The Supreme Court of Appeal has dismissed an application for an injunction by UTM party and two others to restrain electoral body the Malawi Electoral Commission (MEC) from conducting fresh elections in Mangochi West and Mangochi North East.
In the application, United Transformation Movement (UTM) party members Godfrey Chiwondo and Henry Kantedza pleaded for an injunction pending an appeal.
In the appeal, Chiwondo and Kantedza are challenging a decision by the electoral body to use the voter’s roll of 2019 parliamentary election and to only allow candidatures who contested in the 2019 parliamentary election to contest in the fresh election.
In 2019, Chowondo contested as a Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) candidate but joined UTM later after the court nullified the election.
However, Kantedza registered as a new parliamentary candidate after the court ordered that there should fresh elections.
But in his ruling, Justice Lovemore Chikopa has dismissed the application of the injunction arguing the court cannot stop MEC from conducting the election.
Chikopa has argued that doing so is in away telling the court to reverse, or stay a decision of the Supreme Court in the Peter Mutharika, Malawi Electoral Commission against Saulos Chilima and Lazarus Chakwera Constitutional Appeal Case.
Chikopa added that being a single judge he cannot stay the decision by Supreme Court of Appeal and that UTM and two other parties should to approach a full panel of the Supreme Court of Appeal.
Mauya Msuku lawyer for Simeon Harrison, one of the candidates for Mangochi West said the judgment means that the fresh elections can proceed in the two constituencies.
