Promptly deal with electoral violence

In the democratic Malawi, no part of the country should be considered a no-go zone for a certain group of people or political party. That is what democracy entails. That is what the country’s constitutional order envisages. That a certain political party is stronger in some districts does not mean less popular parties or groups should not freely campaign in those areas.

The violence and intimidation that characterised the campaign in Milonde Ward in Mulanje in particular in the just-ended local government elections therefore needs to be condemned in the strongest terms it deserves. It is a back-stab on the democratic values and principles as enshrined in the Constitution of the Republic of Malawi which we all so much cherish, nurture and which we must all jealously guard.

The Malawi Electoral Commission (MEC) should, therefore, not take the complaints by the Malawi Congress Party (MCP) with a pinch of salt. MEC had a duty to ensure that all players during the campaign period for the elections were free to reach out to all the electorates with their messages. That MEC did not promptly act on incidents of violence and intimidation in some areas of the ward greatly detracts from its credibility.

Failure to quell the violence breeds more of the vice. When lawlessness goes unchecked, it becomes the order of the day. Other political parties which feel short-changed take the law in their own hands. If they consider certain areas of the country their strongholds, they may also not want other political parties or groups to campaign in those areas. When you get to that point, then you know that you have a bad egg in your hand.

It is against this background that MEC would do well to do a thorough postmortem of the campaign especially in Milonde Ward. The Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) may have soundly won the polls in Milonde Ward but the violence that MCP complained about which MEC and security authorities failed to promptly deal with will leave deep wounds of anger and distrust for the pollster among the rank and file of the aggrieved party.

If an area is truly my political stronghold, why should I be afraid of other political parties coming and campaigning in it? As for DPP it would still have won Milonde Ward without the tag of violence it is now stuck with.

MCP may have called on MEC chairperson Jane Ansah to resign for her organisation’s alleged cluelessness and failure to quell the violence and intimidation in the two wards. But the real take home message for MEC is that it should have done more to bring a semblance of sanity in the areas. It is good that Ansah rightly acknowledges that the commission received reports of violence and intimidation especially from Milonde Ward. That some individuals and groups of people came from Lilongwe and Blantyre and caused or perpetrated violence in the area.

The question is: what did the commission do to ascertain their veracity and stop the acts? If Ansah also acknowledges that some traditional leaders created no-go zones for some political parties in Milonde Ward, what did her commission do to punish the lawbreakers? At the very least people expect MEC to name and shame the traditional leaders for such behaviour as opposed to dismissing the reports. This is the time for Ansah to firmly and strongly stamp her foot against lawlessness. If people feel the commission did not have what it takes to make all interested parties freely campaign in two wards, would they have the confidence and trust that they have an electoral body that will conduct free and fair elections in 28 districts due in 12 months?

In Malindi Ward in Mangochi, a United Democratic Front (UDF) stronghold, MCP and the People’s Party (PP) campaigned freely. Kudos to the UDF for showing political maturity. The party has demonstrated that it has embraced interparty democracy. People in Malindi Ward unlike in Milonde Ward were thus able to exercise a choice of which candidate to support. UDF should rub this off its political bedfellow. The party has not only won the ward but also the hearts of peace lovers.

As we head towards the 2019 tripartite elections DPP should work towards cleaning up the image of being a party with violence in its DNA.