Malawi Parliament ignore calls to impeach President Mutharika

Malawi Parliament on Monday ignored a petition from Mzuzu City constituency to impeach President Peter Mutharika.

Except for one MP from Mzimba who said Mutharika would stay put in office until the next elections, back benchers from both sides of the House did not make any comment on the issue but concetrated on the business of the day; debate on mid year budget review statement by Finance minister Goodall Gondwe.

Over 36, 000 people from Mzuzu City constituency have signed a petition to force their MP Leonard Njikho move a motion of impeachment against Mutharika in the 193 strong House.

Njikho has since refused to take up the assignment while Constitutional law expert Edge Kanyongolo said the grounds for impeachment do not warrant the action.

Outside parliament however, in social media, the issue has been divisive as Malawians differed on the matter.

Some people say high level corruption and failure to bring back the economy from its sick bed are reasons enough to impeach Mutharika.

However, others say Malawi is just too broke now to afford a staggering election bill.

The petition seeking impeachment of President Mutharika is being championed by taskforce chairperson Andrew Longwe and Sandra Kamanga.

It sets grounds for indictement through impeachment as; Criminal negligence, Mutharika’s executive order to suspend laws that make homosexuality illegal in Malawi as one example in which the President has contravened against the Constitution and delegating ersetwhile minister of agriculture George Chaponda for ministerial duties when there was a court injunction stopping Chaponda from performing as a cabinet minister.

They also accuse President Mutharika of influencing arrest of opposition Malawi Congress Party (MCP) members over treason allegations.

Laying their grounds for impeachment, the petitioners argue that Mutharika has time and again proved to be “a negligent President” dragging Malawi into “grave danger