Traditional leaders wield significant influence on their subjects’ political participation, civic engagement and in some cases vote choices.
In addition, they play an important role in encouraging their people to register, turn out as well as cast their votes.
The institution of the traditional leadership also has a crucial role in fostering peace and stability during elections by leveraging their authority and traditional dispute resolution mechanisms.
Therefore, traditional leaders’ role in governance and electoral processes has always been noticeable in all aspects whether by design, default or coercion.
However, while the country’s statutes forbid traditional leaders’ participation in active politics, governing political parties have often engaged them in public endorsements of their candidates.
General Election Code of Conduct. | Nation
Traditional leaders play a crucial role in fostering peace and stability during elections by leveraging their influence, community trust, and traditional dispute resolution mechanisms.
They can mediate conflicts, promote peaceful conduct, and ensure the electoral process is free from violence and intimidation.
Political Science Association (PSA) spokesperson Mavuto Bamusi condemns the trend while encouraging the traditional chiefs to be politically neutral to gain public trust as agents of peace and unity, especially in times of elections.
“The authority of traditional chiefs is overshadowed by the power of politics. Influential politicians have the tendency to capture these chiefs and mute their voices,” says Bamusi.
He observes that chiefs have become targets for politics of patronage through subtle forms of political corruption and are manipulated through political apportionments into boards of statutory corporations.
“As a result, the role of chiefs to speak out against violence when it is perpetrated by the ruling party is weakened. Community members do not take seriously any calls for peace and unity made by chiefs who are visibly compromised and captured by partisan politics,” laments Bamusi, a democratic governance expert and public policy analyst.
People belong to different political parties and during election period, when the atmosphere is always unpredictable, there is need to encourage them to live in harmony.
This, according to conflict and peace management expert Master Dicks Mfune, is because traditional leaders can also be a source of conflict and violence by their actions of favouring one political party or candidate against another.
The expert says this can occur when they give an advantage to one group or candidate while denying others access to conduct campaign meetings in their area.
“Traditional leaders are custodians of culture. They can help in peace, civic and voter education. They can promote a culture of peace by promoting tolerance among their people in communities during election time.
“They can also act as local mediators where the political parties and their supporters have disputes. They can mobilise people in their communities and encourage voter participation. They can promote a culture of electoral integrity and responsible behaviour among political parties, candidates and their supporters,” explains Mfune.
Civil Society Elections Integrity Forum (Cseif) chairperson Benedicto Kondowe agrees with Mfune saying traditional leaders play a critical role in fostering peaceful elections by serving as custodians of cultural values, mediators in times of tension, and trusted voices within communities.
As the elections forum, Kondowe believes traditional leaders’ influence can help prevent political violence, dispel misinformation, and promote unity by encouraging respectful dialogue among political actors and their supporters.
“Their neutrality and authority at the grassroots level make them indispensable in building trust in the electoral process and ensuring that the September 16 General Elections are conducted in a calm, credible, and conflict-free environment,” he says.
Paramount Chiefs Kawinga of Machinga and Kaduya of Phalombe confess separately that traditional leaders have a crucial role to play during political campaigns, voting and post-election.
While urging his fellow chiefs to level the playing field during the campaign period, Kawinga says traditional leaders must be supportive and accommodative to every aspirant.
“Sometimes chiefs have been the perpetrators of violence because of not being tolerant. We need to rise above party politics. Let us give space to every candidate regardless of the party, tribe or region,” appeals Kawinga.
On her part, Kaduya believes her fellow traditional leaders will not tolerate violence against other political opponents ahead of the September 16 General Election.
The Lhomwe chief also urges politicians to ensure that while in her area they must always conduct themselves in a manner that does not provoke others or else “I will chase them away.”
“As chiefs we have a role to play to ensure we have free, fair and peaceful elections. But this will demand issue-based campaign and not name-calling or uttering words that may incite violence,” she says.
