Let us be honest with ourselves as a nation.
There is no genuine legal basis upon which the government can justify the arrest of MCP Secretary General Richard Chimwendo Banda. What we are witnessing is not law enforcement, but political persecution--a calculated act of vengeance dressed up as justice, driven by bitterness, fear and unresolved political grudges.
This case has nothing to do with upholding the law. It is about settling scores. It is about retaliation for the suffering some members of the Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) endured during the MCP administration. And it is also about weakening and destabilising MCP through intimidation of its senior leadership.
Arrest by Design, Not by Law
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The timing and manner of Chimwendo Banda's arrest expose the real motive behind it. He was deliberately detained so that he would spend the entire Christmas and New Year holidays in custody. That objective was achieved--exactly as planned.
This was not coincidence. It was strategy.
It mirrors what happened during the MCP era, when some DPP members were arrested and kept in custody throughout the festive season. This arrest is therefore political revenge, pure and simple.
In fact, Chimwendo Banda was not alone. There was reportedly a list of individuals earmarked for detention over the holiday period. Some escaped arrest only because they moved quickly after sensing what was coming. And even now, as the new year begins, arrests continue--some on legitimate grounds, yes, but others purely for political reasons.
A Complaint That Defies Logic
Even more troubling is the nature of the allegations that triggered this arrest.
One of the complainants, Frank Chiwanda, reportedly told police that on a certain day he went to MCP headquarters for a press conference but arrived late. At the gate, a guard allegedly warned him not to enter, saying that Chimwendo Banda would deal with him if he did.
According to this account, Chiwanda panicked, turned back and drove towards Blantyre. Along the way, he claims he was followed by another vehicle all the way to Chingeni. He later returned to Lilongwe, and at Salima Turn-Off, a vehicle without registration plates allegedly blocked him, abducted him, assaulted him and dumped him elsewhere.
Now pause and think.
How does someone travel from Lilongwe through multiple roadblocks and police checkpoints--Six Miles, Nathenje, Dedza, Tsangano, Chingeni--and past several police stations, without reporting such a serious incident? How does a story with such dramatic claims survive without immediate police reports, medical records or credible corroboration?
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Is this really the standard of evidence upon which senior political leaders should be arrested?
A Cycle That Is Destroying the Nation
This is where Malawi must confront a painful truth.
Yes, MCP also got it wrong when it used arrests and prolonged detentions against DPP members. Some people lost their freedom, their livelihoods and their dignity. That was unjust, and it should never have happened.
But the critical question is this: If DPP now does the same, who will break this vicious cycle? If every change of government results in revenge arrests; if prisons become tools of political punishment; if police and courts are dragged into partisan battles--then Malawi will never move forward.
We cannot build a democracy on retaliation and fear. We cannot preach rule of law while practicing selective justice.
Time for National Maturity
There must be a point where we, as Malawians, say enough. Enough of arresting political opponents to score points. Enough of using state power to humiliate rivals. Enough of settling political disputes through handcuffs instead of dialogue.
What this country needs is reconciliation, restraint and institutional independence--not recycled political vendettas. The persecution of Richard Chimwendo Banda is not justice. It is politics at its worst. And unless we stop this culture now, tomorrow it will be someone else--under a different government, with the same excuse.
