Malawi: Malawi VP Ansah Left Out of Cabinet Meeting

What the report says

Nyasa Times, carried by AllAfrica, reported that Malawi Vice-President Jane Ansah was not invited to a cabinet meeting scheduled for Monday at State House in Lilongwe. The report said it would be the first time Ansah has been excluded from such a meeting since taking office. In President Peter Mutharika’s absence, while he attends to duties in Blantyre, the meeting was expected to be chaired by Second Vice-President Enoch Chihana. Secretary to the President and Cabinet Justin Saidi did not respond to the outlet’s request for comment.

Ansah was elected with Mutharika in 2025 and holds an office that, under Malawi’s constitutional framework, is meant to support the president, carry out delegated responsibilities and act when required. Nyasa Times reported that within months of the administration taking office, two areas previously under her office — disaster management and public sector reforms — were moved to the Office of the President and Cabinet. The government described those changes as a coordination measure, while critics viewed them as reducing her influence.

The report placed the cabinet-meeting exclusion within a broader pattern of perceived sidelining. It cited earlier protocol controversies, including an airport send-off in which Mutharika reportedly proceeded to his aircraft while Ansah waited in a VIP lounge, and a memorial event for late vice-president Saulos Chilima where the president sent Education Minister Bright Msaka despite Ansah’s presence. Nyasa Times also noted unconfirmed reports that a senior government official had privately urged her to resign.

Ansah has largely avoided direct public comment on the speculation. The outlet reported that she told Luntha Television Malawians could observe events and reach their own conclusions, and that she separately rejected suggestions she planned to leave the ruling Democratic Progressive Party.