MEC relocation case awaits court ruling

The High Court of Malawi has heard submissions from parties in a case where the Malawi Electoral Commission (MEC) is cha l l enging President Peter Mutharika’s executive order to relocate its headquarters to Blantyre. High Court Judge Simeon Mdeza heard the matter in his chambers in Lilongwe yesterday and has since reserved his ruling, according to Attorney General Frank Mbeta. Mbeta said in an interview after the closed-door hearing that MEC, through its lawyer Andy Kaonga, requested for extension of time to file for judicial review, hearing of the substantive matter, technical clarifications regarding certain statements and referral to the Chief Justice for certification.

In a sworn statement filed on February 17 2026 in Judicial Review Case No. 2 of 2026, Mbeta argued that the application was filed 18 days outside the mandatory three-month limit under Order 19 rule 20(5) of the Courts (High Court) (Civil Procedure) Rules, 2017. Court documents show that MEC filed its application on January 27 2026, but Mutharika issued Executive order No.

1 of 2025 on October 10 2025. “Because the decision was made on 10th of October 2025, but they have only come to court on the 7th of January, which is outside the limits of the judicial review,” said Mbeta. Thus, Mbeta further argued that the Executive order is a “non-justiciable policy directive” that courts should not interfere with.

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He said the President acted within his powers under Section 89(5) of the Constitution. The AG also noted that the previous relocation from Blantyre to Lilongwe in June 2023 also incurred costs and disruption, “which the commission itself deemed justifiable for operational efficiency”. But in Executive order No.

1 of 2025 issued five days after his inauguration, Mutharika di rected MEC, Ma lawi Communications Regulatory Authority (Macra) and Malawi Housing Corporation to return to Blantyre within three months, while Malawi Prisons Service was ordered back to Zomba. While Macra and the other institutions have complied and relocated, MEC has remained in Lilongwe. In a previous statement, the commission said its decision to seek judicial review stems from its reflection of the legal framework establishing MEC, in particular Section 76(4) of the Constitution and Section 6(1) of the MEC Act. Kaonga refused to grant media interviews after the hearing, referring questions to MEC.

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