MCP key witness Suleman gets standing ovation: Finishes examination-in-chief in Malawi poll case

Malawi Congress Party (MCP) celebrated sixth witness Daudi Suleman, an IT expert.  has received a rare standing ovation from people as he stepped down from the Constitutional Court in the landmark election case after his examination-in-chief.

Joyous people ululated and escorted  the witness to second petitioner Lazarus Chakwera to his vehicle after adjournment following his impressive evidence in the court.

This was after Suleman finished  demonstrating before the panel of five judges hearing the elections case, how Malawi Electoral Commission (MEC) computerised election result management system (RMS) was allegedly breached by a ‘ghost’ operator to change the results of the presidential elections in favour of incumbent Peter Mutharika.

In his simulation, Suleman exposed 4846 tally sheet results which he said were approved by a “ghost user”.

Chakwera’s lead lawyer Modecai Msisha said Suleman had demonstrated clearly how the elections were manipulated, saying the demonstration was “very firm and specific” on its evidence.

“The witness has been able to show how the system would have been manipulated to create results that do not match the reality. He has demonstrated step-by-step what happens with a database and how computer systems keep trails of whatever has happened in the system,” said Msisha.

He further said the demonstration and simulation by Suleman has enabled them to establish a lot of things that may have gone wrong during the whole electoral process.

“The demonstration is specific and firm that the system was tampered with,”” he added.

Attorney General Kalekeni Kaphale, who is representing MEC, said MEC’s legal team  is set to start cross-examining Suleman in the afternoon.

Kaphale pleaded for the 3pm time for the cross examination, saying he needed more time to consult electoral body’s IT experts.

MEC declared President Peter Mutharika of DPP winner of the presidential race with 1 940 709 votes or 38.57 percent. He was trailed by Chakwera with 1 781 740 votes (35.41 percent) while Saulos Chilima of UTM Party came third with 1 018 369 votes or 20.24 percent and ahead of four other candidates.

Chilima and Chakwera are seeking nullification of the results over alleged irregularities. The Constitutional Court is currently hearing the case.