Malawi Judiciary says it has appointed 13 judicial officers into the Judiciary Committee on Elections to specifically handle disputes related to the September 16 2025 General Election to ensure efficiency in disposal of such cases.
Judiciary chief corporate affairs and public relations officer Ruth Mputeni said the committee is chaired by Malawi Supreme Court of Appeal Judge Dorothy NyaKaunda Kamanga with High Court Judge Thomson Ligowe as her deputy.
enhance the capacity. | Nation
She said during inception meetings, the committee observed that for the Judiciary to fulfil its mandate of resolving electoral disputes both efficiently and justly, it was imperative to enhance the capacity for judicial officers and support staff through comprehensive training and familiarity with law and principles governing electoral disputes.
“The committee also recommended that judicial officers and members of staff be equipped with adequate resources and materials. Furthermore, the committee recommended electoral reforms that would facilitate the expeditious resolution of electoral disputes,” said Mputeni.
However, she said the committee has no mandate to engage in the settlement of election cases.
“All judges have the responsibility of handling election cases irrespective of the division or the duty station where they are posted. Criminal offences associated with elections will be handled by any magistrates’ court, depending on its jurisdiction, and by any judge on appeal,” said Mputeni.
Besides Kamanga and Ligowe, other members of the committee are High Court judges Joseph Chigona, Texious Masoamphambe, Violet Chipao and Eddah Ngwira-Mwakibinga. They are joined by High Court of Malawi and Supreme Court of Appeal chief registrar Innocent Nebi, magistrates Paul Chiotcha, Wahabi Shaibu and Josephine Masamba as well as administrative staff Edith Chikagwa, Zikani Msuku and Nellie Mchenga.
Established in January 2024, the committee’s objectives include advising the Judiciary on administrative arrangements and measures for the efficient disposal of election-related disputes.
During the 2019 tripartite elections, the judiciary handled various parliamentary elections cases some of which took close to two years.
In the 2019 presidential election petition, a five-judge panel of the High Court sitting as the Constitutional Court heard the matter before a seven-member Supreme Court panel upheld the earlier decision.
