Hard truths about Malawi’s current political crisis – Prof Danwood Chirwa
Malawi is currently mired in a serious political crisis, albeit not an unfamiliar one. The sitting President has just been worn in for a second term of office under hotly disputed circumstances. An electoral petition challenging the results of the presidential elections is currently being argued and adjudicated by the courts.
Inside the court, the dispute is being presented as a matter of national concern pertaining to the right of the people to decide freely who should exercise political power. Outside the court, the dispute manifests itself as a thinly veiled tribal feud. Violent protests have broken out in parts of the central region targeting mainly those perceived to be southerners and sympathisers of the ruling party. Everybody else is being invited to pick sides and join the fray.
The inside and outside court strategies are interdependent and mutually reinforcing. The presidential election petition serves to mask the tribal nature of the dispute and the narrow political goals it has. The outside court strategy seeks to incite violence and create an appearance of widespread discontent with the outcome of the presidential election in an effort to prejudice the mind of the court.
Both strategies are wrong and will lead the country to ruin. While the petitioners have the right to challenge electoral results, they should do so responsibly and not deliberately cause confusion or incite tribal violence.
It is doubtful whether there is something more fundamental to be achieved by this election petition than the immediate promise of a new alliance between the UTM and MCP (conceived after the results) that could propel the protagonists to power. Altogether puzzling is the fact that only the presidential elections are being challenged and much less is being talked about the parliamentary elections. The latter provide a glimpse of the current standing of the political parties. It is also surprising that the petitioners and their parties appear to have no scruples about ascending to power regardless that their share of MPs is significantly lower.
The electoral outcome under dispute is not different to what we have faced before: it was predictable and is a result of a broken political system founded on tribalism, sustained by networks of corruption and patronage. The political strategies of the two main political parties, the DPP and MCP respectively, are deeply rooted in tribalism: each has a solid tribal base which it exploits, sustains and protects often at the expense of national interests. This is partly the reason why both parties find no problem with ascending to power with less than 50% of those voting or with a minority of MPs.
Despite the inspiring national platform it developed and espoused in the elections, UTM is at once a creation, beneficiary and victim of tribal politics.
Both the MCP and DPP have had ample opportunities to come up with concrete electoral reforms to improve Malawi’s political system so that it can deliver competent political leadership that serves the interests of all.
For its part, the MCP was advised, following the 2014 elections, to prioritise electoral reforms that would, among other things, dis-incentivise tribal politics and incentivise national politics, create an effective and efficient system of resolving electoral disputes, and bolster the independence and effectiveness of the Electoral Commission. It did not heed this advice. On the contrary, it squandered the numerical advantage it had in parliament and never prioritised electoral reforms. What were eventually adopted as electoral reforms represent a small fraction of what was recommended to the party.
Moreover, the MCP neglected or refused to reform itself into an inclusive, national party. Instead, it openly displayed its tribal impulses by picking, prematurely and un-procedurally, someone from Lower Shire as a presidential running mate in a bid to shore up its traditional tribal base.
As often happens when a political party is in power, the DPP has not supported any significant electoral reforms because the current system is rigged in its favour.
In short, the MCP and DPP occupy the same side of the moral axis: the ‘bad’ side, precisely because of both parties’ dogmatic adherence to tribal politics.
The electoral petition is likely not going to bring about any significant shifts in the political system. At best it might result in the nullification of the presidential election, precipitating a possible rerun, or negotiated political solution, whose benefits will be short-lived unless the harder work described above is done. At worst it might precipitate a deadly tribal violence.
The likelihood of the escalation of violence is bound to increase as tensions continue to mount, helped in large part by the incitement that is currently taking place.
Because of the negligence of the political players highlighted above, Malawi still does not have the legal infrastructure to address critical political disputes of this nature in a timely and fair manner.
Countries which envisage presidential reruns have designated electoral courts to certify and adjudicate disputes around election results within a stipulated period before the swearing in of a president. If the adjudicatory body is the final court of appeal, the matter is resolved once for all when that court makes its determination. In countries where such disputes are appealable, provision is made for the appellate court to adjudicate the appeal within a stipulated time.
