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| National |
| Stakeholders hail elections report |
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by
Gedion Munthali, 06 August 2004
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12:50:27
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An indictment of the May 20, 2004 elections by the European Union Electoral Observer Mission to Malawi has been embraced by almost all stakeholders, except the Electoral Commission which claimed on Thursday it was yet to see and study the damning report.
The mission presented its report to President Bingu wa Mutharika recommending various electoral reforms, among them a law against abuse of public resources and distribution of money to voters and that a president must not be sworn-in before resolution of complaints.
Public Affairs Committee (Pac), a key stakeholder in the Malawi Electoral Support Network (Mesn), said it fully agreed with the EU observations, and called on government to seriously consider the recommendations.
“Government must not just take heed; it must act on the recommendations. This was the worst election since Malawi became a democratic state,” said Pac’s programme officer George Dambula.
The report also recommended that the composition of electoral commission and structure of the election administration should be reviewed with a view of ensuring confidence among political contestants and efficient administration of elections.
Opposition MCP, a party with the largest number of seats in the House, said the party felt vindicated.
“The report only vindicates what MCP has said all along,” second vice president Nicholas Dausi said. “That is why we are in court so that the irregularities can be exposed.”
The Human Rights Consultative Committee, another key stakeholder in the network of NGOs in the elections, said while the report captured everything in terms of irregularities, his organisation was disappointed that the EU did not qualify the polls.
“The EU has dismally failed to give a qualification of the elections. They have not said whether the elections were free and fair. We are disappointed with that,” said committee chair Rodgers Newa in his criticism.
Newa said the inference that might be drawn from the omission is that the EU is legitimising the outcome of the elections despite the irregularities.
“We are talking about the legitimacy of the presidency here,” said Newa, who was also not happy with the approval of the EU that polling went on peacefully. “Free environment was only measured on the elections day. They should have measured the peacefulness of the whole process.”
But in the report the EU condemned the intimidation perpetrated by the ruling party, in particular by the Young Democrats, and the party’s influence over the traditional authorities.
UDF publicity secretary Ken Lipenga said throughout the process there were complaints across the board and the Electoral Commission tried to address them.
“As party we also had some reservations, that is why we entered into dialogue. The Electoral Commission listened to us and tried their best to address them,” said Lipenga who is also Information minister. He, however, declined to comment on the matter as it related to the President.
“The report was presented to the President and his comments will come in due course. It will therefore be inappropriate for me to comment at this stage,” he explained.
Head of Democracy and Governance at Centre for Social Research Nixon Khembo said the reforms proposed by the EU need political will and a strong government to implement.
“The report is welcome and the recommendations are a challenge that should not be left to government alone. Donors must also show commitment to help and not just play lip service,” said Khembo.
Electoral Commission spokesman Fegus Lipenga asked for more time to study the report.
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