Discontent is reportedly simmering—and rapidly boiling over—within the Alliance for Democracy (AFORD), a junior partner in the so-called Blue Alliance, following what party insiders describe as a humiliating sidelining by their dominant ally, the Democratic Progressive Party (DPP).
According to disgruntled AFORD members, the alliance in practice appears to be less a partnership of parties and more a private arrangement between the DPP and AFORD president Enoch Chihana. They argue that the latest cabinet reshuffle has exposed what they see as the true nature of the coalition: an exclusive pact that benefits one individual while completely marginalizing the broader AFORD membership.
AFORD members say they had reasonably expected that participation in the alliance would translate into meaningful representation in government, including at least a handful of deputy ministerial positions that could accommodate other senior figures from their party. Instead, they say, those expectations were summarily crushed. Not a single AFORD member—apart from Chihana himself—was considered worthy of appointment.
“The message is clear,” complained one party insider. “To the DPP, AFORD does not exist beyond Chihana. The rest of us might as well be invisible.”
Members accuse the DPP of acting with outright selfishness and political greed, arguing that the ruling party has monopolized power while treating its alliance partner as an electoral accessory rather than a genuine stakeholder. They say the DPP shows little concern for AFORD supporters, structures, or leadership, focusing solely on maintaining its relationship with Chihana for political convenience.
“This is exactly who the DPP has always been,” another member said. “Self-serving to the core.”
The anger follows President Peter Mutharika’s cabinet reshuffle announced yesterday, which saw the appointment of several new deputy ministers drawn exclusively from the DPP, while AFORD was left entirely out in the cold. Chihana remains in his position as Second Vice President, but no additional cabinet or deputy posts were extended to his party.
For many within AFORD, the reshuffle has confirmed long-held suspicions that the Blue Alliance is fundamentally imbalanced and that AFORD’s role has been reduced to symbolic window dressing rather than meaningful participation in governance.
As frustration grows, some members warn that continued exclusion risks deepening internal dissent and could ultimately strain, or even fracture, the alliance itself.
