Transcript of President Bingu wa Mutharikas Speech By Ganizani Desmond Note: This speech was made on Thursday the 25th

of August, 2011, at the occasion of opening the 2011 Agricultural Trade Fair by His Excellency Professor Bingu w a Mutharika, President of the Republic of Malawi Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) supporters singing Zivute zitani ife Amalawi tili pambuyo pa a Bingu (translation: Come hail or high waters we stand solidly behind Bingu). Then they break into a chant: Boma! Boma! Boma! Boma! (Translatio n: Were in power! Were in power!) Bingu: Chala mmwamba! Chala mmwamba! Chala mmwamba! (DPP slogan/s ymbol Raise your finger, raise your finger!) Malawi woyeee! (Translation: Viva M alawi!) Mutharika: Let s fight Supporters: Woyeee! Bingu: DPP woyee! (Translation: Viva DPP!) Supporters: Woyeee! Bingu: Nanga ulimi woyeee! (Translation: And viva agriculture! ) Supporters: Woyeee! Boma ilo! Boma ilo! Boma ilo! (Translation: Viva! Loo k, were in power!) Bingu: (Speaking in Chichewa) Honourable Mr Chimunthu Banda MP , Speaker of the National Assembly; Honourable Mr Lovemore Munlo SC, Chief Justi ce; Honourable Mr Matthews Chikankheni, president of the Malawi Confederation of Chambers of Commerce and Industry; Honourable Mrs Erica Maganga, Principal Secr etary of the Ministry of Agriculture and Food Security; Honourable councilors an d principals of chambers of commerce and industry; all honourable MPs here today ; honourable members of the diplomatic corps; all honourable business captains; honourable paramount chiefs, senior chiefs and other traditional leaders here to day; all honourable exhibitors; I recognize Bingus Women in the DPP; Bingus Women in the civil service; DPP Cadets; Distinguished guests, ladies and gentlemen: First and foremost I greet you all. Supporters: Thank you! Bingu: How are you? Supporters: Were fine and you! Bingu: Im fine. Supporters: Thank you. Bingu: Let me start by thanking all of you for coming in such large numbers. I say this because there are some people who, when drunk, say tha t DPP is no more, the Government is no more (Supporters interject Theyre telling l ies!), so by coming in such large numbers you have demonstrated that what they ar e saying is nonsense. The Democratic Progressive Party is growing from strength to strength and the Government remains strong as ever. Dont mistake the Governmen ts silence for ineptitude. All those insolent people I can arrest them if I so wi sh. I want you to know that. Government remains in control but I choose to be si lent because I believe in democracy. But there are some who, when drunk, go yakyak-yak; dont think I cant arrest you. (Switches to English) I want you to know th at just because somebody outside [this country] says so I cannot arrest you. I c an arrest you! Let this country go on fire if you want to. Koma (But) what I want you to know . . . (Switches to Chichewa) Ladies and gentl emen, I want to tell you enough is enough! I cant stomach this insolence anymore. Supporters: Boma! Boma! Boma! Bingu: DPP woyeee! DPP woyeee! A couple of days ago I was in t hat building over there. Somebody in there, complete with a clerical collar on h is shirt front, there he was saying Bingu youre the most stupid person Ndiwe Chin dere ndiwenso chitsiru. With insults like these, would he have walked out of tha t building in the past? (Supporters: Nooo!) I want you to realize that I tolerate a lot; but some are mistaking this tolerance for stupidity. Please, that is wron

g. When I stand up to fight back, you will see. I am saying all this because weve done a lot in this country. I have taken this c ountry from the poor position it was to the stellar position it now occupies. In this country I have eradicated hunger. In this country I have eradicated the AIDS pandemic. In this country I have built roads. In this country I have built hospitals. In this country I have built schools. But for all this somebody says (switches to English)its nothing. What is nothing? (Switches to Chichewa) I have established the Presidential Contact Group on Dial ogue. Some people are saying no we dont want this group. Tell me: what the hell do you want? (Switches to English) I have established a Presidential Contact and Di alogue group and you say you dont want it. What the hell do you want? What the he ll do you want? I want you to know. (Switches to Chichewa) Malawians, I want you to ask yourselv es. I have set up a contact and dialogue group yet these people say they dont wan t it, what do they want? The Group is headed by no less a personage than the lat e . . . errr, retired Archbishop Dr Bernard Malango. He is a real doctorate hold er by the way, not an ordinary person. Yet these people maintain that they dont w ant. So what do you want? Now, therefore, if you dont want dialogue, tell me any day we can go to war, if t hats what you want (Supporters clap, whistle, ululate but some are heard saying A yi bwana No Sir). All these things these agricultural activities will not progress with such spoil sports in our midst. Nothing will happen. Progress will lapse. Roads, schools, e verything will be ruined. See, they already started with setting shops on fire. Now the same people who torched the shops are saying they are not the ones who d id so, then who did it? They say its the vendors, who instructed the vendors to t arget the PTC shops? I thus simply wanted you to know that in tolerating all this, I am not afraid, a nd neither am I stupid. If you continue speaking nonsense aimed at disturbing th e peace and disrupting the progress we have made, you will face the music. Oh ye s! Ill deal with you. And I want you . . . Nation Publications, if the Nation Pub lications team is here, go and tell them that Bingu is threatening you and Im threa tening them! Yes! So . . . (women supporters begin singing praise songs accompan ied by the talking drum). Thank you. That was Nkhani za mmaboma (translation: tha t was other news.)