Organisers of Maso Awards stated on Tuesday that they weren’t below stress after some artists withdrew from the race.

Nominees had been unveiled final Friday.

They will compete in 43 categories.

There have been outcries for the reason that launch of the nominees following the absence of artists comparable to Fadah Moti and Jetu in classes comparable to Best Artist of the Year (Male) and Best Artist of the Year (Female), respectively.

This has been adopted by the withdrawal of some artists comparable to veteran gospel musician Ethel Kamwendo Banda and comic Andrea Thonyiwa, popularly often called Mr Jokes, who wrote on their social media pages that they’d withdrawn from the awards.

The withdrawals have attracted blended reactions on social media, with some individuals backing the organisers whereas others really feel that the organisers of the awards, whose grand finale can be held at Comesa Hall in Blantyre on December 28 2024, will not be clear.

Kamwendo Banda wrote that she was grateful for the nomination; “however, I have decided to focus on my current projects and pass on this opportunity”.

Asked additional as to why she had withdrawn, Kamwendo Banda maintained that what she had communicated on the difficulty was sufficient.

Reacting to the event, organisers say they’ve at all times stood for values of integrity, equity and transparency in uplifting and celebrating Malawian expertise.

“Our awards structure is carefully designed to uphold these values. Nominations are opened to the public, who vote to determine the nominees, ensuring that the people’s voices drive the choices,” the assertion they’ve issued reads.

The organisers additionally say solely 20 p.c of the ultimate resolution is reserved for a panel of well-vetted judges, aligning the bulk with the general public’s choice.

“Once nominations are finalised, we reach out to each nominee, offering them a private opportunity to confirm participation or address concerns before the list is made public,” the assertion additional says.

Maso Awards organisers say within the assertion that they absolutely respect the choice by a number of the nominees inside the window however point out that public withdrawal after the checklist is launched is unprofessional.

Maso Awards organisers additionally say within the assertion that they had been towards cyber bullying following alleged harassment that a number of the nominees had been dealing with.

Maso Awards Chief Executive Officer Augustine Mukisi stated they had been open to constructive criticism whereas sustaining that “we are credible in our dealings”.

Director of Arts within the Ministry of Local Government, Unity and Culture Humphrey Mpondaminga, whereas welcoming awards on the bottom and different occasions comparable to magnificence pageants, stated there have been gaps and that there was a necessity to scrub up the mess.

“We, as a department, have been on the ground monitoring all these awards, pageants and other events and much as there is progress as regards growing the creative sector, we have noted that there are several gaps,” Mpondaminga stated.

He stated awards, pageants and different occasions needed to be credible and correctly executed.

“Once the National Arts and Heritage Council is established, there will be scrutiny including issuance of permits. Some of the challenges being witnessed now could be because of the gaps that are there,” Mpondaminga stated.

Voting for the nominees opened final Saturday and can shut on December 20 2024.

The Maso Awards occasion has returned to Blantyre, having been held in Lilongwe final 12 months, when artists comparable to Zeze Kingston, who additionally introduced earlier exemption from the awards, dominated.

The awards are working below the theme ‘Towards Exporting Arts for Socio-economic Growth and Development’.