MCP suspends Msowoya, kaliwo

Malawi Congress Party (MCP) national executive committee (NEC) has resolved to suspend first vice-president Richard Msowoya and secretary general (SG) Gustave Kaliwo pending disciplinary action for their alleged role in destabilising the main opposition party.

Yesterday’s MCP NEC meeting at MCP National Headquarters in Lilongwe, called by party president Lazarus Chakwera, was a forum that was widely expected to make or break the party ahead of the 2019 Tripartite Elections.

Agenda items included the appointment and endorsement of new administrative secretary only identified as Sulamoyo and acting on petitions to the NEC calling for Kaliwo’s ouster.

But after deliberations that lasted for over nine hours from 1pm, the well-attended NEC meeting—which both Msowoya and Kaliwo did not attend—resolved that the two were the destabiling factors in the party hierarchy.

A NEC member who attended the meeting confided in The Nation: “The party has opted to give them a chance to defend themselves other than outright firing them which was the sentiment among many in the meeting.”

Kaliwo and Msowoya—who is also Speaker of the National Assembly— alongside second vice-president Macdonald Lombola, deputy SG James Kaunda and replaced treasurer general Tony Kandiero were signatories of letter accusing Chakwera of flouting the constitution. Out of the five signatories, only Lombola attended yesterday’s meeting.

Reacting to the resolution, Msowoya last evening said he would not be quick to respond to the reports until he received official communication from the party.

He said: “If true, I would be very interested to know the reasons. But for now, I cannot work on speculation about my next move until I get the communication.”

Msowoya said he did not attend the meeting because the issues addressed in the letter to Chakwera relating to the composition of the NEC and management committee were not addressed.

Kaliwo, on the other hand, could not be reached for a reaction on his phone.

After yesterday’s meeting at around 10pm, MCP U-turned on its earlier resolve to address the media on the resolutions of the meeting.

MCP deputy publicity secretary Ezekiel Ching’oma said once the resolutions were compiled, the party would call for a press conference at a later date.

Under Article 14 of the MCP constitution, members can be suspended or dismissed under the following conditions: “[1]. The National Executive Committee may discipline any member of the party if such member has committed a serious and persistent breach under the constitution. The procedure for such suspension or dismissal shall conform with the rules of natural justice.

“[2]. Nothing in this section shall authorise the National Executive Committee to dismiss a member who was elected by the convention; [3]. Any member who is suspended or dismissed shall have the right to appeal to the party convention…”

Last week, some MCP district chairpersons demanded an apology from a section of the party’s legislators who they accused of interfering in the management of the country’s oldest political party.

Their position followed an earlier meeting by MCP legislators which recommended to the NEC that a convention be held by March 26 2018.

The legislators also endorsed the candidature of politician and businessperson Mohammad Sidik Mia for the position of the party’s vice-president at the next convention.

They also faulted Kaliwo over his signature in a January 13 2018 letter to Chakwera, describing it as one of the pointers to his incompetence. The MPs called for Kaliwo’s suspension.

About 35 out of MCP’s 60 members of Parliament (MPs) attended the earlier meeting. n