Court sets to August 20  case on nullification of  2019 parliamentary elections

The High Court in Lilongwe has adjourned to August 20 a case in which some electorates and defeated parliamentary hopefuls  are pushing for nullification of  2019 parliamentary elections.

The petitioners argue that just like in the nullified presidential election, the parliamentary elections had several irregularities.

They say the presidential and parliamentary election go hand in hand and the irregularities in presidential election also applied in the parliamentary, therefore there is need to nullify the parliamentary elections too.

The High Court sat on Wednesday to give directions on how to proceed with the case.

However, the court had not finished looking into some preliminary issues that would help shape the case.

Judge Ruth Chinangwa has since adjourned the case to August 20, 2020 so that the court finalizes the outstanding issues.

Jessie Kabwila, who contested and lost  in the May 21 parliamentary race on a UTM Party ticket in Salima North West Constituency, said the irregularities as confirmed by the five-judge panel of the High Court of Malawi sitting as the Constitutional Court in the presidential election nullification petition were not exclusive to the presidential race as the process run concurrently.

But lawyer Justin Dzonzi ydescribed the move by the defeated aspirants and former MPs as “insane” and a vain attempt.

He said if the proponents of the move “had bothered to read the law, they could have realised that their claim is statutory barred”.

The five-judge panel comprising Healey Potani, Redson Kapindu, Ivy Kamanga, Mike Tembo and Dingiswayo Madise nullified the presidential election in the May 21 2019 Tripartite Elections .

In one successful parliamentary election petition, on December 20 2019 High Court Judge Sylvester Kalembera ordered MEC to conduct a re-run in Mangochi West Constituency on the basis of what he described as “irregularities and inconsistencies in the results”, but fell short of declaring the petitioner, Simeon Harrison, an independent candidate, the winner. MEC had declared DPP candidate Geoffrey Chiwondo, the winner.

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