Chiume’s NUP dissolved, join forces with Aford:Malawi road to 2014 polls
As the battle for preeminence continue to reign supreme amid preparations ahead of the forth coming 2014 tripartite elections, the National Unity Party (NUP) has been dissolved and have since joined forces with the Alliance for Democracy (AFORD) in a quest to join the race with a strong force.
NUP President Harry Chiume announced at a news conference jointly held in the capital city Lilongwe together with Aford’s secretary-general Khwauli Msiska that the two parties have agreed to work together as one entity.
“Aford and we [NUP] are both social democratic parties. We both advocate rights of people and also rights of workers. Our manifestoes might differ in wording, but the philosophy is the same. We thought it wise to join Aford so as to strengthen it,” said Chiume, a founding member of Aford in the early 1990s.
He said the decision to join Aford has been endorsed by the party’s supporters at the grassroots level as well as the entire executive committee.
Said Chiume: “We consulted widely and we have made the decision with the blessings of the people at the grass roots who own the party.”
AFORD Publicity Secretary Dan Msowoya said both parties have common goals and agendas hence the need for them to work as a united force.
“AFORD has recently been receiving members from other quarters and it has been felt prudent to allow for integration and reorientation of our cherished new colleagues and party members. The National Unity Party and the Alliance for Democracy have ultimately resolved to consummate the Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) of November 2012 and consequently proceed as one entity, AFORD,” said Msowoya.
He said AFORD values the development saying it creates a new impetus in the party and the country as a whole.
“We are proud to the options they have made. It is ideal political decision for the party and Malawians,” he said.
Msowoya said the party is now geared to venture into dominant campaign with the new development and strive to make the party more national that region.
He played down assertions that the party is just nothing but a regional grouping saying that party has membership across the country.
Meanwhile, the Alliance for Democracy has also announced that it has been compelled by further logistical challenges as well as new developments to the effect that it has resolved to reschedule its National Convention to an undisclosed date in July, 2013.
“At a joint meeting held in Lilongwe on March 26, 2013, chaired by the party’s President Rt. Hon Godfrey Shawa, the party’s management and the National Conference Organising Committee arrived at the decision to change the dates for the convention based on a brief report by the Secretary General Hon. Khwauli Msiska, regarding the developments and changes at the proposed venue among others,” the AFORD publicist Dan Msowoya said.
The party has declared that it has no intention to form an alliance with any political party ahead of the polls saying it has the muscle to go to the polls as a sole party.
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