Mulli wins major legal battle as High Court overturns government blacklist

Malawi’s High Court has delivered a sharp rebuke to the government after ruling that its 2012 directive barring businessman Leston Mulli and five of his companies from public contracts was unlawful.

Justice Allan Hans Muhome found that then attorney general and justice minister Ralph Kasambara SC acted without legal authority when he ordered ministries and departments to stop doing business with Mulli’s firms.

The court said the companies were never given a chance to be heard, in what it described as a clear breach of due process.

The ruling opens the door to a potentially huge compensation bill.

The court has directed that damages for losses directly linked to the ban be assessed by the Chief Registrar if both sides fail to agree on a figure within 14 days.

Mulli and his companies are seeking K270bn in damages, arguing that the directive effectively shut them out of government business overnight after it was issued on 5 September 2012.

The case has long been seen as a test of the State’s use of executive power and its willingness to bypass legal safeguards.

The judgment is likely to reignite debate over political interference in procurement and the treatment of business figures seen as aligned with previous administrations.

.By declaring the 2012 directive unlawful, the court has effectively questioned not only the legality of the ban but the broader culture of political decision‑making that allowed such a sweeping order to be issued without due process.

For critics of the administration at the time, the judgment reinforces long‑standing concerns about selective enforcement and the targeting of business figures perceived to be politically aligned.

For the State, it raises the prospect of a substantial financial liability, with Mulli’s claim of K270bn in losses underscoring the potential cost of executive overreach.

More broadly, the case exposes persistent weaknesses in Malawi’s procurement and governance systems — where political directives can override established procedures, and where accountability often arrives years after the damage is done.

Follow and Subscribe Nyasa TV :