Meet Chakwera

PRESIDENT OF THE REPUBLIC OF MALAWI AND COMMANDER-IN-CHIEF OF THE DEFENCE FORCES

President Dr. Lazarus McCarthy Chakwera took oath of office on June 29, 2020 at Malawi Square in Lilongwe following his election triumph over his predecessor Prof. Arthur Peter Mutharika.

He serves in the Presidency with Right Honourable Dr. Michael Bizwick Usi who he appointed on 20 June to replace late Dr Saulos Klaus Chilima who died in a plane crash ten days earlier.

POLITICAL HISTORY 



President Chakwera emerged on the country’s political scene in 2013 when he expressed interest to contest for the leadership of the then largest opposition bloc, Malawi Congress Party. He was elected party president on first go at an elective conference held in Lilongwe in August 2013.

At the 2014 Presidential poll, he lost his maiden Presidential race to Arthur Peter Mutharika of the Democratic Progressive Party. Having also contested for the parliamentary seat, Dr. Chakwera successfully became Member of Parliament for Lilongwe South West Constituency. This made him assume the role of Leader of Opposition in Parliament from 2014 through to 2019.

He again led MCP in the 2019 Presidential race where he also trailed Mutharika in second place. The mismanagement of the election forced Chakwera, and fellow opposition politicians to seek legal redress in pursuit of electoral justice.

Outside the court process, civil society organisations, religious groupings and the general population sustained a year-long resistance in form of protests calling for the removal of the then Malawi Electoral Commission chairperson, Dr. Jane Ansah.

On February 3, 2020 the High Court (sitting as a Constitutional Court) nullified the 2019 Presidential election and ordered a fresh poll within 150 days under a new format which would have a winner declared after amassing 50 % +1 of the valid votes cast.

On June 28, 2020 Chakwera, together with his running mate Saulos Klaus Chilima, was elected the 6th President of the Republic of Malawi with 58.57% of the vote count.

EARLY LIFE



Dr. Lazarus McCarthy Chakwera was born in Lilongwe on April 5, 1955 and is married to Monica. Together they have four children and 12 grandchildren.

He obtained a BA from the University of Malawi, Zomba, in 1977, a B.Th. (Hons) from the University of the North, Sovenga, South Africa in 1981; a Masters’ degree in Theology from the University of South Africa, Pretoria, South Africa in 1991; and Doctorate in Min Trinity International University, Deerfield, and IL.USA in 2000.

Dr. Lazarus Chakwera has wide experience, at the highest levels, from a variety of institutions. In 1981, he served as an Assistant Lecturer for Biblical Studies at the University of the North in the Republic of South Africa. From 1983 to 2000 he held the position of an Instructor at the Assemblies of God School of Theology in Malawi where from 1996 to 2000 he was elevated to Principal.

From 2002 to 2013 he was Co-Director of the All Nations Theological Seminary, Malawi; and doubled as a Lecturer. From 2005 to the time he went into politics he was also serving as a Professor at the Pan Africa Theological Seminary.

He is a globally renowned publishing academic having authored many books and earned citations in various academic publications.

GOVERNANCE PHILOSOPHY

Since the days of pre-election campaign for the 2014 through 2019 to 2020 Presidential polls, Dr Lazarus McCarthy Chakwera pledged to govern under a set of principles popularly known as Chakwera SUPER Hi5. The SUPER is an acronym for five pillars namely; Servant Leadership, Uniting Malawi, Prospering Together, Ending Corruption and Rule of Law.

This governance philosophy was in 2021 fused into a newly-adopted national long-term development blueprint Malawi2063 which seeks to make Malawi a self-reliant and inclusively wealthy middle income economy by the year 2063.

The vision is hinged on three main pillars which are Agricultural Productivity and Commercialization, Industrialization and Urbanization.

Currently, the vision is being implemented under a 10-year plan known as The Malawi 2063 First 10-Year Implementation Plan (MIP-1) which runs up to 2032. The decade-long plans will continue forming part of the larger blueprint up until 2063.

In a bid to cement his development agenda and expedite economic growth, President Chakwera has reoriented his agenda through prioritization of key sectors that are positioned to expedite sustainable development. These sectors are Agriculture, Tourism, Mining plus Manufacturing, commonly referred to as ATM+M strategy.