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MPs present nomination papers amid drama

As candidates for the May 21 presidential race continue submitting their nominations ahead of the May 21 elections, drama has rocked some parties whose parliamentary nominees are fighting each other over eligibility to appear on the ballot.

On Monday, the Malawi Electoral Commission (MEC) started receiving nomination papers for presidential, parliamentary and Local Government elections, an exercise expected to end this Friday.

Kainga finalises her nomination presentation with a MEC officer

So far, Comesa Hall in Blantyre remains the key centre of attraction, where presidential candidates are also unveiling their running mates.

But at district level, the exercise has been marred by clashes between rival candidates in some districts, failure by some to submit nominations and last -minute switches by others—mostly those who had previously pledged loyalty to back those who were elected to represent their parties.

In Nsanje South Constituency for instance, two Malawi Congress Party (MCP) aspirants failed to present their nomination papers yesterday following a protracted stalemate on who is the bonafide candidate to represent the party in the area during the forthcoming polls.

The two, Maxon Kadalinga and Bester Hassan Chiungano, were both geared to present their papers under the MCP ticket.

Chiungano claimed in an interview that he got his nomination papers from party officials in Blantyre who allegedly confirmed his victory during the second round of primary elections held in the constituency last year.

“After the rerun, I was declared winner and MCP officials invited me to our headquarters [South], where they handed me these nomination forms to present today [yesterday]. But I was surprised that [Kadalinga] was also ready to present his papers… this is confusion,” claimed Chiungano.

MCP Nsanje district governor Stephano Fote admitted the party held two rounds of primary elections which each candidate won, respectively; hence, both contestants felt they were eligible to represent the party.

According to Fote, Chiungano emerged victorious in the initial primary election with a minority vote while in the rerun it was Kadalinga who won the majority choice.

Meanwhile, Nsanje district commissioner Reinhard Chavula barred the two from presenting their papers until the matter is resolved at party level.

In Zomba Central, outgoing legislator Patricia Kainga Nangozo on Tuesday submitted her nomination papers to contest as an independent following her defeat to Bester Awali in the governing Democratic Progressive Party(DPP) primaries held last month.

Kainga, who won her seat in 2014 on People’s Party (PP) ticket before defecting to DPP in 2018, obtained only 18 votes while Awali amassed 720 votes.

Speaking after presenting her papers at Mponda Teachers Development Center (TDC), Kainga said her decision to go solo followed demands from her constituents and traditional leaders.

“During the primary elections only 1 300 people voted but Zomba Central Constituency has over 40 000 registered voters. Therefore, 1 300 people cannot speak for the 40 000 people,” said Kainga, who is treasurer general for Southern African Development Community-Parliamentary Forum (Sadc-PF).

But as if the Nsanje South Constituency scenario was not enough for the country’s main opposition party, an MCP councillor for Chimimbe Ward in Mchinji South West Constituency, Laymon Sakala, also dumped the party for DPP, claiming development in his area could only be brought through the latter.

Meanwhile, UTM Party legislator and aspiring MP for Mzuzu City Constituency Leonard Njikho has called for an end to all forms of political violence ahead of the May 21 Tripartite Elections.

Njikho was speaking at Mzuzu Civic Offices where he presented his nomination papers alongside other council aspirants standing on his party’s ticket.

“As UTM, we will do a peaceful campaign. We know what Malawians want and time for violence is over. We must do issue-based campaigns and avoid insulting opponents,” he said.

DPP Northern Region governor and shadow MP for the constituency Kenneth Sanga will today lead his party in presenting all nomination papers except for the presidency while Kumbo Kachali’s Freedom Party and MCP candidates will submit tomorrow and Friday, among others.

A random survey in Nkhotakota showed that most candidates were yet to deposit their nomination fees to various banks on Monday; hence, the actual presentation was expected to pick up on Tuesday and Wednesday. n

*Additional reporting by MEC Stringers

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