Malawi’s ‘Tipp-Ex parliament’ faces court challenge for fresh election
One of the commissioners at Malawi Electoral Commission (MEC), Linda Kunje has amplified the call by some electoral stakeholders that the court should to scrub out the results of the parliamentary elections and order fresh elections as it did in annulling presidential election, saying the correction fluid Tipp-ex that was used to alter results and the MEC which legislators were condemning ushered most of them into the National Assembly.
Kunje, fearless speaking commissioner, was regarded by Parliament’s Public Appointments Committee (PAC) inquiry as being rude in some of her utterance and action.
But Kunje, who has shared her sound resume to the inquiry, stuck to her guns.
“The same election whose competence you question today is the same election that put you members where you are today,” said Kunje, a former university lecture.
Her argument was that legislators have no moral ground to question the credibility of the presidential elections results when they were elected under the same compromised electoral system during the May 21 2019 Tripartite Elections.
In her narrative, Kunje was hinting MPs that those who seek equity must come with clean hands.
The inquiry follows a landmark ruling the court delivered on February 3 nullifying the May 21 2019 presidential election and ordering a fresh poll within 150 days, citing anomalies and irregularities.
Meanwhile, over 100 former Members of Parliament who lost the 2019 parliamentary elections have filed an application at the High Court seeking order nullifying the outcome of the polls, citing similar irregularities that saw the results of presidential elections being declared null and void last week.
The Constitutional Court on February 3 ordered the nullification of presidential results and called for fresh elections over the next five months.
The application has been filed by Peter Bvalani and Dr Jessie Kabwila – on her own behalf and on behalf of other former MPs.
The matter was assigned to Zomba Registry of the High Court but has been transferred to Lilongwe High Court following the unavailability of Judge Zione Ntaba.
Frmer members, Frank Mwenefumbo and Henryb Mussa said there should be a rerun of the parliamentary and council elections since the Constitutional Court has found the Electoral Commission wrong in managing the polls.
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THERE IS NEED FOR THE ENTIRE TRIPATITE ELECTIONS TO BE CONDUCTED!!!!! OTHERWISE IF ONLY THE PRESIDENTIAL IS CONDUCTED, THEN ABOLISH THE ENTIRE TRIPATITE ELECTIONS BECAUSE THERE WILL ALWAYS BE CONTRADICTIONS IN THE TERMS OF THE PRESIDENT AND PARLIAMENTARIANS AS SUCH THEY WILL ALWAYS BE CONTRADICTIONS!!!!!! IF NO PRESIDENT GUNNERS 50+1 IT MEANS TWO OR THREE RERUNS WIL HAVE TO BE CONDUCTED AND PROBABLY MAY TAKE 6 MONTHS AFTER THE MPS HAVE ALREADY BEEN USHERED INTO POWER!!!!!
The issue was about presidential results.She should tell the people why did they use tippex or allow tippex to shine.If tippex was used on Members of the parliament results, then who was wrong here. I believe the one who used tippex. MEC is to blame not Members of parliament.Mayiwa anangosowa chonena basitu, Zonse ziyipe.She is too rude to be one of commissioners of MEC .
Kunje moto kuti buuuuuuuuuuuuu! She is honest and spoke without fear
the comment shows more of your stupidity and IQ level! Thus the very incompetent they are talking about!! ndafakale mentality
I absolutely agree. Let these Mps honourable resign.
Illegal MP’s thoug painful but Linda Kunje has spoken plain truth please honourably accept she is very honest about this.You can’t claim to be MP’s when the tippex that was condemnedd by the Judges ushered you also in Parliament.Please resign honorably before the judgment backfires on you.
malawi with a non tangible rotten so called system.full of whores ammm d bastards
We teach all world , commissioners muyende bwino, osaiwala kubweza ndalama za a dad
It’s enlightening to hear commissioners like Kunje admitting that ‘not all was well’ in the electoral management system. However, assuming that ‘MEC’ was the vehicle whose driver was Justice Ansah assisted by the C.E.O. as bus conductor carrying the presidential and parliamentary candidates as passengers, now that the ‘bus’ has crashed, is it not possible that the honourable MPs be counted lucky to have escaped ‘unhurt’ by the same ‘accident’ that has severely injured the driver and fatally wounded one of the presidential candidates, the accident intended to save? Kunje’s argument appears to suggest that she feels if one passenger dies in the same bus accident, why should all the other passengers be spared? Forgive my simplistic analogy kkkkkk. My point is, the petitioners targeted the presidential polls only in their complaints, while other losing individual MPs, where they have sufficient evidence, have gone to complain to the courts. The Cocourt ruling was focused on the presidential results having meticulously examined the evidence brought before them. This is why some ‘lucky’ passengers have escaped the ‘MEC’ bus accident!. It’s not their fault that they have somehow escaped!To the 120 losing MPs that now seek to use the Concourt judgement as a basis to advance their own greedy personal interests, let them remember that they had their chance to put things right when the 50% + 1 electoral reform was tabled before them two years ago and they shot it down after pocketing their share of the MK4 billion dangled before them as a carrot! They cannot cry foul now. Malawi is never going to be the same after this Concourt judgement. It is going to be pretty tough for those who join politics to accumulate great wealth at the expense the poor masses of Malawians.
