Post date: Apr 06, 2012 1:31:4 AM
BLANTYRE, MALAWI (APRIL 05, 2012) (REUTERS) - Malawi President Bingu wa Mutharika was "very critical" on Thursday (April 5) after a heart attack and was being flown to South Africa for treatment, a minister said, raising fears of a political crisis in the impoverished southern African nation.
Malawi President Bingu wa Mutharika is in "very critical" condition after a heart attack, people on the streets of Malawi have mixed views on the consequences for their country.
People on the streets of the commercial capital Blantyre disagreed over the political consequences of Mutharika's hospitalisation.
"If he dies then his vice president will take over. There is nothing to worry about. The country will still run because we have the vice president, Joyce Banda, who will take over the leadership," said John M'dala, a tailor.
"Knowing the current status of the country and regarding what government officials have been saying that it is a fragile state, we don't know what would explode. I don't think it is quite a good thing to happen at this time," said Malawi resident Kondwani Simbota.
Mutharika, a former World Bank economist, came to power in 2004 and presided over a seven-year economic boom - underpinned by foreign aid and some favourable rains - that made it one of one of the world's fastest-growing countries.
However, the growth came to a juddering halt last year after a dispute with Britain led to tit-for-tat diplomatic expulsions and a freezing of millions of dollars of aid.
The move by Malawi's biggest donor exacerbated an already acute dollar shortage, hampering imports of fuel, food and medicines, and leading to a depreciation in the local currency.
Mutharika's diplomatic isolation and economic plight worsened in July 2011 when the United States shelved a $350 million programme to overhaul the dilapidated power grid after police killed 20 people in a crackdown on an unprecedented wave of anti-government protests.