Chakwera names Msowoya as his running mate

Malawi Congress Party (MCP) torchbearer in the May 20 Tripartite Elections Lazarus Chakwera has picked his first vice-president Richard Msowoya as his running mate.

Msowoya, a former deputy minister of Education during former president the late Bingu wa Mutharika’s first term of office between 2004 and 2009, was elected as MCP first vice-president at the MCP convention that put Chakwera at the helm in August last year. Msowoya also contested the 2009 parliamentary race on an MCP ticket in Karonga Nyungwe Constituency but lost.

In making the announcement at a press briefing in Lilongwe on Sunday, Chakwera said he settled for Msowoya as a running mate based on the criteria of compatibility, complementarity, capacity and character.

Chakwera was flanked by Msowoya and the party’s chief whip in Parliament Joseph Njobvuyalema at the briefing. There was no additional reserved seat which removed all doubt that MCP would be getting a new face as running mate.

Chakwera seemed aware that the decision to choose Msowoya would make some groups unhappy, but it was made to ensure intraparty politics flourish.

“In order to enhance true intraparty democracy, I have come to the final decision to appoint Richard Msowoya as my running mate and embrace all others who are with us in this fight for a developed and more prosperous Malawi,” he said.

Chakwera said he did not consider region of origin, tribe or religion because it was time for Malawi to move beyond politics of regionalism and tribe.

Msowoya holds an MSc in Supply Chain Management obtained from the University of Bolton in 2009 and has worked in the logistics and supply chain management in various capacities in Malawi, Nigeria and Botswana.

When queried on earlier speculation that MCP considered picking former People’s Party (PP) vice-president Mohamed Sidik Mia as his presidential ballot partner, Chakwera did not deny or confirm the reports, but said he had a wide range of Malawians of various professions with the ability to advance the MCP agenda to choose from as his running mate.

MCP has also finally replaced former secretary general Chris Daza with lawyer and former Anti-Corruption Bureau director Gustav Kaliwo who in his remarks said he had decided to stop being on the fence and stand with MCP.

Youthful Juliana Lunguzi, who is the MCP parliamentary candidate for Dedza East Constituency, has also been incorporated into the party’s National Executive Committee as a member.