Malawi president should win 50+1 on regional aggregate – Analyst

A political expert has put forward a suggestion that the ruling party and the main opposition might not be comfortable with that a winning President should be declared winner after getting 50+1 vote aggregate from the three regions respectively.

The Livingstonia University political scientist George Phiri says this would discourage tribal or regional vote which put the President into power.

“Malawi should adopt this system of 50+1 and the final winner should have the 50+1 aggregated from all the three regions,” said Phiri.

Phiri said the winning President should have the 50+1 vote in the south, the centre and north respectively.

“If one gets the 50+1 votes from one region, then it does not represent the whole country,” he said.

The May 21 elections showed that Malawians voted on tribal and regional pattern with the ruling Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) winning in the south where President Peter Mutharika comes from and the Malawi Congress Party (MCP) winning the centre where its leader Lazarus Chakwera comes from.

Malawi uses the  First-Past-the Post (FPTP) after Parliament rejected proposed electoral reforms, including the 50+1 system of electing the president.

Legislators now want to push for electoral reforms that were rejected last time.

Phiri also suggested that in the next elections, political parties should engage credible poll monitors to prevent and control vote rigging and vote manipulation.

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