Chakwera thanks for recognizing Orton Chirwa as MCP founder: Now honour his name!
During his inaugural appearance before Parliament to answer queries from legislators, President Lazarus Chakwera righted an important historical wrong about the genesis of the Malawi Congress Party (MCP) – the country’s oldest party.
Responding to Leader of Opposition Kondwani Nankhuma who had insinuated that Dr Hastings Kamuzu Banda was the founding president of MCP, Chakwera took the opportunity to correct that historical wrong by reminding the nation that it was Orton Edgar Ching’oli Chirwa from Nkhtabay how founded MCP in 1959 and not Kamuzu as it was widely beleived.
If you don’t know, there is something fundamentally imperative in the clarification Chakwera made with regards to MCP’s genesis.
You see, for 31 years, Kamuzu’s dictatorship machinery worked tirelessly to erase every name from the country’s history—an attempt to narrow the narrative of the country’s struggle to one man.
That is why, for 31 years, Kamuzu’s name bestride every sector of this country and, as a vindication, we have the relics working strong in the psyche of some of our modern leaders such as Nankhumwa.
We must be worried when we still have leaders, such as Nankhumwa, who are careless with facts that explain the true struggles of this nation.
This is why Chakwera’s clarification should be highly appreciated because it represents the dawn of emancipating the country’s history from the shackles of Kamuzu narrative.
Orton Chirwa is a defining figure in the history of Malawi’s emancipation from colonialism.
A lawyer by profession, born 30 January 1919, called to the Bar London 1958, Malawi Minister of Justice and Attorney General 1964, advocate and law lecturer Tanzania 1964-81—Orton Chirwa, who died in Zomba prison on 20 October 1992, was Malawi’s first black barrister.
A founder of the Nyasaland African Congress, he was one of a group of young nationalist leaders who, in 1958, took the fateful decision to invite Dr Hastings Kamuzu Banda, then living in Ghana, to return to Malawi. Chirwa and his colleagues felt that the experience and gravitas of an old man—Banda was already about 60—would impress their African constituency.
In 1959, after Federal Government declared State of Emergency, Nyasaland African Congress (NAC) was banned and arrested many of its leaders, including Kamuzu Banda.
As the senior leader at liberty, Orton Chirwa formed the Malawi Congress Party (MCP) and became its first president. The following year, after Banda’s release, he stood down and handed him the leadership.
At independence in 1964, Orton Chirwa became Attorney General, but fell out with Banda over the slow pace of African advancement in the civil service. Banda sacked Chirwa and three other ministers, driving them into exile.
Chirwa settled in Tanzania, where he taught and practiced law. His new political party, the Malawi Freedom Movement, appears to have had little active support inside Malawi which was now a one-party state with Banda as president for life.
Details as to how he was captured in Zambia in 1981, together with his wife Vera, remains sketchy; but they were arrested, tried by a tradition court for treason, found guilty and sentenced to death.
In 1984, after many appeals from governments and colleagues from their student days in London, Banda commuted their sentences to life imprisonment.
Life imprisonment proved to be a further sentence of death. The Chirwas were denied contact with each other and the outside world.
IT WAS a small mercy that Orton Chirwa was allowed a final meeting with his wife Vera just a month before his death. The two were held in solitary confinement in separate wings of Zomba prison. They had been imprisoned for nearly 11 years; perhaps, Africa’s longest serving prisoners of conscience.
In his death, the once vibrant Orton was virtually deaf and blind with untreated cataracts.
Definitely, in writing Malawi’s post-colonial history, Orton Chirwa’s role needs to be judged with fairness and respect deserving the central role he played in the fight against colonialism.
He remains a potent symbol of the struggle for human dignity and freedom of conscience.
That is why, against Nankhumwa’s misinformation, it is compelling that we have an honest MCP leader whose masterly of historical facts and interpretation is superb.
Now Chakwera need to do more: He must honour Orton Chirwa by, among others, refurbishing his burial place at Kanduli in Nkhata Bay.
Even some MCP cloth can bear the face of Orton Chirwa the father and founder of the party.
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I conquer to support the president he should Horner this man the truth is there and the should bring more and build more streets to name after them
The President was spot on. However, is saying that Orton Chirwa founded African National Congress not also a distortion?
I don’t see the significance of writing all this ndowe.of which most is wrong.You should have just thanked the President for recognising Orton, rather than wrongly decorating him, when while demonizing our Ngwazi
KALOWA KAYAZA mwambi womveka bwino pa chichewa. Pafupi fupi a Malawi tonse tikudziwa za Dr Banda. Ndizimene tinaphunzira ku School kapena tinamvapo. Maboku onse analemba choncho. Pongofunika kulemekeza onse a wiriwa. Wina anapanga Chipani. Wina ana bwera live kudzatenga dziko. Inu A President simudziwa kuti mbewa inakumba dzinje ngati nyumba koma wokagonamo imakagonamo ndi njoka. Njoka sikumba dzinje imangolowa kumene mbewa, chiswe nyama zina zakumba. Chimodzi modzi inunso mwalowa kumene a Oton Chirwa ndi Dr Banda anakumba. Ndikutaya nthawi kumakonza zambiri ngati imeneyi ndiye kuti musithanso ma book onse. Inu mudzingolimbikitsa kuti tiwalemekeze anthu amenewa. Pokamanga Chiliza.
