Below is the full speech by Malawi President, Lazarus Chakwera conceding defeat:
Regardless of whether or not you voted, and regardless of how you voted, if you are a Malawian citizen anywhere in the world, I want to sincerely thank you for conducting yourself throughout this election in a peaceful, orderly, and lawful manner. Most importantly, I want to thank the Lord God Almighty and all of you for the incredible privilege you gave me over the past five years to serve as your sixth president.
In the days that remain before my successor takes the oath of office, I want you to know that I am fully committed to facilitating a peaceful transfer of power. I have already instructed my team to begin preparations to provide the incoming administration with any support needed to ensure a seamless process that safeguards our nation’s peace, order, institutions, public services, and constitutionalism.
Additionally, I have issued directives for all my staff to ensure that, over the coming days, all state residences are left in good order and ready in time for the president-elect to move in upon taking his oath of office.
Let me also express my gratitude to the Malawi Electoral Commission for the meticulous and outstanding job it has done to ensure that this entire electoral process was peaceful and transparent. Special praise goes to the MEC Chair Justice Chifundo Kachale, whose calm demeanor and steady hands have steered this long and complex process in a manner that is commendable and admirable.
I recognize that running such a successful election requires an ecosystem of supportive commissioners, electoral staff, and stakeholders. So, as president, I want to thank all of you for the role you have played in making these general elections successful and in making Malawi’s democracy a shining example for the whole world.
Before I conclude, I want to say one more thing about the Malawi Electoral Commission’s work. In my understanding, the commission has two main responsibilities.
The first is to determine and announce a result which credibly reflects the will of the majority of Malawians—a task I believe the commission has executed with flying colors.
The second responsibility, which remains outstanding, is to identify any electoral irregularities that occurred during the process and ensure they are addressed fully and transparently, and that those responsible for violations of the law are held accountable.
So far, various political parties, including my own, have brought a number of such irregularities to the attention of the MEC. Crucially, the commission itself announced that it identified anomalies in the results of a number of districts, leading to a decision to quarantine those results until further notice.
These anomalies do not necessarily mean that the election result, which projects Professor Chakwera as the winner, is not credible or not a reflection of the will of the people. Even in sports, the occurrence of foul play does not mean the final score is not a true reflection of the game.
What these irregularities mean is that the electoral commission, as the referee, has a duty under the law to provide a full and transparent account of the irregularities: how they happened, how they have been resolved, and how those who committed faults will be held accountable.
I was of the view that the commission needed to fulfill this responsibility before announcing the final result, and I even asked the High Court to compel MEC to do so before the final announcement. However, the court decided that MEC should address these matters during its final press briefing today, and I have accepted the court’s decision.
I am hopeful that MEC will execute this second responsibility with the same excellence because doing so will strengthen our electoral process and democracy as we move forward.
Looking ahead, I call on all of you to give our incoming president the same collective support that you have given the Malawi Electoral Commission during this process. Professor Chakwera’s success in leading our nation toward prosperity will depend on all of us standing as one people in pursuit of our nation’s development.
So, whether you are a political party, a candidate, or a voter, and whether you have emerged on the winning side or on the losing side, my prayer is that you will remain active in advancing our development and democracy. My commitment is to do my part in that collective effort.
To the members of my party, I will be giving further directions soon about transitioning from my leadership in the coming months so that we can rebuild our platform for success in the future.
But for now, I believe what matters most is for all of us as Malawians to work together as one nation to make Malawi better, because that is how we will all be winners in the end.
God bless you all, and God bless Malawi.
