Peter Mutharika is huge risk to Malawi – Chilumpha
People’s Party (PP) Central Province vice president Cassim Chilumpha has said electing Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) leader Peter Mutharika as the country’s president in next year’s elections is a very big mistake to Malawi.
Chilumpha was speaking in Lilongwe’s Area 23 township during PP’s political rally.
He also officially opened the party’s Lilongwe City South East constituency office which was donated by the area’s parliamentary hopeful Levy Luwemba who is also the first National Deputy Director of Political Affairs.
“During the DPP leadership, Malawians suffered because we chose a leader (Peter’s brother, late Bingu wa Mutharika) who had little knowledge of what the country and the people are. He had no good intention for this country and that’s why almost everyone was an enemy of the state.
“Some people think I suffered as the country’s vice president because it was believed that I was endorsed by Dr Bakili Muluzi. But why was he victimising Joyce Banda who he picked himself? The leadership was very evil and we cannot even afford to have a replica of it, Malawians need good leadership with sound policies like the current PP administration,” said Chilumpha.
During her reign, Banda has sought restore frayed relations with western donor states and entities, including Britain, the U.S., Germany, Norway, the European Union, the World Bank, and the African Development Bank. The west had become alienated by Mutharika’s moves against democracy as well as his profligacy.
During the rally, Senior Traditional Authority Tsabango while praising the current leadership endorsed Luwemba as the party’s parliamentary candidate for the area during the 2014 general elections.
The incumbent MP for the area is DPP’s Agnes Penemulungu who was with late Mutharika when he collapsed from cardiac arrest on April 5, 2012.
“This time around, we need leaders who are developmental conscious, as an area, we have never had sound developmental projects because we have been electing strangers. We want a person who is always there for us anytime and that’s why we would want Luwemba to be our MP since he has been assisting us,” he said.
While appreciating the people’s call for Luwemba, Central province Governor Kizito Ngwembe said the Party will still hold primaries to fulfill constitutional requirements.
During the rally, about 170 people defected from the opposition DPP and Malawi Congress Party (MCP) to the ruling PP.