Thanks President Chakwera for telling the truth about our country’s history. Not other past leaders who only talked about John Chilembwe. It’s time to tell us much Levi Mumba and all who formed Nyasaland African Congress. Let them be recognised. Not only MCP
Kamuzu was a tyrant who left nothing for us but poverty
Boring!
Many thanks to president Chakwera It unfortunate that we can’t undo the past, especially the unjust imprisonment and subsequent torture of the Chirwas.
Kamuzu Banda used his MYP special squad to kidnap the Chirwas from Lusaka Zambia and faked his arrest that “he got arrested in Mchinji when he crossed the border to overthrow Kamuzu”. At that time most of us knew that this was a scam but were so scared to voice it out. I believe John Tembo had a hand in all this
Nyasaland African Congress was banned during the state of emergency. Malawi Congress Party came in to replace NAC and then most of the prominent members were arrested and sent to Gweru Prison including Dr. Banda. Orton Chirwa was not among those arrested and took this opportunity to replace NAC.
Sad 🇲🇼
True not Kamuzu
Thanks Mr president, you know the history of the party. May God richly bless you and Malawi 🇲🇼 nation
Orton Chirwa, Kenyama Chiume, Henry Msauko Chipembere, Willy Chokani, Augustine Bwanausi, Rose Chibambo, they all need streets named in their memory. Change Chileka Airport, name to Orton Chirwa Airport. Change street names bearing names of dictators, colonialists etc. Honour our own. even JZU Tembo deserves a street named after him.
I have read Vera Chirwa’s biography, Kamuzu was a cruel person, he vowed that as long as he was in power, Orton would never be released from jail, so sad
The party was not malawi congress party no but nyasaland national congress zosiyanilanatu
What struggles did we have in Malawi? Were there civil wars. We never fought amongst ourselves. The change that we had was as result of the end the cold war between the West and East. Orton Chirwa left the country on his own after the cabinet disagreement. In politics disagreements are always there. There disagreements between Nankhumwa and DPP. There was an infight in MCP when Mia had just come in . There were disagreements between Mpinganjira and Muluzi. There disagreements between Chilima and APM. The only difference between the Orton Chirwa time and this time is that laws like detention without trial and national security laws are not there. Please don’t overblow issues. The period between 1945 and 1989 was a tough one. Germany was separated. Yugoslavia was intact. Missiles pointed at enemy countries. There was Warsaw Pact and Nato.
Mwalemba za mzeru akulu, I can’t agree more with your conclusion paragraph.
A sad story! MCP – old one was brutal! This ills must never be tolerated. I am glad that I voted a new dawn of MCP. Great Chakwera – hope you can find someone in Mephibosheth
Well written piece by Mike Fiko, u indeed follow the news and history .
Orton Chirwa explained all the details of how he in 1959 formed Malawi Congress Party. He explained the details during his trial at Kwacha Traditional Court. For those of us who were there in 1982 can recall this. He even cross examined the head of the police team that arrested him arguing that they arrested him in Zambia and not in Malawi using Katamanda mission as a landmark on the geographical map. All the details of his arguments, he did explain. Truth could have been unearthed if Muluzi had formed Truth and Reconciliation Commission. We could have known more about the deaths of Silombera and Yatuta Chisiza and where they were buried. We could have also known more about Atati Mphakati, Muwalo, Mkwapatira Mhango and all those that were eaten by the crocodiles.
It’s very unfortunate that after Kamuzu came Bakili Muluzi, he only came to to satisfy his belly, reconciliation is very important for a nation, no wonder it took MCP 26 years to get back in power, people hadn’t forgiven or forgotten the atrocities of MCP. Muluzi was a clueless fellow, maybe if we had Chakufwa Chihana or Bingu after Kamuzu maybe Malawi would have been somewhere now.
My Brother you are spot on. Bakili Muluzi introduced corruption in Malawi and is destroyer of the multi party system of governance. Muluzi himself had blood on his hands. The killing of General Chigawa by assassins from South Africa was also brushed under the carpet. The entire period of the rule by Kamuzu of Darkness and Death was swept under the carpet. Instead Mukuzi created one of the most corrupt nations in Africa.
Bravo Dr Laz. In you we trust
Koma Nankhumwayu mukuti anaphunzira kuti? Chifukwa ngakhale ana Aku primary school amene afika sitandade 7 kapena 8 amadziwa zakuti Orton Chirwa is the founder of MCP and on what ground it was founded. Check the Social studies book. It is there
The justice building at City.Centre should be named after this man.