Tag Archives: ConCourt ruling

Malawi

Peter Mutharika was right in disparaging the ConCourt ruling

Ufulu 1 Comment

When the rumbling corrupt judgement was announced with much fanfare, Malawi president, Peter Mutharika, described the constitutional court’s nullification of the presidential election results as flawed and an attack on the Malawi’s democratic systems.

APM made the remarks in a national address through the country’s state broadcaster Malawi Broadcasting Corporation (MBC) in the evening, saying he would appeal against the court’s judgment. An Appeal which he also lost to no one’s surprise.

ConCourt Judges
justices Healey Potani, Mike Tembo, Dingiswayo Madise, Ivy Kamanga and Redson Kapindu

“As the first respondent in the May 21 Elections case, I have taken note of the judgement delivered by the High Court sitting as a Constitutional Court. Like many Malawians, my legal team and I have serious reservations with the judgment,” said Mutharika.

“We consider the judgment as a serious subversion of justice, an attack on our democratic systems and an attempt to undermine the will of the people,” said Mutharika.

Mutharika said if the judgment remains not cured, it will represent a flawed precedence for all future elections in the country. In this he has been proven right

He added that the judgment “inaugurates the death of Malawi’s democracy” and that “as such it cannot stand unchallenged”.

The Malawi leader said he has instructed his legal team to appeal against the judgment and challenge it.

“Let me however state that we are not appealing to stop the next election: In fact, we are ready to campaign and win as we have always done,” said Mutharika.

“We are appealing to correct the fundamental errors in the judgement to protect our laws, principles of justice and democracy.” He added.

However, the Malawi leader urged Malawians to remain calm and move forward as one people.

“We are one people. We have one Malawi. We remain one nation. And Malawi is bigger than us all,” he said, adding that “within our Constitutional order, let us move forward in Peace, Love and Unity.”

The Malawi constitutional court Monday upheld the opposition leaders’ petition and nullified the May presidential election results on grounds of irregularities including manual alterations and use of tippex on the results sheets to change the figures.

The court then ordered fresh elections within 150 days from the day of the judgment.

Malawi

Malawi Supreme Court upholds ConCourt ruling: fresh elections on, no new voters

Maneno Chimulala
Judges of the Supreme Court of Appeal who made the ruling on the election appeal case

BLANTYRE-(MaraviPost)— Supreme Court of Appeal has upheld the Constitution Court judgment of February 3, 2020 that May 2019 elections had irregularities and that the president was not duly elected.

It has also upheld the ConCourt ruling that majority of votes means 50%+1 and that fresh election be held within that system.

Delivering the ruling in Lilongwe, the court described the grounds of appeal by Peter Mutharika and Malawi Electoral Commission as unnecessarily numerous and embarrassing.

He, therefore, described the grounds of appeal as “Unnecessarily numerous, convoluted, fictious and embarrassing” while emphasizing that the Court uses such language.

The court also says the conduct of MEC in the litigation in both Constitutional Court and Supreme “Court leaves a lot to be desired.”

The court has since ordered that Mec squares the legal costs of the case for Chilima and Chakwera both in the Supreme Court and Constitutional Court.

The court has also said the same voter roll used last year should be used in the fresh Elections.

“The old voters’ roll should be used in fresh elections. The new voters were not wronged,” read the verdict.

The Supreme Court has also upheld the 150 days of holding a fresh election based on 50+1 percent system of declaring a winner.

The Supreme Court has also agreed with the Constitutional Court’s position that the Attorney General (AG) was not supposed to represent MEC in the case.

President Peter Mutharika Thursday reiterated his protest against the July 2 presidential election, saying he will participate in it just to prove that he won the May 21 poll.

“On May 21st 2019, you the people of Malawi voted in an election that was free, fair, faithful, transparent and credible. That was attested by all international observers. We won that election. I won that election.

“The result of that election was the will of the people. Only one year later, we may be going to another election. This election is not the will of the people. Therefore, I call upon all Malawians to come out to register and vote to restore the will of the people which was expressed in the May 2019 election,” he said.

Malawi Concourt made 8 glaring errors in their partisan ruling that are being exposed with hindsight
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Blue sea conquers Malawi’s capital: DPP supporters protest against ConCourt ruling

Maravi Post Reporter
DPP Secretary General Glezelder Jeffrey and Kutsayira

LILONGWE-(MaraviPost)-There was blue sea in Malawi’s Capital Lilongwe on Wednesday morning as thousands of governing Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) supporters took to the streets in a peaceful march.

The demonstration is a continuation of expressing displeasure over February 3, 2020 Constitutional Court (ConCourt) ruling that nullified May 21, 2019 presidential polls.

“We find the Constitutional Court ruling to be not pleasing at all. We find the judgement to have stolen our legitimate victory in broad daylight,” reads part of the petition presented to Lilongwe city council which was red by Dr Hetherwick Ntaba .

In Lilongwe, the blue sea would edge through Mchesi, Kamuzu Central round about and then finally into the Central Business District to submit a petition at Civic Offices.

The marchers are led by DPP Secretary General Glezelder Jeffrey.

Other notable figures included Central region Binton Kutsayira, Dr. Jean Kalirani, Mwai Chimuyambeni and Chimwemwe Chipungu.

Jeffrey urged the DPP supporters to remain peaceful during the demos which was indeed not violent

“Let us demonstrate that we are a peaceful party who just want to fight for the restoration justice which we feel is not being dispensed justly,” she said.

The party is demanding the probe of ConCourt judges on the alleged bribe over the ruling.

The court nullified the presidential election following petitions submitted by opposition Malawi Congress Party and UTM party-who complained that the election was marred by rigging and massive irregularities.

In its determination, the Constitutional Court indeed found that the irregularities were grave and that the use of correctional fluid Tippex in many results sheets, undermined the outcome of the election.

Immediately after the ruling, DPP expressed its displeasure, first taking to the streets in the Commercial Capital Blantyre and then Zomba.