By Times News
Copyright times
By Mercy Matonga:
At least 14 Cabinet ministers are feared to have lost their parliamentary seats in the recently concluded elections.
According to reports from Times journalists covering the elections in various districts, 14 Cabinet ministers and deputies out of the 28 who contested as members of Parliament (MPs) have been defeated.
Analysts suggest the outcome reflects a growing sense of frustration among voters regarding governance issues.
Political and social analyst Wonderful Mkutche told The Daily Times that the loss is both due to their failure as individual parliamentarians and voter dissatisfaction with the government.
“The 2025 election results show that voters in Malawi are realigning their priorities. Relying on tribal votes is not enough.
“Furthermore, propaganda alone cannot guarantee a place in power. People want their leaders to deliver,” Mkutche said.
He also said politicians appear to be stuck in old ways of thinking and that this election shows that Malawians are moving away from tribal politics and that politicians must adapt.
Meanwhile, Centre for Social Accountability and Transparency Executive Director Willy Kambwandira said the defeat of the 13 Cabinet ministers in the parliamentary race is a strong sign of voter dissatisfaction with the government’s performance over the past term.
“Ministers are direct representatives of the administration and their defeat suggests Malawians are holding them personally accountable for unmet expectations, policy failures and unresolved socio-economic challenges,” Kambwandira said.
Ahead of the elections, several observers believed that the 2020-2025 Cabinet had failed to provide the solutions Malawians desperately needed from their government to address their daily challenges.
Governance expert Gift Sambo said the Malawi Congress Party-led Tonse Alliance’s victory in the 2020 presidential election gave most stakeholders hope that Malawi was headed for a brighter future.
“However, economically, various analyses of the country, including the government’s own reports, suggest that the current administration has fallen short of meeting people’s expectations.
“Among other issues, high inflation, foreign exchange shortages and fuel scarcity have increased the hardships faced by Malawians,” Sambo said.
After winning the court-sanctioned election, President Lazarus Chakwera appointed a 31-member Cabinet in July 2020, which faced criticism for being rife with cronyism and loyalty.
He promised to review the performance of his ministers periodically, although commentators feel this was never fully carried out.
