Bingu regretted picking Joyce Banda as runningmate, says Malawi leader Mutharika
President Peter Mutharika has said his late brother, former president Bingu wa Mutharika, confided in him that he had regretted picking former president Joyce Banda as his running mate in 2009 elections.
Banda made history becoming Malawi’s first female president and only the second woman to lead a country in Africa in 2012 when she ascended to power following the death of Bingu who died in office after heading up the southern Africa country since 2004.
Bingu wa Mutharika’s decision to appoint her as his running mate for the 2009 elections surprised many in Malawi’s mainly conservative, male-dominated society – which had never before had a female vice-president.
But speaking on Saturday on arrival in Mzuzu, a visibly charged Mutharika said Bingu regretted the choice of Banda.
“I want to tell you two things that Bingu told me he regretted. One was to select Joyce Banda as runningmate and two marrying that woman (Callista Mutharika).
“And that’s the truth, God is my witness, Bingu told me that,” said Mutharika.
Banda and the incumbent President have had a bad relationship as the former president publicly protested against Bingu – by refusing to endorse his plans for his brother, the current President , to succeed him as president in 2014 when he was due to retire.
She was promptly thrown out of the ruling Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) and subjected to daily doses of derision at public rallies and on Malawi’s state airwaves.
Banda also resisted calls for her to resign as the country’s vice-president – she was elected not appointed so she could not be fired and instead set up her own People’s Party (PP).
President Peter Mutharika was elected in 2014 after Joyce Banda was embroiled in the “Cashgate” scandal when government officials siphoned off millions of dollars of public money.
Mutharika is also on record claiming that Banda and her PP government wanted to kill him during the time when he was in the opposition.
The President recounted the challenges he went through to become Malawi’s leader, saying Banda put his life under threat and that Bingu “ mysteriously died” after Nigerian Prophet TB Joshua, a spiritual father of Banda, predicted correctly his death while serving as the State President of Malawi.
“In the two years we were in opposition, I was earmarked either for the graveyard or prison. Every criminal accusations was made and every attempt on life was tried,” Mutharika is on record as saying.
During the Banda administartion, Mutharika faced treason charges for allegedly trying to prevent Banda from ascending into power.
Mutharika said that it was only by the grace of God that he managed to survive five assassination plots in the run up to Malawi’s national elections in 2014.
“When I was campaigning to lead this country, I was hunted like a criminal. I survived five assassination attempts. I am happy that most of you gave me refuge, solace and courage. You have been the fortitude of the persecuted as Christ wishes,” he was quoted as saying at the time.
Banda is interested to run in the elections against Mutharika during next year’s Tripartite polls.
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The question APM should be asking himself is: Why is it that the two Vice Presidents in DPP under the Mutharikas have formed their own parties.
That is hear say madala!! Nde ife mukufuna tikamva zopanda pakazo titani? Awanso awaaaaaaaaaaa kuchititsa manyazi! The whole president busy ndi zopanda pake ngati zimenezo!! Mukuona ngati mukati amanena zimenezo ndi Bingu nde anthu achita chani? Khalidwe lonyozanani zikuoneka ndi khalidwe lanuuuuuuuuuu agogo!! Shame on the presidencyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyy, tinapatsa olakwikaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaa!!
You can’t buy my sympathy. Crying already? Wina alira
It is you who is wicked as your name says it all. U president amasiyirana paubale ngati ufumu? Ukagwere, Mxiew!
APM ndiwe munthu wopanda nzeru ndiponso wabodza. Nthawi yonseyi suumanena zonsezi pano ndiye wayamba fwefwefwe bodza chifukwa Calista wachoka mu DPP? Usiye mzimu wa Bingu uuse mumtendere, usamunamizire Bingu. Apo bii, ukukantha. Sindiwe yemwe unamusankha Calista kuti akhale advisor wako? Pano ndiye waipa wayamba kumusemera chinyau? JB usalimbane nayenso si size yako as you wanted to get the presidency on a silver platter, mmalo mwake n’kuberanso mavote.. Wazungulira mutu iwe, upite ku Zomba akakupime bwinobwino coz you are not normal! Mxiew!
And Alamu Pumbwa mwakalamba regrets having picked Saulos Chilima. You are simply bad people. Kwagwereni uko. You use others like condoms.
We also regret to welcome you from exile and the worse regret is by putting you as our President,though it wasn’t our wishful but you stole our votes to become a President.
Has this President lost direction or what?
We thought by having a professor this country was going to change, iyi ndithu.
Dead men don’t talk. That is why Bingu was called Daniel Phiri in his death. You are callous, all because you wanted to be the president. You committed a crime by plotting to prevent JB from ascending to power. You were supposed to be in jail by now. You treason case was real.
No wonder we are failing to develop. We do not have a president in Malawi.
We all have regrets in life but we learn from them and move on. I was so proud you Mr president when you expressed concern about politicians vilifying each other vs articulating their policies and strategies to transform Malawi from the sorry state it is in. I am horrified now that you’re the one who’s in the fore front castigating even your own family. Callista is your in law and whether she is loud and uncultured is neither here nor there. Those are matters you resolve in the confines of the family walls. We as Malawians aren’t interested whether there was love between Bingu and Mutharika or between bing and Joyce. Malawians are interested in how you’re, Mr president, going to transform Malawi and lift it out abject poverty. We want to know. Kutukwana and exposing each other in public ndi zibwana zedi Mr president. As Kachaje wrote in one of the columns; please forgive those who had or have sinned you and move on otherwise you’ll forever carry a burden too heavy to move.
Malawi is regretting too, anatiloza ndani kuti anthuwa akahale pamipandoyi
l do agree with Peter that JB is evil woman. …… very wicked. ………. a queen under the sea
But the biggest regret is having you Pumbwa as our President
we are also regret having you as the president, mr bwampini!!
Broken English….we are regret….kkkkkkk
Are u also regretting for choosing Chilima as ur running mate in 2014 elections Mr. 145?
Osawanamizira malemu mizimu ikusutsutsani. I regret voting you for president
Callista is evil indeed I agree it’s a shame SKC is involved with this horrible woman
we also regret you came back t Malawi mr! we were better off without u sir
Lies from mr 145
I THINK OUR PRESIDENT HAS POLITICAL RABBIES. LET HIM BE DIAGONIZED BEFORE IT’S TOO LATE.
Yes indeed the regret by an evil man that he had chosen a wrong running mate JB his own brother was earmarked for automatic takeover. Why targeting JB? Your interpol has failed to lock JB in jail! You’ve gone berserk. Just look at your own choice of advisers what type of advisers does your inner council have?
But what have the “decisions that Bingu later regretted” to do with our current problems/ predicament? What’s the relevance/ significance? It looks like a deflection to real issues, isn’t it?
BIG BIG regret for having you as President!