LILONGWE, Malawi 

Arthur Peter Mutharika was sworn-in Saturday as Malawi’s seventh president following a landslide victory in the Sept. 16 general elections.

The 85-year-old former law professor warned public officers and officials from his Democratic Progressive Party against “plundering the country’s resources for personal gains.”

“The honeymoon of looting is now over. You are now dealing with a different president. I will not allow anyone to destroy this country under my watch. Whoever will be involved in corrupt practices, I will go after him. I have come to bring sanity and restore discipline in all sectors of government,” Mutharika said at a ceremony that was marked by military parades and traditional dances in the commercial city of Blantyre.

He said his presidency marks the dawn of a new era in the southeast African country, which calls for a transformation to rescue Malwai from a “serious crisis.”

“Malawi is in the middle of a crisis. I have therefore come with a comprehensive rescue plan that would help to rebuild this nation, which has been wantonly destroyed. It won’t be easy. It’s going to be very tough. I therefore don’t promise you milk and honey. I promise you hard work and patience, he said. “I urge all of you, irrespective of your party affiliations, to work with me, so that together we can bring back this country on a path of economic prosperity.”

Mutharika first became president in 2014, but his re-election victory in 2019 was nullified by the Constitutional Court following “massive irregularities.” Lazarus Chakwera won the 2020 court-sanctioned elections

The ceremony was attended by Emmerson Mnangagwa and Daniel Chapo, presidents of Zimbabwe and Mozambique, respectively. Also in attendance were representatives from other member countries of the Southern Africa Development Community (SADC).

Chakwera was barred from attending the ceremony. Former presidents Joyce Banda and Bakili Muluzi were in attendance.

Seven million eligible Malawians went to the polls last month to elect a new president, members of parliament and councilors to govern for the next five years.

Seven presidential hopefuls took part in the elections, but Chakwera and Mutharika were front-runners in the hotly contested poll.