In such countries provision is also made for interim arrangements as the electoral disputes are being determined and the rerun organised.
Malawi has none of these arrangements. This puts the incumbent government at a huge advantage. This also puts the judges who are vested with the onerous responsibility of determining such disputes at a moral and legal crossroad: to decide the dispute based only on facts and the applicable law, or to choose the chaos that normally follows from the nullification of an election or find a reason to dismiss the petition in order to protect the status quo as the lesser evil.
The fact that the decisions of the Malawian ‘Constitutional Court’ are subject to appeal to the Supreme Court of Appeal presents more room for unfair determination of these disputes and for chaos. Now, it is the Chewa hacking the Lhomwe. If the Constitutional Court decides for the petitioners, the reverse will be the case, and it will be more brutal because of the disruption of the interests that have already become vested as a result of the swearing in of the incumbent government. If the Supreme Court reverses that decision, more violence will ensue.
In recent history, the Kenyan Supreme Court of Appeal, departing from established comparative jurisprudence, nullified presidential elections on grounds of principle rather than evidence of substantial rigging of the results. Most commentators including myself hailed the courage and innovativeness of that court.
But the aftermath of that judicial determination underscores the precarious position that judges are thrown into in these matters and the typical irresponsibility of politicians. The rerun never took place smoothly as the respective parties unleashed the forces of violence on each other and their supporters, and eventually the main opposition party boycotted the rerun.
After more than a year of violence and political instability, the two protagonists made a ‘peace deal’, leaving their supporters and victims of violence in utter disbelief, vulnerable and without recourse. The judiciary in Kenya has since been at the receiving end of state-sponsored assault on its independence and on the person of the individual judges.
Malawians must see what is at play with clear minds in spite of the bleak political and economic realities they face. Change is no doubt needed in the country, but it will not come with the magic wand of an electoral petition. The bigger challenge we face lies in turning on its head the current broken political system so that it is freed from the chains of tribalism, nepotism, corruption and patronage, which produce and reproduce cycles of poverty, unemployment, economic stagnation and hopelessness, which in turn create the conditions for tribalism, corruption and patronage to thrive.
- Professor Danwood Mzikenge Chirwa holds a PhD from the University of the Western Cape, an LLM from the University of Pretoria, and an LLB (Hons) from the University of Malawi. Currently, he holds a full professorship at the University of Cape Town
Politics at its best….
Rather court be decisive carefully, chaos are very likely to happen in our country.
I cry my mother Malawi and I do recalls our dear father Hastings Kamuzu Banda,,, he predicted about multiparty consequences, here we are we cant run away from this and will face reality of multiparty now in Malawi.
WARM HEART OF AFRICA….
Professor Danwood is no mean achiever and whatever he always put forward is exact and do come to pass.Professor I admire the way you analyse issues you look beyond imagination.Bravo Prof.
The learned professor has written very well, but i think he lacks some vital information for his article to taste much better than this. Come down here chat with people on the grass root and thereafter you will be able to come up with a better conclusion of what is on the political platform here in malawi
if it lack vital information write yours which will have all the vital imformation.
Here is the most illiterate professor. Malawi is in a political metamorphosis so this moment offers us as a nation to look deeper into all aspects of our life. The judiciary works within a social political environment it is therefore incumbent on them to assist in bringing sanity onto the Malawian politics. It isn’t adequate to simply apportion imaginary issues on MCP which has never had a majority which could have steered all electoral reforms. He lives in south Africa away from the daily travails and corruption orchestrated by DPP.
Hats off professor, I salute you. Its well written with factual evidence. But I must add that tribalism is one root evil that will take more than education to be gotten rid of.
If there is one tribe that boost of having many learned people in Malawi then its the Northerners, and yet they are the number one perpetrators of this vice.
This is number one reason why everyone doesn’t want a Northerner to get the Presidency let alone the vice President. Zimaoneka m’ma office mu bwana akangokhala Mtumbuka it means the entire institution will be dominated by them hiding under the pretext of being competence.
