UTM-MCP alliance hits a snag

Attempts to form an electoral alliance between UTM Party and  Malawi Congress Party (MCP)  are in a deadlock because the two parties don’t trust each other and there is no give and take, Nyasa Times understands.

A UTM  pexecutive meeting told  party president Saulos Chilima on Friday that if he forms an alliance with MCP, they will use him to win an election but MCP will kill Chilima.

The majority of Chilima’s followers in the meeting opposed going to MCP but favoured going back to work with Democratic Progressive Party ( DPP).

UTM comprises predominantly former members of the governing DPP.

However, the DPP has already taken radical moves that chip down to size Chilima’s political image as President Peter Mutharika’s party has already formed an alliance with the younger United Democratic Front (UDF) Atupele Muluzi.

This alliance threatens to sweep away the youth vote from Chilima. Most youths are already indicating shifting allegiance from Chilima to President Mutharika.

At the same time, government’s bold move to abolish quota system is likely to close out Chilima and MCP president Lazrus Chakwera from the North where they were using quota to decampaign DPP as a bad party although quota began with MCP in 1987.

Sources inside UTM say Chilima is in a serious dilemma as he doesn’t know know what to do. In another NEC meeting which UTM held last week, Chilima outlined UTM’s five options including hoping incapacitation of the Head of State .

Chilima chaired the meeting and told his followers before the DPP-UDF alliance that they were considering five options:

1. Alliance with MCP
2. Alliance with DPP
3. Alliance with UDF
4. Going to elections alone
5. “The President dies and I take over,” said Chilima.

The last option shocked some UTM members and an audio was leaked to the governing party  that is making DPP to mistrust him.

A few days after this meeting, the DPP announced an alliance with UDF. This prompted UTM spokesperson Chidanti Malunga to announce that they have appointed task team to negotiate an alliance with MCP.

“There is nothing new Chidanti is saying. This task team has been meeting with MCP for weeks but we can’t agree on anything because both MCP and UTM want to lead the alliance,” said one UTM senior member.

The real issue throwing spanners in the alliance discussion is said to be mutual mistrust between MCP and UTM.

MCP believes that Chilima wants to hijack and take over MCP, but most MCP loyalists are not ready to give MCP to Chilima who is a stranger to the party.

At issue is also how they shake off the violence the two parties have perpetrated on the nation. MCP has resolved to cleanse itself of it by blaming it on Chilima and HRDC.