False

Elections 2025

Fake statement claiming Prof. Arthur Peter Mutharika has withdrawn from presidential election

FACT-CHECKED by iVerify

June 26, 2025

DPP Secretary General Mr. Peter Mukhito and UTM spokesperson Mr. Felix Njawala have dismissed both the statement. The statement claims the information and decisions in the statement are from the 'DPP Governing Committee', but the party has no structure called 'Governing Committee'.

Claim

Prof. Arthur Peter Mutharika withdraws from presidential race

Rating Justification

iVerify Malawi verified ‘the statement’ and determined that it is false. To arrive at this verdict, iVerify Malawi spoke to UTM party spokesperson Mr. Felix Njawala and Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) Secretary General Mr. Peter Mukhito. iVerify Malawi also analysed the content of the claim and identified technical errors. Both Njawala and Mukhito dismissed the claim that DPP President Prof. Arthur Peter Mutharika has withdrawn from the September 16 general election due to health issues and that the DPP ‘governing committee’ has agreed to work with the UTM party President Dr. Dalitso Kabambe, to lead the two parties. Njawala said currenlty there is no political alliance between the UTM and DPP. “I have seen the publication, but it’s merely fake news. Malawians should not take it seriously,” Njawala said. Similarly, DPP Secretary General Honorable Peter Mukhito dismissed the report, asserting that DPP remains a larger political entity than UTM. Mukhito urged the public to disregard the publication describing it as false and misleading. Additionally, the ‘statement’ claims that the message and decisions in it are from DPP Governing Committee, but DPP does not have a structure with such a name.

Evidence and References

Facebook Post of DPP Spokesperson Hon. Shadric Post dismissing the claim

https://web.facebook.com/share/p/1BXSrPZY3B/

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