Despite the Malawi Electoral Commission (MEC) failing to submit an electoral audit report in the in the ongoing constitutional case where opposition leaders are challenging results of the May 21 2019 presidential election, the document is now in public domain and dominates the discussion in different social media forums.

The Constitutional Court, on June 27 2019, told MEC to ask UNDP in writing to release that audit report to them for submission to court.

MEC is on record to have said, through its embattled chairperson Jane Ansah, that the vote counting process and the declaration of the national result of the May 21 2019 elections were duly audited.

However, the audit report by BDO Jordan/Samman and Co which is in circulation show MEC announced figures that were not verified by auditors.

Signed by Hussain Alshobaki, the audit report says during the review of the transmitted results at the National Tally Centre, they noted that in terms of controlling and reconciling the transmitted results, “MEC was unable to specify what was verified by the auditors and what was not.”

The audit report also noted that the transmitted results appeared on the screen before the verification of the auditors.

“MEC considered that final results before auditors’ approval,” it reads in part.

The audit says many of the tally sheets were rejected by the auditors because of the missing signatures of the corresponding political parties.

“Later, MEC provided us with an official letter to approve all papers if they contained the Presiding Officer’s signature only. Many of the tally sheets were rejected because of manual amendments.

“ Later, MEC provided us with an official letter to approve any manual amendments on the tally sheets and forms that were used at the constituency tally centres,” reads the report.

The certified international auditors were hired by UNDP –Malawi to assist in the validation of the tally sheets which were mostly Tipp-Exed’.

Commentators say the May election will go down in history as one of those electoral processes that were well managed only to be messed up at the very end.

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