Chaponda sues Chakwera for defamation

Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) treasurer general George Chaponda has sued Malawi Congress Party (MCP) torchbearer the Reverend Lazarus Chakwera for slander and defamation over the remarks he made to the media that Chaponda has said DPP did not need the Northern Region vote to win the May 20 Tripartite Elections.

On Friday, Chaponda, through his lawyers Sikwese and Company, wrote Chakwera demanding a public apology within three days at a similar forum he made the allegations or face a lawsuit.

In an interview yesterday, Chaponda said after three days elapsed on Tuesday, he had instructed his lawyers to go ahead claiming damages for slander and defamation.

“I have informed my lawyers to go ahead and sue the MCP president for defamation and slander. They [MCP] are saying they can’t apologise because I made these claims, but I hear they have been asking for proof from media houses of what I allegedly said, but they can’t find it,” he said.

According to Chakwera, Chapola is reported to have told a media house that DPP won the 2009 elections because it had national appeal not because of support from the Northern Region.

Chaponda was quoted to have said: “Let me challenge you. We will win in May without people from the North voting for us.”

While Chaponda maintained that he made no such remarks, MCP secretary general and member of the party’s legal team, Gustave Kaliwo, said as MCP, they stood by what Chakwera said in connection with Chaponda.

He said: “We received a letter of demand from them [Chaponda’s lawyers] and we will be responding. As MCP, we stand by what our party president said and we will prove it.”

MCP is also under fire from State House and the People’s Party (PP) after Chakwera described the current government as “childish” in its handling of issues of national importance.

President Joyce Banda has taken exception to the remarks and condemned Chakwera for failing to practise clean politics as he had promised at the onset of the road to the May 20 Tripartite Elections.