Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) National Governing Council member Ken Msonda has applauded President Dr. Lazarus McCarthy Chakwera for inviting former Heads of State to a roundtable discussion on how to address myriad challenges emanating from the effects of Tropical Cyclone Freddy.
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Msonda has also urged immediate former Head of State Professor Arthur Peter Mutharika to humble himself and attend the meeting.
President Chakwera is scheduled to engage former presidents at Sanjika Palace in Blantyre. This is one component of the Operation Tigwirane Manja, which seeks to involve every Malawian in rebuilding the country in the aftermath of Cyclone Freddy.
The cyclone has killed nearly 500 people and damaged valuable infrastructure in the Southern Region.
While former Presidents Bakili Muluzi and Joyce Banda have welcomed the proposed engagement with President Chakwera, the immediate former President Professor Arthur Peter Mutharika is jittery about it.
It is reported that Mutharika – who used the predicament that people in Blantyre are facing to campaign ahead of the 2025 presidential elections – wants to be treated in a very special way and that he should be given the powers to call the shots despite not being out of the State House.
The development has shocked many well-meaning Malawians, such as Msonda, who have dared APM to accept that he is no longer in power.
Msonda – who is also Think Tank Executive Director – described the suggestion President Chakwera has made as ‘commendable and a very welcome gesture from the State President’.
“The Think Tank expects all our 3 former state presidents to respond positively and attend this very important meeting. However The Think Tank is disturbed by sentiments coming from few overzealous blind party loyalists who have been instigating for the former state president HE Prof APM not to attend this very important meeting,” he said.
“The Think Tank would like to remind those misguided, confused, disgruntled and frustrated overzealous blind party loyalists that this call from the state president is meant for former state presidents and not political party presidents. Therefore calls from these called party members, followers, supporters sympathizers that the former state president shouldn’t attend this very important meeting is not only uncalled for but unreasonable, undemocratic, primitive line of thinking and unfortunate,” he said.
Msonda reminded his fellow DPP loyalists that Chakwera’s call for a meeting with former Heads of State is ‘a call for the national unity to work together’.
He thanked Muluzi and Banda for responding positively to the call by President Chakwera.
“The Think Tank is humbly requesting the former state HE Prof APM to ignore suggestions from party overzealous blind loyalists and attend this meeting in person and not delegate anyone. Fellow Malawians here at home and diaspora, as earlier said through the statement we released thank all who are tireless working hard day and night to help cycrone freddy victims, let us continue holding hands – KUGWIRA A MANJA as a nation,” recommended Msonda.
