Mchacha disowns campaign purporting he is vying for DPP presidency

The campaign poster in public domain that Mchacha disowns as coming from him

By Mayamiko Phiri, contributor

Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) Member of Parliament, who is also the party’s Governor for the Southern Region, Charles Mchacha has disowned the campaign that is circulating on social media that he intends to stand for the party’s presidential position during the forthcoming convention.

Speaking during an exclusive interview on Tuesday, Mchacha — who is also former cabinet minister, contends that he does not have any plans to stand as a presidential candidate for the party.

The DPP is expected to announce dates for the convention to elect office bearers, including that of president to replace Professor Arthur Peter Mutharika — former Head of State.

Mchacha further said whatever he said during his recent television interview was just to show that DPP as a Party adheres to democratic principles — that member has the right to stand for leadership positions.

“Though it’s within my rights to stand for any position in the party, I will not stand for presidential seat during the convention,” he said.

Regarding his academical credentials, which is under public scrutiny, Mchacha maintained that he sat for — and passed — the Malawi School Certificate of Examination (MSCE) while was serving as a deputy minister in former President Mutharika’s administration.

He said he then enrolled at Malawi College of accountancy (MCA) where he graduated with a bachelor’s degree in business management on April 26, 2019.

Mchacha said he suspects that the ones spreading negative stories about his academic credentials coulee be some members within the party — who are vying for the presidential seat and see him as a potential serious challenger.

Just recently, Mchacha was also forced to dispel reports that also circulated on social media that alleged that Mutharika was eyeing former Reserve Bank Governor, Dalitso Kabambe to succeed him as party president.

In a statement he issued in December, Mchacha described the reports as false and unfounded that purported that the DPP Southern Region committee has been instructed by Mutharika to appoint Kabambe as president at their meeting scheduled for Thursday, December 31.

“I can say without favour of fear of any contradiction that the story is false, malicious and unfounded aimed at dragging our beloved party president into the unofficial campaign propaganda for the party presidency,” he had said.

He had quoted Mutharika having told the nation on the succession process, quoting him as saying “let the best candidate win and I shall do all I can in my power to help the winning candidate take the DPP back into government in 2025”.

“It is, therefore, not true and a deliberate distortion of facts that H.E. APM is imposing a nephew in the name of Dr. Kabambe. You may wish to know that Dr. Kabambe is not H.E. Mutharika’s nephew [as he] is from the eastern part of Thyolo [while] Kabambe is from western part of Thyolo.”

Mchacha concludes by saying “it is undemocratic for anyone to put forward propaganda that bars other potential candidates from express their interest on DPP presidential ticket”.

Unconfirmed reports were awash on social media that DPP wants Kabambe to replace DPP vice-president (South), Kondwani Nankhumwa, who crossed paths with the party when he refused to step down as Leader of Opposition in Parliament.

In November, Nankhumwa refuted a statement that was issued by DPP, Brown Mpinganjira that purported that he had agreed to relinquish the position of Leader of Opposition and to respect the choice made by Mutharika of Francis Kasaila. 

Mpinganjira had said “appeals from some party leaders as well as persistent requests” from Nankhumwa asking for an audience with Mutharika was authorised by the party’s Central Committee and a meeting took place together with two senior officials — Goodall Gondwe and Samuel Tembenu — in Mangochi on November 29.

The statement also alleged that Nankhumwa had agreed to direct his legal team to seek an indefinite adjournment of a court case he had against the party that stopped him and other members from being fired.

But Nankhumwa, while confirming that he indeed had an audience with Mutharika in the presence of Gondwe and Tembenu, strongly refuted the claims contained in BJ’s press statement.—Additional reporting by Duncan Mlanjira, Maravi Express