Am not deviating from the subject matter, am saying all this bcoz the number one reason why almost the entire Northern region is against DPP is bcoz of quota system. They like Chilima coz he promised to abolish it. Yet quota system is good in every sense!
Finally when all is said and done , the fact will still remain the same, APM is the first citizen
This article typifies the irresponsibility of a run-away lawyer who ‘passes judgement’ on a CV case over which he hasn’t seen facts to play on the minds of judges. This is more toxic than the correction soup. No competent lawyer would draw conclusions on an unprecedented case in a sovereign jurisdiction based on happenings in another sovereign jurisdiction.
But he is not drawing conclusions yet , rather he is just bringing us to understand what other sovereign jurisdictions do to run an election and settle electoral disputes. is it wrong to learn from how other people do their business?
In my opinion, his argument is not important at the moment. In principle, the issue at hand is that MCP and UTM have petitioned the court disputing the presidential electoral out come . And the political violence in question is coming in as a by product of the situation at hand. Our focus therefore should be whether the two parties have legal grounds to challenge MEC. In simple terms, was MEC justified to allow tippexed results? Does the tippex results gives the president the legitimacy to govern? If the answers to these two questions is affirmative, then MCP and UTM have no moral and legal grounds to challenge MEC. Talking about electoral reforms and this and that are not important now. What want is action to map the way forward.
Let me Agree with the Professor….for Once…MCP rejected 50+1 ….Tumbukas ,Tonga’s,Ngondes ,Yaos ,Ngoni’s are Very Happy… With the Way Elections were Conducted …Only Chewa’s are Unhappy…MCP was wrong to Pick a Running mate ….from Nsanje…They should have picked from ….? Let’s keep on Watching things going Wrong in Our Country …Lest we be Deemed to be Tribalistic if We fight for the Truth…
Ndipo Naligula I love the way you have taken the stupid professor’s arguments to their logical conclusion
Izinso ndiye ziti nkhani yake yomwe
We all want to eat. Eat. We will.
This is what we call objective and critical writing. It can only come from outside Malawi osati mamina ama political scientists ali ku Chancellor College.
The professor is not a political scientist. He is a barrister by profession. What he says makes sense but it is parochial. In his analysis, he did not consider a substantial number of variables which a political science can do on the basis of his training and expertise. The professors, point, thoughh a narrow one deserves credit.
Well written analysis of the political problems and the silly court case by MCP and UTM. We need the likes of Danwood to EDUCATE the illiterate people who are destroying our country.
Prof Danwood Chirwa you are spot on. MCP is full of tribal hatred as evidenced in the violence so far. The judges need to be careful.
Truth pains
You offer nothing my learned friend. Just a description of events. What is new that we do not know? Learn from Chilembwe and Kamuzu at the beginning of eras of change for Nyasaland and Malawi, respectively. The two were revolutionaries. Even nature, which nurtures evolution finds the process protracted and unleashes a revolution in form of floods, fires, drought, heat waves, napolo, lightning, hail, or earthquakes to reset nature. Whatever form Malawi’s revolution will take, it cannot be programmed like nature does not programme its natural revolutionary processes to reset itself. A luta the third revolution!
The professor has offered solutions. But you need some level of enlightenment to understand what he is talking about.
Fake professors —pitala and chirwa
The matter is not to retrospect an election. The voter’s choice was altered; that is what must be corrected. You do not need a lethargic lecture by a professor for that.
There no solution the Professor is providing here. It is just another noise. Malawi is going through change and change we will get
To the professor!! I hope he is not surprised that he can only get all his extra degrees from outside malawi and he is still thinking all is well in our mother land! Sometimes educated fools really piss me off
But before Chilembwe and Kamuzu there were other famous Malawian political figures such as Elliot Kamwana and Charles Domingo. Kamuzu anaoeza zakuoya kale.
This Guy can write…… jelousy down.
