Mutharika in his wisdom went ahead to describe such people as enemies of the state, and threatened to take action against them.
However, some of the countrys eminent economists and business people Nyasa Times talked to think otherwise.
The wisdom in Mutharikas speech was premised on the current serious shortage of forex that has affected businesses because the private sector can neither order raw materials nor remit outstanding bills of goods already imported nor would they import finished goods for trade.
The situation has deteriorated to the extent that the usual pro-government president of the Malawi Confederation of Chamber of Commerce and Industry (MCCCI) has been at pains to explain to the business captains as to what has hit forex in a country where the economy is believed to be doing too well and calls for devaluation have been trashed as enemy action.
A Lilongwe based eminent economist who requested anonymity blamed government for failing to satisfy the private sector through the provision of forex and for government to shut out the private sector because the government is also desperate for forex.
The economist alleged that with the normal donor inflows and adequate forex generation through the sale of the countrys raw materials; the Kayelekera mine; the touted fiscal discipline and all the other good economic reading, the traders should not be used as scapegoats.
A prominent trader in Blantyre expressed worry that the blame game will now land directly on the traders now that the opposition MCP and UDF are in minority.
The trader further expressed surprise that business men are being blamed when the Presidents party spend millions in importing campaign materials during the election period that ranged from cars to T-shirts and posters.
As if that is not enough, another business man added that government of Malawi has coughed close to K700 million in purchasing over 25 brand new Mercedes Benz vehicles from abroad and not to overlook the several other vehicles that have been imported like the Hummers.
The money (forex) on Mercedes Benz and other vehicles would have been enough to support several productive areas of the private sector, said the trader.
Several other business men have complained that the Thank you whistle stop tours and the big cabinet will continue to drain the country of its economic resources.
When one takes a look at all these events there is enough reason to believe that besides unscrupulous business people taking their share of blame, somewhere the President must reflect and share the blame of the forex problem, concluded one of the traders.
Commenting on the same issue, Rahman Ibrahim a manager at a forex bureau in Limbe also disagreed with President Mutharikas assertion that it is unscrupulous business people who are siphoning the forex.
Ibrahim disclosed that scarcity of forex reached critical levels in the run up to the elections.
He however refused to be drawn into commenting as to whether Mutharikas extravagant campaign is a contributing factor.
I really cant comment on that because Im a business man and Im not a politician. It is not true that a business man would hide forex because without it we cannot do business, he said.
There is a lot of abuse of forex because this country has no rules that control the use of forex on priority areas. Look at the motor trade, look at the number of luxury goods and only last of last week Mr. Price opened its doors in Lilongwe and look at the number of Chinese doing nothing but selling cheap goods that also drain forex, and look at how many public servants are travelling abroad, said Ibrahim.
Other businessmen complained of the harsh language that the President uses each time he is talking about businessmen.
Were the people that drive this country through the payment of taxes from our businesses. Without businessmen Malawi Revenue Authority (MRA) will not collect enough revenue and this government will carry out very little development, commented a soap manufacturer.
Although Mutharika continues to wear a brave face by blaming traders as the main culprits over the foreign exchange predicament, Malawi Confederations of Chambers of Commerce and Industry (MCCCI) president Harrison Kalua was quoted in one of the weekend papers as warning Mutharika against blaming traders.
Kalua said it is impossible for a person to drain off the foreign exchange without the knowledge of the Reserve Bank.
Kalua said: How do you allow these people to get the foreign exchange? They could only siphon the foreign exchange if they connive with officials that were entrusted with the responsibility to manage foreign exchange. Transactions to do with huge foreign exchange are normally done through Foreign Denominated Accounts (FDAs) and the RBM has a responsibility to follow such transactions.
How could someone pass through the airport gates with for instance US$10 million without any tangible authority? The President should avoid this blame game, but should instead meet stakeholders and discuss the best solution to arrest the malpractice, Kalua was quoted as saying.
The shortage of foreign currency has seen some currency exchange dealers being placed behind bars while others have already been convicted by the court of law.
But commentators have said that government is targeting the defenseless when forex scams should involve RBM, commercial banks, big trading companies and government itself.
Meanwhile, rumour has it that MRA has recorded lowest revenue collection since the advent of forex problems and that this trend will continue into the immediate future.
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