ANGLICAN-INFORMATION reports:

Lilongwe, Diocese of Lake Malawi, Province of Central Africa
 
People reject and rebuke new Dean and Central African Provincial Bishops.
 

Today, Saturday, 20th October at their second meeting within the space of a few months, this time with yet another ‘Provincial Dean' the people of the diocese of Lake Malawi explicitly rejected the demands of the Provincial bishops that they should hold new elections for a bishop to try and replace the current bishop-elect the Rev'd Nicholas Henderson.  
 
The Vicar General Bright Mkoko, had in the words of a Press Release from House of Laity spokesperson Jean Msosa:  
‘called for an emergency meeting at the Lake Malawi Diocese without an agenda, where Bishop Chama, his colleague Bishop of Zambia and the Provincial Secretary Rev Pembamoyo were present.  Also present were the members of different institutions of the church and clergy. The Laity got wind of the intended purpose of the meeting and decided to come from all the Lake Malawi Diocese to hear the outcome of the meeting.'

The Press Release also indicated that the House of Laity had once again been forced to take matters into their own hands and that:
‘This is to inform you that with effect from today 20th October 2007, the Lake Malawi Diocese Laity has closed the Diocesan offices and confiscated keys to the three Diocesan vehicles.'
 
  ANGLICAN-INFORMATION comments: Apparently, unauthorised people in the absence of any proper control have been regularly using these vehicles for their own private purposes and as they were given by UK church organizations expressly for Diocesan tasks this misuse has rightly, now been stopped.  The English diocese of Birmingham , twinned with Lake Malawi might like to take note, as some of the vehicles were given by them.
 
 
In addition two further points are made in the Press release:
1.     The issue of Lake Malawi started in 2005 and up to now 2007 there is no way forward and our only hope Bishop Trevor Mwamba was unceremoniously removed from his position as a Dean of the Province. This did not go down well with the Christians, hence the above action.
2.     Bishop Chama's agenda for the meeting was to dictate to us to hold fresh elections, which did not go down well in the Christians knowing that Bishop Malango accepted that he erred in the whole process. Bishop Chama was in no compromising mood, forcing Christians to take the above action.
 
The Rt Rev'd Albert Chama, bishop of Northern Zambia , in his capacity as the latest acting Dean (described by eye witnesses as being officious and dictatorial during the meeting) was rebuked by the people. He was told that that the people would not agree to new elections, that the people wanted justice; they wanted their bona fide elected bishop, the Rev'd Nicholas Henderson, and an end to the chaos in the Province that has accompanied the dying days of Archbishop Bernard Malango's regime.  One member present commented ‘Bishop Chama is arrogant and dictatorial and will not listen, unlike Bishop Trevor Mwamba, who we respect.'  

The sole purpose of the meeting seemed to be to instruct the diocese that there were to be fresh elections for a bishop the replace the bishop-elect the Rev'd Nicholas Henderson.  This proposal, apparently by diktat of the Provincial Bishops, arbitrarily  overthrows the previous arrangements (agreed synodically by all parties) made at the meeting of the Diocesan Synod earlier this year.
 
During that Lake Malawi Diocesan Synod, held on 12th August at Nkhota-kota the then Dean, the Rt Rev'd Trevor Mwamba, Bishop of Botswana, acting in his official capacity to replace the retiring Archbishop Bernard Malango, spent a great deal of time listening to the various points and arguments put forward.  His respected and confidently measured leadership secured a synodical agreement, by all parties, that there should be a Provincial Court to re-examine the contentious ‘Court of Confirmation' held in November 2005 when the bishop- elect of Lake Malawi was declared to be of ‘unsound faith'.  
 
Bishop Albert Chama, the latest Dean, is said to be simply a cipher for Bernard Malango and certainly his opening comments to some of the laity a few days before the meeting in Lilongwe followed in the Malango school of diplomacy.  “If you will not agree to what we have told you, then we (the Provincial bishops) will leave you to rot”.
 
Unlike bishop Chama, bishop Trevor Mwamba the former Dean is much respected in Malawi and it had come as a near incredulous surprise to the people to learn that the Provincial bishops, (under the influence of Bernard Malango, American schismatic websites and the intimidatory bishop of Harare, Nolbert Kunonga) had deposed him at a meeting of the Provincial bishops held just before the now infamous Provincial Synod held in Malawi on 9th September – see earlier ANGLICAN-INFORMATION releases.
 
Bishop Nolbert Kunonga, arch trouble maker at that Synod and himself consequently now embroiled in an acrimonious dispute and legal case with the Province, is reported to have told the other Provincial bishops that they should: ‘Crack down hard on the people of Lake Malawi', a style that belongs to a colonial past and which has not surprisingly been unsuccessful.
 
