As the cause of the fire that destroyed Malawi Electoral Commission (MEC) Warehouse in Lilongwe is yet to be established, FaceofMalawi has established that about 933 lamps, 257 gas cylinders, 13 tent-roofs and 55 tent sides borrowed from Zimbabwe Electoral Commission (ZEC) worthy K9 million are missing.

This was disclosed during the official hand-back ceremony of the borrowed material on Wednesday in Harare, Zimbabwe and MEC was represented at the event by its chairperson Maxon Mbendera.

MEC borrowed gas cylinder, tents and lamps which were used in the May 20 tripartite election.

Admitting the shortfall, Mbendera said MEC was aware of the terms of agreement which state that the body must replace any broken or missing equipment.

“In this case, the commission will have to pay for the damage. We will wait for your guidance on this issue. We accept full liability of the damage”, said Mbendera.

In her part, ZEC deputy chairperson Joyce Laetitia Kazembe said her commission was shocked to learn of the fire that destroyed part of the election materials and the equipment.