Malawi Parliamentary committee sends back board CEO

Malawi Parliamentary committee on Health members on Wednesday sent back a chief executive officer of Medicines and Poisons Board because he came alone to face questions from the committee.

Chairperson of the board Juliana Lunguzi confirmed the committee sent back Godfrey Kadewere because he did not come with board members and technocrats to answer questions on “serious issues on gross negligence.”

“We felt the CEO could not ably answer and respond to our concerns. There is proliferation of medicines on black market there are a lot of issues we feel the board needs to enlighten us,” she said.

Lunguzi said the committee has told Kadewere to come back and face the committee members before May, this time with full board and technocrats.

Kadewere said he went there alone with recommendations from the board.

After sending back Kadewere, the committee went to see construction site of the Cancer Centre just a day after the members summoned the secretary for Health and his team to answer questions why the government made huge changes to the original plans when parliament had already authorized a bill for a loan.

Lunguzi said the committee wants to find out from the Health secretary who ordered that the original budget be revised from US$15 million to US$44 million.

“This has stalled the project. Malawians are suffering because of cancer because they government is not able to send them to South Africa, India or Tanzania because of lack of money. Women are dying of cervic cancer because of lack of this centre,” she said.

She said the committee wants the government to speed up the construction of the centre.