DPP regime used 80% of Covid-19 money on allowances: Oxfam warns Tonse against repeating mistake
It has emerged that, as hospitals run dry and health workers went hungry, the Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) government used about 80 percent of the total resources raised for Covid-19 response to pay allowances.
The revelation is contained in the report by Oxfam which was released on Wednesday. In the report, Oxfam has further cautioned the Tonse government against abuse of any funds to be channelled towards Covid-19 interventions following President Lazarus Chakwera’s declaration of a State of National Disaster on Tuesday.
In his national address on Tuesday, Chakwera appealed for financial support from stakeholders to fight against the pandemic, which has tormented the country with its unprecedented virulent strain.
The new wave of Covid-19 has, this month alone, killed 46 people—including two Cabinet ministers—which accounts for about 24 percent of total deaths recorded between April and December 2020 when the virus killed 191 people.
The Oxfam report cited a report by the Office of the Ombudsman titled Misplaced Priorities which revealed that close to 80 percent of the K75 billion raised for Covid-19 interventions last year went into pockets of a few individuals in the form of allowances, among other suspicious expenditure lines.
Oxfam in Malawi country director Lingalireni Mihowa stated that such funds would have gone a long way in strengthening healthcare systems and helping to manage the current surging Covid-19 cases.
She said: “The country needs to learn from the most recent mistakes as noted in The Ombudsman’s Misplaced Priorities report. Given the dire situation we find ourselves in now and as a best governance practice, we expect the government machinery and all concerned stakeholders to put in place measures that will ensure that there is transparency and accountability of every tambala and any resources that will be mobilised following the call by the President.
“Abuse of public resources committed towards response to Covid-19 is immoral. It denies ordinary and poor Malawians of the much essential services in times like these. Let’s learn from our past mistakes.”
Mihowa has since called for personal and collective responsibility in adhering to Covid-19 preventive measures and that those entrusted with public resources must ensure that they are using them in a responsible, accountable and transparent manner.
The Ombudsman’s report revealed gross abuse of resources and maladministration in the implementation of Malawi National Covid-19 Preparedness and Response Plan, stating that K80 out of every K100 (80 percent) of the total funding secured was spent on coordination cluster allowances instead of essential needs such as provision of personal protective equipment for front-line healthcare workers.
Following the report, some officials returned the money to the Department of Disaster Management Affairs (Dodma) in compliance with the Ombudsman’s recommendations then.
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If what is being told is anything to go by, then the exercise was handled badly by the donors. Oxfam is an organisation whose headquarters is in a developed country, the donation was meant to assist in the prevention of the disease through procurement of all necessary equipment. Why didn’t they source the equipment in their country then send it to Malawi instead of sending cash or whatever monetary form? I wouldn’t blame those who stole the money because the exercise was badly executed. Oxfam has been in the country for a very long time which means they know how… Read more »
I don’t trust this Ombudsman. She has proved to be a Tonse Alliance stooge. There are several investigations whose findings have put her office into disrepute. For one, she lied through her findings that Nsundwe girls were raped/defiled by the police during an operation the police launched to track killers of late Ausman. To date, no one of the pupported culprits have been found guilty . And no one has been arrested yet. She recently Hoodwinked the nation into thinking that the DPP government erred in promoting teachers en masse. She made useless recommendations to the government. We are yet… Read more »
Bodza.
This is a lie, mere propaganda. If you don’t believe me, notice that no one will be charged, no one will be fired. This is a fake Mcp story. Dpp paid allowances to health workers who were striking.
By extension you are saying the Ombudsman report is heresay. Really? You must be an ardent DPP cadet.
hahahaha…ma khadeti mulira…tinamumva tokha Jappie ndi Botoman akukambilana zama halawansi nde inu muti chani apa
When it comes to rampant thieving of public funds you cannot recommend that the same people put in measures for the control and you cannot expect them to learn anything as if these thieves are impacted in any way. What we need now is decisive action and bring these people to book, throw them in jail, and throw the keys away. This needs to happen as soon as possible.
Iwe Mihowa wa Oxfam usatamike apa kunyoza DPP. Iweyo ndi Ombudsman wakoyo were u not holding same posts u have now when DPP was using 80% of covid19 funds on allowances? What did u do then? Nothing! Why? You were afraid of burning your fingers. Similarly right now you Oxfam, Ombudsman, ACB, Fiscal Police, MHRC, Director of Public Prosecution, etc, can not talk ill or take any action against MCP govt corrupt officials because u are afraid of reprisals. Tizamvanso in 2025 MCP ikazatuluka nboma kuti “we were not receiving political support from the executive to probe ABC”. This is… Read more »
Just that MCP siidzatuluka in 2025
Mbava. May God punish them.
Remember, health workers striked for allowances and they were paid. This is Tonse alliance trying to distract from its own mal- administration of Covid. This is propaganda, the report has no details, no one was charged, nothing. Just a story and a headline.
The government of Malawi has very bad culture concerning allowances. They go for meetings not to contribute but bag allowances. Even the outcome of the numerous meetings are not implemented at all. Just look at tye government recurrent expenses budget, you will notice that it largely comprises emoluments and meetings. Regardless of the party in power the system is the same, regardless of empty rhetoric from the vice president about reforms, the practice is still the same. Come five years tonse government will have under-achieved.
The Dpp should pay back the money. Why the ACB is just sitting idle on this.? Why?
Hahaha allowance sitibweza and the trend remains the same