…SKC Family, UTM at Odds
…Kabambe Scores Own Goal
By Temwanani Gondwe
The family of the late Saulos Klaus Chilima is not amused by the United Transformation Movement (UTM) leadership led by Dalitso Kabambe for striving to destroy the legacy of the former vice president.
Information has emerged from the bereaved family that the absence of UTM at the launch of the SKC Foundation was an embarrassment and a clear demonstration of a deliberate attempt to wipe out Chilima’s name from Malawi’s political scene.
In their defence, the Kabambe led faction of the party said they shunned the launch due to the continued absence of answers regarding the circumstances that led to the death of Chilima, the founding president of UTM.
However, sources within the party disclosed that the main reason for staying away from the launch was in protest against the decision by Mary Chilima, spouse to the fallen vice president, to invite President Lazarus Chakwera to the event.
It is surprising, said the source, that the same Kabambe led a delegation of UTM members to Providence Industrial Mission (PIM), in Chiradzulu to be part of Rev. John Chilembwe Day commemoration which was presided by same Chakwera.
A close family member, who spoke on condition of anonymity, said they were dismayed by the behaviour of UTM leaders, describing it as a betrayal of the man who built the party from the ground up.
“The UTM leadership should be ashamed,” said the family member. “They were supposed to be at the event to honour their late leader.”
“Instead, they chose to play politics. It is disappointing that they are now attempting to disassociate themselves from everything Chilima stood for,” said the family source.
One of the organising committee members for the launch said the absence of the UTM leadership did not do justice to the Chilima legacy.
“If there are people that are destroying SKC legacy, then it is those that stayed away from the launch of the same platform established to sustain what Chilima stood for,” said the committee member.
“The widow is not amused, that’s the least she expected. She thinks the UTM leadership is bent at using her husband name for political mileage but she insists the SKC Foundation should be kept apolitical,” he said.
Political analysts have described UTM’s decision to boycott the launch as a blunder that has exposed the deep divisions within the party following Chilima’s death.
One social media influencer Kondwani Munthali wrote on his facebook page: “No no UTM should have attended SKC Foundation launch. Its about SKC’s legacy. They are a party of Chilima and they need to be where his name is…SKC attended Presidential events even after being arrested…learn politics.”
Political commentator Humphreys Kavala said Kabambe’s decision to stay away was a miscalculation that would cost him dearly.
“The absence of UTM at such an important event sends a bad message to the supporters of the party. It suggests that there are factions and that there is an effort to erase Chilima’s legacy. Kabambe has scored an own goal here,” said Kavala.
Another analyst, George Phiri, said the move has only created more tension between the party and Chilima’s family.
“It is clear that UTM is struggling to move forward. The party is divided, and now they are at loggerheads with the Chilima family. The absence of UTM at the SKC Foundation launch was not a strategic decision, but an emotional one,” observed Phiri.
Meanwhile, UTM supporters who attended the event on their own have also expressed disappointment in the leadership for failing to pay their respects to their founding leader.
“We feel abandoned. The man who sacrificed everything for the party deserves better. What is happening now is heartbreaking,” said a UTM supporter who attended the event in his personal capacity.
Since Chilima’s tragic death in a plane crash in June last year, UTM has struggled to maintain unity.
Kabambe, who took over the leadership, has been facing resistance from some senior members who believe the party has lost its vision.
Observers say as things stand, the tension between the Chilima family and the UTM leadership is only starting and that the cracks will lead to the diminishing of the support base for the party.