Coalitions for political parties not feasible in Malawi-Chisi

By Robert Kumwenda

Coalitions for political parties are not feasible in Malawi as history has shown.

Professor John Chisi President for Umodzi Party said the country has several parties and some of then do not have manifestos and he wondered why do they want to achive at the end of the day.

“We should not have the agenda to remove the party which is in power for the sake of removing it but the question should be what kind of Malawi we want. Coalition happens in countries where there are fewer parties, he said.

Chisi said there is no government that has come into power through coalitions in Malawi and it will never happen.

The Umodzi Party leader said coalitions have never work in Malawi saying that when they started Umodzi Party they had a vision that can satisfy Malawians and to win as such there is no need to make coalition with any other party.

“We came into politics to show Malawians the essence of life which are education, employment and justice the things that make humanity.
Concurring with Chisi renowned Social and Political commentator Humphreys Mvula said coalitions only benefit the party which is power as history has shown.

He said for instance the Alliance for Democracy (AFORD) made a coalition with the United Democratic Front (UDF) in 1994 after losing the first ever multiparty elections in the country its popularity started to decline such that its numbers of legislators declined from 36 to one as of to date.

The same with the Republican Party of the late veteran politician Gwanda Chakwaumba whose legislators declined from 17 when it went into a coalition withb DPP in 2009.

Mvula said the numbers of UDF MPs is expected to go down in the fourth coming general elections because of its coalition with DPP.

The Mgwirizano coalition led by Gwanda Chakuamba lost to UDF in 1999 the same way with the UDF coalition and the main opposition Malawi Congress Party which lost miserably to DPP in 2004.