President Peter Mutharika says Malawi will never have credible and valid elections because there will always be some irregularities in any election.
The Malawi leader made the remarks in his State of the Nation Address (SONA) delivered via a recorded video in Parliament today.
Last month, the Supreme Court of Appeal upheld the Constitutional Court’s decision to nullify the 2019 presidential elections and order fresh elections.
The court said the 2019 polls were affected by serious and troubling irregularities – such as use of tippex and alteration of result sheets – that undermined the results.
In the SONA, Mutharika said this has set a precedence by which the next election will be even more disputable.
He added that anyone can now rush to court and demand nullification of an election because an officer corrected an error even if that correction does not affect the result of the Election.
“We have set a precedence when your election as Members of Parliament can be nullified just because a well-meaning officer tried to correct a mistake using tippex,” he said.
According to Mutharika, the court that nullified the 2019 elections failed to show or prove that irregularities affected the result of the Election.
“In as far as the result of an election is intact, then the will of the people prevails. We cannot, and we should never, nullify an election if any irregularities do not affect the results of the Election. Nullifying an Election is nullifying the will of the people,” he said.
During the Budget sitting which has started today, Parliament is also expected to set a date for the fresh presidential elections as ordered by the court.
In his speech. the Malawi leader asked Parliament to use its authority to set right what is not right.
“I therefore call upon this Parliament to make sober decisions, for the sake of Malawians. Let us set aside politics and love our country,” he said.
Mutharika also said that Malawi has a dilemma between going to an election too soon or preventing the spread of Coronavirus with 393 cases recorded in the country.
He said: “As a nation, we need to make a collective decision. This Parliament must make its voice heard before the people.
