There is confusion in the UDF camp. It has emerged that the party’s legislators have taken different positions on how to support the ruling party of President Joyce Banda.

The UDF is credited for defeating late dictator Kamuzu Banda in the first popular elections which ushered in a multi party system of government more than 20 years ago.

On Wednesday morning the party’s Chief Whip Dr. Clement told journalists a press conference that the party has not been swallowed by President Banda’s People’s Party (PP), saying their support to Banda is only in Parliament and not outside the… ( Read on! )

To many Malawians, legislators are just a bunch of untrustworthy law makers preoccupied with making money at the expense of the poor.

Many believe that most legislators only care about their wellbeing and not about the people they swore to represent come rain, come sunshine.

This week that belief rang true when some of the legislators who had left the former ruling party of DPP after the sudden death of president Mutharika and joined President Joyce Banda’s party, announced they have gone back to their original party.

They did this to beat the seven day deadline the Speaker of the… ( Read on! )

Malawi’s key donors have pledged a total of around $496 million in budget support, an increase of 140 percent from last year when they pledged $210 million, Finance Minister Ken Lipenga said on Friday

“Total revenue and grants for the 2012/13 budget are projected at $1.6 billion  made up of K270.39 billion and K124.08 billion ($496 million)  in domestic revenues and grants respectively,” he said.

 Malawi’s economy had been teetering on the brink of collapse after former president Bingu wa Mutharika  picked a fight with major donors whose support accounts for about 40 percent of… ( Read on! )

The passing of the 2012/13 national budget by parliament will be crucial to the approval of the new IMF aid program for Malawi by the Fund’s executive board, a senior IMF official said on Wednesday.

Last week  the Fund said it had  reached a staff-level understanding with Malawi on an economic program for three that could be supported by a new Extended Credit Facility (ECF) arrangement in the amount of SDR104 million (about US$157 million).

“The successful passage of the [FY2012/13] budget will help pave the way for approval of the new ECF program by the IMF’s Executive Board in… ( Read on! )

Tembo: His MCP thinks JB is traveling too much

Malawi’s opposition in parliament has accused President Joyce Banda of traveling too much at the expense of tax payers and tore apart her financial plan for 2012/13 unveiled last Friday.

Malawi Congress Party, the longest serving opposition party and Malawi’s first ruling party, went to town on Banda saying her 2012/13 budget has failed to mitigate the effects of devaluation on the most people population.

Banda, Africa’s new darling of Western donors, took over as President in April after the sudden death of President Bingu Wa… ( Read on! )