By Vincent Gunde
The Centre for Democracy and Economic Development Initiatives (CDEDI) has demanded for an explanation on the sudden withdrawal of a private member’s motion on the use of National Identity Cards (IDs) as the sole identification document in the 2025 elections.
The CDEDI says the just ended sitting of Parliament in Lilongwe came at the height of grief due to the untimely death of the departed Vice President Dr. Saulosi Chilima, Former First Lady Dr. Patricia Shanil Dzimbiri and seven others, who perished in the plane crash in the Chikangawa forest in Nkhatabay on the fateful Monday, 10th June, 2024.
The organization says the sitting of Parliament also came at a time when Malawians were agitating for a review of some bad laws that if left unchecked, will deny eligible voters to exercise their right to vote, come 16th September, 2025 elections.
Writing in a letter dated 19th September, 2024 to Dr. Chaponda signed by its Executive Director Sylvester Namiwa, the CDEDI says Dr. Chaponda’s ascendance to the position of Leader of Opposition in Parliament brought excitement and a lot of expectations from the citizenry with the anticipation to have an opposition that is worth the salt in the MCP dominated August House.
The CDEDI has observed that there are revelations that the sitting of Parliament is marred with serious allegations to the effect that some Members of Parliament (MPs) receive kickbacks to pass some dubious bills and for the President to signed into law.
The organization has claimed that Malawians were waiting in the wings to help Dr. Chaponda move the August House to amend the bad electoral laws only to wake up to the shock of their lives, when they heard that Dr. Chaponda decided to absent himself from the House at the time he was expected to table amotion for a debate on the use of National IDs to be the sole identification document, enabling the prospective voters to register.
“Justify your conduct in the just ended Parliamentary meeting and account for your actions since your ascendance to this position from April, 2024 to date,” reads CDEDIs letter in part.
The CDEDI says as the grieving nation, the entire 20 million plus population in Malawi expected their Leader of Opposition in Parliament to take the MCP government and President Dr. Lazarus Chakwera to task by demanding a credible and independent Commission of Inquiry be instituted, but on the contrary, what Malawians saw was just a Candlelight ceremony in the House.
