Malawi Council of Churches (MCC) and Malawi Conference of Catholic Bishops (MCCB) have demanded action on the perpetrators of acts of violence against demonstrators in Lilongwe on Thursday.
In a statement on Friday, MCC said the failure by Malawi Police Service and Malawi Defence Force (MDF) officers to protect protesters is a betrayal of public trust and a stain on their constitutional mandate.
The MCC further demanded the police to act immediately and decisively to arrest all those involved in the violence, regardless of their political affiliations.
Reads the statement in part: “The continued failure to bring these assailants to justice points directly to political protection from the highest levels of power in the governing party.”
In a separate statement on Saturday, MCCB said all citizens should be mindful of the fragile nature of peace and should honour democratic processes ahead of the September 16 2025 General Election.
“We call upon security agencies not to abrogate their duty by paying a blind eye to criminal activities. Such behaviour not only fuels impunity but also erodes public trust in them,” said the bishops.
Delivering a homily at St Peter and St Paul Parish in Chilobwe Township in Blantyre yesterday, Archbishop Thomas Luke Msusa of the Catholic Church Archdiocese of Blantyre encouraged Christians to pray for peaceful elections and have hope that God will hear the prayers.
On Friday, the European Union, US, UK and seven other foreign missions also expressed alarm over the trend of violence during demonstrations.
Likewise, Malawi Law Society demanded decisive action, including the dismissal of Minister of Homeland Security Ezekiel Ching’oma and Police Inspector General Merlyne Yolamu.
The calls followed violent scenes on Thursday in Lilongwe where panga-wielding assailants descended on protesters from Citizens for Credible Elections who had gathered to demand the resignation of Malawi Electoral Commission chairperson Justice Annabel Mtalimanja and chief elections officer Andrew Mpesi.
Footage and photographs from the scene show that MPS and MDF officers at the scene were largely inactive, besides throwing a few rounds of tear gas.
Writing on his official Facebook Page on Saturday, President Lazarus Chakwera, who is currently in Nigeria for the 32nd African Export-Import Bank annual meeting, said he has directed all relevant State agencies to investigate what happened.
In recent months, panga-wielding thugs have habitually disrupted peaceful demonstrations, especially in Lilongwe, by threatening protesters and sometimes attacking them in full view of police officers.
