Malawi: Opposition leader strikes

  1. Posted on Tuesday 26 May 2009 - 16:17
    Richard Chirombo
    Image of Richard Chirombo
    Richard Chirombo, AfricaNews reporter in Blantyre, Malawi
    Malawi's opposition Congress Party (MCP) president, John Tembo, insists he will not accept Bingu wa Mutharika's victory because he is convinced "something" went wrong with the parliamentary and presidential elections held last Tuesday. He said he is going to court to contest the results.
    voting
    Tembo, who represented the MCP-United Democratic Front (UDF) alliance as presidential candidate during the elections is under pressure from his own party and church leaders to withdraw his intentions because the margin was too wide between the two. He was beaten with a difference of some one million votes. The Malawi Council of Churches has asked him to let bygones be bygones but Tembo has rejected that call.

    Cracks have now emerged in the once mighty MCP, leading to the sacking on Sunday of spokesperson Ishmael Chafukira. He was the first party executive committee member to call for Tembo's head.

    MCC Chairperson, Bishop Joseph Bvumbwe, said the only wise thing left for Tembo to do was to resign. But Tembo hit back saying church leaders needed to concentrate on religious issues.

    "I will still go to court because there are so many irregularities I would wish the courts to expound on. I feel that justice was denied on my part, I won the election," said Tembo.

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