With due respect, you learned professor of law. The theory that you know about Malawi is not the same on the ground today. If you had an opportunity to come to see yourself, you will realize that your analysis is wrong. Your statement is more divisive and not healthy for current Malawi. Silence will be golden for you
To see what? Misguided people who are being told that their party won elections when they did not win. Violent people misled by Pastor Chakwera and Chilima. MCP has fewer MPs compared to DPP. UTM came a distant third with 4 MPs and few councillors. Why is Chilima disputing the elections then?
That is why can not see properly. Nonsense!
Look at the article and discuss it instead of abusing the Professor. It means you either can’t read it or you are one of these people who are destroying property based on the false belief that MCP won the elections.
Baba Chirwa, koma ti ma opinion tanuti mukumapanga research kaye kapena you’re just pulling them from your ass?
The article is simple to understand. You don’t need any level of intelligence to agree with the issues raised.
Dr. Chirwa, I think you have been outside Malawi for a long time and you dont know much about current affairs in our country. For example:
You are saying that MCP did nothing to have the 50 plus one bill into the parliament. MCP brought the 50 plus one bill, but Samuel Tembenu and his friends in government, including Uladi Mussa for their own reasons, tried very hard to defeat the bill. And the bill was defeated. I do not know what else MCP could have done, bearing in mind that DPP Government uses money in order to get what they want.
Another example which shows that you dont know what is on the ground is that the violent protests are happening not only in Central Region, as you want your readers to believe, it happened in Blantyre (south) Mzuzu (north) and Lilongwe (central) off course.
Your analysis is one sided. I think Malawi is lucky that you are not in Malawi judiciary system. You can not make a good judge.
What have your so called political analysts and professors based in Malawi done so far. They don’t even understand the situation.
Are you trying to imply that Chirwa is following the footprints of the so called political analysts and professors based in Malawi!! If he coudn’t understand the situation bwanji osangokhala chete…….!!
Give me tippex
If I were you professor I would shut up the filthy mouth and watch the proceedings. I WOULD ONLY SPEAK AFTER EVERYTHING HAS SETTLED. You don’t live in Malawi. You are not part of the poor people you write about and perhaps you never voted. You may have constructive suggestions but now isn’t the right time. You have goofed twice already regarding these elections, please stay silent and protect your integrity
The truth needs to be told and that is what Professor Chirwa has done.
Are you serious you’re able to isolate truth from Chirwa’s trash? Is he right MCP didn’t take the case to court etc etc?
Well i have one problem with the writer, It appears he is writing from outside the country completely detached from what is happening on the ground. There is no Chewa, Llomwe war here, Each people from the south are not happy with Peter and his DPP are doing. They equally do not want him. So the case MCP/UTM are pursue is a case for Malawian Rights which have been violented by DPP & MEC. That to choose the leader they want. Malawians do want Peter period and Peter decided to vote himself in disrespecting the will of all Malawians.
Pro Danwood Chirwa may you please reconduct your reach, otherwise your writing sounds alike off.
Prof, you misrepresent MCP’s position regarding the electoral reforms. In reality, this task was undertaken by the Law Commission which drafted a bill which was thwarted by the DPP through among other tactics, the buying of independent MPs. You cannot change history in this
MCP has blood in its hands. Never changed at all. It has become worse under REVEREND Chakwera – a man so desperate for power that he is ready to organise violence to achieve that. MCP has been exposed as a bloody party as UTM where the loudmouth Chilima is doing the same out of vindictiveness that he is no longer VP.
Those who used tipp-Ex I suggest are the ones who are desperate for power…………! Most people who are behind the Tipp-Ex government are beneficiaries of it………………………!! Shame on you!! Tsoka ilo, Malawi watopa ndipo sakufunanso wina adzikakamize kuwalamula!
Hope you know kuti tamva ndiife tokha amene tili ndi mwai wa Data, bwerani muzachite public lecture muzaone zomwe muzakumane nazo kuno, don’t play cheap politics please.
