Malawi President Lazarus Chakwera has warned Malawians against overpraising and overdepending on him, a tendency that he says can turn presidents into dictators. Chakwera, who became president after a rerun election last June, said it’s sad that even during this democratic era, people want a president to respond to every little thing, while also praising the president as they would a god. Without directly referring to Banda, Chakwera said dictators are made by people who always idolize their leaders. Banda, who led the Malawi Congress Party, or MCP, ruled Malawi from 1963 to 1994, when he lost the presidency to former President Bakili Muluzi of the current opposition United Democratic Front. Sheriff Kaisi, a political science lecturer at Blantyre International University, says he doesn’t take Chakwera seriously because he said Chakwera does not walk his talk.

Source: Daily Nation May 15, 2021 20:15 UTC