Goodall insists no money on elections re-run

Finance minister Goodall Gondwe is refusing to bow down to increasing pressure to fund the Lilonngwe south east constituency, saying there is literally no money at present.

In an interview on Thursday, Gondwe said the rerun had not been factored in in the budget.

“May be we will have to look for it now but we don’t have the money,” said Gondwe as the opposition and civil rights groups are piling pressure on government to obey the Supreme Court order.

The court ordered the rerun after massive rigging and irregularities in the 2014 parliamentary election which saw the ruling Democratic Progressive Party sponsored candidate Bentry Namasasu defeating Ulemu Msungama of the Malawi Congress Party.

Unandi Banda, executive director of National Elections Systems Trust said the government has no multiple choice on the matter but obey the court order.

Banda also said the court ruling is a tip on the iceberg on how chaotic the 2014 general election were.

“This shows that even the presidential election had some problems,” he said.

State spies, the National Intelligence Bureau officers were spotted at Malawi Electoral Commission warehouse in Lilongwe just before a fire that gutted the warehouse soon after the High Court ruling to recount the votes in Lilongwe south east constituency.

MEC top officials have since asked for people’s patience and understanding as the pollster is making arrangements to have the rerun.