Mutharika jets in tomorrow: Malawians eager to see their president back

Malawians are eagerly waiting to welcome back President Peter Mutharika tomorrow as government has confidently assured the public that he will land on Sunday afternoon.

Mutharika’s absence has triggered speculations that he was seeking medical attention in the United States of America but government earlier this week dismissed the reports saying Mutharika is in robust health.

The prolonged stay of Mutharika in the USA after attending  United Nations General Assembly (UNGA) has not only sparked headlines in local media’s but also in international media outlets such as News24, The Economist, BBC, and Foreign Policy.

“Africa’s leaders are not known for their youthful vigour. So it is not surprising that their absence from the public eye, especially in a Western country with an abundant supply of good hospitals, tends to spark lurid rumours of illness and even death,” wrote The Economist.

“Malawi’s president has certainly been doing his best impression of a missing person having landed in New York on September 16th, Peter Mutharika has not been heard from since the UN General Assembly, which ended on September 26th.

“Malawians have taken to Twitter with the hashtag #BringBackMutharika (a play on #BringBackOurGirls, which was used to rally support for Nigerian schoolgirls kidnapped by Boko Haram),” the publication added.

Malawi’s Information Minister assured Malawians that Mutharika is enjoying a good life in the USA where he is meeting unknown people for the benefit of the country.

Ndau told BBC that Malawians should stop spreading false stories about their head of the state and that come tomorrow they (Malawians) will see how energetic their president is.

But as a local proverb says, “Nkupha mawa sali patali”,  Malawians are patiently waiting for tomorrow in the afternoon to be briefed on what the UNGA that Mutharika went to attend will improve their lives.

Indeed Malawians have been missing their president for a month now and hopefully by 12 noon tomorrow the road to Kamuzu International Airport will be canopied by Malawians to warm- welcome their lovely head of state.