Whistle-blower ask ACB to move in on MRA over bribes, nepotism: Ngutwa and others
Malawi Revenue Authority (MRA) Commissioner General John Biziwick is under fire for irregular recruitment of some senior staff and the Anti-corruption Bureau (ACB) has been asked to probe the matter.
A letter from concerned employees to ACB and copied to various media houses said Biziwick single-handedly picked Henry Ngutwa as Director of Tax Investigation without going for interviews and the post was not advertised as procedure requires.
It is alleged that Ngutwa comes from Dedza, home district of Biziwick.
Insiders also said Ngutwa has been given the post to pounce on opposition politicians and businessmen especially those supporting the opposition on tax offences.
Ngutwa, a lawyer by profession, is a well-known political activist from his days at Chancellor College where he was chairman of the then ruling UDF wing at the college, according to insiders.
“The sad thing is that this Ngutwa man never attended any interviews, he was just called in and was given his appointment later and they bought him a new Toyota Fortuner. All this is happening when other well deserved people have worked in this organization for a long time and deserve this post,” said a source.
Records at MRA human resources office show that the only time Ngutwa attended interviews, was for a lower position which was effectively offered to a Mr. Chalunda.
“Why a person who failed to show capacity to handle a junior post was in turn offered a senior post, only Mr. Biziwick can explain,” said a source.
Insiders also said Biziwick has been shielding Ngutwa from allegations of receiving bribes and extortion.
In a related development, Biziwick is said to have hired a close friend Mark Maleta to carry out a change management consultancy.
“This procurement contract must be reviewed. It is a known fact that appropriate procurement guidelines were not followed. Just look at the companies shortlisted to submit proposals. At least one company specializing in tax reform was told their proposal was not received when in reality it was submitted before the deadline. This should be easy to review because it recently happened and the audit trail should be intact,” said the source.
Procedures in MRA are very straightforward on how to employ people except the Commissioner General and Deputy Commissioner General who are appointed.
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