Lilongwe - Malawian President Peter Mutharika has urged the church to join in his war against social media, claiming that the communication medium was the cause of "social decay" in his country, Nyasa Times has reported.

Speaking during a church service in the country's business centre, Blantyre, Mutharika claimed that social media platforms had long been utilised to disseminate lies and castigate others.

In addition, the Malawian leader urged the church to help government in its fight against the abuse of social media, saying that abuse of the medium would lead to the degeneration of values and morals within the country.

The development came just two months after an announcement that the Malawian government would be drafting new cyber laws to control the use of social media within the country.

According to Information Minister Jappie Mhango, a bill that would impose harsh punishment for "abusers" of social media platforms, would soon be tabled before parliament.







