Malawi President to act on corrupt gangsters in cabinet: ‘Give me names of 7 cashgate ministers’

Malawi President Peter Mutharika has said he is ready to take action on his cronies implicated  in the mismanagement of the public funds.

President Mutharika: I want to know the names
President Mutharika: I want to know the names

The Mutharika- led government has of late come under heavy criticism that it has now pressed on the overdrive looting gear as if things have fallen apart; as if the ship has hit a huge ice berg and the crooks are hustling and scuffling to grab the little that’s left in this corruption ravaged southern African country.

Seven cabinet ministers are reported to be  implicated in the  K577 billion (about $856 million)   financial analysis report of what has been dubbed the Capital Hill ‘cash-gate’ scandal, named after the seat of government.

Mutharika speaking on  MBC TV’s “Talk to the President” programme insisted that he too was awaiting the release of the cashgate names so that the necessary investigations coud be initiated.

He added that he had not received any names in connection with the audit query as yet.

“Last week I sent Chief Secretary to Auditor General [to get names] b,” said Mutharika, adding that he did not have any name of a minister.

“Where they  [media] get the names I don’t know,”he said.

“If anybody has got names please bring them to State House, I would like to see them and action will be taken,”Mutharika said after being asked by one citizen during the program  when he will act on the rotten ministers and cronies.

Mutharika came under increasing pressureto sack the seven senior cabinet ministers, after a contradictory statement from State House, saying that Mutharika was refusing to fire them

The President said he will deal decisively with corrupt ministers when he gets a report implicating them.

But despite names of the Cashgate suspects being kept under wraps by the Auditor General, Stepheson Kamphasa, the details of individuals allegedly implicated have been coming out in public domain .

Social media is awash with the names that include Mutharika’s strong man, Agriculture Minister George Chaponda, Mutharika’s right hand-man, Finance Minister Goodall Gondwe, and Mutharika’s inner circle of Labour Minister Henry Mussa as being among the seven.

In parliament, Mzimba West MP Harry Mkandawire (PP) mentioned leader of the house George Chaponda as one of the  rotten ministers .

Chaponda denied any involvement.

Revelations of the K577 billion cashgate came hot on the heels of a forensic audit report by British firm, RSM (formely called Baker Tilly), that established that K24 billion was looted from Capital Hill between April and September 2013 under the administration of Joyce Banda and her People’s Party (PP).

Banda is on record saying “ There must be a stubborn link between the MK577 billion scandal of 2009 and 2012 and the MK20 billion cashgate of 2013.”

The  ‘grand corruption’  audit report will be a stern test to President Mutharika committement to fight corruption without fear or favour.

Observers also note that lack of political will has crippled Malawi’s Anti-Corruption  Bureau, undermining their efforts through political interference and threats.

Given Malawi’s political patronage system, it is highly unlikely that President Mutharika will put his trusted ministers in the dock .

Political analysts claim that Mutharika’s reluctance to crackdown on the corrupt gangasters in cabinet was due to his own brother, late President Bingu wa Mutharika, being implicated in the scandal.

Leadership, like fish, rots from the head downwards to the tail. If the tail begins to smell bad, then know the head is rotten to the core or is no longer there at all.

So many corrupt officials remain free with delays in prosecutions, that the first person to be convicted, Treza Namathanga Senzani, is due to soon be released after serving her three-year sentence for fraud.

 

Follow and Subscribe Nyasa TV :

Sharing is caring!

Follow us in Twitter
18 Comments
newest
oldest most voted
Inline Feedbacks
View all comments
sabata
sabata
7 years ago

During Joice Banda rule, after the forensic audit report was out the public got a copy and those mafia were prosecuted and some are arleady serving their sentences including a beautiful girl Savala. DPP government come in, the forensic audit report with money stolen more than 10 times that missed during PP rule, is out but the public cant have the copy and no one has been prosecuted. Come 2019 they will still win the vote SHAME

mphatso
mphatso
7 years ago

if he doesn’t have the list of cash gaters then he must be the one who was stealing i mean he is the leader he can not be there while rubbish is taking place he must own it himself not talking 200 kwacha here.we are talking billions and nobody knows about it poor Malawi that,s why Englishmen just withdrew

Maunisi
Maunisi
7 years ago

Chitimbe who is George Chaponda, what we want is 7 ministers involved to be fired nothing else. Whether u are dpp or not we cant watch people stealing our money. If he Mathanyula does not fire them we will fire him straight.

