All 193 constituencies in Malawi have equal chances and opportunities in terms of national resources and development. But constituencies that are represented by high profile figures from the ruling party and from Government are naturally expected to better make use of these odds than others.
However, Lilongwe Mpenu Constituency of Hon. Eisenhower Mkaka, MP – who is Secretary General of the ruling MCP, and Minister of Foreign Affairs – is lagging behind by wide margins! A chat with the people of the constituency reveals big lapses in the Agriculture Inputs Programme (worst hit than all constituencies); the area has not benefitted from the MEDF/NEEF SME loans and communities are left deeper and deeper into poverty and misery.
Our research team found out that over 200 groups that were ready to receive the loans were abolished at the command of the MP of the area, for unknown reasons.
As if this is not enough, local wishes by the community to have their own Traditional Authority elevated, also hit a rough wall. Again, the MP of the area disbanded the Committee that was working towards having a TA. ‘Politics in Lilongwe Mpenu’ A snap survey reveals that there is no good interparty relationship between the incumbent MP and other individuals that contested against him in 2019. The top contenders were Makala Ngozo (now late), Sam Chaziya, and David Kambalame (DPP candidate). We encountered one story where the incumbent MP Mkaka went to a funeral in Matapira’s area in the Constituency.
Mkaka noticed that David Kambalame (who is also DPP Regional Governor for Central Region) was also in attendance and this did not please him to the point of sending 7 notorious thugs and giving them one of his minibuses to lay waiting for Kambalame and attack him as he returned from the funeral.
People of goodwill made out the mission of the seven thugs and warned Kambalame not to use conventional roads that he uses all times and to be extra careful as there was a gang that was set to take his life.
Kambalame alerted the Police of the plot and gave them the description of the minibus and its registration plate number.
The Police indeed intercepted the vehicle and only managed to apprehend the vehicle and the driver.
The other six thugs were let loose because they claimed that they were simply passengers.
According to our eye witnesses report, when Kambalame was called to the Police station to be updated on the arrest of the driver, he found that Hon. Eisenhower Mkaka was already at the station together with the nabbed driver, claiming that he was called after his minibus had been held at the police.
Mkaka claimed he sent the bus and other members of his party to check some voter irregularities that were reported.
Eisenhower Mkaka twisted the whole story to claim that he was being intimidated by Kambalame and opened a case against him at the Court.
As we went to press, a good number of DPP Zone Chairpersons had given us proof that Mkaka threatened them on so many accounts to implicate Kambalame in crimes he never committed and that they are always living in constant fear under his leadership.
Lilongwe Mpenu is in a deep crisis under the legislative representation of Hon. Eisenhower Mkaka. It does not come as a surprise that his name is one of those that have recently made headlines in the Tonse Government, through MCP youths nationwide demonstrations against a number of mistreatments and misfortunes that they are facing 5 months into the Government of Dr Lazarus Chakwera.
