The High Court of Malawi has granted former legislator Everton Chimulirenji an order stopping opposition Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) from conducting fresh primary elections in Ntcheu North West Constituency.
DPP planned to hold the primary election rerun today in the constituency after former Malawi Electoral Commission chairperson Jane Ansah, a retired Justice of Appeal, successfully challenged the results of the April 12 polls which declared Chimulirenji winner.
In his ruling yesterday, High Court Judge Howard Pemba said: “It is ordered that the defendants [DPP] are further restrained from nominating a candidate other than the claimant [Chimulirenji] to the Malawi Electoral Commission [until the conclusion of this matter or a further order of the court].”
The court is expected to conduct an inter-partes hearing on the application on June 18 2025.
Ansah lodged a complaint on April 17 alleging that the polls in the final polling station were conducted after sunset, that the order of voting venues was changed without proper notice and that some party officials intimidated voters.
In a letter on June 7, DPP director of elections Jean Mathanga informed Chimulirenji and Ansah that the DPP Complaints Panel found that irregularities undermined the transparency and fairness of the April 2 election.
But in his sworn statement filed in court, Chimulirenji said the final voting was conducted before 5pm and that all aspirants agreed to venue changes because of weather conditions on the material day.
Speaking in an interview yesterday, Chimulirenji’s lawyer Daniel Sato said they will await the court’s decision on whether the initial primary elections will be upheld or not.
Mathanga did not pick up when contacted.
