We have not given up on Ansah—HRDC
Human Rights Defenders Coalition (HRDC) has said the issue of Jane Ansah is not on the agenda as the coalition holds citizen rallies and other activities in the Northern Region from yesterday to today.
HRDC describes Ansah, who is Malawi Electoral Commission (Mec) Chairperson, as “a small fish in a pond” as Malawi is facing numerous other problems which need address.
This is in sharp contrast to what the human rights group has been saying that Ansah is the cause of the civil unrest in the country.
Speaking to journalists Thursday in Mzuzu, the coalition’s Coordinator for the North Happy Mhango, however, said they will continue pushing for Ansah’s stepdown after the commemorations of Human Rights Day to be observed on December 10.
“We are saying, for this event only, we are not bringing in Jane Ansah. You know every event that you commemorate has its own theme and, this year, our focus is on justice.
“We have domesticated it and we are calling it ‘Justice and I know much’. So, we cannot be bringing in Jane Ansah in this. Like I said earlier on, she is just a small fish in a pond,” he said.
Mhango said, on December 9, HRDC will have an indoor assembly which will be followed up by another citizen rally in Lilongwe on December 10.
He said the emphasis would be on reminding Malawians that human rights have responsibilities as well.
“There is no room for violence in this modern era. Apart from that, we are also saying that it is a high time we started preparing Malawians for any outcome of the current presidential case. So, we are calling upon political leaders and citizens to stand by the rule of law,” he said.
While in the North, the HRDC leadership will pay tribute to former second vice-president, who was also Alliance for Democracy president, Chakufwa Chihana.
The coalition has been holding mass demonstrations in the country to force the Mec chair to step down for allegedly mismanaging May 21 Tripartite Elections.
UTM’s Saulos Chilima and Malawi Congress Party president Lazarus Chakwera petitioned the court to nullify presidential election results arguing they were marred by irregularities.
