In a dramatic twist just weeks before Malawi heads to the polls, Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) president and presidential candidate Professor Arthur Peter Mutharika has officially confirmed he will not be able to take part in campaign activities for the 16 September General Elections due to ongoing health challenges.
Party spokesperson Shadreck Namalomba made the announcement on Tuesday, stating that the 86-year-old former president’s medical condition makes it impossible for him to endure the physically demanding schedule of a national campaign.
“This decision has been made on medical advice. The president will not be participating in rallies, whistle-stop tours, or other strenuous campaign activities,” Namalomba said.
However, Namalomba has insisted that Mutharika will still go ahead to be on the ballot despite what he called “this small hitch to the campaign”.
The announcement has been long expected and has confirmed what Malawians have been fearing since the start of the campaign. But, political analyst Dr. Aphraim Zainab described the development as a “major strategic disaster” for the opposition DPP.
“Campaign visibility is everything in a race this close,” Dr. Zainab told our reporter.
He added: “Without Mutharika physically on the trail, the DPP will struggle to project leadership, energy, and connection with voters. This is the exact scenario some within the party feared when some officials insisted on his candidacy despite health concerns.”
With just over a month until Malawians head to the polls, the DPP is scrambling to salvage its ground campaign. Senior party figures are now expected to lead rallies, but observers say no other DPP leader would command Mutharika’s personal following.
The ruling Malawi Congress Party (MCP) is widely seen as the main beneficiary of the DPP’s crisis. President Dr. Lazarus McCarthy Chakwera has been campaigning aggressively across all regions, projecting stamina and accessibility, qualities that now stand in stark contrast to Mutharika’s absence.
“This is not just about one man missing rallies; it’s about the narrative, the message being sent. MCP will frame itself as the party with a present, active leader while the DPP’s candidate is invisible in the most critical month of the campaign,” Dr. Zainab said.
The decision marks one of the most consequential turning points of the 2025 race. For the DPP, it could mean fighting a two-front battle, against an energized MCP and against growing doubts within its own base on whether it chose the right candidate in the first place.
Since the launch of its manifesto and campaign, APM has been quite and absent on the campaign trail with Malawians asking where the old man is and why, if he is fit as earlier claimed by the DPP, he was not on the campaign trail but relying on party officials to do the leg work.
