…expecting arrests of Khwesi Msusa
…no inquiry, who are you protecting- Makwenda
On Sunday, the UTM alleged that the ruling party is out to destabilise the party with the planned arrest of its National Director of Operations, Khwesi Msusa, over party vehicles.
Speakers to a candlelight vigil held at Katoto in Mzuzu questioned the Government’s failure to institute an open inquiry into the death of former Vice President Saulos Chilima in a plane crash in June this year.
“Their plan to destabilise the UTM starts tomorrow. If one of us is arrested, I ask every member of the UTM to wear his T-shirt or wave his flag to show them we are not afraid. We are a peace-loving party. When they arrested Dr. Chilima, he appeared every time he was summoned to court. We respect and believe our Judges are professionals,” said Penjani Kalua, the party’s Director of Youth.
Some of the party’s vehicles are registered in Msusa’s name and have appeared in court cases, but they were said to have been acquired by Chilima as a loan from the FDH Bank.
UTM campaign Makwenda Chunga charged that the government was protecting some people who were aware of what happened on June 10 prior to and after the plane carrying Dr. Chilima and eight others had disappeared.
“In the USA, just a shot to a presidential candidate, a full investigation was conducted within hours, and those responsible have since been fired. Who are you protecting by failing to conduct a full investigation? We are not afraid; no matter how long it takes, the truth will come out,” charged Makwenda.
The party’s publicist, Felix Njawala, said the late Chilima prioritised Malawi over his personal well-being despite being tortured by the same people he helped to get into power. He said that after he was sent home, Malawians started experiencing challenges since the administration’s architect had been suspended.
“In 2025, the UTM will have a presidential candidate. SKC is a plant that will regenerate and will produce. We have stayed four years in alliance, but from the first day, he was tortured by MCP. He aged fast. We have questions about his death we cannot ask inside Tonse Alliance but outside.
“MCP started breaking Tonse Alliance from the first day. The cabinet names Dr. Chilima submitted were removed. The agreement was that Chilima was going to be the Minister of Finance, but that did not happen despite President Chakwera telling Malawians,” Njawala said.
He charged that UTM supporters were denied NEEF loans and government contracts and that most business persons were forced to resign from the party to continue doing business with public agencies.
“Mkango ukafa ana ake suleledwa ndi fisi,” Njawala threw proverbs, the trademark of Chilima. He added another, “Nkhuku ya nzeru siwonelela mphamba ikudya ana ake.”
Secretary General Patricia Kaliati said the MCP won because of UTM and lambasted the government for failing to implement the manifesto and sidelining the party, asking the MCP to leave them alone.
“They insulted Chilima in his presence. They denied the existence of the alliance. Leave us alone. We are out of that alliance. He said in the presence of Chilima that he would run again in 2025. The alliance was finished by itself,” said Kaliati.
She said the party belongs to generator Y or Z, not those that were “before christ” and should not dictate the party.
Yongo wa Yongo, a former MCP national executive member, was welcomed at the rally. He said the MCP was heading back to the opposition benches as they had thrown out the UTM.
