Today in Malawi, 5.9 million voters anxiously learned the results of the 2009 Presidential Election that took place yesterday, May 19th: Bingu wa Mutharika will serve another five-year term as President of the Republic of Malawi. Seven candidates ran for office, hoping to gain the position of head of state and government. It has tentatively been reported that 36 women MPs have secured seats in the newly-formed Parliament with the Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) still maintaining a majority.
The close competition for the Presidency was contested between President Bingu wa Mutharika, who ran for re-election as head of the ruling Democratic Progressive Party (DPP), and his main opposition, John Tembo, the president of the Malawi Congress Party (MCP). The election yielded very close results, as Mutharika and Tembo represent dominating parties in Malawian politics, and are both reputed with a dense history of ties with former rulers.
Malawi’s history of governmental turmoil continued in this election cycle, the third since the country adopted a system of multi-party democracy in 1994, marking the end of the thirty-year-long totalitarian leadership of Kamuzu Banda. Complicated by accusations of corruption from both sides, the competition between waMutharika and Tembo represents a long standing rivalry between parties over issues and power in Malawi. Mutharika has been the president of Malawi since the last election in 2004, when he was hand picked as a candidate by the former president, Bakili Muluzi, to take over as a member of his party, The United Democratic Front (UDF). Mutharika later left the UDF after disagreement with Muluzi over opposition to his anti-corruption campaign, and created the Democratic Progressive Party (DDP) which took control of the parliament without elections. Mutharika’s opponent, Tumbo, maintains his position as a strong supporter and ally of Muluzi and Kamuzu Banda, and a key member of the UDF and MCP party coalition.
In the midst of political competition, Malawi has been internationally criticized for its governmental issues overshadowing the country’s larger struggles. HIV/AIDS, poverty, a failing economy, food shortage and corruption continue to plague Malawi exponentially each year. As an economist and a former secretary general of the Common Market for Eastern and Southern Africa, President Mutharika is known for the 8% growth of the economy during his term. However, his economic plan for the future mostly depends on funds from Western donors rather than on internal development. His opposition, the MCP and UDF parties, contrastingly advocate for the expansion of local investment programs in agriculture, health, education, etc. As agriculture remains the main economic resource in Malawi, both sides also promise to increase the amount of fertilizer distributed to poor farmers; however, this can either be seen as a true attempt to improve the economy and food shortage situation, or just another form of competition in which the candidates and parties attempt to outdo each other for power.
Read More about the election results here: http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/africa/8061757.stm
