ACB quizzes Muhara over corruption, abuse of office: In court today

The Anti-Corruption Bureau (ACB) on Thursday said it spent three hours questioning ormer chief secretary to the President and Cabinet Lloyd Muhara over alleged corruption when he handed himself to the bureau in Lilongwe.

ACB issued a warrant of arrest to Muhara last week when it  arrested former Cabinet minister Symon Vuwa Kaunda in connection with an alleged illegal sale of land belonging to the Department of Forestry in Kanjedza, Blantyr

Initially, the graft-busting body said Muhara had gone to United States of America but the  former Chief Secretary, a Judge of the High Court of Malawi, said he was within Malawi and said he would hand himself over to ACB.

Muhara was questioned over the allocation of a 1.1-hectare plot to  former Cabinet minister Charles Mchacha with 99- year lease effective July 2019 at a value of K30.5 million.

Mchacha was arrested already together with  Ministry of Defence Principal Secretary Bright Kumwembwe on similar charges. The duo was granted bail last week

ACB director general Reyneck Matemba said after questioning Muhara, he was taken to Lilongwe police Station where he spent the night in cell.

“What I can say the charges relate to the issue of what used to be called Kanjeza Forest and the charges relate therefore to the reasons why we arrested Honourable Charles Mchacha, Honourable Vuwa Kaunda and Mr. Bright Kumwembe. That is all I what I can say for the time being,” Matemba said.

According to Matemba, the  State will formally charge Muhara today at the court and he would be accorded an opportunity to apply for bail.

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