MEC yet to land 95%election devices

The Malawi Electoral Commission has shipped 288 election management devices (EMDs), representing 4.3 percent of the 6 500 ordered equipment.

MEC commissioner Emmanuel Fabiano confirmed this when they received the first consignment of the devices at Kamuzu International Airport in Lilongwe on Friday.

He was, however, quick to dispel fears that the development could have implications in the preparation for the 2025 Tripartite Elections.

He said: “We have bought 6 500 election management devices. The first batch that we have received is meant to be used for the initial training. We are going to train more than 15 000.

“We cannot wait for every piece of equipment to come before the training starts.  The training has to start and ensure we train everybody.”

The EMDs are portable state of the art devices which will be used to conduct voter registration, transfer of voters, inspection of the voters’ register, nomination of candidates and management of results.

Their introduction is part of MEC’s efforts to modernise and enhance efficiency in electoral processes, the commission said in a press statement issued on Friday.

Meanwhile, Fabiano said the remaining 95.5 percent of the EMDs are being produced and will be shipped before voter registration begins in September.

“By June, we expect all the equipment and trained most of the people. We want to ensure that all the trainings are completed and ready to use the equipment by July, two months before we start registering the voters,” he said.

Various political party representatives witnessed the EMDs arrival as part of what MEC described as transparency and accountability.

They travelled as far as the MEC houses to witness their unbundling.