By Brenda Kayo:
A survey conducted by Afrobarometer has revealed that the majority of young people in Malawi do not trust the Malawi Electoral Commission (Mec), which is set to conduct the September 16, 2025 Local Government, Parliamentary and Presidential Elections.
According to Boniface Dulani, a researcher for Afrobarometer, a survey conducted between 2024 and 2025 found that only 47 percent of youths trust Mec, with 37 percent of the youth saying they trust ward councillors.
This means 53 percent and 63 percent of youths, respectively, do not trust Mec and ward councillors.
However, Mec Chairperson, Judge Annabel Mtalimanja, is on record to have said the commission follows the law and was open to scrutiny when carrying out its operations l.
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Dulani was speaking in Lilongwe Wednesday during the launch of a five-year National Youth Manifesto by non-governmental organisation Youth and Society (Yas).
He also revealed that youths mistrusted some public officials due to perceptions of rampant corruption.
Dulani said, for this reason, the majority of youths trusted a military government over a civilian government under a political party.
According to the survey findings, 70 percent of young respondents expressed trust in a military government while only 28 percent said they trusted a civilian government.
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Dulani said this is the case because most young people believe that corruption within the presidential civilian party has increased significantly over the past few years.
“More than half of Malawians believe that corruption has increased a lot and the perception has been persistent over the decades. The perception of corruption is similar across all ages,” the survey reveals.
The survey has further indicated that although the youth have trust in the military, they are satisfied with democracy.
To this end, the survey findings indicate that the youth are likely to support democracy compared to older people.
Coordinator for the Youth Decide Campaign Mwandida Theu said young people were increasingly losing trust in the whole system due to frustration with how leaders are handling government affairs.
“It is a matter of young people losing trust in the whole system. Politicians use young people during times of political violence but when it comes to opportunities, they are sidelined. Young people are now saying they have been used long enough and that it is time for them to take action,” Theu said.
However, Speaker of Parliament Catherine Gotani Hara asked youths in the country not to lose hope in the government.
“It is my plea that let them [youths] continue trusting in their government. We, as politicians, will continue to make commitments and I am also asking my fellow politicians that we should give back that confidence to the people in our actions and that we should always consider the youth in everything,” Gotani Hara said.
The five-year manifesto will run from 2025 to 2030.
In Africa, it is Burkina Faso which is under a military government— with Ibrahim Traore as its president.
