Nawena calls Malawi Auditor General ‘liar’ over forensic audit
Outspoken Lifred Nawena, a member Public Accounts Committee (PAC) of Parliament branded Malawi’s Auditor General Stephenson Kamphasa “a liar” after he maintained that he had no mandate to release a report providing names of suspects in the looting of government resources in the Capital Hill Cashgate.
Kamphasa who appeared before the committee said he could not divulge details in the report demanded by members and asked Minister of Finance Maxwell Mkwezalamba to respond to the committee, but he also referred the committee to Baker Tilly which also said in a letter that “releasing the names might jeopardize these investigations and hinder the purpose [of the audit.]”
However, Nawena branded the Auditor General “a liar.”
Said Nawena: “He said he would bring the list of names involved that Friday, then came back to say it would be the Minister of Finance. We know these names have not been released because they include sons and daughters of this administration; they include ministers of this administration. We aren’t children. Why not just say I have failed in my duty?”
Kamphasa maintained that he had no mandate to release the name of companies and individuals involved in the theft because work was still underway to get to the bottom of the matter.
“You can call me a liar and I don’t want to make any more promises lest I be called a liar again,” Kamphasa said.
He nonetheless pointed out that “the truth will come out at the end of the day.”
Kamphasa said he is constitutionally mandated to report to Parliament through the Ministry of Finance.
Meanwhile, London accounting firm which carried the audit, Baker Tilly, has said their investigations were still underway to establish and compile more case files for the attention of the law-enforcement agencies but through Auditor General.
