Mpinganjira to release political book

Opposition politician Brown Mpinganjira says he is writing a political book which he will release soon to chronicle his political journey including the fight for multiparty democracy and how he found himself running mate to MCP’s John Tembo in the May elections.

“There is a bigger picture that is coming. I am writing a book now and I want it out in the next three to five months,” said Mpinganjira.

He could not pre-empt the contents in the book but said it will tackle issues about how he became MCP-UDF alliance presidential vice president nominee.

“My party [UDF] was out to destroy me. Suddenly they refused to recognize me, suddenly they did not want me, suddenly they did not know me, suddenly they started going behind my back, going to Hon Tembo to negotiate for somebody else in the party to be the running mate.

“It didn’t happen because Hon Tembo at least had more integrity in this matter,” Mpinganjira told Capital Radio.

The book will also herald Mpingajira’s political journey and the series of events that led him into politics.

“During the MCP time I was detained. I was then deputy chief information officer and acting chief information officer at that time and I was detained on 1 August 1986 and I was to remain n detention until 18th February 1991,” he said.

“I had spent my precious 4 years and 7 months in detention doing nothing, for nothing really.”

He said the one party dictatorship accused him of leaking information.

“As I hear it, I was accused of having told a white journalist from Zimbabwe that RENAMO were sending their fighters and officials to Malawi and were coming to Malawi dressed as church people which was a fact by the way. So I was accused of having leaked this information to some journalist,” he said.

But Mpinganjira said the information was common knowledge at that time that couldn’t be hidden.

“I just believed that we had no right to contribute to the suffering of our brothers and sisters in Mozambique and as it happened I got into trouble in the end,” he said.

Mpinganjira said from the comfort of the British Council they started meeting people to strategize for regime change and were encouraged by some diplomats.

“What actually happened is that immediately after President Kenneth Kaunda was defeated in Zambia [1991], the British government were looking for a repeat of the same thing here in Malawi because they were quite happy that they had introduced a democracy to Zambia.

“And they thought that [Ngwazi] Dr Banda was a bit too dictatorial and that they should loosen his grip somehow.”

Mpinganjira said he was one of the first people contacted and that at American embassy, there was Augustine Mthambala who was working with [late] Chakufwa Chihana and they did organized a pressure group.

“Eventually we did elect Dr [Bakili] Muluzi, Mr. Muluzi then, as our first chairman and as our first President and the rest is history,” said Mpinganjira.

Mpinganjira said he never at that time aspired to become a leader because he had no political experience and that Kamuzu “was not a simple person” and needed a strong leader to dislodge him.

“We were looking for somebody who already had a name in Malawi politics. Somebody we could sell easily and some of us were new. Nobody knew us and so we were looking at somebody who already had that stature and Muluzi having been secretary-general of MCP for six years, it was quite clear he was known throughout the country.

“There may be some who may have not known him personally but at least they knew his name.”

Mpinganjira served different ministerial positions in the Muluzi cabinet until he was sacked in 1999 and formed his NDA party which he dissolved after losing the 2004 presidential elections to rejoin UDF.

During the 2009 elections, he stood as independent parliamentary candidate in Mulanje central constituency and lost his seat while he was presidential running mate of Tembo (MCP).

 Email This Post