Mutharika, last Friday challenged Police Inspector General Peter Mukhito that he would not and cannot apologise to anyone including Chancol lecturers who have demanded an apology for summoning Chinsinga over his remarks. The lecturer told a class uprisings like the one that took place in Egypt and Tunisia may also be caused by dissatisfaction on forex and fuel shortages in a country.

“Let us be honest,” said Mutharika on Sunday, “If a teacher leaves set subjects and teaches revolt against an established government, is this what you call academic freedom?”

“If some teacher one day just wakes up, ignores the subject for that hour and comes and says, ‘you students do you know that you can overthrow this government? And the way to overthrow this government is to follow what is happening in Egypt’. Is this what we call academic freedom?” he questioned.

President Hosni Mubarak of 43 years was pushed out of office after mass demonstrations. The overthrow followed the first in Tunisia where the country’s leader also bolted after intense demonstrations. Currently, Libya’s Colonel Muamar Gaddafi is also facing strong demonstrations that have now become violent as he has started killing his own people.

Other Africa – Mideast Arab countries are also facing demonstrations calling for reform and resignations of ‘dictators’ in Bahrain, United Arab Emirates, among others.

Mutharika argued there is need to distinguish between academic freedom and academic anarchy. The Malawi Constitution in Section 44(1) (h) provides for academic freedom. It states: “…there shall be no derogation, restrictions or limitation with regard to – the right to freedom of conscience, belief, thought and religion and to academic freedom”.

Lecturers from another constituent college of Unima, the Polytechnic, have joined their Chancol counterparts in insisting Mukhito apologises and expressed shock at Mutharika’s ‘working as the IG’s spokesman’.

Meanwhile, in a statement televised on public broadcaster Malawi Broadcasting Corporation Television (MBCtv), Mutharika has ordered the striking lecturers to go back to school this Monday. Chancol Academic Staff Union (Ccasu) acting president, Jessie Kabwila-Kapasula, however, said the lecturers had not been officially communicated to and would meet same Monday to discuss Mutharika’s directive.

He also asked students to go back to class with immediate effect.

“We will have to sit down as a union to see what we can do,” she said.

Students Union of Chancellor College (Succ) spokesperson Francis Kaduya wondered whether the lecturers would resume classes considering their demands were not addressed.

“We have no problem and we can go back to class. The question is who will teach us. We cannot go back to class without lecturers,” he expressed, stating both the president and lecturers should reach a consensus and treat each other with respect other than directives.

The stand-off between the lecturers and Mukhito, and now the president, continue.