Speaking the unspeakable: MCP never wins general elections …just good enough for opposition!

Leadership is not about the next election, it’s about the next generation” – Simon Sinek.

The once mighty Malawi Congress Party (MCP) since its formation in 1959 and after it banned Nyasaland African Congress in 1964 so they (MCP) can be the only political party in the then new Malawi, MCP has never won any election.

MCP president Lazarus Chakwera has been leader of opposition after MCP’s John Tembo.

For MCP to be in power in 1964, they didn’t win any election. Power was just handed over to them on a silver platter by the colonialists. They never got it democratically.

From 1964 to 1992 MCP had had arrested all the founding fathers, Orton Ching’oli Chirwa and Aleke Kadonaphani Banda on trumped up charges. The number of people they have killed in the period they have been in power is huge and shocking. Anyone with dissenting views was killed and fed to the crocodiles.

In 1992, the wind of change had blown the skies of Malawi and MCP was challenged and was called to a first electoral battle after Malawians has had enough of enough and spearheaded by the Catholic Bishops a referendum, which was basically aimed at asking Malawians if they wanted MCP to continue ruling Malawi as a monopolist political party, and in 1993 the then mighty MCP lost with a landslide.

The 1993 referendum ended the one-party system and a special assembly ended the life-term presidency, stripping the MCP and its leadership of most of their powers. MCP became irrelevant to the modern Malawi.

In 1994, MCP had a first general elections. This time they had no power to ban any political party as they did with Nyasaland African Congress. They had no choice but to go to the polls and face the political music. Featuring Akimu Kamkhwala Mtunthama  Banda who was otherwise known as Dr. Hastings Ngwazi Kamuzu Banda on the ballot paper.

The Ngwazi who was dubbed the “Lion of Malawi,” the “Destroyer of stupid federation,”  “Nkhoswe Number One,” “Mchikumbe Number One,” and Father and Founder of the Malawi Nation” ran for president in the democratic elections and was misearably defeated.

The Ngwazi and not the MCP publicly apologised to the people of Malawi for all the atrocities and pain that the Malawian people went through under his draconian and iron fist rule. Dr Hastings Kamuzu Banda died in South Africa on 25 November 1997 a peaceful man.

With all its dark history, the now toothless MCP had to continue.

In 1999, MCP went to the elections this time with Gwanda Chakuamba. They lost, again.

In 2004 MCP featured John Tembo against UDF’s Bakili Muluzi’s handpicked economic engineer Bingu wa Mutharika in a general elections and again MCP was floored.

Then, in 2009, MCP decided that they needed to go into a political electoral partnership with their sworn enemies the UDF with whom they shared an enemy in DPP after Bingu wa Mutharika left the party that propelled him to the corridors of power. John Tembo and Muluzi lost. MCP lost yet again.

In 2014, MCP was transformed and became a new re-branded party, well according to MCP, and has had a new kid on the political bloc in a revered Reverend Dr Lazarus Chakwera and went to the polls with renewed beliefs and energy hoping to wrestle power from Joyce Banda but the story ended the same way. MCP was defeated again.

By the way, I must say it here and now that I like Dr. Chakwera. He is an upright man in my opinion, but I think he is in a wrong party. A cursed entity and a doomed political grouping.

Through the three decades of defeat after defeat, political pain and anguish, MCP has always been the cry baby always singing the “Atibela song!”

Well, it looks like MCP will forever sing this “Atibela” song.

Has MCP ever sat down as a party and do a postmortem and try to find out why they have never won any election since 1959?

As Albert Einstein aptly said; “Doing the same thing over and over again, and expect different results, is stupidity,” has the MCP changed it’s tactics or they are just doing the same things over and over but expect to win?

There are some men who are just good at being bachelors so are some women who are just the best fit for spinsters. These are not good for marriage materials. In the same vein some political parties aren’t good ruling party materials – they are just good in opposition.

Kodi MCP ikadzawina chisankho chikubwerachi ndiye otsutsa adzakhala ndani? Awawa ali ndi experience yabwino pazotsutsatsutsazi. Tiyeni tiwapatse a MCP ntchito yomwe iwo anatha kuyigwira bwino. Lawyer sangalembedwe ntchito ngati makaniki.

Putting MCP in power again is like marrying a prostitute who was divorced because she was sleeping around for money that she doesn’t even need.

