Joyce Banda Warning: You are not logged in. Your IP address will be publicly visible if you make any edits. If you log in or create an account, your edits will be attributed to your username, along with other benefits.Anti-spam check. Do not fill this in! ====Transition of power==== On 5 April 2012, President Mutharika died.<ref name = "ceremony">{{cite web | last = Administrator | title = Her Excellency Mrs. Joyce Banda is the New President of Malawi | publisher = Embassy of the Republic of Malawi to Belgium, France, the Netherlands, Italy, Luxembourg, Switzerland and Mission to the European Union | date = 11 April 2012 | url = http://www.embassymalawi.be/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=87%3Aher-excellency-mrs-joyce-banda-is-the-new-president-of-malawi&catid=1%3Alatest-news&lang= | access-date =22 April 2012}}</ref> After his death the government failed to notify the public in a timely manner that the president had died. This led to the fear of a [[Malawian Constitutional Crisis 2012|constitutional crisis in Malawi]].<ref>{{cite web|author=Faith Karimi |url=http://articles.cnn.com/2012-04-06/africa/world_africa_malawi-president_1_malawians-president-bingu-wa-mutharika-patricia-kaliati?_s=PM:AFRICA |title=Potential crisis looms in Malawi amid reports of president's death |publisher=Articles.cnn.com |date=6 April 2012 |access-date=23 May 2012 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120515054125/http://articles.cnn.com/2012-04-06/africa/world_africa_malawi-president_1_malawians-president-bingu-wa-mutharika-patricia-kaliati?_s=PM%3AAFRICA |archive-date=15 May 2012 |df=dmy }}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.onenewspage.co.uk/n/World/74r755rd3/Bingu-Wa-Mutharika-death-leaves-Malawi-in.htm |title=Bingu Wa Mutharika's death leaves Malawi in constitutional crisis β One News Page [UK] |publisher=Onenewspage.co.uk |date=6 April 2012 |access-date=23 May 2012}}</ref><ref>[https://archive.today/20130127043447/http://www.kitv.com/news/national/Banda-sworn-in-as-Malawi-president/-/8905418/10322828/-/14mg6em/-/ Banda sworn in as Malawi president | National News β KITV Home]. Kitv.com. Retrieved 10 April 2012.</ref><ref>[http://www.chicagotribune.com/sns-rt-malawi-mutharika-update-3-pix-tvl6e8f701d-20120407,0,2897156.story?page=1 Malawi VP Banda takes over after Mutharika death]{{Dead link|date=September 2018 |bot=InternetArchiveBot |fix-attempted=yes }}, ''[[Chicago Tribune]]'', 7 April 2012.</ref> [[Agence France-Presse]] reported Malawi's ex-President [[Bakili Muluzi]] as insisting on "constitutional order", saying the vice-president must automatically take power under the constitution. "I am calling for a constitutional order, for continued peace and order. The laws of Malawi are very clear that the vice president takes over when the sitting president can no longer govern. We have to avoid a situation where there is disorder. Let us follow the constitution. We have no choice but follow the constitution. It's very important that there must be peace and calm."<ref>Godfrey Mapondera, David Smith, [https://www.theguardian.com/world/2012/apr/06/malawi-president-reported-dead Malawi faces power struggle after president reported dead], ''Guardian'', 6 April 2012</ref> Malawi's security forces also wanted the constitutional order to prevail.<ref>[https://www.google.com/hostednews/ap/article/ALeqM5i0Nf2obDaNyqrpBEMUZftxE0wsVQ?docId=bdc060664dfb409aaf384dec2651a5bc The Associated Press: Malawi's VP sworn in as president amid uncertainty], ''AP'', 10 April 2012.</ref> The Malawi Law Society confirmed that under section 83(4) of the [[Politics of Malawi|constitution of Malawi]], she was the legitimate successor to the Presidency.<ref>[http://www.nyasatimes.com/malawi/2012/04/06/joyce-banda-next-malawi-leader-muluzi-and-law-society-say/ Joyce Banda next Malawi leader, Muluzi and Law Society say] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120407104248/http://www.nyasatimes.com/malawi/2012/04/06/joyce-banda-next-malawi-leader-muluzi-and-law-society-say/ |date=7 April 2012 }}, ''Nyasa Times'', 6 April 2012</ref> On 7 April, Malawi's cabinet sought a court order to block Banda from becoming president. In turn, she phoned the army commander, General Henry Odillo, and asked if he would support her. He agreed and stationed troops around her house.<ref name="army">{{cite journal | last = Smith | first = David | title = Malawi's Joyce Banda puts women's rights at centre of new presidency | journal = The Guardian | date = 29 April 2012 | url = https://www.theguardian.com/world/2012/apr/29/malawi-president-joyce-banda-women-rights | issn = 0261-3077 | access-date =30 April 2012}}</ref> Joyce Banda was sworn in on 7 April 2012 as President of Malawi, the first woman to hold the office.<ref name = "swornin">[http://www.aljazeera.com/news/africa/2012/04/201247111815207836.html Joyce Banda sworn in as president of Malawi β Africa], ''Al Jazeera English'', 4 October 2011</ref> Chief Justice Lovemore Munlo presided over the ceremony which was held at the National Assembly in [[Lilongwe]].<ref name = "ceremony" /> After she was sworn in, Banda appealed for national unity. "I want all of us to move into the future with hope and with the spirit of oneness and unity... I hope we shall stand united and I hope that as a God-fearing nation we allow God to come before us, because if we don't do that then we have failed."<ref name = "swornin"/> The Malawian and international media reported on Joyce Banda's smooth inauguration. They called it a triumph for democracy. A ''Malawi Sunday Times'' editorial said that the new president's inauguration had "helped to entrench and cement a democratic culture in the country."<ref name = "Mwagiru" /> Summary: Please note that all contributions to Christianpedia may be edited, altered, or removed by other contributors. If you do not want your writing to be edited mercilessly, then do not submit it here. You are also promising us that you wrote this yourself, or copied it from a public domain or similar free resource (see Christianpedia:Copyrights for details). Do not submit copyrighted work without permission! Cancel Editing help (opens in new window) Discuss this page