In a bid to ensure a free,fair and
credible May 20 tripartite elections, the Catholic Commission for Justice and
Peace (CCJP),an arm of the Episcopal Conference of Malawi (ECM) has trained at
least 150 animators from Karonga,Mzuzu and Dedza dioceses of the Catholic
Church.
The trained animators will be
deployed in the centers selected from the three dioceses to monitor the
electoral process especially during the counting of votes.
Speaking at Mtendere Catholic Parish
in Dedza where animators drawn from Matumba,Kasina and Mtendere Parishes where
about 50 animators were trained, CCJP’s National Programs Officer Beatrice
Mateyo Mkanda said the trainings in all the dioceses are aimed at complementing
the Catholic Church’s values which among others is to realize the significance
of a Christian participation in socio-economic and political issues.
Mkanda challenged the trained
animators to utilize and develop skills in becoming domestic observers
(monitors) in the forthcoming tripartite elections.
“From the onset,the Justice and
Peace spiritually is the foundation needed for any CCJP animator to understand
and internalize the relevancy of the word of God in doing justice and peace
work Without this basis,it is compellingly difficult for anybody to realize the
significance of a Christian participation in socio-economic and political
issues,”said Mkanda.
According to Mkanda,the trained
animators have been imparted with skills to understand the tripartite election,
electoral related conflicts and conflict management strategies.
For his part, CCJP’s board member
for Dedza diocese, Fr. Gracian Kalim’mawa said in the long run, it is
anticipated that the capacity of all CCJP animators in the targeted dioceses
will be built for them to meaningfully and effectively contribute to the
process that bring about free, fair, credible, transparent and peaceful
electoral processes before, during and after the May 20 tripartite elections.
“Through our animators, we look
forwards to see Malawi in unison with the national anthem. Oh God Bless land of
Malawi. Keep it a Land of Peace. As Malawi celebrates 50 years old since
attaining self rule, our animators participation in these electoral processes
testify the significant role the Catholic Church has in shaping the economic
and political governance landscape of this country,” said Fr. Kalim’mawa.
Dedza District Elections Clerk,
Frackson Kafausiyanji commended the Catholic Church through CCJP for taking an
initiative in ensuring that the May 20 tripartite elections are handled with
conscious and that the electoral results are accepted for all. He challenged
the trained animators to act as referees when handling the electoral process in
their respective centers.
“What you must know is that an
election is like a game of football where candidates compete. You are therefore
there as referees of the game meaning that you will be there as an eye of the
Malawi Electoral Commission. You are obliged to monitor every process and bring
trust to the voters as true representatives of MEC,” said Kafausiyanji.
The 150 animators from all the tree
targeted dioceses have among others been drilled in the following topics: the
spirituality of Justice and Peace, Elections, Non-partisan Elections
Observation and Monitoring, Electoral challenges in Malawi and Bishops Pastoral
Letters and Elections (What the Catholic Bishops have said about elections).
