Analysts say President Lazarus Chakwera faces a formidable challenge in appointing a new vice president to fill the void left by the late Vice President Saulos Chilima.
The position of Malawi’s vice president has fallen vacant following the death of Chilima who died on a plane crash and is expected to be laid to rest on Monday 17th June 2024.
According to section 84 and 88 of the Constitution as read with section 45 of the General Interpretation Act, President Lazarus Chakwera is required to appoint a replacement of the office of the Vice President within 7 days after the death of the Vice President.
Meanwhile, the Malawi Law society has said in computing the 7 day period from the date of death to exclude any Sunday or Public Holiday, Chakwera is expected to have appointed a person to replace Chilima in the constitutional office of a Vice President by and not later than 19th June 2024.
And commenting on the matter, political analyst Victor Chipofya, said Chakwera’s decision will have a profound impact on his political legacy in relation to the agreement he had with his late vice president.
In an interview with MIJ Online , Chipofya said Chakwera’s choice will either break or reaffirm his political relevance as the 2025 polls draw closer.
“Considering that we do not know what the two agreed when going to the 2020 polls, Chakwera has a tough decision to make in as far as appointing the new VP is concerned and that decision will either make or break his political legacy,” observed Chipofya.
Meanwhile, a good governance advocate Moses Mkandawire noted that the new VP will have a daunting task to measure up to the high standards set by Chilima, who was a man of exceptional abilities, making Chakwera’s decision even more critical.
“You see, that man was a hard working man with standards and it’s just unfortunate that we didn’t make proper use of him when he was with us. To say the truth the next man or woman on that seat of vice president has some very big shoes to fit considering the high standards the late Vice president set in the 10 years of office” said Mkandawire.
Meanwhile, President Lazarus Chakwera has declared Monday, June 17th as a public holiday to give the citizenry a chance to bid farewell to the fallen Chilima.
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