The Malawi Electoral Commission (MEC) has received criticism from members of constituencies and Wards that have no members of parliament and councilors respectively, for delaying by-elections in their areas.
The outcry has come as three months have passed since the Electoral Commission conducted general elections on 16th September 2025 and yet some constituencies and wards still have no representatives.
Speaking to radio Islam, people in the affected areas have criticized the Malawi Electoral Commission arguing the delay is affecting development projects and service delivery.
Some of the respondents complained that the lack of representatives in their areas is also hindering the progress of the Farm Input Subsidy Program FISP as some areas yet to buy farm inputs.
Chifundo Chowe and Mrs. Chiwere of Mikongo ward in Mangochi district, expressed r frustration with their MP who they claim has been favouring one side of the ward.
Therefore they called upon the electoral body to swiftly call for by-elections to address the situation.
In his response, Village headman Saili of Senior Chief Mwambo in Zomba said as chiefs, they are also facing challenges working without a councilor especially now that a lot of people need assistance due to among other issues; the rainy season which is mostly associated with disasters.
Henry Muyaya an aspirant for Lilongwe City Bwaila Constituency said the delayed by-election is affecting him financially.
He said having contested in the previous election which was nullified by the Malawi Electoral Commission; he is now incurring additional costs in preparation for the fresh polls thus urging the Malawi Electoral Commission to announce the dates.
He said the delay could also affect the outcome of the polls as some prospected voters might have relocated to other areas and fail to cast their votes.
In his reaction, political scientist Ernest Thindwa is of the view that three months is not too long considering that the country has just conducted its general elections adding that MEC should be given ample time to prepare for the by-election.
“MEC has a proper plan, but there is also an issue of resources, we should admit our economy is not in good shape, we should admit our government may not have resources to make sure that all government ministries, companies and agencies are fulfilling their mandate, they are quite stressed interms of resources, but should not be an excuse, even if there were resources, I want to believe that 3 months it’s not what we can describe as a delay”.
Though he concurred with the others on the fact that development projects are being affected, Thindwa however, said they should maintain calmness, taking into consideration financial challenges the country is going through, as well as the number of affected areas.
Section 40 subsections 3 of the constitution of Malawi, states that every person has the right to cast their vote in secrete and compete on any public position of their choice.
Similarly the amended Presidential, Parliamentary and Local Government Election of 2010 states that if an election is suspended following the death of a candidate or for any other reason, a by- election should be conducted within 60 days, but 3 months have passed, since the country conducted the 2025 general election. A question can be; what is the Malawi Electoral Commission saying on the delay to release the dates for the fresh poll?
Sangwani Mwafulirwa, director of media and public relations at the Malawi Electoral Commission said the commission is currently conducting internal preparatory processes and the public will be informed on the dates once everything has been finalized.
“Besides that, one thing we can mention and have noted before regarding the elections, is to do with people who are eligible voters but have not registered for the national ID, so once they know that they are in a by-election area where they will be eligible to vote, they should go even today to register with NRB, so that they should be able to vote in the by-election”. He explained.
The five affected parliamentary constituencies include, Nkhotakota Liwawadzi, Lilongwe City Bwaila, Dedza Mtakataka, Blantyre West and Rumphi Central with nine wards also lacking representatives.
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