Malawi’s Chakwera concedes election defeat to Mutharika
Malawi’s President Lazarus Chakwera has conceded defeat in last week’s election, acknowledging that opposition candidate Peter Mutharika has secured an “insurmountable lead.” In a national address on Wednesday, Chakwera, 70, of the Malawi Congress Party (MCP), confirmed he had personally called Mutharika to congratulate him ahead of the official results. “A few minutes ago, I called Professor Mutharika to wish him well,” Chakwera said. “It is clear my rival has an insurmountable lead over me.” Chakwera came to power in 2020 after defeating Mutharika, a constitutional law expert and candidate of the Democratic Progressive Party (DPP). This time, however, the economy dominated the polls, with critics blaming Chakwera for mismanagement, corruption, and rising costs of living. During his term, inflation surged to 33 percent, while the prices of maize and fertiliser—the backbone of Malawi’s agriculture-based economy—soared, worsening hardship in the […]
