Former Malawian leaders Bakili Muluzi, Joyce Banda, and Peter Mutharika have called on Inspector General of Police Merlyne Yolamu to investigate and arrest individuals involved in violence and suppression of opposition protests in Lilongwe on Wednesday.
The ex-presidents emphasized that Malawians must be allowed to hold peaceful demonstrations and choose their leaders without fear or intimidation.
In their statement, they noted that identifying the perpetrators should be straightforward as video evidence capturing their faces is available.
The former leaders also urged President Lazarus Chakwera and his Malawi Congress Party (MCP) to condemn the incidents and assure citizens that such actions will not occur again.
Their letter also called on the Malawi Electoral Commission (MEC) and the National Registration Bureau (NRB) to address underlying issues fueling the unrest.
“MEC must reassess its partnership with Smartmatic and resolve the challenges preventing Malawians from registering to vote due to NRB’s failure to issue national IDs,” they wrote.
“The time to act is now. This is how democracy is preserved,” the leaders added.
President Chakwera has not yet commented on the matter, while MCP spokesperson Jessie Kabwila challenged opposition parties to provide evidence linking the violent acts to MCP members.
Copied:Times360Malawi
