Attorney General (AG) Frank Mbeta has filed a fresh application to vacate an injunction obtained by Malawi Congress Party (MCP) and three legislators stopping Malawi Electoral Commission’s (MEC) relocation from Lilongwe to Blantyre.
The court order stalled the implementation of President Peter Mutharika’s October 2025 Executive order on MEC.
In separate interviews, both Mbeta and private practice lawyer George Kadzipatike, who is representing MCP and the three legislators, confirmed yesterday that High Court of Malawi Judge Kenyatta Nyirenda heard the application in Lilongwe on Tuesday.
Mbeta said the judge will decide on their application at a date to be appointed while indicating that the Chief Justice has not yet certified the matter.
“The certification has not yet been done. The application to vacate stay was heard and the judge will deliver his ruling on a date to be advised,” he said.
Kadzipatike said his clients objected to the application and are waiting the decision of the court.
Tuesday’s proceedings mean that if the judge lifts the stay on proceedings, then the AG will be allowed to file his application to dismiss the case by MCP and the three legislators.
However, if Nyirenda refuses to lift the stay of proceedings, it means the Chief Justice (CJ) will proceed to certify the matter as a constitutional case and he will then appoint a panel of judges to hear the matter.
Meanwhile, MEC lawyer David Matumika Banda said they are not party to the case, but indicated that the commission is pursuing its own legal matter before the High Court.
He said: “The commission is pursuing its own legal avenues, seeking the court’s determination on the constitutionality of the President’s Executive Order.
“I, therefore, would not expect to receive any feedback or indeed any update on the case from the CJ.”
Last month, Nyirenda referred the case to the CJ for certification as a constitutional matter. The decision followed the court’s earlier move to grant MCP and the three legislators a stay order against MEC’s relocation.
The three are Emmanuel Chambulanyina Jere of Mzimba South, Abraham Mwakhwawa of Karonga Lufilya and Daniel Mwanyongo Chitonya of Karonga Town.
