No sacred cows in DPP primaries
The ruling Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) has said no one, even the most loyal members, will represent it in the 2019 Tripartite Elections without going through primary elections.
DPP secretary general (SG) Greselder Jeffrey has since warned party gurus that will lose during the primaries against forming parallel structures such as standing as independent candidates.
The remarks contradict what DPP leader Peter Mutharika said in July last year in Chitipa while commissioning the Chitipa Water Supply project.
During that meeting, Mutharika hinted that some of his loyalists like
Nick Masebo and Symon Vuwa Kaunda, who are his advisers, will go the polls without primaries.
But on Tuesday, Jeffrey, alongside other senior DPP officials such as the party’s vice-president (North) Goodall Gondwe and Attorney General Charles Mhango held a private meeting with aspirants from the Northern Region at Katoto Secondary School in Mzuzu.
In an interview after the meeting from which the private media was barred, Jeffrey said the party wants its supporters to democratically choose their representatives.
“Everyone will go through the primaries because I may have someone I like, but that may not be the person people on the ground want. So we want the people, our supporters to choose for themselves.
“As a party, we want supporters to choose for themselves, even in my constituency, we will have primary elections. No leader in DPP will influence the outcome of primary elections,” she said.
Jeffrey said the party will sign a pact with all aspirants to the effect that those who lose will agree not to contest as independent candidates.
Surprisingly, Karonga South legislator Malani Mtonga of Peoples Party (PP) attended the meeting, but said he was only invited as a legislator working with government.
“I have not joined DPP, I was just invited as someone working with government and Professor Peter Mutharika,” he said.
The parliamentarian recently came under fire from his constituents for siding with the DPP in Parliament to reject the Electoral Reforms Bills. na
