Does APM have anything new to offer?

After months of suspense and endorsements, the former head of State and leader of the opposition Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) has openly expressed his intention to be the party’s torchbearer at the next presidential election in 2025.

The news should end months of speculation and hopefully, the political squabbles that have engulfed the party. Hopefully, APM’s announcement should give the party some sense of direction regarding how it will proceed ahead of the next election.

It is likely that some of the aspirants for the party presidency will withdraw through their support for the former president. The key point for APM now will be to ensure that the election of a party president is done in a fair and democratic manner.

One would think that a party that is “democratic” and “progressive” would know how to manage the diverse political interests and ambitions of its party members amicably and in a way that fairly represents the interests of all constituents of the party, but sadly, that has not been the case for the DPP.

Since the party fell from power, there has been a protracted struggle between a faction loyal to the former president and another loyal to the estranged regional vice-president for the South Kondwani Nankhumwa, who also doubles as the Leader of the Opposition.

The power struggle has been kind of self-destructive both for the party and the country. The DPP, the largest and most powerful opposition party in Parliament, has been busy squabbling among themselves in and outside the courts while the Tonse Alliance has struggled to get the economy back on track.

President Lazarus Chakwera and his nine-party coalition have churned out a series of questionable decisions, some of which have cost the country dearly, while the APM and his Vice have been jostling for power.

Surely, the two opposition leaders should know that they would not reclaim the coveted State presidency unless they can prove to Malawians that they have better alternatives to the policy direction pursued by the governing coalition.

More so now when Chakwera and his former Minister of Finance and Economic Affairs Sosten Gwengwe secured another Extended Credit Facility (ECF) with the International Monetary Fund. If the board approves the financing arrangement next month, it could unlock the financing that Malawi desperately needs to invest in the economy and catalyse growth.

That should send some shivers down the spine of the opposition politicians. Chakwera has been registering some moderate, yet incremental successes even without the Fund’s support. The construction projects across the country are a testament to that.

True, there have been some policy slippages over the years, but there are some who would argue that administratively, Malawi is better off now than it was when APM was kicked out of Plot Number One during the court-sanctioned election in 2020.

Some sections were so incensed with the perceived impunity, cronyism and corruption that flourished during the former president’s term of office.

The economic fundamentals were slightly better but inflation was already on the rise, a lot of people were unemployed and the economic growth was sluggish.

Some sections of the public will be inclined to ask whether APM has a different approach now and whether that approach would produce better results than Chakwera has achieved so far.

Criticising the government for the poor economic performance, rising inflation and soaring government will not cut it. Not to absolve the Tonse Alliance administration of any blame, but they have presided over one of the most turbulent times in economic history.

They took over when the country was still reeling from the economic fallout caused by the Covid-19 pandemic. The Russia-Ukraine war and Cyclone Freddy followed. It was an environment where any leader would struggle to get to grips with the economy.

Even APM struggled when the pandemic hit in the last year of his presidency.

The trick for APM now is to show that he has the mettle to take the bull by the horns, and develop and execute the right policy mix to steer the country back to economic prosperity at pre-pandemic levels.

The onus is on him. The presidency he so craves depends on it.