By Burnett Munthali
On Wednesday, 247 Malawi published a story reporting that a recent opinion poll by a group known as ‘Reality on the Ground’ projects Malawi Congress Party (MCP) leader, Dr. Lazarus Chakwera, as the likely winner of the upcoming presidential election scheduled for 16 September 2025.
According to the survey, Chakwera would secure 47.5% of the vote, followed by Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) presidential candidate Professor Arthur Peter Mutharika with 35%.
The poll places People’s Party (PP) leader Dr. Joyce Banda in third with 8%, while United Transformation Movement (UTM) president Dr. Dalitso Kabambe garners 5%, and the United Democratic Front (UDF) leader trails at 2%.
Additionally, 2.5% of respondents reportedly declined to disclose their voting preference.
The research was conducted through interviews with 1,200 individuals across all three regions of the country.
However, the publication of these findings has sparked significant backlash from readers, many of whom took to the comment section of the same 247 Malawi post to express their skepticism and frustration.
One commenter accused the survey of being manipulated, claiming: “Aaaaaa this is Richard Chimwendoh’s Sponsored group!! Za ziiiiiii!!!!”
Another dismissed the findings as outright fiction, adding: “Kkkkk fake and this shall be proved on 16th September, 2025. And clear testimony is Northerners who are denying Chakwera on his whistle stop tours.”
There were also sarcastic remarks, including one that simply said: “Akawalala awa,” while another person posted: “God’s plan is the best. He will give us a leader.”
Some readers attempted to be analytical, questioning the methodology of the survey. One user asked: “1200 out of 8,000,000 voters? Invalid survey. 0.00015% true.”
Another user, seemingly undeterred by the criticism, declared: “Zeni zeni ndi izi. Within the rest of the campaign period, we will get the remaining 3%,” showing confidence in the MCP’s ability to gain more support.
Clearly, the majority of respondents in the comment section appear to dispute the authenticity, credibility, and neutrality of the opinion poll.
While scientific opinion polls can be valuable tools for gauging public sentiment, the strong public rejection of this particular survey underlines the increasing mistrust in politically-linked data, especially as elections draw near.
With voters growing more vocal and engaged online, it is evident that any poll results must be backed by transparent methodology and independently verifiable processes if they are to be taken seriously by the public.
