DPP flood Blantyre city in ‘Nyekhwe’ march against ConCourt ruling

Thousands of the ruling Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) supporters on , flooded the streets of Blantyre in a protest march against the Constitutional Court election case ruling.

DPP prominent politicians including  party publicity secretary Nicholas Dausi, who is also Minister of Homeland Security, deputy minister of Homeland Security Charles Mchacha,members of parliament including Sameer Suleman,  party executive members Henry Mussa and Brown Mpinganjira were among the marching protesters.

This protest march comes barely days after the quasi-religious organization, the Public Affairs Committee (PAC) applauded the DPP for accepting the ruling of the Constitutional Court.

DPP was among political parties in the country whose leaders signed a peace pact in the run up to the court ruling to accept the Concourt election case ruling.

However, Dausi said the ruling was irregular and against the will of the people.

“This protest march is to show that Malawians are not happy with the ruling,” he said.

Some of the marchers in what was called ‘Restoration of Democratic Justice’,  carried placards which read that the DPP would win again in the Constitutional Court sanctioned fresh presidential election in July.

DPP  cadets were singing their DPP war-cry in Malawi’s lingua franca, Chichewa: “Olimbana ndi Adad awona Nyekhwe! (“Those opposing President Peter Mutharika we will deal with them!”)

Other  supporters were singing Zivute zitani ife Amalawi tili pambuyo pa a Adad (Come hail or high waters we stand solidly behind President Mutharika).

They also broke into a chant: Boma! Boma! Boma! Boma! (We’re in power! We’re in power!)

Others sloganeered: Chala m’mwamba! Chala m’mwamba! Chala m’mwamba! (DPP slogan/symbol Raise your finger, raise your finger!)

The DPP marchers went  to deliver a petition to Blantyre City Council (BCC) and then  headed to Kameza Roundabout through the populous Ndirande Township to welcome President Peter Mutharika,  arriving in the commercial capital from Lilongwe by road.

They will escort the President to the gates of Sanjika Palace, a distance of about 10 kilometres.

Reacting to DPP’s demonstrations, governance expert Makhumbo Munthali told Nyasa Times that “they are simply exercising their right to demonstration.”

Lilongwe-based political scientist Godfrey Pumbwa said marching for the restoration of democratic justice,” it doesn’t make sense” because they are already in government.

“If  they have observed that something democratically is wrong, they should just discuss to see the way forward,” Pumbwa said.

The five-judge panel comprising Healey Potani, Redson Kapindu, Ivy Kamanga, Mike Tembo and Dingiswayo Madise on February 3, nullified the presidential election in the May 21 2019 Tripartite Elections and directed that a fresh election be held within 150 days from February 3 2020.

The court said MEC failed in all constitutional tests it set out on the elections and that the irregularities were so glaring that the credibility of the election was in question.

But President Mutharika said he considered the judgement delivered by a five-judge panel as “serious subversion of justice, an attack on the country’s democratic system and an attempt to undermine the will of people”.

Mutharika has since lodged an appeal at the Supreme Court of Malawi.

The international community applauded Malawi for the landmark and historic election case ruling.

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