Chakwera offers to help Mutharika government resolve fuel crisis

By Andrew Weddings

Former President and Malawi Congress Party (MCP) leader Dr Lazarus Chakwera has offered to assist the Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) government in resolving the country’s worsening fuel crisis, saying he remains willing to share ideas on how to address the situation.

Chakwera made the offer on Friday during a press briefing at the MCP headquarters in Lilongwe, where he proposed constitutional amendments to enable Malawi to enter into government-to-government arrangements with other countries to secure fuel during emergencies.

He suggested that Parliament should consider introducing additional constitutional provisions to establish clear procedures for such arrangements when the country faces serious fuel shortages.

“My suggestion was that we should go to Parliament and amend our Constitution, not by completely removing the existing laws, but by adding new ones, that when things get worse, we should have procedures to secure fuel from government to government,” said Chakwera.

He further urged President Professor Arthur Peter Mutharika’s administration to consult him, saying he still had ideas that could help the government find a lasting solution to the crisis.

The fuel shortage has reportedly left several filling stations across the country without supplies, disrupting business operations and putting motorists under increasing pressure.

A Mzuzu City businessperson, Yuen Chiona, described the situation as painful, saying some motorists and businesses had been forced to resort to the black market, where fuel was reportedly selling at K10,000 per litre.

Chiona said the high prices had increased business operating costs, making it difficult for businesses to operate normally.

“Mutharika lied to us during his campaign that he had solutions to the problems Malawi is facing,” he said.

However, Minister of Information and Communications Technology Shadric Namalomba has attributed the fuel crisis, foreign exchange shortages and other economic challenges to structural problems inherited from the MCP administration, which lost power in the September 2025 elections.