Well written article.. you have explained well but expect stupid criticism from MCP and UTM followers because they always choose to be negative about good. Only sober minded and honest Malawians will applaud you for your excellent and non partisan analysis
Prof. Danwood Chirwa, the arguments and analysis you make on this arguments has a lot of factual errors. Oftentimes, when you present a controversial topic or point of view on internet forums or in real life, knowing most people reply to your arguments it is good to present them as they evolve and in calm and reasonable way. Try not to generate a research out it but assess before you publish how right or wrong my controversial stance is. For instance a reasonably constructed arguments is that the current political crises is not about regionalisms or tribalism. It about people’s choice exercised through democratic means being circumvented. Hence seeking the courts to intervene to reverse this negative trend.
Maybe you are trying to get your point across from a level, or standpoint which is too foreign to our understanding of this issue at hand. For sure; demonstration have taken place in Karonga, Mzimba, Mzuzu, Salima. Nkhotakota, parts of Lilongwe rural, Thyolo. Blantyre and Zomba. Where is tribal or regional feud of this? It is about seeking electoral justice with what people rightly chose.
There is no factual error. Prof wakamba mwa tchutchutchu! Needs to be commended.
Tchutchu? The guy doesn’t even address the main point: Was the election results management properly conducted? If not how then can the result be credible? Even APM has admitted that the results were not properly managed – he claims some of his votes were stolen…
APA MWAYINAMIZIRA NYAU KUTI YAPANGA PERFUME, AFUNSENI A KU DAMBWE KUTI CHIKUNUNKHIRACHO M’CHANI??
THIS IS THE PROBLEM WITH PEOPLE LIVING OUTSIDE MALAWI AND THINKING YOU KNOW WELL WHAT IS HAPPENING IN MAKHETHA, MSUNGWI, MKANDO, ZOLOZOLO, WENYA, CHIKANDA THAN THE REDISENTS THEMSELVES!!!
Reality ably articulated! Politics of self-interest have taken centre stage. Malawi needs political reformation. Enormous energy is wasted trying to find a right on a wrong or trying to find a wrong on a right!
Kkkkkkkkkk upolofesa winawu …nfundoya yanthu ndiyakuti tip ex anapezeka bwanji pa official documents which means rigging happened ….wangozuka zambatu kutiwonesa how unaware you are about issues concerning this country
This issue of tippex is making people look foolish now. Where were MCP and UTM monitors when tippex was being used? Were there complaints at that level? How much votes were supposedly stolen at assembly, parliamentary and presidential level?
I suggest you just have to wait for the courts to get the answers to your questions………! But then, where do you stay? Are you in Malawi? If in Malawi are you not aware that MCP took the tippex issue with MEC at COMESA but MEC refused to tackle it and insisted that MCP should report the case in liaison with DPP? Kodi kupeleka madandaulo sizimatheka odandaula kupeleka yekha? MEC claims that it didn’t tackle any tippex related issue because according to MEC, MCP failed to bring DPPduring reporting the complaint!! If you doubt this listen to Joab’s exclusive interview interview with Ansah, it is pathetic………………..!! Jane Ansah thru the same interview worse still said election cases according to the law can never be appealed, and yet she and MEC have appealed! What are they hiding?
Awanso asatikwana, u proffesor wawo mwina ndiwangati Peter Mutharika. Why not keep quiet, are you paid as an online DPP/Lomwe advocate? Meanwhile you escaped Malawi and have no idea about the suffering of the masses.
If you could read the whole article again with a sober mind you would understand what he is trying to put across to stiff-necked fools like you.
This is professor talk. I plead MCP, UTM and the judiciary must take note.
I feel sorry for Chilima’s involvement in this chaos because he should have foreseen that MCP’s refusal to concede defeat had more of tribal undertones than the alleged rigging claims which thus far the use of tipex has not provided the killer blow to render the elections results questioned by a lot of bodies except to the MCP diehards.
If Chilima has to save his political ambition he must do a tactical withdraw from the case. The morale he is providing to the youth in these protest cannot benefit him politically. Even if the court rules a rerun MCP cannot accept him as a presidential candidate or even the runningmate position and to the Southerners he would have committed the unpardonable crime of betrayal. As someone from Ntcheu he was being regarded as more of a Southerner since politically Ntcheu is south.
