CSOs call for calm

The Public Affairs Committee (PAC), National Initiative for Civic Education (Nice) Trust and the Malawi Electoral Support Network (Mesn) have urged Malawians to keep calm as they await official announcement of Tuesday’s polls.

In separate statements, the three civil society organisations have also condemned the violence in Blantyre and Lilongwe following electoral hitches that led to delays in opening of polling stations and anxiety among voters.

Speaking on Thursday when his organisation presented its preliminary report on the tripartite polls, Nice Trust executive director Ollen Mwalubunju said Malawians must keep calm as they await official results.

“The process has faced logistical, management and planning hitches that eventually led to violence in some areas. As we await announcement of the results, Malawians must remain calm,” said Mwalubunju.

While hailing the Electoral Commission (MEC) for its transparency in handling electoral drawbacks, PAC chairperson Reverend Felix Chingota said the violence has tainted the electoral process.

“We appreciate the interventions MEC has made during this challenging time. MEC has been transparent in its explanations and publicly acknowledged its shortfalls. That is commendable,” said Chingota.

Mesn, which is running a parallel voter tarbulation (PVT) for the polls, said they are monitoring the tabulation of results, one of the remaining core tasks in the electoral process.

“Malawians must remain calm and candidates must behave responsibly. While there have been problems, these have not fundamentally undermined the credibility of the process. Mesn’s PVT will verify the MEC official results,” said Mesn chairperson Steve Duwa.