Reform poll systems—Chimunthu
Former speaker of National Assembly Henry Chimunthu-Banda has called on African parliaments and the Malawi Legislature in particular to put in place electoral systems that provide representative election outcomes which facilitate broad-based participation in a democratic process.
Speaking this week at a Conference of State Legislatures held at Uyo in AkwaIbom State, Nigeria, Chimunthu-Banda, said the need to have relevant and credible electoral systems was imperative because elections are recognised as the only means in a democracy by which people choose their leaders to direct national affairs.
“But elections are not just about choosing leaders. Crucially, the credibility of the process has far-reaching consequences on the nation’s stability and progress. Thus, the Legislature is enjoined to ensure that the electoral systems provide a representative outcome which facilitates broad-based participation in the democratic process,” said the former speaker, on the theme: ‘The Role of the Legislature as an Instrument of Stability in Democratic Governance’.
His call comes after Malawi held tripartite elections on May 20, 2014 which, besides ushering in a new administration, featured controversy bordering on allegations of cheating and restrictive electoral systems, which many stakeholders want reformed.
With the new National Assembly in its second week of deliberations, Chimunthu-Banda recommended to African parliaments that their standing orders need to be transparent, well-defined and closely adhered to just as rules of the houses must be applied fairly and impartially for them to play a meaningful role in democratic governance.
“The Speaker has to balance between the minority and the majority groups in the House; the cardinal point being that while the majority may have their will, the minority must have their say,” he said in a speech made available to Weekend Nation.
“In the same breath, discussion of Bills should not be blocked by majority parties and legislation should not be passed without adequate debate,” he said.
The former Nkhotakota North parliamentarian, who opted for political sabbatical until 2019, told the conference that law making being the most important function of the Legislature, particularly because a law offers guidance and regulates society in its various aspects, only those laws that promote stable democratic governance, entrench human rights protection and guarantees fundamental freedoms need to be passed.
