IHappy Nation

Police in Lilongwe arrested Andrew Mpesi, the chief elections officer of the Malawi Electoral Commission, on allegations of abuse of office. He was taken into custody and detained at Lingadzi Police Station, where he is expected to appear in court.

The arrest relates to a vehicle that had initially been assigned to him on a temporary basis through the Office of the President and Cabinet before he later received an official vehicle under his employment conditions. The temporary vehicle was allegedly not returned and was later seen being driven by his wife, leading authorities to treat the matter as abuse of office.

His defence maintains that his employment conditions include provisions allowing his vehicle to be driven by his wife.

IHAPPY NATION what does the law say????

I hate to work

The Mchinji Magistrate’s Court has sentenced 37-year-old Ernest Chimpeni to six years’ imprisonment for defilement, with the sentence taking effect from the date of his arrest.
Chimpeni was convicted on Wednesday, January 14, 2026, after the court found that between March and November 2025, he had sexual in*******se with a girl who was below the age of 18.
Although the victim possessed a National Identity Card indicating that she was 19 years old, the court was satisfied by evidence from the girl herself, her mother, and her uncle that she was born in 2008. This evidence was further supported by an age assessment report from Mchinji District Hospital, which was duly tendered in court.
In passing sentence, Senior Resident Magistrate Godfrey Nyirenda emphasized that defilement is a serious offence which attracts a maximum penalty of life imprisonment under Section 138(1) of the Penal Code.
The case sparked public debate, with some members of the public questioning the conviction on the basis that the National ID should have been sufficient proof of age. However, Magistrate Nyirenda stated that the duty of the court is to interpret, protect, and enforce the law as enacted, relying strictly on legally relevant facts.
The magistrate further noted that Chimpeni only accepted responsibility after all prosecution witnesses had testified, and that his apology came too late to carry significant weight as a mitigating factor during sentencing.
“In other words, the role of the court is to interpret the law as it is, not to make it reasonable, even where the outcome may appear unreasonable,” Nyirenda said.
Nyirenda added that the sentence is subject to confirmation by the High Court, and that Chimpeni retains the right to appeal against both the conviction and the sentence within the period prescribed by law.
The court also ordered the National Registration Bureau (NRB) to rectify the victim’s biodata to reflect her correct age, in accordance with Section 23(1) of the Constitution, which guarantees the right to human dignity and accurate personal identity records.
IHappy Nation