2012 Malawian constitutional crisis

The 2012 Malawian constitutional crisis occurred from April 5, 2012 - April 7, 2012 after senior members of the Democratic Progressive Party-led cabinet failed to notify the public of the death of the sitting president, Bingu wa Mutharika on April 5. Instead, cabinet ministers held a series of meetings in Lilongwe, Malawi without vice-president Joyce Banda with the aim of undermining the constitution and Banda's succession to Presidency. News confirming his death had, however, quickly spread across the country (and to the Malawian diaspora) through word of mouth, cellphone text messages, Malawian bloggers, Twitter, Facebook, and on listservs by the end of the day on April 5, 2012. Therefore, the failure to announce his death resulted in speculation over the real health of the president and over whether the succession procedures would be followed as outlined in the constitution. According to the constitution, the vice-president takes over but there had been no official word on a successor or communication with the vice-president. Amidst growing speculation, the Cabinet announced that the president's brother, Peter Mutharika, the foreign minister, was the new President of the party on April 6. The Cabinet only announced his death two days after his death, after which Banda became Malawi's first female President.

President Bingu wa Mutharika had increasingly begun to consolidate his power during his second term. He groomed his brother, Peter Mutharika, a lawyer and the Minister of Foreign Affairs as his successor. This meant that he by-passed his sitting Vice President, Joyce Banda but expected her to support this bid. Instead, wa Mutharika caused factions within his Democratic Progressive Party and fired Banda and Second Vice President Khumbo Kachali from their positions in the government and the party in 2010. According to the Constitution of Malawi, however, a vice president has to be removed through an impeachment process requiring a majority of the National Assembly. Therefore, the Malawi court declared this act unconstitutional. The court declared that he could fire Banda from his party but not from the government because the removal process for these positions were different. A party vice president can be removed in accordance with that party's internal process. However, a vice president, who is voted in with the presidential position, can only be removed through a legally sanctioned impeachment process. As such, Banda was regarded as the legal vice president even though she was also not vice president of the DPP party. Mutharika knew that he would not garner the majority in parliament due to factions within the party over the succession of the presidency and therefore he proceeded to frustrate Banda in order to force her to resign as Vice President. She refused to resign and continued in her capacity as vice president of the country, although under constant duress and harassment. Her security detail was changed and several of her privileges were redirected to Mutharika's brother Peter. Banda then formed a new political party, the People's Party, in 2011.

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