Malawi Electoral Commission won’t re-open voter registration
Malawi Electoral Commission (MEC) has said it will not re-open voter registration after it has registered 6.8 million eligible voters at the end of the phased registration exercise for the May 21 2019 Tripartite Elections in the country’s 28 districts, representing 81 percent of projected figure.
Opposition Malawi Congress Party (MCP) had pressed MEC to consider reopening the registration exercise in the first phase districts – Kasungu, Dedza and Salima – where thousands of people failed to register.
Chief Elections Officer Sam Alfandika said in a media statement made available to Nyasa Times dated November 16 2018, that the minimum statutory 14 days registratiob period for each registration centre was duly observed.
Alfandika said there was also sufficient awareness and mobilisation campaign for the voters registration.
“The Commission would like to declare the voter registration exercise successful and determine that it will not re-open registration centres,” said Alfandika.
MCP spokesman Maurice Munthali said their concerns were genuine but said the party has resolved not to fight on the matter anymore.
But according to statistics released by the electoral body, there is a 664 521 drop in the registration figures from the 7.5million registered for the May 20 2014 Tripartite Elections.
The youth—at a total of 3.7 million comprising 2.1 million females and 1.6 males—make up 54 percent of the total registered voters, according to the MEC report.
The statistics indicate that out of the total 6.8 million eligible voters registered, women are in majority at 3.8 million compared to three million males.
In terms of breakdown by district, the registration figures show that in the Central Region, Kasungu registered 325 301, Salima 170 427, Dedza 302 623, Dowa 325 062, Nkhotakota 178 606, Mchinji 241 490, Ntchisi 129 980, Lilongwe 1 013 414 and Ntcheu 228 579.
In the Southern Region, Blantyre has 498 999, Mwanza 48 325, Chikwawa 258 968, Balaka 155 754 and Neno 55 998 registered voters. Other districts in the region have 279 128 for Thyolo, Phalombe 167 613, Mulanje 281 167, Mangochi 402 163, Zomba 319 294, Nsanje 145 528, Machinga 250 973 and Chiradzulu 145 674.
In the Northern Region, Chitipa has 95 777, Karonga 146 587, Rumphi 96 753, Mzimba 478 435, Likoma 6 946 and Nkhata Bay 106 731 voters.
MEC opened the registration exercise in June this year and it ended on November 9.
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