The opposition Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) has plunged into an apparent state of panic following reports that its 2025 presidential candidate, former president Arthur Peter Mutharika (APM), is critically ill and hospitalized in South Africa.
The party, scrambling to maintain internal stability ahead of the September 16 General Elections, has appointed veteran politician Dr. George Chaponda as Acting President.
The emergency move, confirmed by high-level party insiders, comes amid increasing internal fears that Mutharika may not recover in time to lead the DPP campaign.
“Since January, Mutharika hasn’t been active. Understandably, he is old and tired. He sleeps a lot. But we did not expect things to reach where they are now,” a senior party source told this publication.
The developments follow days of conflicting statements from DPP officials. Spokesperson Shadreck Namalomba initially told the public Mutharika was “resting at Page House in Mangochi,” dismissing rumors of any illness or foreign travel.
But a follow-up statement issued by DPP Secretary General Peter Mukhito on June 8 confirmed that Mutharika was in South Africa for “private business,” insisting he was in “excellent health.”
Insiders, however, reveal a much graver picture: the former president has been hospitalized for days and is receiving critical care.
Questions now swirl around how long the party can maintain the illusion of normalcy.
The appointment of Chaponda appears to be a desperate bid to preserve party unity and prevent an internal implosion.
Now. Dr. George Chaponda is no stranger. A founding member of the DPP and a trusted ally of Mutharika, Chaponda has served in various high-profile cabinet positions, including Foreign Affairs, Education, and Agriculture. He also shares Mutharika’s Ivy League legal background and regional roots in the Lomwe belt, a critical DPP stronghold.
Yet, Chaponda’s political career has not been without scandal. In 2017, he faced corruption allegations related to the controversial maize import deal from Zambia during his time as Agriculture Minister. Though cleared by the courts, the incident left a lasting stain on his reputation.
Now, with the DPP facing one of its most serious existential crises in recent memory, the question arises: Is Chaponda the right man to lead the party into an election fraught with uncertainty?
The appointment of Chaponda shows how deep is the leadership crisis is within the DPP with the party not having as many options, or rather no option at all to have someone fill APM’s shoes.
Again, the choice of Chaponda is expected to deepen the party’s internal divisions. A long-running power struggle that has been playing out between two factions: the “Lomwe Belt Bloc”, composed of Mutharika loyalists, including Chaponda, considered the traditional core of the DPP and the “Ntcheu Cabal”, an emergent group centered around Pythius Hiwa (a.k.a. Norman Paulosi Chisale).
The “Ntcheu Cabal” has Central Region Deputy President Alfred Gangata, former First Lady Gertrude Maseko, SG Peter Mukhito, and publicist Shadreck Namalomba, in its fold and has increasingly pushed for control.
It was this faction, insiders say, that convinced Mutharika to rescind his 2021 retirement from politics, fearing that a post-Mutharika DPP would weaken their influence.
“After 2020, Mutharika was ready to go. He was mentoring new leaders like Kabambe. But the Ntcheu group needed him back as a shield,” says a former cabinet member who asked not to be named.
With Mutharika now incapacitated, that shield is gone—and the factions are circling.
The decision to name Chaponda as Acting President suggests the party is bracing for the possibility that Mutharika may not return to the campaign trail.
This raises a range of questions: Will Chaponda be formally endorsed as the new presidential candidate? How will the Ntcheu faction respond to his ascension? Can the DPP mount a credible national campaign without its aging figurehead?
Chaponda’s return also poses a reputational challenge. While his experience and seniority make him an obvious fallback candidate, his past controversies and lack of mass appeal could alienate swing voters. And then even age is not on the side of Chaponda.
The former Agricultural Minister, famously nicknamed Kaloswe, following the Zambian maize scandal, is almost 84 years old, two years short of Mutharika’s age.
With just over three months to go before the election, the DPP’s internal chaos could not come at a worse time. The party was already struggling to consolidate its support base in the Central and Northern regions, now, with its presidential candidate likely out of commission and its internal unity in tatters, its prospects appear increasingly bleak.
