Fahad Assani continues to play Devil's Advocate for Bakili Muluzi at the expense of Millions of Malawians

Attorneys for Malawian former President Bakili Muluzi will today (Monday) challenge in court a decision by the Electoral Commission declaring him ineligible to compete in the May 19 general election. The commission late Friday barred the former president from contesting the election saying he had already served two consecutive terms as Malawi's leader from 1994 to 2004. Observers believe the move could potentially plunge the country into a constitutional crisis and escalate political tensions in the country. Incumbent President Bingu Wa Mutharika has hailed the electoral commission's ruling.

Fahad Assani is the lead attorney for former President Muluzi. He tells reporter Peter Clottey that the electoral commission is to blame for the current crisis.

"Indeed we have managed to have the summons signed and executed by the High Court of Malawi. And that summons is a challenge to the Malawi Electoral Commission to ensure that the decision that they have made barring the former president who served two consecutive terms up to 2004 is allowed to come back in 2009," noted Assani.

He said the opposition UDF has its job cut out if the court agrees with the electoral body barring the former president from participating in any other election after serving two consecutive terms as the country's leader.

"Well that one is a decision that has to be made by the party because it is the party that is challenging the decision of the Malawi Electoral Commission. Because as you may be aware, what has happened is that the electoral commission took so long to make a decision on the eligibility of the former president and they (EC) are not even presenting alternatives to the more than three million voters who we know are UDF supporters. And now that kind of decision will disenfranchise the UDF supporters totally is not acceptable," he said.

Assani expressed confidence that the court will rule in the former president's favor after considering the facts.

"We are quite confident that the electoral commission made quite a grave legal error, which the court has to come in and redress because our constitution has provided the condition that would be required for one to stand as a parliamentary member or a presidential candidate. At the same time, our constitution talks of the tenure of office, it refers to the president who is not a former president as to what condition one can be on that seat once elected. So, they (EC) are using the provision which is there for somebody who has been elected, but not for the condition for one to be elected in terms of eligibility," Assani pointed out.

He denied the former president is to blame for a possible constitutional crisis due to his plans to stand for another round of election after serving two consecutive terms as Malawi's leader from 1994 to 2004.

"Far from it, since he was elected as the UDF presidential candidate, that was April 2008, he has always said that it is the people who want him to be the touch bearer for the party (UDF). Now this thing has been so topical throughout that time whereby if the electoral commission was indeed acting in good faith ought to have said, you are not eligible because you have served two consecutive terms. They never wanted to make any decision and even when the papers were presented on February 24 this year, the electoral commission kept these papers until after a month and two weeks and now to say you are not standing," he said.

Assani said the electoral commission should have taken a cue from the ongoing controversy surrounding the former president's eligibility after he was elected as the presidential candidate for the opposition UDF last year.

"There is a lot of bad faith with the electoral commission because had they said when people as well civil organizations were calling upon them that they should inform the nation whether a former president who had served two consecutive terms is eligible or not, these things could not have been in existence today. But it is the electoral commission that has created this atmosphere of uncertainty or the so-called or perceived constitutional crisis. It is not the former president," Assani noted.             

Former President Muluzi contends that the EC was politically pressured to prevent him from representing the opposition United Democratic Front (UDF) party in the upcoming election. He cited claims and rhetoric by incumbent President Mutharika which that he would not be allowed to participate in the general election, after Mutharika described his move as illegal.

But opponents of former President Muluzi's candidacy are of the opinion that the spirit of the constitution was to bar leaders from ruling the country for life, thus the two-term limits.

Malawi's constitution limits presidents to two terms but silent on whether a former president can run again, which has incessantly led to demands by some Malawians for the law to be reviewed.

Muluzi, was Malawi's leader from, 1994 to 2004 after expressing his desire to contest as presidential candidate for his former ruling United Democratic Front (UDF) although he already served as president for a maximum of 10 years.

He was arrested last month and charged with stealing millions of dollars given to Malawi by international donors during his decade as president, ending in 2004.

Muluzi denies any wrongdoing, but despite his legal problems, he reportedly has considerable grassroots support in some parts of the country.

Malawi rejects ex-president Muluzi as candidate

BLANTYRE (AFP) — Malawi's former president Bakili Muluzi cannot run in May elections this year, the nation's electoral body ruled late Friday, in a dramatic shake-up of the country's political landscape.

"Bakili Muluzi's nomination has been rejected by the Malawi Electoral Commission. The main reason is that he already served his two terms as president," chief elections officer David Bandawe told AFP.

The Malawi constitution, hammered out after the fall of dictator Kamuzu Banda who ruled for three decades with an iron fist, allows only two terms of five years each.

Muluzi had tried unsuccessfully to amend the constitution to allow him to stand for a third time, after ruling the impoverished southern African nation from 1994 to 2004.

He reluctantly tapped current President Binbgu wa Mutharika to run as his successor, only to see his protege turn against him and form his own party.

Muluzi had filed to run again in the May 19 polls, but Bandawe said the commission had rejected his nomination.

The commission, which is headed by supreme court of appeal judge Anastazia Msosa, met on Friday in the commercial capital Blantyre to assess Muluzi's candidacy, Bandawe said.

"After analysing all the issues, the commission made a decision to reject his nomination," Bandawe added.

