HRDC accuses Attorney General of suffocating Malawi fresh elections

Human Rights Defenders Coalition (HRDC) says the sitting Attorney General (AG) Kalekeni Kaphale is the worst legal advisor to the government and the biggest deterrent to the entrenchment of democracy and good governance in Malawi.

HRDC chairperson Gift Trapance has also condemned Kaphale for allegedly choosing to play partisan politics through the advice it supposedly gives to the government machinery.

Trapence made the remarks in Lilongwe on Tuesday during a media briefing where they announced the postponement of the May 28 nationwide demonstrations.

The protests were planned to force the former Malawi Electoral Commission (MEC) chairperson Jane Ansah to resign from her position following the outcome of the Supreme Court of Appeal in the high profile presidentialeElections appeal case.

“HRDC feels our Attorney General has a hand in the tactics government is playing to delay the fresh presidential election. It’s sad that he is doing that because the courts already found him compromised and; thus, we are not going to allow that he should take this country at ransom,” said Trapence.

“The coalition will not entertain any delaying tactics for the upcoming presidential elections,” he vowed.

Billy Mayaya, who is the HRDC chairperson for the Centre, said Malawians need to be worried that Kaphale is evolving into another ‘Jane Ansah’ of the country.

Mayaya warned that should the AG continue ‘misleading the country’, coalition will not hesitate to mobilize citizens to go on the streets to demand his removal from the position.

In the meantime, the HRDC chairperson has asked President Peter Mutharika to honour his promise that Malawi will have a new MEC Commissioners by June 5 2020.

Trapence emphasized that should the President fail to do so, the coalition will mobilize to hold demonstrations at the State House.

“We feel the Mutharika administration wants to delay the fresh election so that he continues to rule this country beyond his mandate. They want to use a constitutional crisis the failure of holding the poll in 150 days will create to cling to power; and, we are not allowing that,” vowed Trapence.