*The below remarks, from Rt. Hon. Dr. Saulos Klaus Chilima, are a version of a speech given on January 30, 2019 in Lilongwe, Malawi*
In a few days, on February 3, the Constitutional Court of the Republic of Malawi will deliver its judgment in the case in which the people of Malawi challenged the Electoral Commission’s published results in the May 21, 2019 presidential elections. As the day draws near, I would like to join the growing number of well-meaning Malawians who have repeatedly, and in a growing voice, called for peace, calm and tranquility in the country.
The period leading up to the elections was a tense one, as various candidates and parties jostled for the confidence of Malawians and, with that, a place at the table where decisions are made and implemented. As UTM, the party I have the honor of leading, we fought gallantly and fairly against an increasingly hostile opponent at whose disposal lay state resources and highly compromised law enforcement agencies working at our opponent’s whim. During this period, we endured staged arrests, violence and intimidation, and harassment in various forms. The election was thus neither free nor fair by any standard. What is more, Malawians endured all this believing that through the power of their ballot, the thuggery would be shown the exit door and that they would peacefully usher in a leadership that cared for them and not one that attacked and bullied them into submission.
One would understand, therefore, the collective frustration following the botched 2019 elections. Since the Electoral Commission’s announcement of who they deemed the winner of the presidential vote, the country has experienced a groundswell of street protests and demonstrations. Some of these instances have led to violence and loss of life. We must, as a nation, continue to engage on how people’s right to protest can be exercised while, at the same time, maintaining law and order. Importantly, this is a not a binary choice to be made. It is a balance we must strike if we are to maintain our country’s aspirations for true democracy.
When the court’s decision is ultimately delivered, I urge the losing party to accept the loss with humility, knowing that justice has prevailed. I also urge the winning party to celebrate with grace and civility, knowing that there are also people who mean well on the opposing side. We will need the efforts of everyone, regardless of political affiliation or preference, to roll up their sleeves and help to build a new Malawi.
In this vein, let us remind President Mutharika that during critical moments throughout the history of this nation, heads of state have risen beyond their personal and partisan interests to make decisions that benefited the nation. Malawi’s first president, Dr. Banda, called for a referendum for the reintroduction of multiparty democracy against the advice of selfish people that surrounded him. And when he was trailing in the election that followed, he realized it was time for someone else to pick up the democratic baton. President Muluzi, too, realized that Malawians would not accept a change to the constitution that would accommodate his anti-democratic ambitions. Later on, President Joyce Banda vacated the presidential suite in 2014, rightly realizing that the supreme law of this country, the constitution, binds us all.
It thus remains our hope that President Mutharika, today, draws the correct lessons of history by seizing this moment to display the qualities of a true statesman. To be sure, Malawians sincerely hope that our president shall not defer to the narrow interests of a tribal cabal that is pursuing the selfish interests of a few connected elites. He must indeed rein in those who continue to hijack the machinery of the state for their own benefit.
We therefore call upon President Mutharika to appreciate the epochal moment we find ourselves in today, and to fully realize that the burden of maintaining the peace and tranquility that Malawi has enjoyed since becoming a republic falls squarely on his shoulders. He must, and we must, rise to the occasion.
God bless Malawi. God bless Africa
Dr. Saulos Klaus Chilima is a trained economist, a published author and the former Vice President of the Republic of Malawi, serving from 2014-2019. During the country’s May 2019 election, Dr. Chilima ran for president as the elected torchbearer of the United Transformation Movement, better known as the UTM.
DISCLAIMER: The views expressed in this publication do not necessarily reflect the views of Vanguard Africa or the Vanguard Africa Foundation.