Nobody Remembers Mikeka Mkandawire and Comrade Solomon Hartwell.🔥After the death of Levi Mumba, the leader of NAC... and the treasurer general, Issa Mcdonald Lawrence in 1945, the country was robbed of the great two leaders that Dr Banda feared and admired.

Nobody Remembers Mikeka Mkandawire and Comrade Solomon Hartwell.🔥

After the death of Levi Mumba, the leader of NAC... and the treasurer general, Issa Mcdonald Lawrence  in 1945, the country was robbed of the great two leaders that Dr Banda feared and admired. 

The great Mumba and the revolutionary Issa Macdonald were nationalists. Those who succeded them were tribalists and Dr Banda saw an opportunity to infiltrate these opportunistic leaders by bribing them with money. Banda even pushed a move for NAC to employ a permanent secretary general to be on his payroll.

Nepotism grew in NAC in the late 40s when Charles Matinga took over leadership and prevented Charles Chinula who was to accompany him to United Kingdom and instead picked Mponda his kinsmen.

Chinula had to use his own money to South Africa where he was to connect to Britain yet his ticket was already bought from UK..only that Matinga handed it to Mponda... Matinga sneaked and dumped a stranded Chinula in South Africa and made his way to UK with Mponda.

After 1950 ... the first radical leaders to emerge as nationalists in Nyasaland to fight this kind of nepotism and recreate the credibility that Mumba and Issa Macdonald installed  were Mikeka Grant Mkandawire, Solomon Hartwell and Rose Chibambo. 

By 1953, Nyasaland African Congress was divided between the moderates... James Ralph Chinyama and  James Sangala on one side... and the radicals radicals, Mikeka Mkandawire, Solomon Hartwell and Rose Chibambo.

During the 1953 federation disturbances, the moderates led by James Ralph Chinyama and Chief Mwase were touring the country in a colonial govt vehicle urging people to stop rioting... meanwhile the radical section led by Mikeka Mkandawire, Solomon Hartwell, Rose Chibambo and J Phambala were on their trail urging the people  to continue rioting. 

Dr Banda failed to come in 1953 partly because of the conflict which ensued between the rival groups.

But why was Mikeka Mkandawire able to undermine and rival the top leaders of Nyasaland African Congress?

Mikeka Mkandawire was the Chairman of the Blantyre Nyasaland African Congress and controlled the most vocal sector of the party.

Mikeka Mkandawire and Solomon Hartwell were the first people in Nyasaland who discovered to use the Ndirande effect to kickstart a revolution.

It was at Solomon Hartwell's, Chichiri house that these two decided to stage the first ever mass rally to be conducted in Nyasaland. 

This first ever protest rally was held at Ndirande on 18th of  August 1953 during the inception of federation of Rhodesia and Nyasaland.

Mikeka and Hartwell goes down into the annals of Nyasaland history for organising the  biggest protest rally of anti federation  in the whole of Central Africa... on 18/08/53 reported in the Nyasaland Times as "Msonkhano wa Imfa ndi Moyo"

In the midst of this fracas...Manowa Chirwa and Clement Kumbikano were chosen by the moderates to represent the Nyasaland natives as MPs at the federal parliament in Salisbury. 

The radicals protested... and Masopera Gondwe, the vice treasurer general of Nyasaland African Congress resigned after he had a big fight with Manowa Chirwa. 

On 6th September 1954, Masopera Gondwe was literally expelled from Nyasaland African Congress for continuing to speak against the native federal MPs. 

In 1955, Mikeka Mkandawire and Hartwell demanded the secession of Nyasaland from the federation and staged an unsuccessful coup d'etat in NAC. 

Kinross Kulujiri, the Secretary General was forced to step down on 2nd February 1955 at Sangala's Moscow house in Ndirande for circulating the radicals views to secceed.

After Masopera Gondwe was expelled... he formed his own party  "The  Congress Peoples Party" famously called ChiPipi. 

Hartwell and Mikeka reacted by moving a motion to impeach Sangala. Hartwell informed the Colonial chief Secretary that ... the radicals have removed Sangala as the leader of NAC and his whole executive. Sangala declared what Mikeka and Hartwell pushed as unconstitutional and held a counter meeting at Kaphilintiya Residence in Ndirande expelling all the radicals from NAC except Rose Chibambo.

Mikeka Mkandawire resigned after Solomon Hartwell, J  Phambala and Kinross Kulujiri were expelled.

Kulujiri's descendants are still in Ndirande to  this day.

But who were Mikeka Mkandawire and Solomon Hartwell?

To be continued...

In the pic Blantyre, Mikeka Mkandawire ✊✊