Kaliati makes political banter of DPP-UDF alliance: ‘Dynasties’

UTM Party secretary general Patricia Kaliati  added political banter to the Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) alliance with United Democratic Front (UDF), saying it is  political dynasties—Mutharikas and Muluzis—who have dominated Malawi politics for 23 of the last 25 years of multiparty democracy’s return.

Kaliati was speaking in Mzuzu on Sunday during a UTM rally before its president Saulos Chilima addressed the crowds, when she veered into the subject.

She first took a dig at DPP political heavyweights, saying they were cooking stories against Chilima to block him from working with Mutharika so as to pave way for their political future but were snubbed when the President picked Everton Chimulirenji as running mate.

“Now they will have to play second fiddle to another rank outsider, amuziwe Yesu.  As a trending hit song [by Wikise]  Chikamphulikire Chibomba, political kalma has  indeed bombed them,” said Kaliati, adding in lighter moment “DJ volume up”.

Then she veered into DPP-UDF alliance, branding it a political dynasties.

“This is a long time political marriage. It’s political dynasties.  Malawi has other capable people to govern, we cannot go on with same families,” she said.

Although she did not mention names, it was clear she was referring to a narrative that is aggressively pushed on social media that Chilima is a  streetwise youthful  politician who has pulled himself up against the odds;  contributed to the democratic change  and that “dynasties” are out to block him from gate-crashing their privileged club.

Kaliati was in UDF when former president Bakili Muluzi handpicked Bingu wa Mutharika as his successor and later she joined DPP when Bingu formed the party.

Fondly known as Akweni, Kaliati has served DPP even in the administration of incumbent President Peter Mutharika in Cabinet and ditched DPP to join UTM in 2018.

But now she has given the DPP-UDF alliance the ‘dynasties’ tag.

DPP and UDF have a history of working together.

During Peter Mutharika’s first five-year term, DPP went into a working arrangement with UDF to guarantee votes in the National Assembly and support the government’s legislative agenda. In that period, Muluzi held various ministerial positions, including Health and Population the last time he was in Cabinet just before the May 21 2019 elections.

Malawi is expected to go to the polls for a fresh presidential election on May 19 after a court overturned last year’s vote.