When Peter Mutharika called JB loose

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 Joyce Banda

Women and women’s rights activists have come out guns blazing to condemn President Peter Mutharika for insinuating that former President Joyce Banda is a woman of loose morals.

Speaking in his native Thyolo after coming out of his cocoon to join the campaign trail, Mutharika sought to hit back at Banda for calling him a drunkard at an earlier rally.

But Mutharika went beyond clarifying the drinking issue to describe Malawi’s first female president’s behaviour as promiscuous.

Reacting to the statement, the NGO Gender Coordination Network condemned the remarks describing them as disheartening.

NGO-GCN
NGO GCN's reaction

And in a statement, the Women’s Manifesto, a grouping of gender rights activists said it was shocked by the derogatory remarks especially coming from a man who is a HeforShe Champion.

“In his remarks, the State President referred to Dr Joyce Banda as hule (prostitute) and madeya (husks) something that is not expected from a leader and a father of a nation.

“We regard this as a serious act of violence against women, perpetrated by the very same leader who is supposed to defend and protect the Constitution,” said the statement signed by Maggie Kathewera Banda who also heads Women’s Legal Resource Centre.

Maggie Kathewera Banda
Kathewera Banda: We demand an apology from the President

The grouping goes on to describe the remarks as demeaning to all women and girls and to demand an apology from the President to the former president using private and public media.

“The State President should also adhere to the promise of conducting violence free, issue-based campaign that he signed during the 2019 election period,” said Kathewera Banda.

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