Presentation of presidential nomination papers for the September 16 General Election started on Thursday with former president Joyce Banda and independent candidate Adil Chilungo successfully submitting their paperwork to Malawi Electoral Commission (MEC).
However, Nationalist Patriotic Party president Daniel Dube, the last to present on Thursday at Bingu International Convention Centre in Lilongwe, was sent back by MEC because his nomination papers lacked some details, especially relating to his running mate retired Justice of Appeal Dunstan Mwaungulu.
First to face MEC chairperson Annabel Mtalimanja and her team was Banda who is representing People’s Party (PP).
She arrived at the venue in an open Land Rover decorated with the orange colours of her party. Beside her was former vice-president Khumbo Kachali, president of Freedom Party, who she named as her running mate.
The duo arrived just before 10am and was welcomed by jubilant supporters clad in PP, Freedom Party and Mafunde colours.
In her brief speech soon after presenting her nomination papers, Banda, who ascended to the presidency in April 2012 in line with constitutional order after the death of president Bingu wa Mutharika, promised to uplift Malawians’ lives and relieve them from their suffering.
She said: “All Malawians have to know that the combination of Joyce Banda and Khumbo Hastings Kachali already worked on uplifting people from suffering to peace [between April 2012 and May 2014]. That is why we have come back again!”
Banda further called for a peaceful election, observing that the nation has witnessed incidents of violence in the previous few months.
But in an interview after the event, the former president indicated that there is still a chance for her party to enter into further alliances before the polling day.
Next in line was Chilungo who unveiled his business partner Mervis Mwalukuwo as his running mate.
He called on prospective voters and the media to give him a chance to articulate his vision.
Chilungo also decried the arrangement by presidential debate organisers to limit participation only to candidates that had representation in Parliament.
But the day’s third and final candidate, Dube, was not as lucky as he was sent back to redo his paperwork.
Mtalimanja said Dube’s running mate, Mwaungulu, who was not present at the venue, needed to complete the forms in detail before the final day, July 30.
In her speech, she advised parties and candidates to focus on an issue-based campaign that would propel Malawi towards achieving the Malawi 2063, the country’s long-term development strategy.
Meanwhile, political analysts have said the PP-Freedom Party alliance is a safe choice by Banda, but less likely to have an impact on the presidential race.
In an interview, political commentator Mavuto Bamusi said the combination is good for purposes of managing the politics of gender equality and regional balance, but said PP still needs to consider other alliances as it will be difficult for them to win alone.
He said: “The pair rekindles memories of the 2013 Cashgate. It is a corruption scandal that jeopardised PP’s 2014 campaign. The massive plunder of public funds and looting of taxpayers’ money may again haunt the JB-KK ticket.”
On his part, another analyst Ernest Thindwa also said the pair is less likely to have an impact in shaping outcomes of the presidential election if recent electoral data is to be a point of reference.
He said: “As persons and their respective parties, they lack a recognisable electoral support base. For instance, a survey by Afrobarometer in August 2024 suggested party identifiers for PP were 0.2 percent and Freedom Party was in a group of minor parties whose combined share of party identifiers was 0.4 percent.”
The presentation of nomination papers continues today with DPP president Arthur Peter Mutharika’s slot in the morning followed by independent candidate Milward Tobias and National Development Party’s Frank Mwenifumbo.
