Media Institute of Southern Africa (Misa) Malawi Chapter and civil society organisations (CSOs) have decried the exclusion of media, CSO election observers and other deserving voters from getting voter transfers.
Parliament yesterday amended the Presidential, Parliamentary and Local Government Elections Act to allow polling staff, security personnel and representatives of political parties and candidates to vote where they will be deployed on polling day.
But in an interview, Misa-Malawi chairperson Golden Matonga said the exclusion of media as special groups will affect the flow of information regarding the elections, affect transparency and also deprive journalists the right to vote.
He said most media houses are based in cities and to promote transparency in the elections, the journalists have to be deployed to other areas.
Said Matonga: “The rationale that you can allow monitors or representatives of political parties to be able to vote anywhere but not journalists defeats the whole essence of having a transparent and credible election.”
Civil Society Elections Integrity Forum chairperson Benedicto Kondowe said they will write the Malawi Electoral Commission (MEC) to use its powers to broaden the scope of the special groups that can vote away from the places that they registered.
He said the electoral body must be compelled under Section 67(2) of the Constitution to administratively accommodate other deserving categories of voters who, by virtue of their duties on polling day, cannot vote at their designated registration centres.
“Any law or administrative action that unjustifiably limits the right to vote contravenes constitutional guarantees and undermines the inclusivity of our democratic processes,” said Kondowe, a lawyer.
Centre for Human Rights Education, Advice and Assistance executive director Victor Chagunyuka Mhango, who was pushing for the inclusion of inmates and ex-convicts, described the amendment as discriminatory.
He said it will deprive the right to vote of inmates that registered before being jailed as well as ex-convicts that registered while in prison.
MEC chairperson Annabel Mtalimanja on Monday cautioned against making the scope too wide, arguing that doing so will pose challenges in ensuring credibility of elections.