Muluzi remains the influential national chairman of the former ruling United Democratic Front, but his political standing has been hit by corruption allegations.

He was charged in February with 86 counts of graft over the alleged theft of 12 million dollars in aid money.

His rejection leaves Mutharika facing off against opposition leader John Tembo of the Malawi Congress Party in the presidential race.

Malawian ex-president comeback bid crumbles

BLANTYRE, Malawi: The Malawi Electoral Commission says former president Bakili Muluzi cannot run in May elections because he has already served the maximum two terms the constitution allows.

Muluzi served as Malawi's president from 1999 to 2004 and argued that after a break of five years he was eligible to stand again. His lawyer and a party spokesman said he would appeal.

Friday's announcement means Muluzi's party could go to the polls May 19 without a candidate if the ruling stands.

Muluzi faces charges of corruption and is accused of siphoning into his personal bank account about $10 million from donor countries while president.

He wants to run against incumbent Bingu wa Mutharika. Seven other candidates are also running.

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Chakuamba NRP rejects accord with UDF

Gwanda Chakuamba’s New Republican Party has rejected the memorandum of understanding which it was scheduled to sign with the United Democratic Front alongside three other alliance partners.
This dramatic turn of political events comes amid reports that Chakuamba is into discussions with President Bingu wa Mutharika for a possibility of disbanding his party to rejoin the Democratic Progressive Party.
NRP secretary general Ken Zikhale Ng’oma in an interview this week said, among several other reasons, the party has rejected the MOU because NRP feels the agreement was not thoroughly serving its interests having put the party as a junior partner along the other three parties.
But the UDF has justified its position saying it could only consider NRP as an equal partner if the party was ready to also contribute equally to resources in preparation for the forthcoming elections.
Zikhale Ng’oma, who is also doubling as the party’s vice-president, said NRP cannot sign an agreement which was putting Malawi Democratic Party, Malavi People’s Party  and Malawi Democratic Union at the same level as the NRP, which he said has the potential to win a number of seats during the May 19 elections.
“The MOU is too general. We want as NRP to be known as a force on its own. We have some specifications because at the end of the day we are asking ourselves what we are going to achieve,” he said.
Zikhale Ng’oma said the party was currently consulting its members on the contents of the MOU and it will go back to the UDF for fresh negotiations.
“Why should UDF benefit alone? As NRP we want to negotiate alone, whatever Kamlepo gets we are not interested. We are looking at ourselves that we started this whole thing. We cannot be absorbed by the UDF because we stand on an equal footing,” he added.
Zikhale Ng’oma said NRP allowed UDF to have both the presidential candidate and his running mate because they were aware that in such an agreement there is supposed to be a spirit of humbleness and give and take.
He also said although there has been speculation that the NRP was leaving the alliance the party was still in partnership with UDF.
“As NRP we have the right to talk to people who are interested to talk to us and if we want to move nobody will stop us, however, the first thing is to discuss and if we don’t agree then probably we can move on,” he said.
UDF spokesperson Rob Jamieson described NRP’s stand as strange and insisted that all the alliance partners were at an equal level since all of them were joining the UDF.
“When you are equal partners you must contribute resources equally, like we could have said let us contribute 50 percent each to the nomination fees for our presidential candidate but that was not done. Why should they talk of equal partnership without equal contribution? If they contribute sufficiently well and good,” said Jameison.
He added: “We had a meeting where the MOU was agreed upon. However, the problem is that NRP believes that it is a strong force that can win a lot of MPs which I don’t think is true.”
The alliance spokesperson Humphrey Mvula said their partner’s concern was not an issue and if the party comes forward UDF was ready to have a ‘stand alone’ agreement with NRP.
“We are sponsoring a president and UDF is a national party which has taken part in elections before—in 1994, 1999 and 2004. We will continue sponsoring our president with or without an alliance partner,” he said.
Mvula also said the UDF was surprised with NRP’s sudden change of  heart because he said “nobody was forced to sign a generic MOU.”
MDP president Kamlepo Kalua in a separate interview said even if NRP looked at itself as a big party in the alliance what was needed was compromise. He described NRP’s outbursts as a lame excuse and a sign that the leadership of the party was not politically mature enough.
“Probably they want to join another party. I think if they are not happy let them come out in the open, let them go to Atcheya and negotiate. We have not yet signed the MOU and nobody is denying the NRP to come up with a separate agreement,” said Kalua.
The MDP leader said to his party, the MOU “was containing very beautiful things with the NRP and [Chakuamba] given an  upper hand.”
On Wednesday, Chakuamba denied to have met Mutharika to discuss a possible reunion.
“The answer is no, I never met the president and what I know is that I am with UDF,” he said.
Mvula said despite the electoral coalition which political parties form, the individual parties have every right to go out prospecting for a better partner if they so wish in exercising the right to freedom of association as enshrined in the Republican Constitution.
Chancellor College political analyst Blessings Chinsinga in an interview said Chakuamba’s NRP has no basis for claiming that it is a strong force at par with the UDF since it is a party which has never contested an election.
“Chakuamba dissolved the RP and his association with the RP cannot be a basis for claiming that NRP is a strong party. RP is not NRP, you cannot bargain on the basis of association with another entity,” said Chinsinga.

-Nation Malawi