Chititimbe
Chititimbe
7 years ago
Reply to  Maunisi

Hey sober up bro. Mtima pansi, we don’t want cardiac arrest here. Maunisi, listen to yourself…”what we want is 7 ministers involved to be fired nothing else.” So even writing under your pseudo (Maunisi) you can’t do us a favor by mentioning the names of those ministers rather than saying ‘7 ministers’? Since you have the names, please share the copy of the report so we can as well verify that ministers like Chaponda, Goodall Gondwe, Henry Mussa and Bright Msaka are implicated. By the way, apart from these four, who else is implicated? Cause you are talking of “7… Read more »

be humane
be humane
7 years ago

Accept we are fools. Don’t hide. Amene anawona mayina 7 wo bwanji samanena onse? Lero limodzi, mawa lina nkusiyira panjira. Chitimbe is right here. Amene anawona mayina 7 Awatchule mtundu wa malawi umve. Ngati anawona 7 koma enawo samawanena the motive and originality of the names becomes doubtful. You want to make the president stupid by acting upon romours?

peter
peter
7 years ago

You cannot have two masters and please them all the time. You have to please one and hurt the other. Mr president, you either have to please the people you lead or your cashgate ministers. This is your choice to make and posterity will judge you accordingly.
If the names of the cashgate ministers do not exist, then the legal advice given by Kaphale has made those who are making rumours of the existence of the 7 cashgate ministers more credible. The names of JB cashgaters were released and now the APM cashgaters are being hidden, WHY??

Chititimbe
Chititimbe
7 years ago

I have many unanswered questions on this issue. Let’s assume that it is “trUe” that among those on this list of shame are the so called 7 ministers. Question: Who saw those names in the report and subsequently leaked them to the opposition? The right answer could be “some people who are not the fan of the current government”. If it’s people who don’t wish the current government well, why then did they first just leak Chaponda’s name only and shield other ministers? Is this really adding up? Are they a fan of those ministers they are shielding? Probably no,… Read more »

The Analyst
The Analyst
7 years ago
Reply to  Chititimbe

O……………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………..O
Thanks, Chititimbe.
………………………………………………………………
. . . and the observation you made about the other ministers but Chaponda or viceversa, is quite avant garde. Thats why those of us (who believe in the rumours, for whatever reason), have chosen to ignore you; not because your comment is worth ignoring, but there is no logical answer to be given.
. . . let’s keep drowning each other with reason.
O……………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………..O

Mwindo
Mwindo
7 years ago

Who should give him the names of the ministers involved?? I felt he is the one to give us names. Does Peter not know that we are not so stupid for him to treat us this way??

Chititimbe
Chititimbe
7 years ago

Some people are sluggards. How can you believe that what the opposition is saying is true, when they have not given you any evidence but the number of ministers? Hahahahaha if this is the way Malawians think, then Malawi will remain economically poor for at least the next hundred years. Is it surprising that they started with no any other name but that of Chaponda? Later they added Henry Mussa’s name and that of Bright Msaka. And now they have added another new name, Goodall Gondwe. Don’t you really have eyes to see what is going on here? I could… Read more »

Issa
Issa
7 years ago

Its very funny that everyone has the name but our president doesn’t. Please people tell this old man to go and demand the original report from his juniors. Akundinyatsa kwabasi. Is this guy really running this country? 856 mill dollars is enough money to import maize and medicine. Nemesis will catch Peter

Mugonapamhanya
Mugonapamhanya
7 years ago
Reply to  Issa

Did you understand him, dude. That’s exactly what he said, if you have the names forward them to him and he will action accordingly.

Maunisi
Maunisi
7 years ago

Peter is involved. How can a whole president ask innocent Malawians who exorbitantly pay their taxes to ran state be told to give him list of the corrupt ministers. So where is the president ship. Why did he send George Mkondiwa to check names of the ministers involved. Does he not know that Mr Kamphasa sought legal advise from Kalekeni Kaphale either to release the list of the ministers and companies involved or not. Which ministers and companies is he talking about. You are in trouble bwana as things are not working for your side. You will hand over power… Read more »

Read previous post:
If not Mutharika, then who? ‘Life President ‘remarks was DPP ploy tasting waters

Political analysts say President Peter  Mutharika  has been caught in the trappings of power that saw his party tasting political...

Close