Mutharika casts doubt on credibility of future Malawi elections
President Peter Mutharika has cast doubt on Malawi holding what would be generally agreed as credible elections in future.
He based his argument on the nullification of the Presidential election by the High Court sitting as Constitutional Court on the basis of irregularities which the court did not prove affected the final result in any way.
“With the decision which the Court has made on the issue of irregularities, we will never, never have a valid and credible election in this country because there will always be some irregularities in any election.
“We have set a precedence by which the next election will be even more disputable,” Mutharika said in his State of the Nation on Friday delivered to parliament through a video link.
Mutharika said Malawi has set a precedence when an election of a Members of Parliament can be nullified just because a well-meaning officer tried to correct a mistake using tippex.
“I was voted by the people as President exactly through the same process that voted for every Member of Parliament and ward councillors.
“From today, anyone can now rush to Court and demand nullification of an election because an officer corrected an error even if that correction does not affect the result of the election. Is that the Malawi we want?” he wondered.
He said the essence of an election is that people must go into office by the will of the people.
President Mutharika added that in every modern democracy, the will of the people is in the numbers that vote for us.
He observed that the court failed to show or prove that irregularities affected the result of the election.
“In as far as the result of an election is intact, then the will of the people prevails. We cannot, and we should never, nullify an election if any irregularities do not affect the results of the election. Nullifying an election is nullifying the will of the people,” he said.
He, therefore, urged Parliament “to set right what is not right”, apparently through passing relevant legislation.
“I raise these matters before this House because we represent the people. Some of the politicians destroying this country are not even represented in this House. I raise these matters because I have one plea to Parliament. For the sake of developing our country, for the sake of the people, let us use our authority to set right what is not right,” he said.
Due to coronavirus situation which necessitated reduction of congestion at Parliament, the State of the Nation was a recorded one. It was titled “Balancing Development and Politics: Renewing Our Love for Our Country”.
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It is the level of irregularities old man and the systematic way of how those irregularities were crafted. You are saying this because as we speak you are already planning to do the same. This time around akulu, you wont survive the cheating. Kwanu kwatha kapumeni and muchepetseso kachasu
I can see the anger of the Lord upon APM and his advisors and yet they are too blinded to see it. when the Lord turns his back against you….Mr caretaker you will curse the day you were born, this is just the beginning…..
Kodi aja anagwidwa for trying to bribe the judges alikuti.? These toothless dogs needs to be shut permanently.khalidwe la ugogodi,uthyopi,ukathyali.
As long as there are perceived irregularities, the courts will be overlwhelmed after every election especially for ward councilors and members of parliament. What is to stop any loser to seek the same remedy, despite the irregularity not changing the outcome of that election. That is the standard that Malawi courts have set. This is what Apm was talking about when he said, learned countries are laughing at us. The next election will not put matters to rest, there will be a lot of fighting
Because you knew what your speech contains, that is why you sort of recording it for fear of being embarased once again for your continued emptiness of the brain from a person who calls himself a law professor. How on earth can such a law professor wondered why use of tippex can be ruled as an offside kick? Do you really mean it or just crying for peoples sympathy for you to remain in power? Am sorry to tell you in the face that agogo Malawi wa tulo uja amene bambo wake wa runningmate wanu ankamunamiza nsapato uja anapita.This is… Read more »
Ufuna ndi tukwane mesa that level is gone we moved to another level why is he talking about courts and judges this guy is very mad 😡 he don’t act like a professional man.
DPP should feel ashamed to be led by this Mtchona.
It is time that the foolish judges know that parliament is SUPREME and SOVEREIGN.
Mutharika is right. We all know that that flawed and biased judgement was planned by Chilima, Chakwera, Joyce Banda and her husband former Chief Justice Richard Banda, Mtambo, Kasambara….
So now the case has moved to Parliament after the court, heheh You will fail again. We have lots of leaders who can do well on your position Boss. Thank you for the speech but it won’t work in that way