MCP MPs demand answers as party lawyer Kadzipatike held over tax dispute

Malawi Congress Party (MCP) director of legal affairs George Jivason Kadzipatike has been taken to Area 3 Police Station, sparking an immediate show of solidarity from senior figures within his own party who rushed to the station to check on his welfare.

Kadzipatike confirmed his arrest was linked to alleged tax issues involving his law firm, though he revealed he had not yet been formally informed of any specific charges against him.

‘I am yet to be formally charged but I was informed that it is to do with MRA/tax issues,’ he said, speaking to reporters gathered at Area 3.

Within a short time of news breaking of his detention, a delegation of senior MCP legislators descended on the police station, in scenes that underscored the growing political sensitivity surrounding the case.

Among those present were party secretary-general Richard Chimwendo Banda, alongside fellow MPs Moses Kunkuyu, Joshua Malango and Anthony Masamba.

The show of force by senior opposition figures is likely to be interpreted as a clear signal that the MCP views Kadzipatike’s detention as far more than a routine tax matter, coming just days after he voluntarily handed himself in to police following the discovery of an arrest warrant – itself only a week after more than 20 police and Malawi Revenue Authority officers raided his law offices in Lilongwe and Mzuzu, seizing files and computers from five lawyers.

The developments will further fuel accusations from opposition figures and civil society that state institutions are increasingly being deployed against critics of the government, with Kadzipatike himself previously insisting the tax authority was being “used as a political tool for persecution” rather than pursuing a genuine compliance matter.

Police have not yet issued any formal statement addressing the scenes at Area 3 or confirming the exact nature of the charges Kadzipatike is expected to face.