Mumba Wins As Judge Orders Fresh Primary Election in Mzimba Central
Published on July 16, 2025 at 1:26 PM by Edgar Naitha
The High Court sitting in Mzuzu has nullified the Malawi Congress Party (MCP) primary elections for Mzimba Central Constituency and ordered a fresh poll, citing serious irregularities in the process.
Delivering his judgment, High Court Judge Justus Kishindo ruled that the MCP breached its own internal party resolutions—particularly the National Executive Committee (NEC) guidelines of January 10, 2025—by using an illegitimate electoral college to conduct the primaries.
“The primaries in Mzimba Central cannot be said to have met the standards of fairness and democratic processes,” Judge Kishindo stated, adding that the process was fundamentally flawed due to the disregard of party procedures.
The case was brought before the court by Minister of Trade and Industry, Vitumbiko Mumba, who contested the legitimacy of the MCP primary elections after Adamson Kuseri Mkandawire was declared the winner.
Mumba argued that the internal party processes were manipulated and lacked transparency. He sought the nullification of the results, claiming that the electoral college used in the vote was improperly constituted.
Judge Kishindo agreed with Mumba’s arguments, also stating that the Minister could not be faulted for not exhausting internal MCP remedies if such avenues were “impartial and ineffective.”
The MCP is now expected to conduct a fresh primary election in the constituency under the direct supervision of the party’s National Executive Committee, in compliance with its own January 2025 resolutions.
