Mutharika says no plan for two vice presidents in Malawi

Malawi President Peter Mutharika has distanced himself from reports hovering around a plan is being worked out to appoint a second vice president in the country.

There have been fevered speculation that Mutharika wants to reintroduce the second vice president post with the holder enjoying equal privileges and other conditions as the incumbent state vice president, Saulos Chilima and re-deploy Minister of Energy Atupele Muluzi to this post.

The only holder of the second vice president position was the late Chakufwa Chihana, the then leader of the Alliance for Democracy (Aford). The republican constitution was amended during the second term of the former Head of State Bakili Muluzi to create the position of second vice president and Chihana was appointed on the premise of enhancing national unity.

Government spokesman Kondwani Nankhumwa who is also Minister of Information, said in a statement made available to Nyasa Times that Mutharika does not have any intentions to appoint a Second Vice President.

Mutharika has corrected media reports he wants to reshuffle his cabinet in order to ready himself for the new faces.

Nankhumwa corrected media reports on second vice president and cabinet reshuffle, saying: “It is not true .”

The reports about appointing a second vice president and increasing cabinet posts have caused an outcry and prompted Public Affairs Committee to say “.Malawi does not need at all another expansion of Cabinet, ”

Mutharika has maintained that he will stick to his lean 20-membercabinet.

“It is worthy mentioning that the decision to reduce the size of the cabinet is in the spirit of the reforms,” the statement said.

Government is appealling to individuals and institutions, including the Public Affairs Committee (PAC), which is the latest organisation to be associated with these rumours, to desist from making decisions or taking positions based on speculation.

Mutharika says his government remains committed and unflinchingly determined to avoid making decisions that have nothing beneficial to the people of Malawi.

The government is desperate for donor funding to turn around the economy and there has been a so-called “new friends” foreign policy to look at East and other countries such as Russia and North Korea.

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