By Edwin Mauluka

The former ruling Malawi Congress Party (MCP) says it is gathering information to understand the reasons behind its poor performance in the September 16, 2025 general elections, with the goal of developing strategies to rebuild and strengthen the party ahead of future polls.

MCP campaign director Moses Kumkuyu said in an interview with a local television outlet that the party will soon meet to discuss findings from the post-election review and chart the way forward.

He cited concerns about the conduct of some electoral officials and party monitors as a key takeaway from the election.

“The big lesson is not to look at elections only by the voter numbers, but also at those who preside over them,” Kumkuyu said. “At the moment, the Malawi Electoral Commission (MEC) is still receiving complaints and court summons from members of almost all political parties.”

Kumkuyu said the results shocked the party, but credited then-President Lazarus Chakwera for accepting defeat in the interest of peace.

In the election, Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) leader Peter Mutharika won decisively with 56.7 percent of the vote, while Chakwera garnered 33 percent.

Kumkuyu described the outcome as a “citizen protest vote,” saying it reflected widespread frustration with the MCP administration.

“We found ourselves in a time when food was scarce and people’s needs were not being met,” he said. “Voters carried that anger and expressed it at the ballot box, regardless of what caused the failure to meet their needs.”

He said throughout the campaign, MCP had presented an honest picture of Malawi’s economic realities, arguing that some shortages were the result of deliberate sabotage by certain groups.

“If we were lying, then the new administration wouldn’t be facing similar challenges,” Kumkuyu said. “Even President Mutharika recently complained about people hoarding maize — the same issue President Chakwera had raised. When people hoard cement, forex, or food, prices go up because supply is low and demand remains high.”

Kumkuyu also cited natural disasters and fuel shortages as factors that hurt the MCP government’s image.

Widespread hunger, rising living costs, and public discontent ultimately contributed to Mutharika’s return to power, five years after leaving office in 2020.

Despite the setback, Kumkuyu expressed optimism about Malawi’s economic prospects, saying that increasing exports would stabilize the country’s foreign exchange reserves. He said the MCP government had laid a solid foundation through mega farm projects and the creation of the Mines and Minerals Regulatory Authority (MMRA) and mineral processing unit.

As MCP returns to the opposition benches, Kumkuyu said the party is committed to “providing constructive checks and balances” and reconnecting with citizens.

MCP provided DPP plenty of lessons on how not to govern and it would be foolish of the governing party to commit similar mistakes.