05/10/2025
President Mutharika Announces partial Cabinet
President Arthur Peter Mutharika has made a series of new cabinet and official appointments with immediate effect, according to a press release from the Office of the President and Cabinet dated October 5, 2025.
Among the major appointments is the naming of the Right Honourable Enock Kanzingeni Chihana as the Second Vice President of the Republic of Malawi.
Other notable appointments include Honourable George Chaputala Chaponda as Minister of Foreign Affairs, and Honourable Joseph Mathyola Mwanamvekha as Minister of Finance, Economic Planning and Development.
Honourable Alfred Ruwan Gangata has been appointed Minister of State, while Lieutenant General George Alexander Jafu has been elevated to Chief of Defence for the Malawi Defence Force (MDF).
In the civil service, Dr. Justin Sadack K. Saidi has been appointed Chief Secretary to the Government, with Mr. Stuart Naison Medison Ligomeka serving as Deputy Chief Secretary. Mr. Kiswell Dakamau has been named Director of State Residences.
The President has also made key appointments in the Malawi Police Service. Mr. Richard Chakupaleza Chikoko Luhanga becomes the Inspector General of Police, while Mr. Stain Bamusi Chaima and Mr. Mlowoka Noel Kaira have been appointed Deputy Inspectors General responsible for Operations and Administration, respectively.
According to the statement signed by Dr. Maxwell S. Tsitsi, Chief Secretary to the Government, all the appointments take effect immediately.
Below is the full list of new appointments:
1. Enock Kanzingeni Chihana – Second Vice President
2. Alfred Ruwan Gangata – Minister of State
3. George Chaputala Chaponda – Minister of Foreign Affairs
4. Joseph Mathyola Mwanamvekha – Minister of Finance, Economic Planning and Development
5. Richard Chakupaleza Chikoko Luhanga – Inspector General of Police
6. Mlowoka Noel Kaira – Deputy Inspector General (Administration)
7. Stain Bamusi Chaima – Deputy Inspector General (Operations)
8. Lieutenant General George Alexander Jafu – Chief of Defence, Malawi Defence Force
9. Dr. Justin Sadack K. Saidi – Chief Secretary to the Government
10. Stuart Naison Medison Ligomeka – Deputy Chief Secretary
11. Kiswell Dakamau – Director of State Residences
Meanwhile, the newly appointed Chief of Defence, Lieutenant General George Alexander Jafu, brings extensive experience to the role. He joined the Malawi Defence Force in 1988 and has served as Inspector General, Chief of Staff at Joint Headquarters, and Military Adviser to Malawi’s Permanent Mission to the United Nations in New York.
In May 2024, he was appointed Deputy Commander of the MDF. He holds a Master’s Degree in Strategic Management from Derby University in the United Kingdom and has completed several advanced military training courses, including Joint Operations Planning and UN Military Observer Training.
Born on 19 November 1962, Lieutenant General Jafu hails from Mpondasi Village, Traditional Authority Mponda, in Mangochi District.
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