Malawian President Peter Mutharika refused to accept the electoral reforms bill that was passed by the parliament in February. He also rejected the parliament’s Public Accounts Committee’s (PAC) recommendation to remove the heads of Malawi’s Electoral Commission (MEC). In addition, he fired the commander of the Malawi Defence Force (MDF), General Vincent Nundwe, who has protested against February 2019’s elections, in which Mutharika maintained his incumbency under questionable circumstances.
Mutharika argues that the bill “does not meet the tests of constitutionality and lawfulness and that it infringes on the principle of separation of powers with various arms of the government”.
This follows last week’s decision to dissolve his cabinet ahead of the May 19 elections and transfer all ministerial powers, functions, and responsibilities to the president, himself. Experts suggest that this is to consolidate the newly formed alliance between the ruling Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) and the United Democratic Front (UDF).
There continues to be a shroud of suspicion surrounding Mutharika’s 2019 electoral victory after the country’s Constitutional Court in February unanimously annulled his victory and ordered that a new election be held within 150 days. It held that Mutharika was “not duly elected as president of Malawi”.
The court found that some results sheets had been altered with whiteout and that others were fakes or duplicates. The judges said, “The irregularities and anomalies have been so widespread, systematic and the integrity of the results has been seriously compromised.”
Their decision also placed pressure on the Malawi Electoral Commission (MEC) to step down. Mutharika denounced the court's ruling as “a serious subversion of justice, an attack on our democratic systems and an attempt to undermine the will of the people”.
The Court also enacted section 80(2) of the constitution, which has effectively changed Malawi's electoral system into a majoritarian system. The parliament has set May 19 as the date for a new presidential election. The Court’s amendment of the Electoral Act now allows for a runoff election within 30 days if no candidate receives a majority of votes.
Mutharika is currently serving his second five-year term as Malawi's President after being elected with 38.57% of the votes, ahead of Lazarus Chakwera and Saulos Chilima, who respectively received 35% and 20% of the votes.
Image Source: The New York Times
Malawi's President Refuses to Accept Electoral Reforms Bill, Fires Country's Army Chief
March 19, 2020
