Malawi has accused US singer Madonna of “bullying state officials” after she reportedly complained about her treatment on a visit to the country.
Madonna – who has adopted two Malawian-born children – recently visited schools her charity helped fund.
The government said the star appeared to believe she deserved to be treated better than other celebrity visitors.
It accused her of exaggerating her charity’s contribution and said she should concentrate on playing music.
Madonna was said to have been angered that she and her entourage were stripped of their VIP status on their way out of the country, the UK’s Daily Telegraph reported.
They had to line up with other passengers at the airport and were frisked by security officials, the report said.
The change in status was said to be the result of a public spat about her charitable work in Malawi.
A harshly-worded statement issued by the office of President Joyce Banda on Wednesday accused Madonna of wanting Malawi “to be forever chained to the obligation of gratitude”.
“Granted, Madonna is a famed international musician. But that does not impose an injunction of obligation on any government under whose territory Madonna finds herself, including Malawi, to give her state treatment. Such treatment, even if she deserved it, is discretionary not obligatory,” said the statement.
It accused her of being “a musician who desperately thinks she must generate recognition by bullying state officials instead of playing decent music on the stage”.
It added: “Among the many things that Madonna needs to learn as a matter of urgency is the decency of telling the truth.
“For her to tell the whole world that she is building schools in Malawi when she has actually only contributed to the construction of classrooms is not compatible with manners of someone who thinks she deserves to be revered with state grandeur.”
There has so far been no reaction to the statement from Madonna.
Last week the singer toured 10 primary schools which her charity said she had built.
“I love Malawi, I am committed to help end poverty here,” the pop star had said.
However, Malawi’s education minister Eunice Kazembe told the BBC that she was building classrooms not entire schools in the southern African country.