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Some members of the civil society have warned President Bingu wa Mutharika against carrying out national events in his constituency frequently if he is to have a wider support from around the country.
Mutharika launched the Targeted Input Programme (Tip), under which poor farmers will receive free farm inputs in his Thyolo East constituency on Sunday and Chairman of the Electoral Commission (EC) James Kalaile also launched parliamentary by-elections in the same constituency last week.
Livingstonia Synod Church and Society programme manager Moses Mkandawire said if Mutharika has to win the support of people from all over the country, he has to refrain from carrying out national events in his constituency.
Mkandawire said the President should be cautious on where national events are held, especially now that some Members of Parliament from the Northern Region have complained that their area is sidelined.
“The President should refrain from holding such functions in his own constituency, especially if the event is a government project and it’s wrong that such a project as Tip was launched in a constituency that is close to a by-election. Some people may see it as if he was campaigning for UDF,” said Mkandawire.
Political scientist Boniface Dulani said “an element of favouritism” can be seen emerging from the President’s activities.
“The President has to be cautious on the choice of the venue to launch a project like Tip. He’s a national president and has to act like one and maybe he shouldn’t have launched the project in a constituency where there will be a by-election soon,” said Dulani.
Public Affairs Committee (Pac) chair Father Boniface Tamani said the President should spread out the functions so that people do not find fault in him.
“He shouldn’t arouse unnecessary attention and criticisms from the public. Let’s just hope that he won’t continue to hold important functions in his constituency only,” said Tamani.
But government spokesman Ken Lipenga said the Tip launch was held in the president’s constituency “pretty much against his wishes” and that he had originally wanted to hold it somewhere else.
He said the Ministry of Agriculture, which was involved in organising the preparation of names of Tip beneficiaries, was not ready with the names anywhere else but Mutharika’s constituency.
“The President was going to be in his constituency for something else and there had been hopes that maybe another place could be found to do the launching. Then it was found that no other place was ready in terms of names of the beneficiaries,” said Ken Lipenga.
He said the President “was at pains” to explain why the function was held in his area because he knew that “someone, somewhere would complain”.
“We’re mindful of the fact that as government, we must take every concern expressed seriously,” said Ken Lipenga.
Asked to explain why EC chair launched the by-elections in the president’s constituency, the Commission’s spokesman Fegus Lipenga said Kalaile had initially planned to hold the function in the Northern Region but that he changed as “he had to prepare to go to Botswana to observe elections”.
“He went to the nearest constituency,” said Fegus Lipenga.
Some MPs from the Northern Region have complained that their region is sidelined and according to Ken Lipenga, the President is planning a trip there so that he discusses with chiefs and other stakeholders on what development work should be prioritised.
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