5 DPP supporters arrested for violence
Police in Balaka have arrested five supporters of the Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) in connection to violence that erupted in the district during elections for the director of women for the eastern region.
According to Balaka police Publicist Joseph Sauka, the suspects also assaulted and barred one of the candidates from contesting from the elections on Tuesday.
Sauka, however, could not tell the details of the arrested supporters, but indicated that they will be taken to court to answer charges of assault.
This follows another incident where thugs believed to be DPP youth cadets burn to ashes two houses belonging to People’s Party (PP) members in Mulanje Central Constituency in the southern district of Mulanje.
Following the incident, PP deputy publicity secretary, Ken Msonda warned that they have the ability, machinery, capacity and resources to hit back and make DPP leadership and its follower’s lives miserable.
“PP does not believe in violence; we believe that in a multiparty dispensation people can agree to disagree and still live together peacefully; remember – meekness is not weakness but rather strength under control,” he said.
DPP has a notorious youth wing called the Cadets which has been used in the past to sorting out those deemed to be of dissenting views.
Late president Bingu wa Mutharika ordered the DPP youths during a political rally held at Kamuzu Stadium to beat up anyone questioning his administration.
Since then the DPP youth militia took heed of the directive threatening a number of people particularly members of the civil society.
It is on record that the DPP youth militia turned a graveyard in Balaka into a battlefield after failing to agree on the way forward during burial of Daniel Kudonto, who until his death on road accident was DPP Southern Region Campaign Director.
The marauding DPP youths went as far as beating Chief Mponda and stripped off his trousers in full view of hundreds of mourners.
DP) Governor (South) Noel Masangwi also confessed that the Panga-wielding youth on the streets of Blantyre a day before the July 20 anti-government demonstrations were DPP youth militia.
The gang of machete-wielding youths took to the streets in DPP branded vehicles and stopped at several points, got out their vehicles and sharpened their pangas.
They chanted the now familiar DPP war-cry in Malawi’s lingua franca, Chichewa: “Onyoza boma sagona, timpweteka! (“Those opposing government will not sleep, we will deal with them!”)
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