Malawi’s new Head of State Joyce Banda on Monday called for a meeting of her People’s Party (PP) National Executive Committee (NEC) at her official Area 12 Residence in Lilongwe with a call to the members and all Malawians to dignify the late President Bingu wa Mutharika ahead of his burial soon.
The late Mutharika died when he suffered a cardiac arrest on April 6, 2012 and his body was flown to South Africa for further post-mortem and preparation for burial. A cabinet committee charged with the organizing funeral arrangements for the fallen leader has announced that the dead body would be repatriated back to Malawi on Thursday.
President Banda addressing People's Party executive meeting. Photos : Nyasa TimesBanda, who was sworn in as President on Saturday, April 7, 2012 told her party politburo that as the country mourns Mutharika, members of the People’s Party should be “exemplary” by respecting the late President.“We must look at the positive side of his leadership and personality and not the negative side. He was our President and let us mourn and bury him with the dignity as a fallen Head of State deserves,” Malawi’s first and Africa’s second female Head of State told over 100 PP executives that attended the meeting.Mutharika repentedThe President said she had spoken to her “Spiritual Father” TB Joshua of the Synagogue of All Nations in Nigeria who prophesied Mutharika’s death and he had revealed to him that before he died, Mutharika “had made peace with his God”. “My Spiritual Father therefore advised me and through me all Malawians that we should not rejoice at this otherwise sad news but we must respect the fallen President; he had made peace with his God before he passed on,” the President explained.She therefore said in line with this thinking and the agenda of the meeting, the NEC meeting should discuss modalities of how the PP would visibly be part of the mourning period.She told the meeting that representative members of the party from all four political regions of the party must be mobilized and attend the actual burial ceremony at the date that would be announced in due course.On her ascendancy to the presidency and the developments that preceded it, President Banda said she was thankful to God that after being despised right, left and centre since she became Vice President in 2009, God had finally put her where she is now.She thanked all PP members for the unwavering support and that she will strive to ensure that the future is bright for all Malawians. PP members should ensure unity of purpose amongst the entire membership, saying there are many challenges ahead that need careful management. PP Vice President Khumbo Kachali congratulated President Banda on her ascendancy to power. He pledged the party’s membership continued loyalty, support and commitment.“We’re very proud of Your Excellency’s ascendancy to power; we’re now walking with heads high,” said the Mzimba legislator. Banda was kicked out of Mutharika’s Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) in December 2010 because she refused to accept the nomination of Peter Mutharika as the next president.She remained vice-president of the country, her constitutional position. She proceeded to form the People’s Party, now effectively the governing party in Malawi.Clement Stambuli (L) and Brown MpinganjiraJerry Jana and other PP leaders
