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Misanet.com / The Nation, 3 April - Roman Catholic bishops have said they will not react to speculations on amending the Constitution to pave the way for President Bakili Muluzi to run for a third term, saying they do not comment on rumours. Episcopal Conference of Malawi (ECM) secretary general Fr. Robert Mwaungulu said in an interview yesterday from Dedza the pastoral letter, released on March 25, is not against any such amendment. He explained, however, the need to respect procedures for doing so. - Nobody has come [out] in the open. You don't overreact to rumours. We only make cautionary statements, Mwaungulu said. He, however, pointed out Parliament's move rejecting the establishment of a Senate in January as an issue that needed wide consultation. He also said they were worried by corruption among Christians. The letter, which is being read out in Catholic churches in Malawi, is asking government to hold referenda on matters which affect the Constitution to solicit the opinion of the masses. The Lenten letter also notes that basic democratic principles, according to the Constitution, have to be respected. It reads in part: "We should not allow anyone or any group to manipulate others into eroding the Constitution." Mwaungulu noted that the Legislature, the Judiciary, the Executive and other government institutions should not be used to abolish one another, saying this overrides the powers of the Constitution. Attorney General Peter Fachi said in a separate interview in Blantyre that he would not react to the pastoral letter because he has not read it yet. Said Fachi: "I have not seen the letter....We don't make statements in isolation." Human Rights Commission chair Fr. Alfred Nsope in an interview from Lilongwe yesterday welcomed the pastoral letter but said it requires legal input. "For everything there are two sides. There should be a matter," said Nsope, noting that the letter did not allude to any specific chapters in the Constitution. He said he would not interpret the pastoral letter to imply that it was aimed at discouraging the incumbent President, who is limited to run for only two terms, from contesting for a third term. "On the third term, we wait until something is concrete. We are not a rumour institution," said Nsope. On his part, Malawi Institute of Democratic and Economic Affairs (Midea) Shyley Kondowe said "the pastoral letter says the people have lost trust in the elected government." Kondowe said some decisions government has been making recently without consulting the people were questionable, which prompted the bishops to intervene. He did not elaborate. Civil Liberties director Emmie Chanika welcomed the pastoral letter saying it addressed the human ills of a society, noting that even human rights NGOs were no better. By Hope Musukwa,
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