DPP, UDF enter ‘gentlemen’s agreement’
The governing Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) and its political ally United Democratic Front (UDF) have agreed a modality on how to feature candidates in the August 25 Local Government by-elections.
The by-elections are taking place in five wards of Khwawa in Karonga, Chibanja in Mzuzu, Msikisi in Mangochi, Zomba Central in Zomba City and Luchenza in Thyolo.
agreement
The two bedfellows have agreed that DPP will not feature a candidate in Mangochi and will instead support the UDF candidate, while in Zomba, DPP will feature a candidate who the UDF will support.
Kondwani Nankhumwa, director of elections in DPP, said: “This is a gentlemen’s agreement. You know we are in a working relationship and these are some of the things we will be doing.”
Nankhumwa, who is also Minister of Information, Tourism and Culture, said DPP and UDF take every election seriously and appealed to members of both parties, who are eligible to vote, to come out in their large numbers and cast their votes.
The agreement, apart from Zomba and Mangochi where both parties have strong bases, does not extend to other regions where the parties are also featuring candidates.
UDF spokesperson Ken Ndanga, in a separate interview, confirmed about the agreement.
The by-elections were initially scheduled to take place on June 23 this year, but Treasury asked the Malawi Electoral Commission (MEC) to postpone them because government did not have K403 million proposed budget for the activity.
