By Leonard Chimbanga

I have just completed reading an article allegedly authored by my brother Grey, but I give him the benefit of doubt, it is probably not him who wrote it. For those that have not read it; in summary, the author is saying APM should not stand as a Presidential candidate in 2025 because he is too old. It goes on to convey that if APM won, all the thieves that bought hundreds of Motor Vehicles and built mansions/lodges will come back to steal from innocent Malawians, to prevent this from happening the author opts for Chakwera to continue Interesting line of thinking.

I am afraid to say, this article is outright no-sense! Here is why;

1. This country is governed by a constitution, there are no constitutional provisions that bar APM to stand in 2025.
2. Everyone that has seen APM lately, including during the recent interview with Brian Banda, will attest the man is in excellent physic!
3. I am confused, on one part it seems the author wants Chakwera to continue as president of the republic, while on the other, the article is in favor of the new presidential aspirants. Fortunately, I can respond to both. If it’s about Chakwera continuing, why not just join MCP, because that’s the only place that can accommodate this failed leader? But, if the argument is to say, DPP candidates should stand, then let APM stand against the aspirants. But we know none of them stands even a remote chance against APM.
4. Reading the article between the lines, it is clear to me that whoever wrote the article is afraid of APM. Afraid that APM will win, afraid that if APM wins, the author will become irrelevant in DPP and national discourse. My small advice to the author is; ‘it’s not too late!”
5. Help me understand this; Do you want the people of Malawi to reject APM while they suffer under the Chakwera Administration? Looking at the economic devastation in this Country, there is no way for Chakwera to continue.
6. Joe Biden is in his eighties, and as for our brother in Nigeria, some writers say he is 87. Both of these nations are a hundred-fold the size of Malawi and infinitely wealthier. How complicated would it be for APM to continue the growth and economic development he outperformed while in power?
7. The argument that APM will fail to govern because of the same people who surrounded and stole from Malawians, is baseless. APM is a democratic leader who has always complied with the rule of law, there is no shadow of a doubt in me that anyone convicted by a competent court in this Country cannot feature in APM’s administration, come 2025.

DPP needs a candidate who will beat Chakwera at the polls. While other aspirants only have a chance, APM is a sure bet. The sooner the author realizes this and acclimates himself to this eminent reality the better off he will be.

That said I endorse APM as the Presidential candidate of the DPP. We are in a democratic dispensation aliyense akhale ndi ufulu osankha.

Ayimanso.