By Falles Kamanga
BLANTYRE-(MaraviPost)-Once hailed as a rising star in the Malawi Congress Party (MCP), Eisenhower Mkaka is now facing political extinction. Ironically at the hands of the very system he helped build.
Mkaka is widely believed to be the man who identified Lazarus Chakwera as the right candidate to lead MCP back in 2013. Alongside fellow Tambala professionals, he brought Chakwera into the party at a time when their move was strongly opposed by then-party leader John Tembo.
Mkaka worked closely with Chakwera long before the latter became a Member of Parliament, from the time he was Leader of Opposition, all the way to his rise to the presidency. Their bond was strong, partly due to their shared roots in Lilongwe, where they were close even as “hommies.”
But things took a dark turn when Chakwera allegedly sent Mkaka to the Shahel region and Somaliland in North- East Africa to collect some kickbacks from those pariah states.
Out of the $3 million reportedly collected, Mkaka is said to have only handed over $500,000 to Chakwera, a move that deeply angered the President, who had viewed Mkaka as his proxy.
Enter Mumba, Chakwera’s new favorite. Trusted to handle money and allegedly manage offshore accounts, Mumba became the new go-to man. Mkaka’s fate was sealed. To punish him, Chakwera orchestrated a political plan: he tasked Mkaka with publicly attacking alliance partners like Saulos Chilima and Enock Chihana. The aim? Paint Mkaka as a divisive figure and public enemy. It worked.
Soon after, Mkaka was cornered in the infamous Zuneth Sattar corruption case, where he was implicated as part of the system collecting illicit funds for the President. Mkaka was booted out of Chakwera’s cabinet.
The final blow came at the MCP Convention as Chakwera threw his weight behind Richard Chimwendo Banda for the Secretary General post, sidelining Mkaka entirely.
This move wasn’t just about Mkaka; Chakwera was also targeting anyone seen as a threat to his grip on the party. Among them was Catherine Gotani Hara, who had played a major role in Parliament during the 2019–2020 period, leading to the adoption of the 50+1 electoral system.
Chakwera is believed to have wanted to replace Gotani Hara with Mumba, someone he considered easier to control as the party’s next leader.
Now, Chimwendo has been assigned the task of dismantling the Lilongwe camp within MCP, a group of younger, educated, and ambitious MPs who are aiming for the party’s top positions.
Among them are Baba Malondera and Ezekiel Ching’oma; both UNIMA graduates, and both rumored to be eyeing the SG position in 2029.
These two are seen as more academically and policy-wise capable than Chimwendo, who was once just a clerk at World Vision before becoming an MP. Being in Cabinet now, Malondera and Ching’oma have growing influence, which makes Chimwendo view them as serious threats.
Chimwendo’s long-term goal? Take over MCP in 2029, alongside Sam Kawale, as they see it as the “right time for Dowa.” Their strategy is to have Gotani Hara as Chakwera’s running mate in the next election , a safer choice compared to Mumba, to smoothen the succession path. After that, Chimwendo or Kawale (a former Capital Radio journalist) plan to vie for the MCP presidency.
But the biggest obstacle in their path is the Lilongwe camp, which is rising in popularity and has a better education profile and policy track record than both Chimwendo and Kawale.
The battle lines are drawn. MCP is no longer just about Chakwera vs opposition ; it’s now a fierce internal war for control.
