By Duncan Mlanjira
Newly-appointed Malawi Electoral Commission (MEC) Justice chairperson, Dr. Chifundo Kachale has announced that the pollster will publish the official publication of legal notices in the Malawi Government Gazette setting June 23, 2020 as the date of voting for the fresh presidential elections.
Malawi Parliament
In a statement issued on Wednesday, Kachale said this is in compliance with the formal communication from the Clerk of Parliament dated June 9, 2020 informing the Commission of the Parliamentary Resolution of the same date, that was passed on the basis of the Supreme Court of Appeal decision of 8th May 2020 directing the House to appoint the date for the fresh presidential election.
However, Kachale says MEC’s decision to publish the polling date has been arrived at considerable hesitation arising from the practicalities of holding genuine, credible elections in the view of logistical challenges that the commission anticipates in implementing steps towards the holding of the polls.
Kachale being sworn in on Tuesday
“…The Commission is promptly seeking to engage directly with all contesting candidates to appraise them of these anticipated challenges and to explore reasonable mitigation measures for purposes of ensuring delivery of a credible, free and fair election per the relevant mandate for this Ominous Fresh Presidential Election.”
Kachale, who was sworn in on Tuesday by Chief Justice Andrew Nyirenda in Blantyre together with Arthur Nanthuru, Steve Duwa, Anthony Mukumbwa and Olivia Liwewe, who are joined by former commissioners from the previous committee, Jean Mathanga and Linda Kunje.
Also in is Mathanga
After being sworn in on Tuesday, Kachale had said legally they were not properly constituted as an electoral commission but he vowed to restore public trust which MEC lost during the May 2019 tripartite elections.
According to his brief biography, Justice Dr. Kachale is a career judicial officer with a strong commitment to excellence in public service generally and a special interest in cultivating strong institutional mechanisms for promoting accountability and transparency in government.
From previous commission, Kunje
The deliberative/argumentative nature of judicial proceedings appeals to his keen interest in diversity of opinions which is the bedrock for enduring democratic societies.
He holds a PhD from the School of Oriental and African Studies (University of London) obtained in 2013 focusing on Constitutionalism and Judicial Methodology-exploring the impact of judicial activism (or lack of it) on entrenching a culture of constitutionalism in emerging democracies.
Justice Kachale at a high-profile summit
His PhD research reinforced in Justice Kachale the need for intentional training of judicial officers in order to produce jurisprudence that responds to the needs of evolving democracies without losing the contextual legitimacy paramount to autochthonous constitution-making.
He obtained his LLB (Hons) from Chancellor College University of Malawi in 2000 and his LLM (Law and Development) in the year 2005 from Queen Mary (University of London).
Kachale also went through the corridors
of Kamuzu Academy
Justice Dr. Kachale is a member of the Global Judicial Institute for the Environment and he also chairs the Malawi Judiciary Training Committee which is the body responsible for all trainings within that institution in his jurisdiction.
Until March 2020 he was also sitting in the Judicial Service Commission — which is the constitutional body responsible for all judicial appointments and recommendations in Malawi.
Kachale replaces Jane Ansah
Between December 2019 and February 2020, Justice Kachale worked on an assignment with the National Elections Commission of Sierra Leone in a Governance Support Program of the EU.
His work involved the creation of a Road Map for Electoral Legal Reforms emerging from Observation Reports of the 2018 General Elections in that country.
Coronavirus alert
Justice Kachale has also been involved in training of judicial officers both locally and internationally and considers training as one vital strategy to changing legal culture and promoting sound democratic reforms.
He has a strong passion for leadership development and is part of the visiting Faculty at the newly-launched Judicial Institute for Africa (JIFA) based at the University of Cape Town (UCT).
Coronavirus alert
He has facilitated in personal development initiatives in various jurisdictions, including the UK, Mauritius, South Africa, Tanzania, Sierra Leone and even locally — working with judges, lawyers, accountants, auditors, social scientists, medical doctors, engineers, politicians, public servants, musicians, students and other professionals.