By Durell Namasani
Dar es Salaam, Tanzania – The former Speaker of Malawi’s Parliament, Richard Msowoya, has touched down in Dar es Salaam to assume his duties as the head of the Southern African Development Community Electoral Observation Mission for Tanzania’s upcoming general election.
Msowoya will provide overall leadership and coordination for the mission and act as its chief representative throughout the observation of the electoral process scheduled for October 29. His appointment to this critical role was made by President Arthur Peter Mutharika of Malawi, who currently serves as the Chairperson of the SADC Organ on Politics, Defence and Security Cooperation.
The mission comprises the SADC Electoral Advisory Council and teams of observers dispatched from multiple SADC member states. These nations include Botswana, the Kingdom of Eswatini, the Kingdom of Lesotho, Malawi, Mozambique, Namibia, Seychelles, South Africa, Zambia, and Zimbabwe. Officials from the SADC Secretariat are also part of the delegation.
The observers are currently engaged in a refresher training program on electoral processes, which runs from October 16 to 19 in Dar es Salaam. Msowoya’s arrival sets the stage for the official launch of the observation mission on October 21.
The entire deployment is conducted in line with the SADC Principles and Guidelines Governing Democratic Elections. A preliminary statement from the observation mission detailing its initial findings is expected to be released on October 31, following the conclusion of voting.
