Governance experts and civil society leaders have warned that President Peter Mutharika’s apparent sidelining of First Vice President Jane Ansah and Second Vice President Enoch Chihana is eroding the relevance and authority of the country’s highest constitutional offices.
The criticism comes after a series of key national events this year were delegated to Cabinet ministers while the two vice presidents remained conspicuously absent. Recently, Mutharika stripped Ansah of the Disaster Management Affairs and Public Service Reform portfolios, a move critics say has further diminished her role in government.
Speaking to the Nation Publication Limited, Governance and Public Planning expert George Chaima said the public has increasingly witnessed ministers performing duties traditionally associated with either the President or his deputies, creating the impression that the vice presidents have been pushed to the margins of government.
“We have seen mostly ministers presiding over events meant to be graced by the State President or his vice,” said Chaima. “It is possible that the two VPs are delegated duties which are being performed from their respective offices but not practically seen on the ground.”
However, Chaima said the situation could also be a reflection of deeper political problems within the administration, arguing that the persistent absence of the vice presidents from public duties has inevitably fuelled speculation about internal power struggles.
Mzuzu University economist Christopher Mbukwa dismissed suggestions that the move is primarily about saving public resources, arguing that the restrictions placed on the vice presidents appear to be driven more by politics than economics.
“I think the limit to the vice presidents’ travel is more political than economic,” said Mbukwa, adding that the developments raise questions about the administration’s confidence in its own deputies.
Private practice lawyer Benedicto Kondowe warned that stripping vice presidents of responsibilities without assigning them meaningful alternative roles creates a dangerous institutional vacuum and sends a message that constitutionally established offices can be rendered irrelevant at the discretion of the President.
Human Rights Consultative Committee chairperson Robert Mkwezalamba argued that taxpayers expect vice presidents to be actively involved in national affairs and not remain idle while ministers take over prominent State functions. He called for the two deputies to be assigned clear and substantive responsibilities.
Human Rights Defenders Coalition chairperson Michael Kaiyatsa was even more blunt, warning that if vice presidents are neither entrusted with meaningful portfolios nor deployed during critical national events, Malawians are justified in questioning whether the offices are being deliberately weakened and politically neutralised.
Meanwhile, the Office of the President and Cabinet (OPC) has dismissed suggestions that the reduced public roles of the two vice presidents signal tensions within the administration.
OPC Director of Communications Focus Maganga told NPL that President Peter Mutharika will continue exercising his constitutional authority to delegate responsibilities as he deems appropriate, insisting the decisions should not be interpreted as evidence of a strained relationship with Ansah.
