CSO pens Attorney General over suppliers payment delays
A local governance civil society organization – Centre for Mindset Change (CMC) – has written the Attorney General (AG) Thabo Chakaka Nyirenda, seeking clarification on why the government usually takes ages to settle debts with private companies, which provide various goods and services to it.
CMC Executive Director Philip Kamangirah draws the attention of the Chakaka Nyirenda to the recent case in which Reliance Trading Company and Africa Commercial Agency dragged the AG to court over failure by the Capital Hill to honour its obligations to the two firms.
Kamangirah warns that delays in settling private firms, contractors and companies will, in the end, prove to be exceedingly costly due to interest charges and legal costs.
“We are of the opinion that any negation and disinclination by the government to settle such claims in the instantaneous term is putatively dangerous as government will ultimately pay hefty sums of money on the expense of already most poor Malawians.
“We believe it is quite detestable for the taxpayer to be made to foot these inessential extra charges just because a few decision makers, for reasons only best known to themselves, have decided not to honour government’s contractual commitments,” reads the letter CMC has written to the AG.
The Office of the AG acknowledged receipt of the letter on 8 November 2021. However, AG Thabo Chakaka Nyirenda has not yet indicated what course of action his office will take on the matter.
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