EC cleaning voters roll in readiness for 2014 polls

Malawi Electoral Commission is cleaning the voters’ rolls and preparing for the next general elections, Chief Elections Officer David Bandawe has disclosed.

“We are in a period of post election. We have just produced the report, very shortly the general public will have a report of the (May 2009) elections,” Bandawe told Capital Radio’s Straight Talk programme on Thursday.

“We are now concentrating in the preparation for the next general elections,” he said. “We are cleaning our voters roll.”

Straight Talk host Brian Banda asked the Chief Elections Officer to shed light if the country is going to hold local government elections this year.

“The minister of local government I think held a press conference recently stating that there will be local government elections between May and December,” said Bandawe.

Asked to comment on the recent constitutional amendment in the constitution giving the President powers to call the date for local government elections, Bandawe said: “Whatever is stated in the bill as Commission since we abide by law, we will follow it.  If it is in the law we will have to abide by it.”

Pressed by the presenter to comment on his opinion if giving powers to the President to call for elections is in step to holding ‘credible’ polls, Chief Elections Officer said: “My opinion is we will follow what is stated in the law.”

Bandawe said the May 2009 polls which President Bingu wa Mutharika won a landslide mandate renewal and his party gained absolute majority seats in parliament were “credible”.

“There were free and fair although this time around we don’t use these words,” he said.

“In electoral process we no longer use those terms. We now use credible,” said Bandawe.

The Chief Elections Officer said reports compiled by observers from European Union, Commonwealth, African Union, SADC parliamentary forum point to the fact the elections were “credible”.

“The conditions were fair for all the competitors to compete on a level playing field. You know in an election people will always state so many things.  But I would say conditions that existed that time never gave an advantage anybody over others,” he said.

He denied that he was a “plant” of the ruling party to help it in the elections.

“As Electoral Commission we operate independently. We don’t take instructions from anybody else. That’s what I have been following. And I don’t think I was a plant. I perform according to the instructions that are issued to me or directives that are issued to me by the Electoral Commission and not any other organ,” he said.

Bandawe has been involved in elections since 1992 when he was “man-in-charge” of the referendum and was involved to supervise the elections again in 1994. In 1999 elections he was deputy chief elections officer and currently is Chief Elections Officer.

“I have vast experience in the holding of the elections. Over and above that I have attended several workshops and seminars and as well I have done attachments in the House of Commons in Canada specific to do with elections,” he said.

Bandawe explained that the Electoral Commission is headed by the Chairperson and the decisions are taken by the Commission: “and those decisions are implemented by the secretariat. As chief elections officer I am there to implement decision that are taken by the Commission.”

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