The government has been challenged to investigate Malawi Electoral Commission’s move of hiring South Africa lawyers during the elections case earlier this year.
The electoral body opted for legal services of foreign lawyers in the presidential election nullification appeal case, in which former President Peter Mutharika and MEC unsuccessfully appealed against the nullification of the polls.
It was reported that the South African legal experts under Mboweni Maluleke Inc Attorneys pocketed above MK500 million. The decision to hire the services of foreign lawyers faced heavy criticism from the diverse citizenry.
Chancellor College’s Media and Communications lecturer Jimmy Kainja has joined other people in calling for investigation of the deal.
“Since everything is being investigated, now that Peter Mutharika and his band are out of the way, can we also be told the truth about these “SA lawyers”? It involves taxpayers’ money,” he said.
Most people believe the poll body abused funds by outsourcing the service. Some quarters argue that the aforesaid MEC and Mutharika lost trust in the country’s legal system since election case favoured the petitioners.
In the appeal case, the Supreme Court upheld the lower Court’s decision to have a fresh presidential election. The country went to fresh polls on 23 June.
