President Lazarus Chakwera's declaration that, if endorsed by MCP Convention, he will stand next year has sent shivers across the board with many interpreting that it is over for his main alliance partner, Vice president Saulos Chilima.
The interpretation emanates from the thinking that, apparently, in the Tonse Alliance Agreement, Chakwera is allegedly going to stand for one term and leave the other term to Chilima.
However, according to writer and political analyst Lyson Sibande, he believes that Chilima was tricked the very day that agreement was being drafted.
He writes on his Facebook page: "From the very beginning Chakwera publicly refused that there was any agreement that he was going to be President for one term only."
Sibande notes that the agreement was made public by the VP and when he read it, he understood why Chakwera denied such an agreement ever existed.
"When you read the phrasing of the statement which is believed to have meant he was going to be one term president, you will agree with Chakwera that such an agreement never existed. Chilima was tricked the very day that agreement was being drafted. He didn't see it," says Sibande.
He adds: "Read that agreement again. If you still don't see it, tell me. I will show you that in deed, there was no agreement for one term presidency. There is no breaking of promise because no promise was made in the first place. Things are going as per the signed agreement."
The question, then, is what did these two people really agree?
Chakwera is already on the record to have said that there is no such an agreement where he is supposed to be a one-term president. However, the secretary general for UTM, Patricia Kaliati, recently told the general public that Chakwera will leave the mantle to Chilima who will take over the Tonse Alliance leadership.
The challenge in the entire debate is that the Alliance partners have yet addressed the public with regards to this matter. Chakwera has only spoken on his personal understanding of the agreement. Chilima hasn't said anything rather choosing to speak through his secretary general.
Until that time, tongues will continue to wag--though without a pure disregard that, somewhere, Chilima missed it at the first.
