Malawi News March 5-11, 2005
By Patrick Chinguwo

John Zenus Ungapake Tembo is one of the Oldest Politicians in Malawi. He needs no introduction. He isthe man who came second in the 2004 Presidential andParliamentary Elections. During this Election, Tembo'sParty Malawi Congress Party {MCP} amassed the biggestnumber of seats in Parliament. They are 63 in total. Imust confess that I do not support MCP or itsPresident. My vote did not go to JZU Tembo and noteven in future. But this time around it seems Tembo ismaking a lot of sense. In the words of Chinua Achebe'sArrow of God. "When two brothers fight, it is thestranger that gets the harvest". The infighting in theUnited Democratic party has seen Tembo ascending to amuch Stronger position.To be specific, UDF's loss of a Constituency formerlyheld by Dr. Chilumpha in the recent by-election shouldbe a big disappointment to the two Bs- Bakili andBingu- and a big smile for Tembo. The Open Terms Billmust have taught Tembo a big Political Lesson. Sincethen, he has learned the hard way that it is bad to goAGAINST the wishes of the people. Today it seems thathe is the only Politician who is making a lot ofPolitical Sense. Tembo and his MCP proposed during theElection Campaign the reduction of Fertilizer Prices.MCP fought a Protracted War for Fertilizer Subsidy butto no avail. Although Tembo is not a ProfessionalAgriculturalist, he knows that Malawian Soils needfertilizers. Tembo knows that with Cheaper Fertilizerthe Agricultural Sector is likely to expand.Agricultural Growth means a Reduction in Unemploymentin Agro-Industries and the Growth of the Economy aswell etc.But what is Evident now is that there will be Faminedue to Scarcity of Fertilizers on the Malawian Market.With the shortage of rains the artificial fertilizerscould have saved some of the maize planted. Tembo'sargument carries a lot of weight. It is not good todepend on Target Input Programme (TIP) every GrowingSeason. Reducing Fertilizer prices could have solvedthe puzzle. Indeed Tembo has been proved right atlast. Tembo's presence in the Opposition when manyPoliticians in the Country are changing allegianceslike nobody's business is an effort worth commending.It shows that Tembo of Kamuzu is different with Temboof Muluzi. Tembo of Bingu is even much different fromthe Tembo of the Past Regimes. As Fortune Seekers aremoving to Government side, Tembo and MCP have Opted toremain Poor but with the people. That is what iscalled Political Maturity.Tembo has shown that he is capable of withstanding thePolitical Tsunami. Everybody wants Tembo to remain inOpposition. Many people think Tembo is Anti-Bingu. ButI beg to differ. During the Last Budget-Sitting, itwas MCP that saved Bingu from a possible rejection ofthe Budget. It would be Political Suicide ifGovernment does not consult MCP on possible bills.Simple mathematics tell us that MCP MPs plus threemore MPs saying No to a bill equals No bill passing.In essence Tembo will set the Table Conditions.Recently, Tembo has condemned the President's quittingof the UDF. One would have expected him to be the lastperson to take such a stand. This shows that he hasrisen above Party Politics to the Level of wantingMalawian Democracy to Survive. For instance, he couldhave been happy that Bingu had left UDF because itmeant weakening UDF while his Party got Stronger. Thisis the type of Tembo that Malawians want. Maybe Tembowill call Bingu and Atcheya for a Round TableDiscussion. The rejected Stone has now become theCorner Stone.