Identifier
Created
Classification
Origin
05LILONGWE284
2005-03-29 10:44:00
UNCLASSIFIED
Embassy Lilongwe
Cable title:  

IMPEACHMENT RUMORS NO THREAT TO MUTHARIKA - YET

Tags:  PGOV KDEM MI 
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UNCLAS LILONGWE 000284 

SIPDIS

E.O. 12958: N/A
TAGS: PGOV KDEM MI
SUBJECT: IMPEACHMENT RUMORS NO THREAT TO MUTHARIKA - YET

UNCLAS LILONGWE 000284

SIPDIS

E.O. 12958: N/A
TAGS: PGOV KDEM MI
SUBJECT: IMPEACHMENT RUMORS NO THREAT TO MUTHARIKA - YET


1. SUMMARY. Members of Parliament (MPs) belonging to the
United Democratic Front (UDF) and the Malawi Congress
Party (MCP) reportedly plan to launch a bid to impeach
President Bingu wa Mutharika, alleging that he violated
the Constitution. While both parties might eventually
bring a motion to impeach, it is unlikely to succeed,
since neither the UDF nor the MCP can command the two-
thirds required to indict and convict. END SUMMARY.


2. The leaders of the United Democratic Front (UDF) and
Malawi Congress Party (MCP) have reportedly engaged in
talks aimed at impeaching President Bingu wa Mutharika.
They claim that Mutharika has overstepped the
constitutional limits of his office on several counts,
including launching the billion-Kwacha Rural Development
Fund without Parliamentary confirmation. They also allege
that the President violated the constitution by allowing
his appointee for head of the Malawi Police Service to
take office without parliamentary confirmation. Sam
Mpasu, the UDF spokesman, said that the MCP has
researched the possible impeachment and has identified
ten constitutional violations by President Mutharika.
President Mutharika has responded to the accusations by
stating that the UDF and MCP are simply attempting to
retard his development plans and thwart his anti-
corruption efforts.


3. MCP and UDF Party leadership have sought to distance
the parties from any discussion of impeachment, saying
that members made such comments in their individual
capacity. Though political alliances in Parliament
remain unclear (Parlaiment is scheduled to re-convene on
March 30) the lack of explicit party backing for
impeachment is an early indicator that the motion would
not receive much support. The Speaker of Parliament said
in a recent media interview that impeachment is not on
the official agenda for the upcoming session. According
to Malawi's constitution, the President can only be
indicted with a two-thirds majority vote in parliament,
and a conviction would require the same margin. If
successful, impeachment would put Vice President (and UDF
loyalist) Cassim Chilumpha in power for at most ninety
days, during which a presidential election would take
place as required by the Constitution. Candidates from
both the UDF and the MCP would then presumably be able to
run again.


4. COMMENT. UDF officials, still reeling from
Mutharika's recent departure from the party, have raised
impeachment as a possible method of climbing back to
power. Limited MCP support for an impeachment motion
would also be likely, largely due to allegations that the
party was robbed of victory in last May's presidential
election and to hopes that MCP's leader, John Tembo,
could clinch a victory. While it is possible that such a
motion could eventually be presented to Parliament,
impeachment would be unlikely; most MPs are more rational
than politically loyal, and political opportunism would
likely induce most of them to side with the President.
END COMMENT.
GILMOUR