Political parties seeking alliances ahead of Malawi’s September 16 tripartite elections should focus more on serving Malawians than jockeying for positions, a political expert has said.
Speaking on Times Radio’s Kulinji? program Tuesday, political scientist Dr. Boniface Dulani observed that many parties seem more concerned with what position they’ll occupy on the alliance ticket than with the needs of the electorate.
“They’re more focused on who gets what instead of what they’ll do for Malawians,” Dulani said, warning that such fixation is like the proverbial counting chickens before they hatch. He added that electoral performance determines which party holds leverage.
Responding on the same program, opposition Alliance for Democracy (Aford) president Enoch Chihana defended the practice of negotiating positions before an election.
“It’s important to agree on key issues and positions beforehand,” Chihana said. “Before Tonse Alliance was signed, it was agreed Mr. [Saulosi] Chilima would become Minister of Finance. But after the election, that didn’t happen; he was given Economic Planning instead. That’s not the way to go. Stick to what was agreed.”
Tonse Alliance, made up of the Malawi Congress Party (MCP,) UTM and other parties, defeated the Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) in the last election. UTM’s Chilima became Vice President, while MCP’s Lazarus Chakwera assumed the presidency. The alliance has since fractured, with parties now exploring new coalitions in hopes of clearing the newly instituted 50-percent-plus-one rule for presidential victory. Previously, a simple majority was enough.
Chihana emphasized Aford’s history in coalition governments and insisted his party would not enter any agreement where it plays second fiddle. Despite Aford failing to rank among the top parties preferred in a recent Afrobarometer poll, Chihana dismissed the results, claiming the party’s internal polls show stronger support.
Still, Dulani insisted that forming alliances isn’t a requirement: “When discussing alliances, the focus should be on how the agreement will help develop the country and not on who becomes president or vice president.”
