‘MEC can’t work alone’

Malawi Electoral Commission (MEC) chairperson Chifundo Kachale recently delivered a public lecture on democracy, law reform and preparation for the 2025 Tripartite Election at Mzuzu University. Our Staff Reporter RALPH SAMBALIKAGWA MVONA engages the High Court of Malawi judge on the countdown to next year’s polls. Excerpts:

How crucial are the law reforms for credible elections?

We think the reforms are significant. For example, the law now recognises that in the presidential poll, unless you have a winner who has 50 percent plus one of the votes, then you must have a second poll within 60 days. The law also explains what security measures must be put in place for the candidates who have made it to the second round. We believe that enhances the kind of election that you can have.

The current law also provides for qualifications for the appointment of election commissioners. We believe that the minimum requirement of a degree will ensure that the people who are given that huge constitutional responsibility have the technical capacity to administer credible elections.

There have been changes in the law concerning the time that elections are to be held. This time,  they will happen between 6am and 4pm to ensure that the counting process begins before the sun goes down. This will diminish the chance of errors happening in the course of counting results. So, all in all, the different legal reforms that have been enacted will go a long way to enhance the electoral process.

How are you engaging law enforcement agencies so that the duty to deliver free and fair elections is shared?

We normally work through a security steering committee that brings together the various partners involved in administering security in the country. For that committee, we already engaged the high command of the police. It is being reactivated. Programmes and plans are being put together so that where there are capacity gaps in terms of training of investigators, prosecutors, security personnel at polling stations or those deployed to guard our sensitive electoral materials, all of them understand the responsibility they have.

Under the law, for example, a police officer in charge of a police formation must provide security to our electoral activities. If they fail to do that, the law provides criminal sanctions against such a person. We want to ensure that the police and other security agencies recognise that cooperating with the electoral commission on election administration is their statutory mandate and MEC cannot do the work alone. We are committed to ensuring that our critical stakeholders appreciate their responsibilities and get capacitated to help us administer a credible election.

Why should the youth be involved in policy formulation other than merely casting the ballot? How does MEC ensure that youth involvement is not just another song?

For us, the purpose of this engagement is to remind the youth that no one is going to create the political space for them to participate. By being a registered voter, you already have a democratic right to be politically engaged. They must then demand that participation.

But we are also speaking to the political parties and actors to ensure that within their structures, they make meaningful space for this critical demographic to take an active role. Let the youth take part in policy development. We cannot dictate how that is done because we believe in democracy. Our mandate, in this regard, is to raise the debate and create a platform where people can begin to consider the issues. But the youth need to recognise their potential to impact that space if they are fully engaged instead of just being people who come along. They need to recognise that they have the numbers to turn the agenda.

The use of national identity cards for voter registration has been contentious. What are you doing to sensitise Malawians to know that even expired ID cards will be allowed?

Before the registration exercise planned to kick off in September, we have planned an extensive civic awareness campaign to ensure that those information gaps are addressed. As the electoral commission, we recognise fully that unless we inform our people, they may not be aware that even with expired IDs, they are entitled to register and vote. So, the commission has a responsibility and we are making clear plans to ensure that we inform the people about those opportunities.

What is your position on the requirement for political parties to align their manifestos with the Malawi 2063? The way we understand it, Malawi has devised a programme of action and has produced it into a vision that articulates the aspirations of this nation by 2063 and the requirement is that any political manifesto should explain how they want to attain that ambition. The thinking is that there is no continuous disjuncture whenever there is a change of government. Without such a document, maybe the discontinuation of national projects and aspirations will persist and it is Malawi which stands to lose. We want to be on a trajectory to take us to the ambition articulated in Malawi 2063 [long-term national vision]. But if people believe the arrangement is inadequate, that is a discussion they can undertake and come up with a process that ensures that, as a nation, there are certain basic minimums we want to attain.”