Chaponda turned back at Parliament

Mulanje South West legislator George Chaponda yesterday majestically walked into Parliament Building for a Business Committee meeting as Leader of Opposition only to be turned back by Speaker Catherine Gotani Hara.

Instead, the Speaker recognised Mulanje Central lawmaker Kondwani Nankhumwa as the Leader of Opposition in Parliament.

The developments come after opposition Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) expelled Nankhumwa, who served as the party’s vice-president responsible for the South, alongside 10 others for allegedly undermining the former governing party’s leadership. In the aftermath of the dismissal, DPP leadership nominated Chaponda for the position two weeks ago.

In an interview at Parliament Building, Chaponda’s spokesperson and Neno North legislator Thoko Tembo said the Mulanje South West parliamentarian showed up after receiving an invitation letter from Parliament dated January 29 2024 to attend the Business Committee meeting on February 6 2024. The meeting was postponed to yesterday.

However, Nankhumwa also got an invitation letter dated February 2 2024 to attend the same meeting as Leader of Opposition.

Nankhumwa’s invitation came after his lawyer Wapona Kita wrote Parliament stating there was an injunction protecting him from being replaced as Leader of Opposition.

However, Parliament did not withdraw the letter sent to Chaponda.

Yesterday, both Chaponda and Nankhumwa showed up for the meeting at 7am.

Dressed in a grey business suit, Nankhumwa was accompanied by his bodyguard and he accessed the Parliament Building through the VIP section. He was driven into the compound in his official vehicle.

On the other hand, Chaponda dressed in a black business suit and white shirt, arrived at Parliament Building through the main entrance and was accompanied by DPP organising secretary Chimwemwe Chipungu, DPP director of women Mary Navicha and Thoko Tembo. Chaponda was driven into the compound in his personal car, a red Ford Ranger double cabin pickup.

Both Chaponda and Nankhumwa later entered the meeting room, but Chaponda was sent back by the Speaker who cited an injunction that restrains him from assuming the role.

Chaponda, a lawyer, obliged and left the meeting room. He sat in the waiting area for sometime before leaving for the main entrance where his vehicle was parked.

He spent over 30 minutes at the main entrance where he held a brief meeting with Chipungu, Navicha, Tembo and Alliance for Democracy parliamentarian Yeremiah Chihana, seemingly discussing what had transpired.

He declined media interviews and later left the premises.

Tembo said the DPP’s position is that failure to recognise Chaponda as Leader of Opposition meant that the opposition does not have a leader in the House.

He said DPP expelled Nankhumwa from the party, as such, he cannot represent it as Leader of Opposition.

Said Tembo: “There is need to have the right Leader of Opposition in place. Who will Nankhumwa be representing and who will he be opposing? Will he be representing the government or Malawians? This is a serious issue that needs to be addressed.”

Nankhumwa declined to speak on the matter, saying he came to attend the Business Committee meeting and the Speaker is the one that speaks on matters to do with the committee.

DPP chief whip Jappie Mhango, who was part of the Business Committee meeting, also refused to comment on what had transpired as did United Democratic Front (UDF) leader in Parliament Ned Poya.

Meanwhile, governance expert Moses Mkandawire has called on Chaponda and Nankhumwa to tread carefully on their battles, saying they will affect Parliament proceedings, national development as well as the role of opposition in providing checks and balances.

“Conflicts of two people should not put the entire country at ransom. Malawians expect people they voted into power to represent them and deliberate on issues. Malawians want services,” he said.

Malawi Law Society president Patrick Mpaka said when there is a court order there is need to respect that.

However, he said the best way to handle the matter is to engage the court to clear the issue.

In June 2022, some DPP lawmakers obtained an injunction stopping Chaponda from taking over as the Leader of Opposition.

The injunction also restrained the party from removing Nankhumwa.

Article 35 of Standing Orders of Parliament stipulates that the Leader of Opposition shall be elected by the party not in government having the greatest numerical strength in Parliament at any point in time and officially announced as such by the Speaker.

Under Article 36, the Leader of Opposition in Parliament may only be removed by the party that elected him or her.