When President Bingu wa Mutharika visited Mangochi District last month he returned to Lilongwe a gloomy man. The small crowd that went to confirm that the Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) Presidential candidate ferried women and youths from the Capital City could not hear anything from his mouth.

“The man is not a public speaker, he is not a politician and by the time his blue buses started off we were not very clear what he came to do in Mangochi,” said Alick Bawo, a fishmonger at Chimwala area.

Bawo said all the things Mutharika promised Mangochi people are the same pledges he made five years ago and failed to implement, giving examples of loans for small scale businesses, fertilizer subsidy, new hotels and tarmac roads.

“I expected him to show us the new hotels because all we have are the same ones that were built during the Malawi Congress Party time … Nkopola Lodge, Club Makokola, even Sun and Sand Hotel came during United Democratic Front time, so which hotel has his government brought?” wondered Bawo.

One Group Village Headman said the only thing that Mutharika brought to Mangochi were empty maize silos which up to date has no single grain and yet he flies all over the country praising himself of defeating hunger.

The chief said even the roads that Mutharika is singing about everyday are not a product of his hands because they were constructed during the times of Ngwazi Dr H. Kamuzu Banda.

“We do not want someone to praise himself on long term projects, but rather show us his own initiated and completed development programmes,” said the Group Village Head.

He said the people of Mangochi are looking forward to JZU Tembo’s leadership when he becomes president with more MCP MPs in the National Assembly next week.

“When JZU Tembo and UDF national chairman Bakili Muluzi toured Mangochi they did not waste time castigating Mutharika, but went straight into telling people what development agenda Tembo’s government will bring,” said the chief. “As a traditional leader I can assure you that the answer to the food shortage is universal fertilizer subsidy and not these coupons which have brought more harm than good.”

President Mutharika was forced to go back to Mangochi on Tuesday to try and patch up the loopholes, but to his disappointment he saw for himself that he had lost the district and the whole Eastern Region before the polling day. At Malembo, Mutharika forgot the name of the stopover and had to be reminded by his running mate Joyce Banda, while in Monkey Bay where he did not know the DPP parliamentary candidate, he left a few people who attended his meeting completely puzzled.

BY ALIFA MJOMBA