Banda, Joyce Hilda, 1950–, Malawian political leader, b. Nyasaland (now Malawi). First elected to parliament in 1999 as a member of the United Democratic Front, she was named minister for gender and community services under President Bakili Muluzi. In 2006 she became foreign minister under President Bingu wa Mutharika. As a member of the Democratic Progressive party (DPP) she ran as Mutharika's running mate in 2009 and was elected vice president. Expelled from the DPP (Dec., 2010) by Mutharika because she refused to endorse his plan to have his brother succeed him as president, she founded the People's party in 2011. After Mutharika died in 2012, she succeeded him despite attempts by the cabinet to block her accession. She ordered an independent investigation into a government corruption scandal that was revealed in 2013; some of her cabinet ministers were arrested and tried. She failed to win reelection in 2014, and was succeeded by Peter Mutharika, her predecessor's brother. Banda lived outside Malawi after the election until 2018. An arrest warrant was issued for her in 2017 in connection with the 2013 scandal, though the 2014 independent report did not accuse her of involvement and Malawi's anticorruption bureau has indicated it has no reliable evidence linking her to the scandal.
The Columbia Electronic Encyclopedia, 6th ed. Copyright © 2024, Columbia University Press. All rights reserved.
See more Encyclopedia articles on: Southern African History: Biographies
