Chakwera’s key witness testimony delays due to network problems

A celebrated sixth Malawi Congress Party (MCP) witness Daud Sulemani in the ongoing landmark election case could not take up  to use he  Elections Data Management System by the Malawi Electoral Commission (MEC) to demonstrate that the elections results were manipulated digitally because the gadgets failed to work due to network problems.

IT experts including those from the electoral body were busy in the morning installing the gadgets and the network, climbing up the court roof top to install more equipment to help on the connectivity.

The court was forced to adjourn in the morning to allow the experts install the gadgets and is expected to resume sitting this afternoon after notified that there are technical challenges in connecting the computers to the internet.

Attorney General Kalekeni Kaphale said the network was important to ensure the system is ready for use by the witness, Sulemani.

Sulemani is expected to use elections data management system to demonstrate that the elections were rigged by a hacker who manipulated results digitally in favour of president Peter Mutharika.

MEC’S  application  to court to either discharge or vary its earlier ruling that allowed the witness to use the commission’s gadgets and servers, citing security concerns as doing so would compromise the integrity of the system, was dismissed on Tuesday as “frivolous”.

Kaphale said the court has since “perfectly balanced the conflicting interests of security of the servers and the need for the public to know.”

He raised concerns about connectivity.

After Sulemani demonstration of his evidence in court, lawyers for MEC and President Peter Mutharika will proceed to cross-examine the witness.

MCP presidential hopeful Lazarus Chakwera and UTM president Sauloss Chilima are challenging the results of the May 21, 2019 presidential elections in which Mutharika was declared winner.