Speaker Sameer Suleman rejects claims that his actions, backed by senior government officials, are undermining President Peter Mutharika’s authority and believes the accusations are politically motivated.

NEWS | POLITICS | By Watipaso Mzungu

Malawi’s Speaker of Parliament Sameer Suleman has rejected accusations by Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) Secretary General Peter Mukhito that his actions, backed by other senior government officials, are undermining President Peter Mutharika’s authority.

Suleman said he was not a renegade and that he consults Mutharika before making public statements, suggesting he had the President’s blessing when he raised concerns about shortcomings in the government he is part of.

Mukhito, in a statement issued on Wednesday, warned senior party officials holding public office to exercise “responsibility, restraint and respect for institutional boundaries”.

His statement came a day after Suleman held a press briefing in Lilongwe, where he lamented what he described as high levels of bureaucracy, indiscipline and a lack of accountability in the delivery of public services.

The Speaker raised concerns about a lack of transparency in the implementation of major projects, including the Lilongwe-Salima Water Project. He also pointed to persistent problems with electricity generation and supply, which have contributed to perennial blackouts, delays in the administration of justice and poor living conditions for prison inmates.

Suleman further criticised red tape in the acquisition of travel documents such as passports and questioned the lack of public information on mining contracts involving highly sought-after rare earth minerals.

Mining is an emerging industry with the potential to transform Malawi’s economy, although the landlocked country remains among the world’s least-developed economies, according to international financial institutions.

Suleman, who is also a member of the DPP Central Executive Committee (CEC), said Parliament would establish special committees to investigate the causes of inefficiencies in the public service.

While acknowledging that the issues raised by Suleman were legitimate national concerns, Mukhito warned the Speaker and other senior government officials against actions that could undermine Mutharika and create “competing centres of authority”.

“The party respects Parliament’s constitutional independence and its oversight role, but maintains that all senior party officials in public office must respect the constitutional mandate of the President, the authority of the Executive and collective party responsibility,” Mukhito said.

He reminded what he described as “errant or rebel” DPP and government officials that Mutharika and his administration were given a clear mandate by Malawians to govern, implement policies and deliver development.

That mandate, he said, “must be respected”.

“No office should be used in a manner that creates competing centres of authority, unnecessarily weakens the President or affects government’s ability to discharge its constitutional responsibilities,” Mukhito warned.

Mukhito said the concerns raised by Suleman should have been handled through institutions constitutionally mandated to investigate problems and implement corrective measures.

“Parliament must exercise oversight, the Executive must be allowed to govern and the Judiciary must remain independent, while party leaders must respect party discipline,” Mukhito said.

“As a member of its Central Executive Committee, he [Suleman] must also remain conscious of the political organisation whose confidence and parliamentary support contributed to his elevation to the position.”

But Suleman has vowed to press ahead with his agenda, with his criticism of shortcomings in the civil service broadly mirroring concerns previously raised by Mutharika himself.

Soon after taking office following his decisive victory in the September 16 2025 elections, Mutharika pledged to reform the civil service and restore it to what he described as its former glory.

Critics have argued that Malawi’s civil service during the one-party era, from independence in 1964 until the advent of multiparty democracy in 1994, was more professional than the system that followed.

They contend that corruption and bureaucratic inefficiencies have since taken root in public institutions, with citizens often complaining that they must pay bribes to access government services to which they are entitled.