Justified rebels or spent force?

In February, a political grouping calling itself Liberation Movement wrote President Lazarus Chakwera to sack some top officials at State House and in government, calling them a threat to the government’s success. The movements’ spokesperson Alex Major, former Kasungu West legislator, was briefly detained over the petition. But where is the movement? Is it a lost battle? Our News Analyst SUZGO CHITETE engages Major.

After the arrest, you have gone quiet, what happened to the movement?

We are very much alive. In fact, we are growing in number. By the way, our new name is Concerned MCP Members. We are not relenting on our cause.

Are you still pursuing the same objectives or you have changed?

Our objectives remain the same. We want to see some people at State House removed. We want the MCP national executive committee to meet and make big decisions. We want the Secretary to the President and Cabinet removed. We want all ambassadors appointed by the former regime recalled. The Cabinet must be reshuffled. We think the country has so many wrong people in these positions. These people are not helping the leadership deliver according to his vision.

Has the President responded to the petition you dispatched in February?

We have been in touch with the President. But we can conclusively say that he does not want to meet us because we have been communicating, but it seems he is preoccupied with other things and he is taking our issues lightly. We are now strategising on what we should do next to have our demands met.

You have indicated that your group is growing. What does this mean in terms of numbers and who are these people?

We are talking of millions of supporters who are behind us. Remember in this group we have members of Parliament with a huge following. We have members from the NEC. We are talking about MCP members and this is why we have changed our name to Concerned MCP Members. Our office is at MCP headquarters in City Centre.

You are Concerned MCP Members, but the President is running government affairs with other political allies. Why should the MCP followers be the only ones with concerns?

Partners have been embraced by ourselves. If we talk about MCP leading, it does not mean it is an MCP affair. In this, we are just leading but we have embraced our friends. All those political parties under Tonse Alliance have been taken on board.

Haven’t you initiated this movement out of personal frustration having failed to retain your parliamentary seat and missed out on public appointments?

I am not frustrated. I am a senior MCP member and a businessperson who is even better-off outside mainstream politics. I voluntarily withdrew from contesting. I am not a person who chases positions, no. You mean when things go wrong, we must be silent because people will say we want positions? I am not a failed politician. Losing a parliamentary seat does not mean I have failed politically. There is more that I can do.

You were once arrested allegedly over this movement. Could this be the reason you have gone quiet?

Interesting. Some say I have been ‘bought’. No one can buy me. I  have no price. I am just a spokesperson for the grouping. Those behind me are much stronger and more influential than myself. People must not look at me but those behind the cause.

We are being strategic. We are engaging and planning on what to do next. Our intention is to build, not to destroy. Therefore, we are cautious about every move we are making in the interest of our country.

Why have you targeted some of the people like the Secretary to the President and Cabinet to be removed?

We need people who can help the President deliver his vision and not those pulling in different directions. We mean well for our country and the President and this is why we will fight to make sure things get right. Even if you call us frustrated or failed politicians, we will move on.