It is widely thought that outgoing Bishop Bernard Malango is desperate to organise new elections for Lake Malawi in order to avoid a Provincial Court examining the highly questionable proceedings of the Court of Confirmation of November 2005 - the deposition of Bishop Mwamba and the appointment of Bishop Chama being the unfortunate legacy of Malango's fears. The Court of Confirmation rejected the bishop-elect the Rev'd Nicholas Henderson on contrived grounds of ‘unsound faith' for his former membership of a theological society (the Modern Churchpeople's Union) for whose Journal for the past five years Bishop James Tengatenga of South Malawi has been (and still is) an international editor and for which Bishop Trevor Mwamba of Botswana is to be speaker at the 2008 Summer Conference, chaired by the Archbishop of Wales.  It appears that schismatic Americans do not approve – hence Malango and some of the other bishops danced to their tune – a phenomenon which unfortunately has been repeated in other parts of Africa .   ANGLICAN-INFORMATION observes that African bishops are allowed to think they are in charge but in fact the American schismatics' grasp has squeezed them into a new Babylonian captivity.  Only recently are there signs that the Africans are waking up to this manipulation.
 
The Central African Provincial bishops have compounded their folly by also declaring that the synodically agreed Provincial Court to investigate the Lake Malawi case would not take place but new elections would be held instead.  This was not agreed by synodical resolution and closely mirrors the disastrous attempt by the Provincial Bishops in 2006 to foist the hapless Leonard Mwenda, a retired bishop of Zambia , on Lake Malawi .  Mwenda was quite quickly chased out of Malawi as an illegitimate usurper.
 
ANGLICAN-INFORMATION observes that the Central African Provincial bishops never seem to learn that strong arm Episcopal bullying tactics will not work any longer in this part of Africa .  The people are far too sophisticated to be tricked or intimidated into uncanonical, illegal or non-synodical action.  
 
However, now that Bernard Malango is finally to retire as bishop of Upper Shire diocese, in December this year, the bishops (who have never been of one mind during Malango's era) have also turned to fighting amongst themselves.  Bishop Nolbert Kunonga's recent declaration of independence for his diocese of Harare and that of Manicaland, Zimbabawe, is rightly being contested, by the Provincial bishops, in the Zimbabwe courts, fronted interestingly by Bishop Albert Chama.  Alas, however, this is a challenge from the Province that is as unlikely to succeed as previous attempts to bring Nolbert Kunonga to trial for charges, including incitement to murder, all of which were illegally dismissed by the then Archbishop Bernard Malango. In that part of the Province and with strongman Robert Mugabe on your side you are more or less invincible whatever ill you do.  However, it is clear that the demise of the Mugabe regime would improve the fortunes of the Province of Central Africa considerably.

ANGLICAN-INFORMATION comments:  The current disastrous state of affairs in the Province of Central Africa and the Diocese of Lake Malawi, can be laid entirely at the feet of the Provincial House of Bishops in their seeming inability to act collectively as responsible Fathers in God.  They are divided amongst themselves and, although there are some wise heads amongst them, during the Malango regime they have allowed themselves (or been intimidated) to act as a kind of junta seeking to stamp their authority regardless of opinions and circumstances.  They have now succeeded in bringing the Central African Province into a position of ridicule.  The end result has been the near complete derogation of the Gospel.  In the meantime, the loyal priests and laity of the various dioceses heroically labour on.

ANGLICAN-INFORMATION notes: Nevertheless, there are now other emerging flash points in the Province waiting to explode with anger and there is increasing unrest and consternation amongst the people. The dioceses of Harare and Manicaland in Zimbabawe will shortly present terrible problems.  The upcoming election in Upper Shire diocese to replace Bernard Malango in the New Year is potentially fraught with difficulty, especially if the laity and clergy are taken for granted and Malango interferes.  His own election to that diocese was very dubiously conducted.  
 
ANGLICAN-INFORMATION says: These are times that require the highest standard of trustworthy Episcopal leadership that can enter into proper dialogue and convince laity and clergy across the Province that their needs and concerns are paramount. There is a desperate need now for a leader of integrity with exceptional diplomatic skills from amongst the Bishops - Bishop Albert Chama is not that man .

As James Kapala, Chairman of the House of Laity (but not at the meeting in Lilongwe ) has remarked of Bishop Chama, on hearing what happened: ‘Men of God should listen to and share with the people, not dictate to them. We have rules and canons in the Church for good reason and they should be followed, not overruled.'
 
ANGLICAN-INFORMATION concludes this long and sad article.
- So once again, after two long years, once again in the Diocese of Lake Malawi impasse is the order of the day.  In fact the problem could be solved in minutes over a cup of tea if only the bishops will get into proper dialogue and speak honestly with all the people concerned. The culture of deference which has historically existed in Africa is coming to an end as modern communications liberate the masses – it is not only the bishops who nowadays have access to the Internet and use mobile telephones as the many readers of ANGLICAN-INFORMATION worldwide are aware.
 
Things may eventually change as some of the more sensible Provincial bishops have let it be known privately that they are increasingly disquieted at the ever more bizarre antics and ineptitudes that are being exhibited amongst their colleagues.  
 
Now that Malango and Kunonga are respectively retiring or in self-imposed schismatic isolation, it is possible that some common sense and a process of proper consultation with the people will return – eventually – but for the moment prayfulness on the part of all observers of this sorry scene is appropriate.
 

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