Chilima disowns ultraviolet gadgets UTM monitors unlawfully used in Malawi elections

As hearing of the historic continues in the Constitutional Court sitting in Lilongwe, the former Vice President, Dr Saulos Klaus Chilima disowned the ultraviolet gadgets that some unscrupulous UTM Party monitors were unlawfully using during the monitoring of the May 21 elections.

Lawyer Frank Mbeta representing first respondent President Peter Mutharika  on Friday showed Chilima pictures of some gadgets and asked  about use of unusual gadgets by UTM monitors who were arrested by police during the election period.

Chilima disowned the gadgets stating that he only knew about the torches and phones that he gave the party monitors.

When quizzed by Mbeta whether it was right for the police to arrest and question UTM monitors for being found in possession of the unknown gadgets, Chilima told the court that it was right for the police to arrest the monitors and that such an arrest did not amount to an anomaly in the elections.

But Dr Chikosa Silungwe , lawyer for Chilima, asked the Court to remove the question on gadgets, saying the picture circulated is not on court record  and Chilima has been ambushed with the pictures.

Silungwe said the use of suspicious gadgets was  introduced to justify the arrest of some UTM monitors during the elections.

Mbeta, however,  explained  that the question had  risen from claims by Chilima in his petition that some UTM monitors were arrested during elections without any reason.

The Court ruled that Chilima should answer the questions.

Mbeta also played three audio recordings of President Peter Mutharika’s speech after the election and also of Malawi Electoral Commission (MEC) CEO Sam Alfandika who told journalists that a polling officer was arrested in Mzimba for giving voters pre-marked ballot. The audio clips were submitted to court by Chilima as an exhibit to the court.

Mutharika’s lawyer however did not ask Chilima questions about the recordings and is expected to do so on Monday when the court will resume.

The five-judge panel of Healey Potani, Mike Tembo, Dingiswayo Madise, Redson Kapindu and Ivy Kamanga has since adjourned the case to Monday, August 19 for continued cross-examination of Chilima.

The UTM leader is expected to face cross-examination of other lawyers representing Mutharika—Charles Mhango and Chancy Gondwe.

The Malawi Supreme Court of Appeal on Thursday dismissed, with costs, an appeal President Mutharika and MEC had filed to throw out the ongoing presidential election petition case.

The ruling paved the way for the Constitutional Court to continue hearing the case from Chilima and his Malawi Congress Party (MCP) counterpart, Lazarus Chakwera, who are disputing results of Mutharika’s re-election.