Ministry of Local Government, Unity and Culture’s director of chiefs Charles Makanga observes that the Chiefs Act states that one of the traditional leaders’ biggest roles is to preserve peace and unity in their areas.
“Therefore, during the election period they have the duty to make sure that in their areas people co-exist and there is peace. In addition to that Malawi Electoral Commission [MEC] do produce Code of Conduct for them to observe,” explains Makanga.
MEC too considers traditional leaders to be vital stakeholders in promoting peaceful, credible, and inclusive elections.
The commission believes traditional leaders’ influence at the grassroots level places them in a unique position to guide their communities through the electoral process with dignity, order, and mutual respect.
“We expect traditional leaders to play a central role in peace building prevention throughout the campaign period, on voting day, and after the elections.
“As custodians of culture and unity, they must use their authority to promote harmony and denounce any acts of political violence, hate speech, or tribal divisions.
“Their voices carry weight and can help defuse tensions before they escalate into violence. It is equally important that traditional leaders remain neutral. While they have the right to vote, they should not use their positions to campaign for or against any political party or candidate,” says MEC spokesperson Sangwani Mwafulirwa.
He notes that chiefs’ impartiality is key to maintaining the trust of their communities and ensuring that no group feels marginalised or excluded.
The commission expects traditional leaders to welcome all candidates and parties without creating no go zones and also calls upon them to support civic and voter education initiatives.
“Their endorsement of such activities significantly boosts participation and credibility, especially in rural and remote areas. By encouraging attendance at voter education meetings and amplifying accurate information about the electoral process, they help to build an informed electorate.
“Furthermore, we urge traditional leaders to encourage eligible citizens, especially women, youth, and persons with disabilities, to participate in the election. They must promote inclusivity and tolerance of differing political views, fostering an environment in which every voter feels free to make their choice without fear or intimidation,” observes Mwafulirwa.
After the elections, the commission believes traditional leaders become critical in uniting communities, promoting acceptance of results, and guiding those with grievances to use lawful channels for redress.
The country’s law is very clear in terms of what traditional leaders ought to do and ought not to do in respect of politics and elections.
So as the days draw closer to September 16, it is evident the role of the traditional leaders in electoral processes in the country cannot be ignored.
Previously, some traditional leaders’ conduct has been condemned for influencing electoral processes by sealing off space in their jurisdictions for opposition political parties’ candidates and also subverting people’s will through intimidation.
“Peaceful elections are possible when unconditional rule of law is strictly enforced… That is to say police must not be enforcing selective justice during and after elections, traditional leaders must not be partisan and influencing voting choices with ultimatums.
“To have peaceful elections, traditional leaders must rise above partisan politics and allow freedom of choice,” notes Alex Chisiano, a peace and security expert.
Across the country, various players such as district commissioners (DC) have been conducting meetings urging chiefs to uphold peace during campaign, voting and after elections.
For instance, during a full council meeting for Nkhata Bay District Council last week, the DC emphasised that, following the dissolution of councils, which will leave councillors and Members of Parliament (MPs) out of office, traditional leaders would play a critical role in maintaining grassroots governance and stability.
Besides urging chiefs to ensure peaceful elections, they have also been highlighting their critical role in maintaining the social order ahead of the polls.
Further, chiefs’ are also being recognised for their counselling and efforts to foster a peaceful campaign atmosphere while giving every political candidate space to address their rallies without hindrances.
“As the campaign period progresses, we expect heightened political activities. It is during this time that the role of chiefs becomes critical.
“Without councillors and MPs in place, the council will rely heavily on the wisdom, leadership, and influence of traditional authorities to ensure that peace prevails and that development activities are not disrupted throughout the campaign period,” Malawi News Agency (Mana) quoted Gondwe as saying.
MEC completed its seven-day long nomination presentation exercise on Wednesday in which 20 presidential hopefuls presented their nomination papers for the forthcoming September
