Africa-Press – Malawi. It is interesting to note that many Malawians often resort to changing governments whenever they are confronted with excruciating social and economic problems.
You will recall that in 2019, many Malawians staged nationwide looting and violent demonstrations that aimed at ousting Peter Mutharika’s regime in favor of the incumbent Tonse Alliance administration which is being led by Dr. Lazarus Chakwera and Dr. Saulos Chilima.
Obviously, most Malawians nursed high unrealistic expectations when indeed Reverend Dr. Lazarus Chakwera took over the mantle of leadership in 2020. Interestingly, three years down the line, the very same Malawians who were at the forefront supporting Chakwera and Chilima are regretting that they made a wrong choice. Others are openly declaring that Peter Mutharika must come back to the driving seat.
The truth of the matter is that a change of government that does achieve the desired results is utterly futile. It is a useless adventure. In fact, in Malawi, a regime change is simply a change of beneficiaries who can further loot our government coffers. This is incongruent with the adage that stipulates that the more things change, the more they become the same.
For example, everyone is aware that the Tonse Alliance promised to stamp out the diabolical corruption once they are voted into power. Truth be told, it is very pathetic that corruption has reached unprecedented levels under Chakwera’s tutelage and there is currently no political will to contain this vice.
Instead, President Chakwera is personally promoting corruption by pardoning corruption convict, Uladi Mussa, and corruption suspect, Dr. Bakili Muluzi. It is against this background that most Malawians are wondering if there will be a change of government in 2025.
Analyzing current Malawi’s political landscape, it is logically sound to conclude that it will not be easy to dislodge the Malawi Congress Party (MCP) government from power.
Firstly, the main opposition party, the Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) is the weakest link. It is widely agreed that a house that is divided against itself cannot stand.
Internal leadership wrangles between Peter Mutharika’s camp and Mr. Kondwani Nankhumwa’s followers provide the ruling MCP government an added political score. Secondly, the Chakwera regime has captured all sectors of government machinery.
For instance, most of the judges who presided over the controversial 2019 presidential election case have been promoted to be Justices of the Supreme Court of Appeal. With rampant judge shopping in our biased judicial system, any electoral complaints to the courts will highly likely hit a hard rock.
It is therefore highly recommended that the main opposition party, DPP, must win 2025 with a landslide otherwise it shouldn’t be expected that the courts can nullify the 2025 presidential elections in its favor even in the presence of proven electoral irregularities.
Thirdly, President Chakwera has all government resources at his disposal. For instance, there are allegations that the Chief Executive Officer of the Malawi Electoral Commission (MEC), Mr. Andrew Mpesi, is an openly MCP sympathizer.
Furthermore, the current unwarranted transfer of District Commissioners (DCs) raises eyebrows since DCs are usually hired to manage general elections at the district level.
Last but not least, it will be foolhardy for MCP to rule for only five years after being in opposition for 26 years. In fact, Chakwera’s regime is doing its best to stay in power despite the economic hardships my fellow Malawians are facing.
For instance, the results of by elections in the Mtiya ward in Zomba show that the MCP is busy laying down political structures at the grassroots level across the country.
Even though the DPP ward councilor’s candidate, Maxwell Finias, won the elections, the gap in votes between the DPP candidate and the MCP candidate was very small. People should be aware that the Mtila ward in Zomba is a DPP stronghold.
In conclusion, a change of government in 2025 may only be possible if the main opposition party DPP quickly puts its house in order otherwise the MCP government has more added advantage of staying in power.
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