Aleke Kadonaphani Banda (1939 – 9 April 2010) was a

Malawi Malawi (; or aláwi Tumbuka: ''Malaŵi''), officially the Republic of Malawi, is a landlocked country in Southeastern Africa that was formerly known as Nyasaland. It is bordered by Zambia to the west, Tanzania to the north and northeas ...

an politician who served as a Member of Parliament, as

Minister of Finance A finance minister is an executive or cabinet position in charge of one or more of government finances, economic policy and financial regulation. A finance minister's portfolio has a large variety of names around the world, such as "treasury", " ...

, and as Minister of Agriculture in Malawi. He was also co-founder of 'the Nation Publications Limited'. Banda’s life in politics (1953–2008) was devoted intensely to his country as it gained independence from the

United Kingdom The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, commonly known as the United Kingdom (UK) or Britain, is a country in Europe, off the north-western coast of the European mainland, continental mainland. It comprises England, Scotlan ...

in 1964, as it established the political and economic structures of an independent state under

Hastings Kamuzu Banda Hastings Kamuzu Banda (1898 – 25 November 1997) was the prime minister and later president of Malawi from 1964 to 1994 (from 1964 to 1966, Malawi was an independent Dominion / Commonwealth realm). In 1966, the country became a republic and ...

and as it created the framework of a multiparty democracy under Bakili Muluzi. Banda died from

leukemia Leukemia ( also spelled leukaemia and pronounced ) is a group of blood cancers that usually begin in the bone marrow and result in high numbers of abnormal blood cells. These blood cells are not fully developed and are called ''blasts'' or ...

on 9 April 2010.

Early life

Aleke Banda was born in Northern Rhodesia (now

Zambia Zambia (), officially the Republic of Zambia, is a landlocked country at the crossroads of Central, Southern and East Africa, although it is typically referred to as being in Southern Africa at its most central point. Its neighbours are t ...

) and educated in Southern Rhodesia (now

Zimbabwe Zimbabwe (), officially the Republic of Zimbabwe, is a landlocked country located in Southeast Africa, between the Zambezi and Limpopo Rivers, bordered by South Africa to the south, Botswana to the south-west, Zambia to the north, and ...

). His family's home district, however, was

Nkhata Bay Nkhata Bay or just Nkhata is the capital of the Nkhata Bay District in Malawi. It is on the shore of Lake Malawi (formerly Lake Nyasa), east of Mzuzu, and is one of the main ports on Lake Malawi. The population of Nkhata Bay was 14,274 accord ...

, in the northern Region of Malawi. His father worked in

Livingstone, Zambia Livingstone is a city in Zambia. Until 1935, it served as the capital city of Zambia (then Northern Rhodesia). Lying 10 km (6.2 mi) to the north of the Zambezi River, it is a tourism attraction center for the Victoria Falls and a border t ...

, before moving to Moss Mine near Que Que (Kwekwe) in Southern Rhodesia, where Aleke Banda attended school. He became involved in politics from a young age and was imprisoned. In 1959 on release from prison he entered Malawi for the first time. He is believed to be the first cousin of Zambian politician and former President

Rupiah Banda Rupiah Bwezani Banda (19 February 1937 – 11 March 2022) was a Zambian politician who served as the fourth president of Zambia from 2008 to 2011, taking over from Levy Mwanawasa, who died as the sitting president. Banda was an active participan ...

Career

He was the chairman of The Nation Publications Limited, Malawi’s influential private media house that publishes the newspapers '' The Nation, Weekend Nation, Nation on Sunday and FUKO.'' He invited controversial journalist

Ken Lipenga Ken Diston Lipenga (born 14 February 1952) is a Malawian politician, journalist, and writer. He was the Member of Parliament for Phalombe East from 1997 to 2014. He has served in various ministerial positions. Personal life Ken Diston Lipenga w ...

to be a founder and editor in chief of the newspaper, ''The Nation.'' He was imprisoned under the Banda regime for no charge and this was contested by Amnesty International. In communication no. 63/92 Krishna Achuthan appealed to the Commission on behalf of his father-in-law, Aleke Banda. He had been imprisoned for 12 years without legal charge or trial. When Mr. Achuthan met with two successive heads of intelligence of Malawi they confirmed that there no case pending against Mr. Banda, but that he was being held "at the pleasure of the head of state."

Political career

He was

from 1994 to 1997, and Minister of Agriculture from 1997 to 2005. He was also Minister of Health. He was also President of the People's Progressive Movement. Aleke retired from active politics due to his ailment and was hospitalized in

South Africa South Africa, officially the Republic of South Africa (RSA), is the Southern Africa, southernmost country in Africa. It is bounded to the south by of coastline that stretch along the Atlantic Ocean, South Atlantic and Indian Oceans; to the ...

Film

*Lifecycles: A Story of AIDS in Malawi (Documentary Film) - 2003, Played self Minister of HealthAleke Banda
Internet Movie Database. Retrieved August 2011

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Banda, Aleke 1939 births 2010 deaths Deaths from leukemia Finance ministers of Malawi Government ministers of Malawi Members of the National Assembly (Malawi) People's Progressive Movement (Malawi) politicians Deaths from cancer in Malawi