LILONGWE, Malawi — Malawi’s main opposition party has demanded an explanation for President Peter Mutharika’s prolonged stay in South Africa as the country struggles with fuel shortages, power cuts and economic strain, BBC News reported.
Mutharika, 86, left Malawi on Oct. 6 for what officials described as a private visit — his fifth trip there this year, with little information released about any of them. On Thursday he delegated the trade minister to lead Malawi’s delegation to the Comesa summit in Zimbabwe.
“The issue is not that the president has traveled,” Malawi Congress Party campaign director Moses Kunkuyu told reporters in Lilongwe. “The issue is that people are suffering and want reassurance that somebody is in charge.” The party wants Vice-President Jane Ansah to address the nation.
Information Minister Shadric Namalomba denied any leadership vacuum, telling local media that “a state president is always in charge at any time, anywhere,” and that “a private trip is private.” Officials earlier dismissed social media reports that Mutharika had gone to India for medical treatment; he has called health speculation “silly and laughable.”
Malawi faces a severe foreign-currency shortage that has disrupted fuel imports, leaving long queues at petrol stations, alongside unreliable electricity and shortages of medicines. Mutharika returned to power last year after defeating Lazarus Chakwera.
Sources: BBC News
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