The Malawi Electoral Commission (MEC) has come under the spotlight once again after its registration system for the 2025 Tripartite Elections allowed Wiseman Enock to register more than once in the ongoing voter registration.
In a statement that MEC has released, Director of Media and Public Relations Sangwani Mwafulirwa says during the ongoing voter registration exercise, Enock, who was apprehended by the Malawi Police, registered his name for the second time on 8th December 2024 at the Msambeta registration centre.
However, Mwafulirwa defended the system, saying the registration system only detects and rejects multiple registrations on the same gadget.
“He managed to register twice because the second registration was done on a different gadget from the first one. The registration machine is designed to detect and prevent multiple registrations on the same gadget, whether it is online or offline; if Mr Enock had attempted to register a second time using the same machine, the system would have flagged him immediately, and the registration would have been rejected,” said the statement from Mwafulirwa.
He further said duplicates are identified when the data reaches the server because of the national ID number and advanced biometric technology detections like fingerprints.
He then said the registration system is robust, not porous, as it is capable of detecting duplicates to ensure the final voter roll is free of multiple entries, adding any individual attempting to exploit the system will be held accountable by law.
MEC says recently, the Court in Blantyre found Bisias Elton Nkhoma for registering twice in Blantyre City and was ordered to pay a fine of K200,000 or two years imprisonment in default.
Meanwhile, one of the social commentators Onjezani Kenani, questioned the integrity of the database and asked advised MEC to have the whole system audited before the polls.
The issue of multiple registrations was also echoed at the Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) rally that was hosted by Central Region’s Vice President, Alfred Gangata, at area 36 in Lilongwe on Sunday, where he said the new voter registration system could not be trusted as peoplcanto register more than once.
