Africa-Press – Malawi. After summoning its Southern Region former vice president Kondwani Nankhumwa and three others, who are accused of playing a leading role in the organisation of the December 6 2023 National Governing Council (NGC) meeting, many more faces in the Nankhumwa camp have been summoned to face disciplinary committee members.
Malawi News has learned that other members such as Nicholas Dausi, Ralph Jooma and Ken Msonda have also been summoned. The party’s deputy national organising secretary Kondwani Ng’ong’ola, deputy director for International relations Baxter Kita, Ralph Jooma and others appeared before the committee members Friday.
Our source indicated that they are being accused of attending the “illegal” NGC meeting, which is said to have had no blessing from party president Peter Mutharika.
Just like colleagues who appeared before committee members on Thursday, they all said the disciplinary committee stopped them from talking to the media.
Others who attended the said NGC meeting continue to be summoned and are yet to appear before members of the disciplinary committee. Information we have gathered indicates that all members who attended the said NGC meeting will be summoned to a disciplinary hearing.
“Every member who attended that NGC meeting will face the committee,” the source said. However, Uladi Mussa, who is one of the members that attended the NGC meeting, has described it not as a disciplinary committee but an expulsion one.
“They just want to expel us from the party. What party does that? This is not a disciplinary committee but an expulsion committee.
“DPP lacks leadership. We had [a real] disciplinary committee during the [former party leader] Bingu wa Mutharika time, not what is happening now. [What is happening is] very undemocratic. Wait until the resolutions are ready, anthu achotsedwa m’chipani [people will be expelled from the party],” Mussa said.
Meanwhile, political and good governance analyst Wonder Mkutche has described the hearings as a party strategy to have Nankhumwa and his key followers removed from DPP.
“The disciplinary hearings can be a strategy to have Nankhumwa and his key people removed from the party. The fights have been going on for two years now and the APM [Arthur Peter Mutharika] faction wants all this to end. They want Nankhumwa’s camp subdued.
“The move by DPP to move them from their main positions to other positions already tells that they don’t want them to be impactful as they were previously. So, all this is a strategy to have them booted out of the party by the end of the day. Nankhumwa’s position as Leader of the Opposition [in Parliament] is also under threat because the APM camp now has the authority,” Mkutche said.
Another political analyst Chimwemwe Tsitsi said the hearings can be a strategy to have perceived offenders expelled from the party or have them face penalties such as stripping them of their positions.
“However, expelling them from the party cannot be a good decision because the court, in its ruling, also stated that everyone has a right to belong to any political party. We shall see the resolutions,” Tsitsi said. Those that are hearing the matter include Jean Kalilani, Apostle Timothy Khoviwa, Charles Mhango, Paul Gadama and Lonnie Chijere Phiri.
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