I tend to differ with your analogy because the issue which is being pursued is about violation of the constitution so this did not spare MPs and councillors so Kunje MPs are right in demanding nullification of the tripartite elections
What does the law say. All those people who had a reason to challenge the results as some did went to court within specified time period.
Lets not follow the law here but the reality bcoz if MEC is faulted for violation of consitution so ignore MPs to make petition within the specified time. When they kept quiet they felt all went on well but if it has been ruled in the other way round so need for tripartite elections.
Dear Commissioner Linda Kunje,
I write to apply to you that you become my friend, sister and aunt. I was excited to hear your responses to PAC yesterday. To me you are an honest lady intellectual who can speak your mind without fear and trepidation. Please answer my letter.
Yours truly,
Parallel Market
I sincerely take this as shallow thinking……………! Was it MPs’ making to be at parliament? I thought it was MEC that told them that they had won the election and should go to parliament?
Take this, every time a student is told by her school that s/he has passed an exam and can proceed to the next level, s/he reacts accordingly………………………! Can we blame the child, if somebody claims there were some cheating towards the elevation of the student?
Kodi moti Linda sakuona kuti popeza ma MP wa sanakonze okha kuti apezeke ku parliament, zikapita ku court, nanwonso akhoza kusumila MEC for cheating them? If that happens who will shoulder the cost?
If the MPs were told after election that the election they participated in was cancelled because of irregularities, could they be in parliament today? Nde panopo why blame them? Kunje nso nde ndi Kunje di eeeeeeeeeeeee!!
Kunje Malawi can never develop with this type of thinking by people like you who claim to be professionals! Mind you, the courts saw this and this was the very reason why it (court) moved parliament to check on capacity and competence of these fools…..!!
Decisions like these will cost us Malawians heavily!! Isn’t MEC not told to pay the two petitioners? Specifically isn’t it us Malawians to square that big bill! But out of pompousness they have gone to Supreme Court of Appeal, if they loose, litigation will be on us Malawians again!! What is this Lindaaaaaaaaaaaaa and Mathanga!!
Kunje is right. The elections were affected by tippex and therefore former MPs need to be reinstated just like VP Chilima until we hold fresh elections.
Who allowed the election to be affected by Tipp-Ex? And who had powers to take out affected votes and term them null and void? The contention is that Linda termed the MPs as beneficiaries of the Tipp-Ex elections, more less like the MPs themselves or somebody else not MEC declared them winners, when in fact it was herself and team that did it! Did MEC deliberately termed them winners to seek obedience and or submission to MEC? Kodi amene alipile for these blunders ndani? Why should we be taken at ransom by these incompetent people!!
If those MPs they know they won without the help of someone, Then there is nothing to worry if results will be nullified as well.They have to contest again.
Miss Kunje revealed, through anger that MPs and the President were put on those positions by commissioners using tippex, and not by voters, therefore the commissioners must be respected. I think the president has already ‘respected’ the commissioners and the MPs have not yet done so, hence the anger.
And this was a key reason why dpp had so many MPs that were declared winners! The Commissioners played the cards through Tipp-Ex!! Apapatu she was attacking the likes of Kachikho within the PAC!
This is total nonsense, where were you all this time, were you waiting for court verdict on presidantial case inorder to file your pertition, do you have evidence for that, can you prove that to the court, its not that becouse the presidential results have been nullified then MPs results should also be nullified, unless if you can come up with clear evidence for that to be nullified.
Actually we want to perfect the presidential elections this time to a void too much work as well as riging, so stop your nonsenses, if you want you can do that after fresh presidential elections are done, dont delay us. mxieww.
Do you know that even the presidential petitioners filed their arguments after the expiry of the legal period to do so but the court accepted..Justice Kapindu said no compliance of petition period should not be the basis to deny to right to be heard…In the same vein the MPs have a right to be heard…..
Well pumped in his head.
I love criminals.
Eya koma chilungamo chabwela ndi mukomo Malawi kuwala kwafikadi eti
kkkkk koma kumeneko.
koma pachilungamo chake pakufunika zisankho zama MP ndima khasala tiponyeso,chifukwa MEC mukuti yowola yo ndiyomwe inayenetsaso zisankho za MP ndi Khansala kkkk kwakoma ku Malawi
Totally agree. There is need for new elections for MPs and councillors.