BLANTYRE-(MaraviPost)- Opposition Malawi Congress Party (MCP) Youth Director and Lilongwe Nyanja Constituency Parliamentarian, Steve Malondera,has condemned the continued detention of MCP Secretary General (SG ), Richard Chimwendo Banda, calling it a threat to justice, constitutionalism, and national stability.
Chimwendo was arrested on December 12,2025 over allegations of attempted murder, a case Malondera says the SG himself voluntarily reported to the police.
Nearly a month later, no formal charges have been filed against him in any competent court.
“Detention without charge, without trial, and without timely judicial determination is not only unjust,it is completely illegal.
“It violates the tenets of our Constitution and every principle of natural justice,” says Malondera in a Facebook post.
He notes that bail for Chimwendo was applied for on December 24,2025 and that presiding judge, Justice Mzondi Mvula, had indicated that a ruling would be communicated via email, but to date, no decision has been delivered.
“Silence has replaced due process. Delay has substituted justice,” he says.
Speaking on the response of young MCP members, Malondera says he has spent the past weeks urging restraint, emphasizing that MCP youths and other young Malawians should remain peaceful despite frustrations over what he describes as ‘selective justice’.
He however,warns that patience has limits if met with deliberate and calculated inertia.
Malondera has called on the State and Judiciary to act urgently, transparently, and lawfully, adding that prolonged detention without trial sets a dangerous precedent for all Malawians, regardless of political, religious, or ethnic affiliation.
“Justice delayed is justice denied and justice denied is a spark that can ignite instability,” he says, urging the nation to protect constitutional rights and ensure freedom is never held hostage by power.
He concludes by appealing to MCP youths and all young Malawians to maintain discipline and lawful conduct while standing firm for justice.
“Peace must never be mistaken for weakness, and patience must never be abused. Malawi deserves better,” says Malondera.
Chimwendo is accused of attempting to kill Frank Chiwanda in 2022 in Dowa.