Democratic elections central to the maintenance of peace and security - COMESA

Genuine democratic elections are central to the maintenance of peace and security in any country as they serve to resolve peacefully the competition for political power within a country, an electoral observer team from the Common Market for East and Southern Africa (COMESA) said Friday. 

The team was briefing the press on its mission in Malawi. 

Leader of the team, Ambassador Otema Musuka said to ensure free and fair elections, COMESA observers based in the country have closely followed the electoral process of the May 19 elections. 

He observed that free expression of the will of the people of Malawi will provide the basis for the authority and legitimacy of the government of Malawi, and as such elections should be held in a free and fair manner in order to uphold peace in the country during the post election period. 

"Credible and legitimate elections are a foundation for peace and security to any country which is in an election period such as Malawi. The observation of the elections is meant to contribute to the transparency of the electoral process by making sure that the elections are free and fair and not to pass judgment," he said. 

Musuka appealed to all Malawians, political parties and contesting candidates to maintain peace and tolerance with one another as the country goes to the polls on Tuesday. 

In order to come up with aggregate results as a basis for appropriate analysis of the electoral process, the team is using a sampling process in all the three regions of the country. The final report from the team will be submitted to the Malawi Electoral Commission (MEC) and COMESA Ministers of Foreign Affairs at their annual meeting in June. 

The team comprises 12 members from Kenya, Zimbabwe, Egypt, Democratic Republic of Congo, Sudan and Zambia). Each member is expected to visit between 15 and 20 polling centres. 

The main objective of the COMESA electoral observer team is to provide an independent assessment of the electoral process thereby providing credibility and legitimacy to the electoral process as a way of promoting peace, security and stability in the region as provided for under Article 3(d) of the COMESA treaty which among other things provides for the commitment to the promotion of democracy and the rule of law. 

COMESA also monitored Malawi's previous elections in 1994 and 1999. 

MANA