18/06/2026
FROM PARAMOUNT CHIEF KYUNGU
“ My people of Karonga and Chitipa, I stand before you today with a heavy heart.
For many years we have watched the Karonga–Chiweta Road crumble before our eyes. Year after year we hear the same promises: “This year the road will be fixed. Next budget, the road will be fixed.” But the potholes grow deeper, and the promises fade away.
This road is not just soil and tar. The Songwe–Karonga–Chiweta Road is a socio-economic lifeline for Malawi.
Farmers lose crops because trucks cannot reach markets when the rains come. Maize rots. Tomatoes spoil. Poverty deepens.
Patients die on the way to hospital. What should take minutes takes hours.
Business suffers. Transport costs double. Goods from Tanzania and Zambia become expensive because drivers fear destroying their vehicles on this road.
Children miss school. Education is delayed because the road is delayed.
Let me be clear: when Karonga suffers, Malawi suffers. This road links Malawi to Tanzania, to Zambia, to regional trade. It affects the country at large, not just Karonga and Chitipa.
And we must not forget other vital routes. The Mbilima–Chitipa–Karonga Road, as well as the Nthalire–Chitipa–Rumphi Road, are of paramount importance to Malawi’s economy. These roads open our borders, move our goods, and connect our people.
Therefore, I urge Government to honor its promises. The Karonga–Chiweta Road must be rehabilitated without further delay. Government must take heed of our cry! We are tired of excuses. We need action, this year.
To Members of Parliament from Karonga, Chitipa, and beyond: this is your duty. Raise this matter in Parliament. Speak with one voice. Push for immediate government action. When you sit in Parliament, remember the mother walking 10km with a sick child because the ambulance could not pass.
My people, do not lose hope. Continue to speak with one voice. A road built through unity lasts longer than a road built through silence.
Finally, we cannot build Vision 2063 on broken roads. Let us fix them now, before another rainy season steals more lives and more livelihoods.
I thank you. Ndagha fiyo.”
