Comedian-turned-politician Micheal Usi was sworn in as vice-president of Malawi in a ceremony held at parliament in the capital, Lilongwe.
The 55-year-old replaces Saulos Chilimawho died in a plane crash earlier this month, along with eight other people.
Dr. Usi received a standing ovation when he spoke after his inauguration, saying he accepted the role with a mix of sadness and gratitude.
He promised to honor the memory of his predecessor and thanked President Lazarus Chakwera for believing in him as he assumed the role of vice president in the power-sharing government.
His appointment certainly left Malawians divided.
Some were sharing clips from his acting career on social media and questioning whether he is serious enough to take on such an important role.
Others, however, commended President Chakwera for nominating the Chilima party MP and for honoring the spirit of the alliance between their two parties.
Dr. Usi is no stranger to controversy due to his acting career. He is popularly known as “Manganya”, named after a mischievous character he still plays in the popular TV series Tikuferanji.
His publicist told the BBC on Friday that he was filming an episode last week.
He has been a fixture on national radio and television for more than two decades, making him one of the most recognized local celebrities.
Dr Usi has also been a passionate advocate for the development and promotion of Malawi’s film industry, in which it is difficult to make a living.
In fact, he first financed his acting career by working as a hospital clinician. He has a qualification in clinical medicine – most patients in Malawi will be seen by a doctor as the country has a shortage of doctors.
This fueled his passion for improving the situation of poor communities and for many years he worked at the Adventist Development and Relief Agency (Adra), a Christian non-governmental organization.
He served there in a number of roles, including leading the organization as its national director – and through him Adra funded several radio and TV soap operas that also aimed to educate people about HIV and other social issues.
The new vice-president, married and father of two daughters, also has a doctorate in youth development from the University of Bedfordshire, in the United Kingdom.
Despite his position at Adra, his acting career never took a backseat – and he took part in several productions, mainly in the local Chichewa language.
His popularity as a comedian was such that when he founded a political movement about seven years ago, many people thought it was a joke.
That’s because he had a reputation as a trickster – his most famous ploy was to trick people into believing that he had been a good boxer in high school and was thinking about returning to the ring.
He organized a non-title fight against a prominent local boxer. A huge crowd turned up for what they thought was a real boxing match, only to discover it was a scene from one of his television plays.
However, it turned out that his political ambitions were real. His movement was called Odya zake alibe Mulandu, which can be loosely translated as “he who does not take what belongs to others, but only eats what is his, is a free man”.
He quickly became part of a newly formed political party, UTM, led by Dr. Chilima.
This was before the 2019 elections – and Dr Usi and Dr Chilima began speaking at rallies together.
Both being highly eloquent speakers, their meetings often attracted large crowds, and in February 2019, Chilima named his new political associate as his running mate in the vote.
The pair placed third, but the results were annulled by the high court because of irregularities.
In the new elections held in 2020, UTM joined eight other opposition political parties to form an electoral alliance, which chose Dr. Chakwera as its presidential candidate and Dr. Chilima as its running mate, who won.
Dr. Usi, at this stage was the Chilima MP and was appointed in the cabinet as minister of tourism, culture and wildlife, a position he held between July 2020 and February 2023.
He later became minister of natural resources and climate change, a role he held until his elevation to vice president.
Some senior UTM members were conspicuous by their absence at his inauguration on Friday – signaling division in the party over his appointment.
Dr Usi did not shy away from the issue at his inauguration, promising to unite the party so that they could heal and honor the legacy of Chilima, who was considered a magnetic politician with a special connection with the people, especially the youth.
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