By Pemphero Malimba:
A debate has ensued on whether independent information communication technology auditors should be used in September 16 2025 Local Government, Parliamentary and Presidential Elections processes.
The debate ensued during a National Elections Consultative Forum (Necof) engagement in Lilongwe yesterday.
The Malawi Electoral Commission (Mec) organised the meeting to update electoral stakeholders on pilot voter registration exercise, which it held recently, and the forthcoming voter registration exercise.
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Recently, the opposition Democratic Progressive Party (DPP), Alliance for Democracy (Aford), UTM and United Democratic Front (UDF) wrote Mec on a number of concerns which bordered on the need for independent ICT auditors.
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They also wanted assurances on the credibility of election management devices (EMD).
“Awarding of 600,000 metric tonnes of fertiliser without tender: A suspicious K1 trillion fertiliser contract awarded without proper procedures to a dubious foreign entity demands immediate investigation,” he said.
The DPP also accused the government of attempting to rig next year’s elections through insistence on the use of national identity cards as proof of citizenship for one to register and vote in next year’s elections.
“Register all eligible voters: Government, through National Registration Bureau and Malawi Electoral Commission, must ensure no individual eligible to vote has been left out of the registration process.
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“We also urge our diplomatic partners, including the United States, United Kingdom, Germany, Norway and the European Union, to actively pressure the government to restore accountability,” Mukhito said.
On his part, Leader of the Opposition in Parliament George Chaponda demanded the immediate resignation of Speaker of Parliament Catherine Gotani Hara, alleging that she was frustrating efforts to amend the law to allow the use of other forms of identification during voter registration.
Chaponda warned that if Gotani Hara did not resign, they would ensure that she were impeached.
But reacting to the allegations, Kunkuyu trashed claims that the current administration was a hotbed of corruption, saying it had demonstrated commitment to the fight against corruption in the country.
He said, for instance, that the current administration had strengthened operations of the Anti- Corruption Bureau through increased funding.
He observed that if there was a group of people that had embezzled money from the government, then it was people in the former governing DPP.
