Malawi 2014 General Elections: Peter Mutharika missing opportunity

Well I promised to write something everyday about the General Elections slated for May 2014. The count down continues and every political organisation is quite busy looking forward to their lifeline. Sunday 5th August, 2012 was the coronation of Mswati Willad Kanjedza Gomani as Inkosi ya Makosi Gomani V. An event no sane politician would miss.

Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) Secretary General Wakuda Kamanga was the highest ranking official at the event, of course Nicholasi Dausi, himself a Ngoni from Kanduku area also turned up.

The Peoples Progressive Movement President Mark Katsonga was at the event and his Publicity Secretary Redson Munlo told me he was part of the family, were all there.

Leader of Opposition John Tembo led his contingent too.

It was DPP's acting Leader Professor Peter Mutharika whom I have been interested to sieze an opportunity for any public event and meet President Joyce Banda in person. Unfortunately the DPP leader has been silent and always sends the mild politicians to the events.

On Saturday 4th August 2012 there was a fundraising dinner for Kulamba ceremony, that colourful Chewa Heritage event held at Mkaika in Chipata, Zambia every last Saturday of August, but this year slated for August 21 Weekend. Vice President Khumbo Kachali was in attendance, Tembo, who claims to lead a party dominated by Chewa, himself is a Ngoni by the way, was absent.

Professor Mutharika and Former First Lady and his In Law Callitsa sent cash donations worth K100,000 each.

I thought these are opportunities for the Professor to come out and meet his potential rivals on the ballot in 2014. He has been shielded long enough by addressing rallies, well orchestrated to shake the political world, but he has failed to show stamina on the political landscape.

There is always someone doing something for the good old Professor.

The endorsements which some of us saw long time ago as damaging to his political career were done hurriedly and mainly by people cheating him for his money and access to his influential brother the then President.

Further, since he started addressing rallies, he has been footing  huge bill which mainly covers fake smiles of curious people and many hired from taxi-ranks and bicycle peddlers- at least at Mgona and Mzuzu where I have first hand evidence.

Controversial issues on Peter are always left to people like Wakuda Kamanga and Dr. George Chaponda while the Professor speaks as if he was not in Malawi long ago. It is very comical of him to say "when we go into Government we will do this to correct the mess." The mess was corrected in the first place by a Government he was part of.

The strategists next to the Professor should really start working to prepare him for a bruising battle not baby sitting as so far has been the case.

He should have been at Inkosi ya Makosi Gomani coronation, come with his flair and show Joyce Banda that he is not going anywhere outside the political box. It would have been interesting to see where they would have seated him.

Yes DPP made it difficult for opposition to attend public events, but PP seemed to try to walk differently.

Professor Mutharika complained that he is never shown on MBC TV, attending a public event and not being beamed would strengthen his claims and people would start believing that he is no cry baby.

The road to 2014 will not be a smooth one, and Chiefs as usual will play their rhetoric according to who fills their pockets, I am sure Peter Mutharika would have scored some sympathy with the many Chiefs that were there.

Otherwise, the debates DPP is raising now wont really matter in 2014, its how much DPP can show to have reformed!