Malawi Electoral Commission (MEC) has rejected a proposal by a private investigator to audit its election management system (EMS) ahead of the September 16 2025 General Elections.
The private investigator, Phillip Zuze, wrote MEC on March 25 2025, seeking to independently audit MEC’s system to ensure its integrity and reliability with less than six months to the tripartite polls.
But in her response to Zuze’s proposal, MEC chairperson Annabel Mtalimanja said the commission has not resolved to engage the services he is offering.
In a letter dated April 7 2025, Mtalimanja, a High Court of Malawi Judge, said if such services were to be needed, all due procurement processes would have to be followed for the sake of transparency.
She said: “Being a public entity, procurement thereof would be done following the legally prescribed procurement process and all eligible service providers would be free to bid.”
Mtalimanja further said if Zuze’s proposal is on behalf of a particular electoral stakeholder, that stakeholder should put in writing any observed irregularities.
She said only then would MEC consider the request based on such identified irregularities.
Zuze last week said while he acknowledged MEC’s response, his intention was to support electoral integrity by offering a technical and independent audit to build public trust and ensure the system is secure, transparent and ready for the polls.
“While MEC has clarified that no decision has been made to engage our services and that any such process would follow public procurement procedures, we respect their position and the legal framework that governs such engagements.
“If MEC identifies any need for such services or receives substantiated complaints from stakeholders, we remain available to contribute our expertise as part of a transparent and competitive process. Our commitment remains to strengthen the credibility of the electoral process for all Malawians,” he said.
In his March 25 2025 letter to MEC, Zuze said his proposal was not politically-motivated, but rather it was a proactive measure to reinforce credibility of the electoral process.
He argued that the audit was essential to verify the integrity, safety and reliability of the system in safeguarding voter information, in particular, inclusion of names and other sensitive data.
Part of the letter reads: “Regarding concerns about the credibility of the audit team, my proposal advocates for the inclusion of reputable, [and] independent experts with no political affiliations.
“These professionals would come from recognised institutions with a track record in election monitoring, cyber security and systems auditing.”
Previously, opposition political parties have collectively demanded MEC to allow them to use independent information and communications technology (ICT) auditors to audit the EMS.
The parties contend that the move to audit the system would clear out any fears that MEC’s servers might have been compromised at the time the official voter registration was commencing.
But MEC turned down these demands, forcing the parties to threaten to seek court redress.
In December 2024, ICT experts also queried MEC’s system for failing to detect double registrants.
The reactions followed the arrest of a voter in Lilongwe who had registered twice.
Recently, the commission also came under fresh scrutiny following the missing of names in the preliminary voters register, including that of MEC commissioner Francis Kasaila.
But last week, Mtalimanja told the press in Lilongwe that the discrepancies were resolved.
