MEC drills constituency returning officers

Gearing up for nominations: MEC Commissioners Dr Nakanga
(2nd left seated) and Mrs Chingota captured with MEC staff and
Constituency Returning Officers (CROs) from Balaka and Machinga
 soon after opening of orientation workshop on Wednesday. 

As preparations for the May 20 Tripartite Elections intensify, the Malawi Electoral Commission has scheduled nationwide trainings on nomination process for Constituency Returning Officers (CROs).

The CROs will manage the nomination process at the constituency level whereby they will be responsible for receiving nomination papers from parliamentary and local government elections.

For the first time, the Commission has to conduct interviews, whose candidates were Primary Education Advisors, to identify suitably qualified CROs.

Speaking in Balaka when he opened the orientation workshop for CROs from Machinga and Balaka district councils on Wednesday, January 8, 2014 Commissioner Dr Wellington Nakanga urged the participants to be neutral and impartial in their work.

“Whatever you will do as Constituency Returning Officer, will not reflect on you, but it will be the image and integrity of the Commission that will be at stake”.

“If you will conduct yourselves professionally, the public will praise the Commission of being professional. If you discharge your duties in a partisan way, taking political sides, un-leveling the playing field and indulging in all that sort of behavior not condoned by the Commission, it will also be the image and integrity of the Commission that will be at stake. The Commission will not condone this,” he said.

Dr Nakanga emphasized that the Commission was determined to deliver a credible election and would not tolerate anyone to sabotage the process.

“Be informed that the Commission will not hesitate to nip that in the bud any behaviours or acts that would affect its integrity. We are coming from registration exercise which has been successful and we will not accept to fail on nominations,” he warned.

The Commissioner cautioned the CROs that there was no room for experimenting, rehearsing or asking for second chances and they had to just get everything right the first time as they discharge their duties.

The Commissioner said for 2014 elections the aspirants will deposit their nomination fees with any branch of the Malawi Savings Bank and attach the deposit slip to the nomination papers.

The Commission has planned to start issuing nomination papers from January, 2014 and will receive them back from 10 to 14 February 2014.

Similar training took place in Chikhwawa, Mulanje, Lilongwe, Salima, Mzimba and Chitipa and were presided over by MEC Commissioners.

End of the voter registration drive for the 2014 Tripartite Elections

PUBLIC NOTICE

MEC Chief Elections Officer, Mr Willie Kalonga

The Malawi Electoral Commission is informing the public that registration for the 2014 Tripartite Elections ended on December 18, 2013 at the end of phase 9 of the voter registration drive.

During the exercise, the Commission registered a total 7,537,548 voters nationwide.  This represents 94.10 percent of the projected total for the exercise which was 8,009,734 registrants. The total registered is also 16 percent above the 6,500,759 voters in 2010.

Of the total registered voters, 3,481,365 are men representing 46.19 percent while 4,056,183 are women representing 53.81 percent.

Registration started on July 22, 2013 and covered nine phases of 14 days each. The summary of the registered voters according to districts/councils is as follows:

COUNCIL	ACTUAL VOTERS REGISTERED FOR 2014 TRIPARTITE ELECTIONS			PROJECTED FIGURES FOR 2014	% VOTER REGISTRATION TO TOTAL PROJECTION
	MALE	FEMALE	TOTAL
Chitipa	48,028	57,473	105,501	119,550	88.25
Karonga	74,511	86,235	160,746	172,579	93.14
Rumphi	53,083	55,277	108,360	122,941	88.14
Nkhatabay	62,202	66,864	129,066	135,933	94.95
Likoma	3,351	3,491	6,842	6,672	103
Mzuzu City	48,015	47,642	95,657	89,204	107.23
Mzimba (M’mbelwa)	200,029	232,981	433,010	487,221	88.87
Northern Region Total	489,219	549,963	1,039,182	1,134,100	91.63
Kasungu District	170,124	173,915	344039	383,137	89.80
Kasungu Municipality	16,036	15,340	31,376	30,194	103.91
Nkhotakota	85,420	92,568	177,988	188,673	94.34
Ntchisi	63,071	68,465	131,536	140,664	93.51
Dowa	156,006	170,133	326,139	342,683	95.17
Salima	82,343	102,122	184,465	197,414	93.44
Mchinji	130,899	139,248	270,147	289,568	93.29
Lilongwe District	307,713	363,799	671,512	706,837	95.00
Lilongwe City	218,439	198,363	416,802	371,778	112.11
Dedza	148,654	197,041	345,695	360,663	95.85
Ntcheu	116,290	148,693	264,983	277,658	95.44
Central Region Total	1,494,995	1,669,687	3,164,682	3,289,270	96.21
Mangochi District	181,491	245,381	426,872	452,502	94.34
Mangochi Town Council	12,145	13,194	25,339	27,547	91.99
Balaka	81,249	105,429	186,678	202,268	92.29
Machinga	115,655	155749	271,404	305,000	88.99
Zomba District	140756	176705	317461	346,393	91.65
Zomba City Council	27611	25175	52786	56,219	93.89
Chiradzulu	73,558	95,405	168,963	179,396	94.18
Blantyre Rural	98,740	116,054	214,794	239,298	89.76
Blantyre City	195,326	177,028	372,354	401,820	92.67
Mwanza	23,983	30,690	54,673	53,414	102.36
Neno	28,529	33,567	62,096	61,082	101.66
Thyolo	135,521	177,324	312,845	340,109	91.98
Luchenza Municipality Council	4,925	4,721	9,646	12,628	76.39
Phalombe	78,855	101,124	179,979	190,696	94.38
Mulanje	129,501	176,795	306,296	320,261	95.64
Chikhwawa	113,680	131,182	244,862	260,256	94.09
Nsanje	55,626	71,010	126,636	139435	90.82
Southern Region Total	1,497,151	1,836,533	3,333,684	3,588,322	92.90
National Grand Total	3,481,365	4,056,183	7,537,548	8,009,734	94.10

The Commission is also informing the public that 775,564 voters were registered in phase 9 representing 94.10 percent of the total projected 824,912. The total registered for phase 9 is also 115.95 percent of 669,505 voters registered in 2010. Phase 9 covered Nkhotakota and Salima districts, Mzuzu City, Mzimba South, Mzimba Solola, Kasungu North, Kasungu North-West, Kasungu South and Kasungu South-East constituencies and the total registered voters according to councils is as follows:

Council	2013 registered voters	2010 registered voters	% voter registration to 2010 registration	Projected registrants for 2013	% voter registration to 2013 projection
Mzuzu City	95,657	72,399	132.12	89,204	107.23
Mzimba (M’mbelwa)	107,389	96,250	111.57	118,592	90.55
Kasungu district	178,689	162,999	109.63	200,835	88.97
Kasungu municipality	31,376	24,506	128.03	30,194	103.91
Nkhotakota	177,988	153,128	116.23	188,673	94.34
Salima	184,465	160,233	115.13	197,414	93.44

Detailed registration figures for each centre, ward and constituency for the entire registration exercise have been uploaded on MEC website www.mec.org.mw.

The Commission is urging stakeholders to exercise caution with the statistics because they are based on preliminary information captured during field operations and might change during computerization exercises.

The Commission wishes to thank: all persons who presented themselves for voter registration, civil society organizations who mobilized people to register, traditional leaders for their active participation in motivating people to register, political parties that mobilized people to register and all registration staff (District Elections Supervisory Teams, Quality Control Managers, Camera Operators, Supervisors and Clerks). Their participation contributed to make the exercise a success.

Signed this 30^th day of December, 2013

Willie Kalonga

Chief Elections Officer