MALAWI: Experts Predict Threat to State Legitimacy Following Decline of Trust in Public Institutions
Luke Bisani
Political experts in Malawi have predicted a threat to state legitimacy and prospects of the country’s democracy consolidation following a decline in public trust in key governance institutions in the country.
Two experts, Joseph Chunga and Happy Kayuni through their book entitled Beyond Impunity-New Directions for Governance in Malawi that has been published this year, argue that the country has witnessed a decline in citizen trust in public institutions which affects good governance.
Commenting on one of the chapters during a Book Review Event held at the Catholic University of Malawi on Tuesday this week, Kayuni said several issues have been mishandled by authorities in the country leading to a lowering of public trust.
“Malawians prioritize food security; if the government has mishandled the issue of food security, it affects trust. There is also the way government has managed the economy and the issue of corruption. These are the three key indicators that if mishandled by government, they affect citizens trust,” said Kayuni.
“And we have seen that in any democracy, the moment when government has mishandled these indicators, the trust in democratic processes goes down,” added Kayuni.
The co-written chapter has disclosed that support for and satisfaction with democracy on presidents has declined from 50 percent in 1999 to 43 percent in 2019 while on parliamentarian, satisfaction has declined from 38 percent to 35 percent in the same period.
On obeying the law and on courts making binding decisions, the chapter has disclosed that the trust in police has declined from 64 percent in 2003 to 53 percent in 2017 while trust in courts has declined from 61 percent to 59 percent in the same period.
One of the reviewers from the department of political leadership at the Catholic University of Malawi who is also lecturer Sainala Kalebe said the chapter has presented a true reflection of the trends in Malawi hence urging the authorities to act fast as a way of promoting long-term stability of the political system.
Over the years, Malawians have been experiencing food shortages despite politicians riding on campaign promises of ending hunger. The citizenry has witnessed a rise in cases of corruption in the democratic era and the economy being in bad shape, resulting in the rise of the cost of living.
