Africa-Press – Malawi. Bishop Alfred Mateyu Chaima of the Catholic Diocese of Zomba says poor people in this country are suffering because they are struggling with the taxes that the government is placing on the prices of goods.
Chaima said this on Saturday at Zomba Cathedral during a Pontifical Missionary Union Mass.
He said that many people in this country are poor, and he criticized the government for not considering the challenges Malawians are facing in their daily lives.
The Catholic bishop said it is sad that people in rural areas, who do not have any other jobs and earn money with difficulty, are being burdened with tax on everything they buy in grocery shops, which is worsening poverty in their lives.
In this regard, Bishop Chaima said that even those who are employed have large amounts of tax deducted from their salaries, and when they go to buy goods they are taxed again, meaning that people’s lives cannot improve.
“I ask the government to consider the problems Malawians are facing and not just impose taxes on everything. If this continues, in the future we may even hear that when you shave your hair, your head will be taxed,” he said.
Recently, vendors in the cities of Zomba, Blantyre, Lilongwe, and Mzuzu held demonstrations and delivered their petition to the Malawi Revenue Authority (MRA), expressing dissatisfaction with the way the authority has introduced tax collection measures.
Malawi is one of the poorest countries in the world, and its economy largely depends on agriculture.
For More News And Analysis About Malawi Follow Africa-Press
