MCP wins Lilongwe South by-election
By Isaac Salima:
Malawi Electoral Commission (Mec) Friday declared Malawi Congress Party (MCP) candidate Peter Dimba winner of the Lilongwe South Constituency by-election that took place Thursday.
Announcing the results in Blantyre, Mec Chairperson Justice Jane Ansah said Dimba got 11,230 votes, trailed by Patson Kachingwe, who stood on an independent ticket, with 1,800 votes
Democratic Progressive Party’s Frank Mazizi had 1,663 votes while Samson Phinifolo, also an independent, got 209 votes.
Julius Chombwe Grecian of Mbakuwaku Movement for Development had 50 votes.
The election had 32,459 registered voters and 15,247 turned out to vote representing 46.97 percent.
Ansah said she was pleased that the election was conducted peacefully.
She, however, expressed concern over low voter turnout, low participation of parties and poor women participation in recent by-elections in the country.
“We have Gender Equality Act which provides that we have equal presentation of male and female but it is a concern that this is not being achieved. Secondly, it is also a concern that people are not taking part in elections. People do patronise campaign meetings but shun actual elections. They should know that this cannot put their leaders in positions.
“Another sad thing is that most parties are only active in general elections and do not take part in by-elections. We are calling upon political parties to ensure that they are active throughout a five-year period,” Ansah said.
MCP national campaign director Moses Kunkuyu said he was happy that the will of the people has been respected.
“We are grateful to the people of Lilongwe South for coming out to elect their leader. We are also happy with the message that Dimba carried during campaign time because it gave people hope and confidence in the party,” Kunkuyu said.
The election was first postponed during May 21 2019 Tripartite Elections following the death of UTM candidate Agnes Penemulungu.
The other election scheduled for November last year was also suspended following reported cases of violence during the campaign period after Mazizi complained to Mec over violence in the area.
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