MCP is like Kanyenya, very good to be eaten at the pub but st home. At home we need ndiwo not Kanyenya, end of.

MCP does not know how to win elections. They will not win any elections, at least not anytime soon.

The only way MCP  will go back into the government as a ruling party is perhaps when the Chinese will colonise Malawi and after years of fighting for national independence for the second time, the Chinese will hand over power to MCP as was the case in 1964.

So as Simon Sinek rightly said “Leadership is not about the next election, it’s about the next generation,” let us not be bothered about who will win the next general elections in May 2019, let us think of a leader among the bunch who is capable of taking us beyond the walls of State House – a leader who will give us tomorrow and not the past.

Bingu wa Mutharika, fondly known as Chitsulo cha njanji, he was a great visionary leader I must say,  once said: ” The past is for us to learn, the present is for us to act and the future is for us to prepare,” and truly to Bingu’s words let us act now and prepare for the future. Let us learn from the past but the past must remain in the past.

By the way, one is not a good leader because his father or his brother was a good leader as my grandfather, The right Reverend Cannon Jonathan Jeranji once told me; “No matter how tall your grandfather, father, mother, brother, sister is, you will have to do your own growing up because people will judge your height based on how tall or short you are..”

Malawi is for all of us and not a family or village or tribal business. Let us vote for an energetic leader who will work for us and take our country to the next level and not a Zimmer frame pushing person who is past retirement age.

If MCP was a good democratic party, they still would have been in power today. We ousted them out not because we hated them but because they were very bad and devilish.

In Tanzania Chama Chamapinduzi is still in power since after independence on December 9th in  1961 and Tanzanians still vote for them. ANC in South Africa is still in power since 10th May 1994 after apartheid and ZANU PF is still in power since independence on April 18th, 1980.

Fellow Malawians let us vote wisely in May 2019 for “we did not borrow our nation from our ancestors, we owe it to our children and the future generations.”

Blakaka speaks.

Adios!

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42 Comments
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MABUCHI
MABUCHI
5 years ago

The author has misstated facts here. Go back and read Malawi History between 1958 and 1964 and come back with a correct version of your article. We are eagerly waiting.

Charlie Hebdo
Charlie Hebdo
5 years ago

Rubbish article. Twisted history. MCP did not ban African Nyasaland Congress. ANC was banned by the colonial government. Orton Chirwa formed MCP to replace the banned ANC. For the author’s information MCP competed against Christian Democratic Party of Chester Katsonga among other parties.

mkwita
mkwita
5 years ago

Thats why Malawi is messed up as is

Nkhoma
Nkhoma
5 years ago

Minister of Justice UTM hehehe – komatu kuli mbutuma kunja kuno

Al-Fayeed
Al-Fayeed
5 years ago

Mbuzi ya munthu makolo ako anangoluza fees ndithu. Chitsiru chosadziwa mbiri ya dziko lake lomwe. ukuyenera kukhala waku simongoliya iwe.

Thyolo Thava boy
5 years ago

That`s true Peter Makosa, Malawi needs a youth and energetic leader in the name of SKC. I know that chilungamo chimawawa but what you have written its the truth MCP as a party has done alot in the past , alot of people ha lost their lives and so is DPP. We need new blood.

TMAN
5 years ago

Energetic president without a vote is hard.Maloto achumba,akulu ife atilamula yani kodi? Keep on drinking and see what will happen of your young kid on the block

Kumudzi
Kumudzi
5 years ago

Grammar please abale hee? Loads of errors one wonders if the editorial work was done. We can do better. Check your work before publication This is very embarrasing.

Silamba
Silamba
5 years ago

Poor reasoning

William Chilongo
William Chilongo
5 years ago

Peter I would advise you get your facts right before writing an article. You seem to be ill fed, wrongly informed or in short you don’t know Mw history. Come for free Mw history lessons and basic African politicle studies

William Chilongo
William Chilongo
5 years ago

The author of the article shows he’s biased . The examples given, ANC and ZANU PF indicates his politicos ignorance . The two parties are full of dictators .if HKB. Had know that he was going to looseelectionsanddecided to be a typical dictator , he as going to rig election . Praise be to GOD cause age took control and he lost. The politics played by ChamaChamapinduzi is a one off and no other African country will ever try it and continue ruling
My brother please come for free political lessons without bias

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