Chakwera caught pants down

The words you say today will come back to haunt you tomorrow, nowhere can these words ever be truer than to Malawi Congress Party (MCP) president Lazarus Chakwera.

Four years ago, Chakwera mocked recycled politicians saying they change parties in order to stay in politics.

In the run-up to the 2014 presidential polls, Chakwera condemned parties which put recycled politicians in National Executive Committee (NEC) positions saying it creates problems when the party goes into government.

He also criticised presidential candidates who overlooked members of their parties when picking runningmates.

“Candidates have gone out of their elected structures to pick somebody else as their runningmate when actually in their party they have structures.

“MCP believes we must create structures between a president and vice president and that is the reason I chose Richard Msowoya to be my running mate so that we can start to practise intraparty politics that will be reflected on a higher level when we take the presidency.

“We need to understand that some of these problems that have a history to them, these are the ones that have contributed to producing what has become known as recycled politicians. People that move from one party to the other, wear one colour, and shout another slogan today in order for them to stay in politics. We say nothing of that sort should happen in Malawi Congress Party,” Chakwera said during the 2014 elections presidential debate.

The video of Chakwera making the sentiments has been shared widely on social media as people believes the coming of MCP vice president Sidik Mia into the party is a sign that Chakwera has changed his stance.

Mia has previously been a member of United Democratic Front, Democratic Progressive Party and People’s Party when the parties were in government.

Earlier this month, Mia was elected MCP first vice president and he is expected to be Chakwera’s running mate in the 2019 elections.

Some politicians who were given NEC positions without contesting are also people who have been changing political parties over the years.