Title: MAU ANGA
Author : Dr. Bakili Muluzi
Publisher: Skotaville Media, Pretoria, South Africa
Reviewer: Willie Zingani

This simple and down to earth gentleman from Kapoloma Village in Machinga District, Dr. Bakili Muluzi, the President of Malawi loves surprises.

This other minute when Malawians were sweating with the heat of Dr. Hastings Kamuzu Banda’s dictatorship, Dr. Muluzi resurfaced from his business ventures and found himself leading a very successful underground political movement, the United Democratic Front (UDF), now Malawi’s ruling party since 1994. This other hour after being sworn-in for his second term of office as President of Malawi, Dr. Bakili Muluzi pulled out another surprise by releasing his first book, Democracy with a Price.

From an educationist to a politician, businessman, and now a book writer. This is an achievement any ambitious intellectual would love to include on his or her curriculum vitae.

As if that is not enough, Dr. Bakili Muluzi has now launched his second title MAU ANGA:The Voice of a Democrat weeks after handing over the SADC chair to Angola.

MAU ANGA published by Skotaville Media (SA) is a history book in which Dr. Muluzi takes the reader into the past, brings him into the present and throws him into the future.

In his own style of writing, Dr. Muluzi holds the reader by the hand on the long journey Malawi has travelled on a tight path through the struggle against oppression by the colonialists, fight for self government and independence, and the pains of one-party dictatorship.
The author gives credit to Malawi’s greatest martyr, Reverend John Chilembwe who in 1915 led an uprising against the colonial government and the white settlers.

In Dr. Muluzi’s arguments, Chilembwe’s battle though crashed by the colonial soldiers was justifiable and achieved its objective in that it created a solid foundation for African nationalism in the then Nyasaland. Here was a brave man who strongly made his views known on the pangs of forced Labour (Thangata) and the recruitment of Africans to fight in the First World War.
Dr. Muluzi sails with his readers on the rough waters of continuous exploitation with uncompromising waves at the cruel hands of the colonial masters.

He recounts the rise and the fall of the Federation of Rhodesia and Nyasaland under Sir Roy Welensky’s leadership.
The peak of African nationalism in MAU ANGA is the process the country went through when young politicians in the names of: Orton Chirwa, Henry Masauko Chipembere, Kanyama Chiume, Augustine Bwanausi, Willie Chokani, the Chisiza brothers – Yatuta and Dunduzu among others, invited Dr. Hastings Kamuzu Banda to return home to fill the leadership vacuum in the Nyasaland African Congress (NAC) which later became Malawi Congress Party (MCP).

MAU ANGA salutes Dr. Banda’s victory in destroying the “Stupid” federation and the attainment of self-government and independence from the British rule in 1963 and 1964 respectively.

Dr. Muluzi’s tears of sorrow come when he starts relating the events that led to the 1964 Cabinet Crisis which saw Dr. Banda’s lieutenants flee the country.

The aftermath was full of gloomy incidents resulting in detentions without trial, mysterious murders of relatives, friends and sympathisers of the ministers who rebelled against the Banda regime.

The author reveals that the horror which made him determined to fight Dr. Banda’s dictatorial regime was the brutal murders of three senior cabinet ministers and a Member of Parliament in 1983: Aaron Gadama, Dick Matenge, Twaibu Sangala and David Chiwanga.
Two of the four politicians, Aaron Gadama and Dick Matenje were Dr. Muluzi’s close friends.

However, the road to democracy does not look that smooth for Dr. Muluzi and all those who decided that enough was enough.
They went through rough times of physical torture and intimidation.

Dr. Muluzi explains the verbal and physical confrontations which results in the MCP government arresting him on drummed up charges.

He shows the arrows of the democratic dawn with an eventful period between 1992 to 1994 when the Catholic Bishops issued the Pastoral Letter in March 1992, National Referendum in June 1993 and the General Elections which saw Dr. Bakili Muluzi becoming Malawi’s first democratically elected President with his UDF party replacing the MCP government in May 1994. The experiences of growing-up are well-narrated depicting the humble village life at a time very few Muslim parents sent their children to school.
Dr. Muluzi’s father, Chesalile Chiutula Muluzi and mother, Chenalikusika Abiti Sumani are described by their son as serious disciplinarians and principled guardians.

At the age of sixteen in 1959, Dr. Bakili Muluzi - was ready for political challenges. He was elected MCP’s Kapoloma Branch Secretary.

Dr. Muluzi explains how he left Nasawa Technical College where he was Principal to become Nominated Member of Parliament for Machinga District in 1975.

He later found his way into Cabinet where he served as Deputy Minister of Youth and Sports, Minister of Education, Minister Without Portfolio and Secretary-General of the MCP and finally Minister of Transport and Communication.
The conclusion of MAU ANGA is a selection of President Muluzi’s speeches since 1994, covering a variety of important events such as the Chilembwe Day, United Nations General Assembly, Official Opening of Parliament and the University of Malawi Graduation Ceremony.

In all the speeches the author’s emphasis is the need to safeguard the hard-won democracy, respect for Human-Rights, eradication of poverty and special focus on education, health care, water and sanitation and agriculture.
MAU ANGA is a book which would make the reader understand why Dr. Muluzi has been awarded many Honorary Degrees since he took office in 1994, and before successfully ran the Malawi Chamber of Commerce as Deputy Chairman and thereafter Common Market for Eastern and Southern Africa (COMESA) and the Southern African Development Community (SADC) Chair in 1994 and 2001 respectively

Quoting Nomatshaka Masemola, Managing Director of Skotaville Media (SA), publishers of MAU ANGA: The Voice of a Democrat: “This is a book on Malawian can afford to ignore. It is so precious and deserves space on all the book shelves in this country.”