Written by Angella Semu
Malawians were perplexed on Tuesday after President Peter Munthalika delivered a speech that allegedly addressed his political opponent, Lazarus Chakwera instead of the burning issue of the novel Coronavirus pandemic.
The president who was expected to introduce some measures to address the pandemic that is spreading at a supersonic speed in the country and across the globe, went ahead and savaged his political opponent for inciting violence against supporters of the ruling Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) in the country instead of focusing on the pandemic that has already claimed a life just days after it was first confirmed in the country.
According to the speech that the president delivered, he claimed that the opposition leader has been encouraging killing of innocent people to tarnish his imagine and that of his government as a political strategy to muddle the upcoming presidential elections.
“Sadly, my heart is broken to note that Dr. Reverend Lazarus Chakwera is encouraging these acts of violence. Reverend Chakwera has ordered some of his followers to catch and kill innocent people who are rumoured to be collecting National IDs.
“As a supposed man of God himself, I want to appeal to Reverend Chakwera’s conscious that we are dealing with God’s people. These people are already distressed with corona virus,” read part of the statement.
After his speech, some people have questioned whether the president is concerned about the pandemic or he wants to put his political inclination on top of the crisis.
Meanwhile, there are 8 confirmed cases of coronavirus in Malawi including one recorded death as of April 7, 2020.
