers on the claims that the land was for the Army to hold military trainings.
He said the people were accommodated at a very small church, their agricultural produces were slashed down, raising animals shot dead, houses demolished thanking Bishop Martin Mtumbuka of the Roman Catholic Church- Karonga Diocese for visiting them and activist JB for mobilizing resources from USA to give the people of Kasasire food to eat.
The activist has claimed that in Dowa, the land owners are still today not paid for compensations by the government following their relocation to other areas, their land was marked for the new Dowa District Hospital but instead, there are houses of people.
He has appealed to government to demolish all illegal built houses and shops in the country’s cities, towns, districts and trading centres saying by arresting perpetrators of land grabbing by force, this would- be lessons to the other would be offenders who take change of government as their added advantages.
“Bravo, two ministers for issuing a 14 day’s ultimatum to return the land they grabbed to owners or risk to be arrested and prosecuted in courts of laws regardless of political party affiliations,” said Kalindo.
He has finally advised government to sort out the issue of District Commissioner for Salima in as soon as yesterday claiming that the new District Commissioner has no vehicle claiming that the council’s vehicle is being used by the old DC on the claims that government has not told him where he is going and received no letter of transfer.
