Chihana explodes: ‘My suspension is about World Bank projects — Not misconduct!’

Suspended Blantyre Water Board boss Yeremia Chihana has blasted the Board’s decision to send him home for the second time in five months, claiming he is being targeted for refusing to “dance to the tune” of powerful interests and for insisting on proper procedures in a multimillion‑dollar World Bank project.

Chihana says the latest suspension, issued on 28 August 2026, is nothing more than retaliation after he declined to travel to Lilongwe for a meeting on a $13 million World Bank‑funded programme, arguing that the Board had not followed the correct process.

He insists he is being punished for protecting the institution, not undermining it.

But the Board has accused him of a string of serious offences, including misrepresenting the Board to government and international partners, making an unauthorised appointment, and securing a K500 million overdraft facility from First Capital Bank without approval.

It says the allegations are grave enough to justify immediate suspension and a formal inquiry.

Chihana rejects the accusations outright, describing them as “manufactured” and part of a wider effort to block reforms and frustrate donor‑funded projects.

He claims some Board members are resisting change because it threatens entrenched interests, and argues that his attempts to modernise BWB have been met with hostility rather than support.

The suspension letter alleges that Chihana wrote to the Secretary to the Treasury, copying the World Bank and European Union, claiming the Board had endorsed an institutional modernisation programme at a meeting on 15 March 2026 — a meeting the Board insists never happened.

It also accuses him of appointing Lon Zizwe as Acting Director of Finance without approval, insisting that Msusa remains the legitimate acting director.

Emails from First Capital Bank dated 23 July 2026 are cited as evidence that Chihana obtained a K500 million temporary overdraft without the Board’s knowledge.

This latest clash exposes a deepening governance crisis at BWB, where tensions between the CEO and the Board have simmered for months over procurement, project management and authority.

The BWB Employees Trade Union has previously warned that instability at the top is affecting operations and morale.

Chihana says he will challenge the suspension, arguing that Malawi’s employment laws and disciplinary procedures have been ignored.

He insists he is being targeted for refusing to “play politics” and for standing firm on accountability in the World Bank project, which includes new reservoirs and solar stations.

For now, he remains suspended pending the outcome of the inquiry — and BWB finds itself once again in the middle of a leadership storm, with a CEO who says he is fighting for integrity and a Board that says it is fighting for control.