Parliament pass bill not to extend 50%+1 system to MPs, Councillors: Only for presidency
Malawi Parliament has passed the Parliamentary and Presidential Elections (amendment) Bill which seeks to direct that 50-percent-plus-one vote threshold should not be used in deciding winners to parliamentary and local government elections but candidates should they be elected with a simple majority (first past the post).
The passing of the Bill to clarify Section 96(5) of the Parliamentary and Presidential Elections Act entails that only presidential candidates should be elected with majority votes of 50%+1.
Minister of Justice Titus Mvalo presented the Bill in Parliament and indicated that it would be expensive to hold several parliamentary and local government elections when candidates fail to amass the majority of votes (50%±1).
In the May 21 2019 Tripartite Elections, the results show that only 66 candidates in the 192 constituencies contested out of 193 hit the 50-percent-plus-one vote threshold. The results show that 23 of the candidates were affiliated to Democratic Progressive Party (DPP), 22 to Malawi Congress Party (MCP), 17 were independents, two were for UTM Party and one each for United Democratic Front and People’s Party.
This means that if the electoral body were to apply the 50-percent-plus-one vote threshold parliamentary election reruns would have been conducted in 126 constituencies.
The judgement of the High Court of Malawi sitting as the Constitutional Court and upheld by the Malawi Supreme Court of Appeal, the definition of “majority” in determining a winner in the election is 50-percent-plus-one.
But the passing of the Bill entails that only presidential candidates should be elected with majority votes 50%+1.
Members of Parliament from both sides of the House were in support of the Bill.
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So, according to our poor and corrupt judges, the term “majority” means 50+1 for the presidential election only, but in the rest of elections, the same word “majority” simply means having more votes than the other. What kind of law interpretation is this? Isn’t this laughable?
Thats very excellent, MPs should be together when it comes to important matters for the Nation.
I don’t know about that. The only reason they voted for the bill is that they don’t want to spend too much money campaigning. Many of these campaigns consist of handouts, and reruns would simply bankrupt our MPs.
Beter
Rank hypocrisy. What’s good for the goose is also good for the gander. Makes no philosophical sense to argue that presidential elections should use 50%+1 while the other elections should be by first-past-the-post.
But it makes a hell of economic sense in a dead poor country like ours. And for this, I support the bill strongly.
Inn a rerun should one competetor die will the party be allowed to field another candidate and if so will this election be called a rerun or fresh elections.
Actually the Presidential one is more expensive. Whatever we do in constituencies is a miniature of what we do to the nation as a whole. If the law is going to be manipulated and changed willy nilly like this then for sure we are doomed. If 50 +1 ensures legitimacy of the elected office bearer at national level, don’t you think its necessary to have some similar legitimacy at the constituency level. This is what we call double standards. Anyway olo tikuwe pano nothing changes.
That’s good
Presidential not expensive. All what parties require is to have coalitions as was the case in the immediate past election. So with two candidates, 50+1 is achievable.
It’s equally expensive for Presidential election.
constitutionality of selective law making….we have learnt that democracy is expensive….we are learning and discovering the truth….