Former President Joyce Banda’s dreams of reclaiming the Malawi presidency are nothing short of fantasy. Her ambition to run in 2025 is, frankly, dead on arrival. Banda, fondly known as “JB,” needs to accept that her days as a political force are long over. If she wants any role in the country’s governance, her best bet is to join an alliance and aim for a supporting position in government—anything else is pure wishful thinking.
In an almost comical moment during the opening of her People’s Party convention in Lilongwe, Banda launched an absurd attack on President Lazarus Chakwera’s administration, claiming her own government was more successful. But let’s get real: Is she seriously suggesting that presiding over the infamous Cashgate scandal—a scandal that saw the plundering of government funds on a massive scale—was better governance than Chakwera’s leadership?
Let’s not forget the unfinished Domasi Hospital in her own district, which Chakwera completed. Or the dangerous, neglected Chingeni-Balaka-Zomba road, now a death trap, which Banda left to decay. Is this what she calls running a country better than Chakwera? And what of her famously chaotic “Azungu akuti” governance style, a directionless era that plunged Malawi deeper into crisis.
In truth, Banda’s only real achievement was stabilizing the electricity supply and securing fuel during her short tenure. But Chakwera has done that and more, ensuring 24/7 electricity and fuel availability across the nation. So why would any reasonable Malawian even consider putting Banda back in State House? The simple answer is, they won’t. Like Peter Mutharika, Banda’s path to the presidency is completely closed in this lifetime.
If she persists in this delusional quest, Chakwera would be well within his rights to purge all People’s Party-affiliated officials from government positions. Banda should quit while she’s ahead—there’s no bouncing back for her!
