Some members of the former ruling Malawi Congress Party (MCP) have asked party president Lazarus Chakwera to step down for allegedly ignoring earlier warnings on governance, corruption and internal party management.

Trading under the banner MCP Revolution for Change of Leadership, the group told journalists in Lilongwe on Saturday that they warned Chakwera in 2021 about his leadership style and cautioned that it could lead to a fallout if changes were not made. They claim the advice was ignored.

Chaziya (C) stresses a point as Potiphar Banda (L) and another official listen. | Ralph Mvona

The grouping’s chairperson Samson Chaziya said the party now finds itself outside government because corrective action was not taken.

“Malawians did not vote out MCP as a party. They voted out President Chakwera and the leadership around him. Many loyal MCP members chose not to vote because they could not support his continued leadership, yet they were unwilling to back other political parties,” he said.

Chaziya also accused Chakwera of delinking the presidency from party structures.

“Our concern is that President Chakwera separated the presidency from party structures, forgetting that it was MCP members from grassroots areas who worked tirelessly to bring him to power,” he said.

Chaziya has since called on Chakwera to step down as party president and begin preparations for the next convention between 2026 and 2027, in line with the party constitution.

Chakwera’s spokesperson Gift Nankhuni on Saturday declined to comment on the matter.

But MCP spokesperson Jessie Kabwila questioned the authenticity of the group, saying it does not represent the party.

She said: “MCP is guided by its constitution, and at our last convention we gave President Chakwera a mandate to lead until 2029.

“True supporters of MCP know the proper channels to use when raising concerns. That group has no mandate to call for the president’s resignation or an early convention.”

Meanwhile, political analyst George Phiri has urged party leadership to address the concerns amicably, warning that the dispute could destabilise the party.

“It is important that Chakwera listens to these calls because he leads with the people’s mandate. Otherwise, the party risks losing support from members who may remain in the party but withdraw their backing,” he said.

Since its loss in the September 16 2025 General Election, MCP has been embroiled in internal squabbles over leadership and its structure in Parliament, developments political scholars say could weaken the party’s oversight role.

The tensions began soon after the polls when a faction demanded an emergency convention to elect a new leader and remove Chakwera.

However, the proposal was dismissed during the party’s national executive committee meeting on October 22 2025 which instead resolved to commission a consultant to assess factors behind the party’s defeat.

The internal wrangles also spilled into Parliament over the appointment of Simplex Chithyola Banda as Leader of Opposition.

MCP deputy secretary general Gerald Kazembe wrote to the Clerk of Parliament indicating that the party would elect a Leader of Opposition on November 1, 2025, in line with parliamentary Standing Order 35, effectively disputing Chakwera’s appointment of Chithyola Banda.

But when MCP legislators met on November 3, 2025, at Crossroads Hotel, they resolved to maintain Chithyola Banda after a two-and-a-half-hour meeting attended by senior party leaders.

The MCP conflict mirrors internal divisions that previously weakened the Democratic Progressive Party while it was out of power.