Bluntly speaking, I have never found in Peter Mutharika what his supporters say he has.
From the time Project Peter was hatched when his brother was around, he has failed to take charge and meet the ever-hungry expectations of his party supporters and now of the whole population of Malawi.
Before elections we were told of a man who has vast experience on university lecterns. Not only that, irrelevantly we were also informed that Peter owns a law firm that employs more than 600 lawyers somewhere in the United States.
In the midst of all that worship, I was one of the people who wanted to appreciate how such a man can help transform Malawi in any role up until he failed to perform as cabinet minister in all three portfolios his late brother put him in.
My fears started creeping in when during Presidential debates. Peter not only failed to communicate eloquently but did so with very empty and laughable promises.
In case you missed it, one of the craziest electoral promises he made was;
"When am elected President I will make sure that boys and girls have one partner"
Holy crap, I screamed. Is this man sure of what he is saying or he is just trying to fill the gaps where he can't find proper words? Is he a spiritual leader or a politician?
Come inauguration day, our Peter (with pomp of course) used his first speech to throw around some quotes, sadly in a wrong context and at wrong people.
"I am holding an olive branch in one hand, do not let me drop it" he repeated this one.
Whoever or whatever told him that he was at war with someone misled him. Yes we had a divisive election but no one but Mbendera was to blame.
So, it made me wonder why the famous Yassir Arafat quote was being used in a situation that has no single similarity with a disputed electoral process.
Six months down the line, Malawians are now realizing that they sowed the wind and they are reaping the whirlwind.
The man with a 600-lawyer firm has been exposed and the country has come to a standstill.
When close to 6,000 teachers go on strike, he still sees no reason to come out as President to address his citizens. Communication of these crucial matters is still left in the hands of P5 civil servants at Capital Hill to answer angry and desperate teachers who have never seen a penny since he became President.
Six months down the line Malawi looks unredeemable and it seems no one has the resolve to drive it.
The President, despite spending most of his time in office, is not coming out clean on what we ought to do as a country to regain our stance and move forward with one purpose.
Malawians need a leader who is going to be honest regardless of how much pain is impending. We need him to take charge, look us in the eye and tell us;
We will hike University fees by 400 percent get ready
We will hike passport fees by 300 percent get ready
Prices of basic goods will go up get ready
Teachers will be paid at some point but not now, get ready
Malawians need honest answers not a cautious approach which only blinds multitudes to believe that things are okay when they are not.
Having said that, I throw all my blame on those who worshipped Mutharika before elections and those who blindly do so today.
The man is simply not what we were told he is. He lacks strong resolve when dealing with delicate matters and he seems slow to devise concrete remedies for an ailing society.
He might not change his approach but surely the bootlickers will keep on. The problem this time around is that he is on the hot seat and Malawians have a chance to rate him on their own.
