Chakwera sails through in MCP primary polls

Leader of opposition in parliament and the Malawi Congress Party (MCP) president Lazarus Chakwera has won the party primary elections in Lilongwe north west constituency.

Chakwera got 1187 votes against Bryson Majoni’s 50 votes.

This means Chakwera will now be the party torch bearer in the 2019 parliamentary election.

Some officials in the MCP said Majoni was sent by the DPP to challenge Chakwera and embarrass him if he had lost.

The victory by Chakwera in his constituency brings relief to the party after the primary elections saw some MCP political heavy weights lost.

In Mchinji, a veteran politician who has been in parliament close to three decades Divelias Zaipa has lost the MCP primary elections to a new political comer Agnes Nkusa Nkhoma.

Zaipa joins a list of sitting members of parliament who have lost in primary elections who include Joseph Njobvuyalema of Lilongwe Mapuyu south.

Others are Kasungu central MP Amon Nkhata, Kasungu south MP Vasco Chimbalu and Kasungu west legislator Alex Major.