Inu a SKC munagwa mochititsa manyazi my semifinal nchifukwa chani mukujijilika nzokambirana za venue yomenyera ma finals??
Chilima ndi nzake Mphwiyo have thrived on deceit and ukhuluku. Not surprised that he is getting involved in something he should not be involved in considering that his UTM did not win the election.
This is well put Prof. I admire your prognostic analytical narrative. Let them who are running wild with manipulated emotions take heed. Let them who are told when to be angry and when to be patient by equally self serving politicians be sober for a moment. Likewise let the ruling dpp be careful and engage in proper dialogue to avert the impending conflict. Nolmacy bias is an illusion we cannot afford.
I trust the judges are wise enough to make a wise decision.
There is truth in this story only that our politicians are evil creatures when an opportunity presents itself they dont take it all they think is their mouths & stomachs. 50+1 most of the MPs who rejected it are the ones who are on the wrong side of the divide. Politicians always use ignorant, poor people as their pawns after achieving their goal then the masses are dumped. The problem is that 90% of elections in Africa are rigged but Malawi just did it like a Grade or Standard 4 pupil. I have come to believe what Chilima said that these guys cant rig which means all the loop holes were closed that’s why they just ended up with Tippex.
Great analysis. BRAVO Danwood.
Now, one starts to wonder if the most learned professor carried out a fully baked research before writing this article. This article is written in a way to influence determination of the current court proceedings. In other words, you are saying the Judges shouldn’t rule in favor of Citizens of Malawi just because it will cause more political unrest???
You proceed to express your low class reasoning by suggesting a possible alliance between MCP and UTM. Don’t you know that rivals may work together if they have a common enemy? During your studies, did you ever come across the word Joint Venture??
And now you are relating customer base to tribalism????
This is stupidity at its best Mr Professor Sir.
clever thinking
Powerful stuff, Professor Chirwa! — as always with you! You identify tribalism as the root-cause of the present crisis, and it probably is. But is not the accusation of electoral fraud by MEC the immediate problem today and one which is capable of resolution in the courts? Is Tippex invisible on the electoral returns or have they all been destroyed? Lomwe and Chewa rivalry may always be with us. Christian and Muslim too. North and South. But it is only unscrupulous politicians who turn them into bloodshed (and votes)!
Mutharika, the Law Professor, has failed Malawi badly. He has failed, like ALL Malawi Presidents, to keep the extremists in his government party in check.
in short, Respected Professoral apa wa buntha. Do you know how many MP cases are in court? Many. Please find out. Did you say the same thing after the conversations about candidates from where and imposition? No. Your description of UTM and MCP post election alliance is not different from your shall article . Demining the right of the citizens.
Is this English? Please put it in proper English for the benefit of many.
Kkkkkkkkkkkkkk
This man is trying to promote himself into a full blown asshole, and thankfully nyasatimes will help him do so.
Malawi’s assholic professorial crisis knows no borders: one is at chikoko Bay and the other in cape town. Both dripping in assholic refuse besides large bodies of water.
Just google him and you will realise that he is a highly accomplished academic
Kkkkkkkkkkk assholic professors, both of them by the waters kkkkkk
when common sense stops becoming common anymore learned people stop reasoning leading to the demise of a nation. MCP is in this position because of UTM. Now, UTM through Chilima is trying at damage limitation and political posturing by siding with MCP. Bravo professor for this objective piece. Truth hurts. Sober minds do know that without skcs dividing presidential potential mcp votes in the north and the centre, MCP would have won this election. Tippex in itself is not synonymous with rigging especially after all, party monitors had their independent tallies and countersigned the results. Tippex in itself is not a weapon of mass destruction. The one who invented tippex did not do so for fraudulent use or concealment of facts it is a corrective apparatus which is part of everyday office stationery. Somebody here is misrepresenting True Facts . The MEC CHAIRWOMAN IS JUST THE SCAPEGOAT. MCP real spoiler was SKC, i rest my case.