By Staff Reoorter
The Malawi Congress Party (MCP) has been plunged into open internal turmoil after Nkhotakota Central Member of Parliament Sylvester Ayuba James publicly accused the party leadership of presiding over what he describes as a “dangerous leadership vacuum” and demanded the election of a new party leader.
In a blistering Facebook post that has since sent shockwaves through the ruling party, Ayuba James squarely blamed MCP president Lazarus Chakwera for failing to provide direction at a time when the party is under intense pressure. The lawmaker took particular issue with Chakwera’s silence following the arrests of senior MCP officials and his decision to go on holiday while key figures were in police custody.
“The party was left leaderless when it needed firm and visible leadership,” Ayuba James charged, portraying a party adrift and unable to defend its own members or offer political clarity to the nation.
Nkhotakota Central MP went further, linking MCP’s defeat in the September 16, 2025 general election directly to what he called chronic leadership failures. According to Ayuba James, unresolved governance and accountability issues that emerged under MCP’s watch were ignored by the top leadership, creating voter disillusionment that ultimately cost the party power.
His remarks mark one of the most direct and public challenges to Chakwera’s authority from within MCP ranks since the party’s election loss.
However, MCP spokesperson Jessie Kabwira swiftly moved to contain the fallout, rebuking Ayuba James and accusing him of undermining party discipline. Kabwira insisted that MCP has clear internal mechanisms for addressing grievances and warned that airing disputes on social media only deepens divisions.
“Party concerns must be raised through established structures, not through public attacks that weaken the organization,” Kabwira said, in a thinly veiled reference to Ayuba James’ Facebook broadside.
Adding a layer of political irony to the unfolding drama, Ayuba James is also part of the legal defense team representing several senior MCP officials currently facing criminal charges. Among those he is defending is the party’s Secretary General, Richard Chimwendo Banda, one of the highest-ranking figures to be ensnared in the legal storm.
The contradiction has not gone unnoticed: a senior party loyalist in court by day, and a fierce internal critic by night.
As MCP struggles to regroup after its electoral defeat, Ayuba James’ intervention exposes deep fractures within the party—raising uncomfortable questions about unity, accountability, and whether Chakwera’s grip on the party is weakening. What was once whispered in corridors has now erupted into the open, leaving MCP facing not just legal battles, but a full-blown crisis of leadership and identity.
