He thought he was doing a favour to current First Lady Gertrude Mutharika. He insulted former First Lady Patricia Shanil Muluzi without shame.
Little did Ben Phiri know that he was digging his political grave.
Now all daggers are drawn against Phiri including one shiny one from First Lady Gertrude Mutharika herself, the one Phiri thought he was going to impress.
This is not to say that even some DPP gurus are not amused with Phiri’s remarks.
Women groups and human rights organizations are also on Phiri’s neck over the use of inflammatory language during his campaign rallies.
Barely months after coming under heavy criticism with his ‘Peter Mutharika-maliseche-athu’ outburst, Phiri, who is Director of Elections in the DPP, was at it again on Tuesday heaping unprintable verbs on former
First Lady, Patricia Shanil Dzimbiri- formally Muluzi.
Dzimbiri won in 2014 Parliamentary contest on an independent ticket, before joining UTM late last year.
Phiri, who is also campaigning for a Parliamentary seat in Thyolo Central Constituency, said Shanil’s alleged failure to develop her Balaka West Constituency, stemmed from her failure to impress her former husband and state President Bakili Muluzi in their matrimonial bed.
This has attracted a backlash not only from UTM sympathizers, but also from some DPP leaders, who include the First Lady Gertrude Mutharika- who has been at a receiving end of insults from angry UTM hooligans on social media.
As if undressing Ben Phiri on social media was not enough, the angry UTM followers have added the First Lady into their firing range, calling her all sorts of names.
The development has also angered the Mrs. Mutharika, according to State House sources.
“Political differences aside, but I can’t be a happy woman seeing my fellow woman being insulted because of politics. And if I am to be honest, there is no enmity between myself and honourable Patricia Shanil Dzimbiri. In fact I regard her as my sister. I therefore see no reason why she should be insulted using my name. This I can’t tolerate,” Madam Mutharika is said to have told her closest aides this morning.
As we were going to the press, some gender activist were said to be locked in a meeting to deliberate on how best to deal with Ben Phiri over the issue.
Insiders said although Phiri was attacking Shanil in bedroom affairs, he too is q failure in that department as he is failing to satisfy his wife of just one year.
The wife is said to have been seeing some men on the side to get the satisfaction that Phiri is failing to provide at home because of some inadequate ‘firing machines’ in his trousers.
The views and opinions expressed in this article are those of the authors and do not necessarily reflect the views of Malawi24.
