Drama at Chakwera primaries
There was drama at Malawi Congress Party (MCP) primary elections in Lilongwe North West Constituency on Tuesday when five aspiring candidates, who earlier announced they had pulled out of the race, resurfaced to challenge party president Lazarus Chakwera.
Chakwera eventually triumphed with 261 votes to become MCP candidate in the parliamentary race for the constituency.
The five said they pulled out with hope that they will contest among each other during by-elections in the constituency when Chakwera wins the national presidency in the 20 May 2014 Tripartite Elections.
However, as people waited for Chakwera to go unopposed at the primaries, the five aspirants plus a newcomer came to challenge him.
Asked why the five candidates changed their earlier decision and challenged Chakwera, MCP’s director of elections Henry Kamata claimed that the five candidates namely Kanthusi Chimutu, Rexton Mitambo Bondo, Samuel Abalekana, Elesani Zakochera and Bryson Majoni were forced by regional chairperson Daniel Mlomo to do so.
According to Kamata, Mlomo invited the five aspiring MPs to the podium in the presence of Chakwera to introduce them to the people, but he [Mlomo] ended up telling the gathering that the five had pulled out of the race.
But Mlomo denied Kamata’s allegations, saying: “I did not force them to pull out. It was their campaign strategy to respect the party president.”
The five aspiring MPs shunned the media on the issue soon after the primaries.
During the polls, Chimutu got 35 votes while Majoni and Bondo got 13 and nine votes, respectively. Abalekana and Zakochera got three votes each. The sixth aspiring MP Jolex Makhaya got six votes.
Dr. Chakwera, please learn to carry your own umbrella. We do not want another cult of worshipping leaders in Malawi.
Dr chakwera has made a good move by wanting to ran as a parliamentarian otherwise come 2014 he would have been a nobody since APM is our next president..
APM akalankhula chiyani kwa a Malawi atakhala President ndipo akalankhula bwanji? Chakwera ndi dilu.
They will be only one winner in the name of Atupele Austin Muluzi<
Ameneyu ndi dilu.
That’s my predent.
Who is eligible to vote in primaries? I thought it is supposed to be anthu a maudindo mu constituency? Ngati ndi chonho, how come ku PP ndi DPP kukumavota anthu sometimes over 3000. Should we say all those people have positions in the constituency structures for these parties. The figures for MCP make sense but not DPP and PP. Electionsgate basi!!!!!! Mbava zimenezi zikundilemera!!!!!!
Bola iwe zikukulemera that means you have mphamvu to carry them! Ine mbava zimenezi zikundithina wamva!! mpaka kupanga nazo ukweche!!! Kikikikikiki
Zidzawoneka pokolora.
Our politicians MBAVA ZOKHAZOKHA. Malawi shall never be ruled by good leaders as long as we do not change our mind set. There is too much regionalism and tribalism. Most of the people from the South and Central are saying the major reason for not supporting PP is that it has two strong Northerners on top The First Gentleman and The VP. Hence all the other noise they make is for this reason and the support for other parties is not based on them having good leaders but regional backgrounds. Let us take Malawi as one .