Malawi’s Vice President, Saulos Chilima on Wednesday publicly accused the country’s president, Peter Mutharika of presiding over a government that was riddled with corruption as he announced his resignation from the ruling party.

The development has now paved the way for Chilima, who was handpicked by President Mutharika to run alongside himself in the 2014 elections on the platform of the Democratic People’s Party (DPP) to contest the country’s presidency.

His dramatic decision to quit the DPP has exposed a widening rift in the ruling party, which has come under heavy criticism for alleged corruption and massive looting of the country’s resources.

“We must give this country a new lease of life. We must clean this country. We must drain the swamp.

“Despite all the sacrifices that our forefathers made, our nation remains one of the poorest. Nepotism, cronyism and corruption are rampant and only those connected continue to benefit,” Chilima said at a media conference held in Lilongwe.

“We must give this country a new lease of life. We must clean this country. We must drain the swamp,” he added.

Chilima’s shock move comes as calls have mounted from within the DPP for him to challenge the 79-year-old Mutharika, who has ruled the country for four years.

While Chilima holds no leadership position in the ruling party, several top leaders calling themselves the ‘Chilima Movement’ have called on the 45-year-old to oppose Mutharika during the party’s next conference.

Chilima says he would follow the procedure and leave the DPP and  declined to rule out a run in 2019’s presidential polls in the country.

Speculations are however rife that former president, Joyce Banda, 68, who returned home in April after four years in exile following allegations of corruption, could be preparing a bid for the presidency.