BLANTYRE, Malawi — Barely a week after dissolving cabinet, Malawi's President Peter Mutharika named a new cabinet on Thursday, roping in new members from his electoral new alliance partners.

In a surprise move last Friday, the beleaguered Mutharika dissolved cabinet and early this week he sacked the army chief -- his latest political manoeuvering after his May re-election was annulled over vote-rigging.

In a landmark ruling last month the Constitutional Court ordered the holding of fresh presidential poll within 150 days, but Mutharika is attempting to quash the fresh election.

In the new cabinet, Mutharika kept the bulk of his former cabinet drawn from his Democratic Progressive Party (DPP).

But he has brought on board an independent lawmaker and three opposition legislators from a party he has partnered with ahead of the election re-run expected in May.

Mutharika's DPP earlier this month partnered with the opposition United Democratic Front led by Atupele Muluzi -- the son of former president Bakili Muluzi -- whose party came fourth in last year's election.

"He has selected individuals from all around the country so that he has enough foot soldiers to enable him to retain power in the May elections," said political analyst Humpreys Mvula

Earlier on Thursday, the country's largest opposition, the Malawi Congress Party (MCP) and United Transformation Movement (UTM) signed an electoral alliance at a ceremony attended by thousands of supporters in the capital Lilongwe. — AFP