We have always known elections to carry an air of excitement with them. Normally, one can sense it in the atmosphere around them that something is burning.
However, this year’s elections are unlike any we have witnessed before. A stranger would hardly tell that this nation is heading towards a critical decision point, where we must choose the poison that will slowly kill us for the next five years.
Most people seem uninterested in the election that is just around the corner. Perhaps it is the issue of choosing a poison that does not sit well with most Malawians.
For some reason, the presidential hopefuls before us are not inspiring. Take Malawi Congress Party (MCP) and its leader, President Lazarus Chakwera, for example. This is a party that has been in power for the past five years, having promised Malawians heaven when they campaigned in 2020.
It would not be an exaggeration to say that the current regime has failed to live up to its billing. Whereas they promised better, things have been worsening with each passing day.
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In all honesty, one would not expect the country’s fuel pumps to run dry a few weeks before a general election.
We have a regime that wishes to be re-elected, yet it is failing to resolve a fuel crisis with the polls just around the corner.
To make matters worse, prices of basic commodities are floating freely and rising every day as if no one is in control.
All this is happening in a country where there is no foreign exchange, and where citizens are failing to access even a travel document from the government.
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One then wonders with what courage the present regime can approach the podium and ask for a renewed mandate to govern. Such a scenario can only occur in failed states.
The other option before us is former president Peter Mutharika and his Democratic Progressive Party (DPP).
This is a man we have tried before and he did not impress. His greatest weakness was his lack of control, allowing his close associates to run the show while he watched television.
That laissez faire attitude led to rampant abuse of office, impunity and corruption. The country descended into chaos and those close to the seat of power acted with impunity. This enraged Malawians and DPP was forcefully removed from power.
Today, Mutharika lacks the strength to withstand the heat of the campaign trail. He is an elderly man who ought to be resting, but for lack of better options, DPP has decided to field him regardless.
One cannot help but wonder whose interests Mutharika’s candidature serves. Malawi is a troubled nation that requires someone with the energy to move about and implement solutions.
Leading the country out of the challenges we are currently facing demands someone with the stamina to endure sleepless nights. Mutharika does not appear to be prepared for that task.
Outside these two leaders, there is Dalitso Kabambe, whose UTM Party is known for making noise and promises, but that is where it ends.
This is a party that was in alliance with MCP for at least four years and together they failed. It is therefore difficult to imagine anything new or different from this party, which has yet to recover from the tragedy it suffered following the loss of its founding leader last year.
UTM still resembles a child lost in the wilderness.
The widespread disenchantment across the country at this critical time indicates that this is a nation stranded at a crossroads.
We are faced with the task of choosing between options that are far from desirable. The levels of incompetence among our leaders are so high that the electorate is no longer engaged.
It seems that many of us have resigned ourselves to whatever fate lies ahead. It is very difficult to envision any hope emerging from our current situation. We are heading into an election in which we have no real choice.
