A Malawian citizen has submitted a draft Constitutional Amendment Bill to Parliament seeking to eliminate the automatic succession of a Vice-President to the presidency, according to Nyasa Times. The news outlet reports that the proposal, addressed to National Assembly Speaker Sameer Suleiman, suggests making the vice-presidency an appointive position from which the President can dismiss the officeholder. Proponent Boldwin Bickiel Dzuwalatsoka argued in the document that the current electoral framework creates a permanent "President-in-waiting" and has repeatedly caused power struggles between Presidents and their deputies, Nyasa Times notes.
Update: Following earlier coverage of President Peter Mutharika's first year in office, civil society and opposition leaders have released new assessments criticizing the administration. Malawi24 reports that the Human Rights Defenders Coalition (HRDC) issued a statement accusing the government of shielding politically connected individuals from corruption charges. The HRDC also claimed the administration has sidelined First Vice-President Jane Ansah and failed to maintain basic public services, according to Malawi24.
Furthermore, Opposition Leader Simplex Chithyola Banda condemned the administration's handling of the economy and the ongoing fuel shortages, according to Nyasa Times. Nyasa Times reports that Banda criticized the government's decision to drop open tendering for fuel in favor of a secretive government-to-government procurement arrangement. While the administration touted a drop in maize prices, Banda argued this does not offset the severe fuel and foreign exchange deficits, stating that "cheap nsima cannot buy fuel," Nyasa Times adds.