Official results may be known by Sunday

The Malawi Electoral Commission (MEC) says official results of the presidential elections will be known by the start of next week.

MEC Chief Elections Officer Sammy Alfandika said this in an interview with Times TV at the main tally centre in Blantyre.

The commission is mandated to release the official eight days after the polling day.

However, Alfandika said the commission may release the results before the eight day period elapses.

“The eight days only helps to protect us. But it is our interest to release the official results. We will make sure that by 26th or 27th or 28th May Malawians should know the official results for the presidential elections,” he said.

Currently, unofficial results are being released with Saulos Chilima of UTM, Lazarus Chakwera of Malawi Congress Party and President Peter Mutharika of the Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) still in the race.

Earlier on Wednesday, MEC chairperson Jane Ansah said the results from across the country were trickling in at a slow pace due problems with balancing the figures.

“We are experiencing problems with balancing the figures on form 66 (a, b and c). For your context I would like you to understand that elections results are written on Form 60 (a, b and c) as the first point of record from there the result is transferred to form 66 (a, b and c).

“On this I wish to inform the nation we are therefore proposing that forms are captured as is and passed through the system with known errors in the statistical section.

“However, there can be no errors in the candidate section of the result sheet and these must add up for total valid votes cast and total votes cast. The number of ballots issued cannot be zero,” she said.

Ansah then warned Malawians to avoid perpetrating violence or disturb smooth transmission of votes to refrain saying the police and the Malawi Defence Force are on high alert.

The MEC chair urged candidates with any complaints regarding the polls to submit their grievances in writing.