MCP criticises Mutharika’s fiscal recklessness on chartered jets
President Peter Mutharika has come under fierce criticism again from Malawi Congress Party (MCP) over continuous use of private chartered jet as “senseless extravagance”.
In an exclusive interview with Nyasa Times, MCP parliamentary finance spokesperson Joseph Jobvuyalema disclosed that his party will keep checks to financial recklessness and wants Minister of Finance to explain in parliament during the 2014/2015 budget meeting that will start on September 1 on the Chartered jets.
“Chartering the whole plane just for a trip from here to South Africa and again from here to Zimbabwe is a complete waste and according to MCP, we call it senseless extravagance.
“We want to know where the money being used to charter the plane is coming from, how they realised it and if it was meant for hiring the plane,” he said.
Njobvuyalema vowed that the party will look at the budget detail by detail.
“We all know how in the past government funds were handled and abused; we don’t want that to be repeated. We will look at every figure and every activity, every coin should be used on an intended activity,” he said.
Njobvuyalema said it’s ridiculous to find that the same DPP which was against the use of Chartered jets during the Peoples Party (PP) leadership is enjoying the same pleasure.
Malawi angered Western donors, whose aid typically accounted for about 40 percent of the budget, when the government of late President Bingu wan Mutharika bought the 14-passenger Dassault Falcon 900EX aircraft in 2009.
President Joyce Banda, who took over after Mutharika died of a heart attack in April 2012, sold the p plane to the Virgin Islands company Bohnox Enterprise. The luxury jet used to cost Malawi some $US300, 000 a year in maintenance and insurance, a government official said.
