Pre s i d ent – e l e c t Pe te r Mu t h a r i k a and Vi c e – president-elect Jane Ansah are scheduled to take their respective oaths of office this Saturday at Kamuzu Stadium in Blantyre following their triumph in the September 16 General Election presidential race.
Mutharika’s spokesperson S h a d r i c Nama l o m b a confirmed the arrangement in an interview yesterday.
On the other hand, Judic iar y spokesperson Ruth Mputeni said in an interview that Chief Justice Ri z i n e Mz i k aman d a , Senior Counsel (SC), will administer the oath of office in accordance with the law.
“Preparations are in place to ensure that this important Constitutional function is conducted with the dignity it deserves,” she said.
By the time we went to press at 7pm, the Office of the President and Cabinet (OPC) was yet to provide a detailed programme and list of both foreign and local dignitaries that would attend the ceremony.
OPC chief communication officer Geoffrey Kawanga said he was consulting to get the needed details.
On whether outgoing President Lazarus Chakwera will attend the swearing-in, presidential press secretary Anthony Kasunda said: “Once I get his position, I will revert.”
Former president Bakili Muluzi, the country’s first post-independence multi-party president, said he will attend the inauguration.
“ Yes, I will attend. I have attended all the inaugurations in the past. I would like to support my brother Mutharika,” he said.
However, former President Joyce Banda said she had yet to be informed of the programme by the time she spoke to The Nation at 1:30 pm yesterday.
Ma l aw i E l e c t o r a l Commission (MEC) announced on September 24 that Mutharika won with 56.8 percent of the total votes after amassing 3035249 ballots followed by Chakwera who got 1 765 170 votes.
The outgoing president c o n c e d e d d e f e a t t o Mutharika hours before MEC announced official results.
In a televised address on State-funded Malawi Broadcasting Corporation, Chakwera described the outcome of the election as a reflection of the collective will of Malawians to change government ; hence, his decision to concede defeat and respect that will.
According to the amended Sec t ion 81(3) of the Constitution, the elected president shall not be sworn into office until after the expiry of seven days from declaration of victory, but before the expiry of 30 days from the date the election results were announced.
