“You are fired!” Joyce Banda tells Kamlepo

Malawi former president, Joyce Banda, has pinned as redundant former vice president of her People’s Party (PP), Kamlepo Kaunda. She has so far snubbed him in the National Executive Committee (NEC).

Mrs Banda, who founded PP in 2011, appointed several people into the party’s  NEC. Surprisingly missing on the list released this week that Malawi24 has seen is Kamlepo Kaunda, the current Member of Parliament for Rumphi East.

The outspoken politician who did not compete at the party’s convention is yet to comment as to why he has been found as surplus to requirement.

He, however, court controversy with party ranks when he revealed that PP was forging an alliance with the ruling Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) in order to save Joyce Banda from cashgate-related arrest.

Kamlepo had disclosed that President Peter Mutharika promised to shield against any form of arrest Joyce Banda, who was in self-imposed exile for over 4 years .

“PP went to meet President Mutharika to plead with him so Joyce Banda can return home without facing arrest. Our party is disintegrating because our leader is away; parties are poaching MPs from PP. We want our leader to come so we can keep the party intact,” Kamlepo had told the press last November.

Mrs Banda presided over a large-scale looting of public resources which became known as the Cashgate scandal which saw over K550 billion stolen from the public coffer during the 2 years that she was president.

Several senior government and PP officials have named her as the big fish and the primary beneficiary of the loot. Peter Mutharika had on several times called on Joyce Banda to return home to answer for her charges. But she is yet to be arrested despite returning home. The Malawi Police had issued her with a warrant of arrest which Kalua said would not be enforced.

“In his own words President Mutharika said that Joyce Banda will not be arrested when she returns” Kamlepo Kalua

According to Kalua, PP offered to back government bills in Parliament including shutting down the 50+1 amendment to the electoral acts.

Other people that  have been handpicked by Mrs Banda into party positions include Ackson Kalaile Banda who has taken over from Noah Chimpeni as publicity secretary, and Ephraim Chibvunde as vice president for the party’s Sapitwa region.