LILONGWE-(MaraviPost). The High Court sitting in the capital Lilongwe on Friday ruled against the application by some disgruntled members of the opposition Malawi Congress Party (MCP) to hold convention within 90 days which the court ordered in March this year.
This means that the now expelled MCP’s district and regional chairmen who have been waiting for this ruling need to swallow their pride and work with the party’s current leadership.
Lewis Peter Chakhwantha, MCP’s legal team leader confirmed the development to The Maravi Post on Friday evening saying the party will invite all the expelled district and regional chairpersons to a round table to hear their side as one family.
According to Chankhwatha, the court found that the concerned members flouted the party’s procedure rushing for court redress before using all avenues for their concerns as stipulated in MCP constitution.
Chankhwatha further said the court found that the concerned members erred by using a lawyer who has no valid document to practice law in Malawi.
“MCP has won the case which some members wanted it to call fresh convention with unreasonable grounds. The court hinted that party issues need to be addressed internally before taken outside.
“Even the lawyer-Namasala of Lincon, Edward & Co the concerned members used, didn’t have a license to represent people in court. Therefore this means that we are to be on the drawing boards with them as they remain our members for a discussion to hear their concerns for an amicable solution.
“We are a democratic party which listen to dissenting views hence the calling for a round-table discussion with them for the growth of the party a head of 2019 elections as we are in the building process,” said Chankhwatha.
There was no immediate reaction from the disgruntled district and regional chairpersons on the Friday’s court ruling as a head of it, they converged at the in the lakeshore district of Salima to map the way forward in case the court would rule to go for convention or not.
The bone of contention comes amid dissatisfaction among four regional chairpersons whom on January 9, 2016 issued a letter accusing MCP’s President Lazarus Chakwera of raping the party’s constitution that the MCP was losing direction in its affairs.
In a letter, the four chairpersons namely Baza Kaunda, Stowell Gondwe, and Bauleni Mkweza, and Abi Jana (but now withdrawn from the list) for North-South, North-North and Lakeshore respectively were concerned with the silence from Chakwera after the party’s Administrative Secretary Potiphar Chidaya and other party officials were beaten up last year in Blantyre.
Not only that the group also accused MCP leader of nepotism, claiming that the majority of positions in the party are held by people from Lilongwe where Chakwera also comes from.
“Does this imply that this party is now only from Lilongwe? Imagine that Second Secretary General, Administrative Secretary , Treasure General and deputy, Director of elections, Director of youth (Louis Chankwantha) Director of Women (Majankomsi), Hounarable Belekanyama, Ching’oma, Dzole Mwale Chimango are all from Lilongwe just to mention a few”, reads in part the letter signed by Baza Kaunda, Stowell Gondwe, Bauleni Mkweza and Abi Jana.
Apart from that the disgruntled chairpersons blame Chakwera for apparently giving more powers to Members of Parliament (MPs) and not respecting constituency, district and regional committees therefore challenged MCP President not to conduct meetings or elections until a convention is held.
Consequently, after issuing the letter, MCP National Executive Committee (NEC) fired the disgruntled regional and district chairpersons who were part of the movement whom eventually went to court to challenge the party including the continual call for fresh convention.
In March, the High Court in the capital Lilongwe ordered MCP to hold a convention within 90 days the decision which didn’t go well with the party’s NEC which argued that was not given its side of the story as there was no legal representation the time the court was making such a ruling.