Malawi election case key witness Suleman receives death threat

Death threats have been made against  Daud Suleman the key witness for  second petitioner Lazarus Chakwera (Malawi Congress Party president) in the presidential election results nullification petition at the Constitutional Court in Lilongwe.

Suleman, an information technology (IT) expert who made a simulation of the elections results management system in court, explaining  and  demonstrating how data was allegedly manipulated in the system informed the five-panel judges that he is living dangerously.

He wanted to raise security issues in the court, but Attorney General  Kalekeni Kaphale abruptly objected that he should not say anything after re-examination has been done.

Justice Ivy Kamanga proposed that the issue arising at the private home belonging to Suleman should be discussed in the chamber.

Chakwera’s lead lawyer Modecai Msisha confirmed that the matter was discussed in the chamber and that the Attorney General assured the other parties that government will guarantee protection of witnesses.

He said: “The witness has indeed reported that some unidentified people approached his village [in Thyolo] and delivered some threatening messages. It was on account of him being a witness in court… That is what we discussed.”

Msisha said the AG pledged to use the State machinery to investigate the claim.

At the end of his testimony  on Thursday during friendly-re-examination,  the IT expert exposed that Malawi Electoral Commssion (MEC ) chairperson Jane Ansah announced results when over 4000 results sheets had not been approved.

Suleman demonstrated how data was allegedly manipulated in the MEC system.

The witness told the court that  Ansah, a judge of the Malawi Supreme Court of Appeal, announced final results excluding 4 836 result sheets that had not yet been approved. He added that 3 677 results sheets were yet to be processed by the time of announcement.

Kaphale, who is representing MEC as the second respondent, alongside lawyer Frank Mbeta for first respondent President Peter Mutharika, raised objections to stop Suleman, but were overruled.

In the case,  first petitioner Saulos Chilima (UTM Party president) and second petitioner Chakwera (Chakwera are seeking nullification of the presidential election results in the May 21 2019 Tripartite Elections and an order for a rerun.

The court earlier projected that it would conclude hearing the case by December 6 and that the judges would deliver their verdict within 45 days from the date.