The Thinking Malawian

It may sound harsh, but it must be said no matter how uncomfortable it is. But you will make peace with yourselves, nonetheless.  Vitumbiko Mumba, Minister of Trade and Industry and now ex-NEC member of the ruling MCP, is like a blind man in a dark room, chasing a black cat which he will never catch.  Yes, he's an unwelcome guest in MCP and one need not be a political scientist to decipher this. It's all black and white.  First, Vitumbiko Mumba vied for the first-vice presidency of the party, but he lost to unpopular Catherine Gotani-Hara at the party's convention in August last year.  Mumba was one of the "big spenders" during the campaign in the run up to the party's convention, dishing out money and other valuable gifts to delegates. Even before contesting for the post, he was initially barred because he had not met some eligibility requirements, the committee of the convention composed of MCP NEC members, claimed.  But the High Court in Lilongwe ruled t...

Cui bono  is a Latin phrase that means "who benefits?" and it suggests that it's highly likely that those who cause a particular event are those who stand to gain from it.  For example, if a certain crime is committed, 'cui bono' suggests that the one who committed that particular crime is most likely the one who benefited from it.  This notion can also be applied in other facets of life. In this case, therefore, United Democratic Front (UDF) president Atupele Muluzi fits well in this principle.  On Monday, speaking at his home turf at Ntaja in Machinga, he made an uncomfortable suggestion regarding his 2020 electoral alliance partner, former president Professor Peter Mutharika of the Democratic Progressive Party (DPP). Atupele asked Mutharika not to contest in the forthcoming election, saying "he's old and should rest." To say Mutharika is old and must shelve his political ambitions is a red line for the DPP supporters, and whoever makes such uttera...

A 2013 chart-bursting hit   Zili ndi Iwe   by Maskal depicts a lover pledging unconditional love while throwing the ball to the partner.  Maskal sings:  Zili ndi iwe kuti udzandikonde/Zili ndi iwe udzandinyoze/Poti chikondi chonse ndapereka kwa iwe/ Loosely translated, "it is up to you to love, dump or embarrass me. For I have given myself all to you."  Like that lover, the September 16 General Election seems to pose the challenge to presidential candidate, Professor Peter Mutharika alias APM.  There's a general feeling that the presidential race is for APM to lose.  In a simplistic view, life is harder in contrast to APM administration and that is enough reason to make Malawians impulsive. Prices of essentials is beyond the reach of Malawians, supplies such as sugar, fuel, medicines in hospitals are erratic and other a myriad blunders.   Going by current popular opinion, APM is the most preferred candidate given the shifting political mood s...

History is replete with lessons we often ignore. But only the wise use it to avoid mistakes and not look stupid. In 1917, Russia was in a power vacuum. The Czar was abdicated and two rival camps, the Mensheviks (majority) and the Bolsheviks (minority), emerged. The succession struggle ensued between the rivals. The Mensheviks wanted everybody on board to seize control. But to take power, they needed compromise, tradeoffs and committees to handle them in their fold. However, the Bolsheviks led by Vladimir Lenin, went for the power of small. They chose the tyranny of small numbers. They knew that big is weak. What they yearned for was power and not popularity. As the Mensheviks bickered who should lead them, Lenin mobilized something in the shadows—The Red Army. And in a few weeks, they had seized power. To the Malawi Congress Party (MCP), big is weak. Forget about the opposition Mensheviks. Like Lenin, use the power of small to get the 50+1 threshold. Meanwhile, you are ...

Nowadays, stepping away from screens of our digital devices seems unnatural and almost impossible. We live in an era where technology is at our fingertips. And, with the proliferation of artificial intelligence (AI), social media platforms are becoming sexier each passing day. Yet beneath the endless scrolling of curated videos and news feeds, lies something rather difficult to escape from: addiction.  Overstimulation, cyberbullying, and the constant pressure to keep up are taking a toll, particularly on the youth. The digital world, once a place for connectivity, has become a source of anxiety, self-doubt and crime, among other pitfalls of social media. The line between reality and online persona is now blurred, thus creating a validation seeking attitude, especially among the youth. That’s why there’s a need to have digital detox, staying off grid for a sizable amount of time to reclaim control of our lives. Because living is physical and social; therefore, we must cherish face-t...

They say in politics, an organized minority is a political majority. True. It’s one thing to be many, but it’s another thing to be organized. A survey conducted by Afrobarometer between August 1 and 15 in 2024, found that if the September 16 General Election had been held at that time, opposition Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) would have polled 43 percent of the vote but not enough to reach the 50+1 threshold. This must have been good news for an opposition party clamoring for a return to government. DPP’s planners must have developed strategies for winning the election, analyze data, predict trends and identify key issues that would influence voters. Surely, they have done all this but now the question is, are those strategies realistic to earn them victory? Oh, poor DPP! Since the Malawi Electoral Commission (MEC) officially launched the election last year, the DPP has been playing politics of victimhood. It perfected the art of politics of persecution, crying foul whenever any o...