Mutharika directs landgate crackdown: 2 Asians facing ACB arrest warrant
After Malawi Police Service arrested three people for allegedly establishing a parallel Lands office and selling plots to unsuspecting buyers using dubious documentation, the Anti Corruption Bureau (ACB) is interested to interrogate two Asians businesspersons involving the deal.
Police arrested Mustag Mahomed, Chifuniro Simumbe and lawyer Umahu Mataka. They were also looking for aA fourth suspect, Alex Mawaya.
The syndicate has been discovered after President Peter Mutharika had directed the Ministry of Lands, Housing and Urban Development to attend to a lot of complaints on double land allocations and issuing of illegal certificates and deeds, according to the ministry’s Secretary Joseph Mwandidya.
ACB sources told Nyasa Times that there is a probe in the land grabbing syndicate.
“They used First Lady’s name illegally to grab land ,” a source said.
According to Mwandidya, the busting of the parallel Lands office has connected the missing links his ministry encounters daily as people complain about having their plots sold or one plot sold to more than one buyer.
He said: “We have complaints often at our office where people complain of their plots being sold without their knowledge.”
Information corroborated with the ministry indicates that about six plots have since been confirmed to have been sold, but the proceeds were not remitted to the Malawi Government Account Number One.
The six plots fraudulently sold include plot number Area 47/1219 allegedly sold by Mahomed at K300 million while Simumbe and Mawaya are suspected to have sold plot numbers Area 43/999, Area 43/998, Area 43/995, Area 43/994 and Area 43/993 at K50 million each.
Mwandidya said the issues of illegal allocation of land could be common throughout the country but what has been discovered is for Lilongwe.
“We will soon be working in other cities of Blantyre, Zomba and Mzuzu to find out if there are similar situations where people were forging signatures and providing official stamps when allocating illegal land,” he disclosed
The Secretary for Lands said all illegally acquired land and plot would be withdrawn from buyers immediately.
“We are urging Lilongwe residents to come to the Ministry to crosscheck check their documents so that they should exactly know whether they own their land or not before losing it to government,” he said.
Private practice lawyer Chikosa Silungwe, who has done international consultancies on land issues, described the busting of the ring as confirmation of corruption in transactions relating to land in the country.
“This confirms that there corruption in land transactions in Malawi which needs to be dealt with. There is need to revamp the land registry system, create an electronic one with various access authorities for various levels of officers,” he said in quotes reported in the press.
Silungwe observed that the current system is easy to tamper with because it is manual and that even junior officers can sign what would purport to be a bona fide title deed document.
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Malawi works houses and Malawi housing houses sold at cheaper
And 7.8 billion no say no arrests?
nthuzi siimafuka popanda moto
SHAME ON MALAWI LEADERS, SELECTIVE JUSTICE ALL THE WAY. THEY ARE INDIANS ANYWAYS WHAT DO YOU EXPECT? IF IT WAS TO THE FIRST CLASS CITIZENS AKA ‘ LOMWE OR CADETS’ THE STORY LINE WILL BE TWISTED!!
Basi all you know is tribalism. If you believe the president is tribalistic. Well, you are no different
Blantyre City Assembly is Worst offender, Land is being taken away from poor Malawians and allocated to Asians. Check new Mpingwe plots, City of Blantyre officials have grown rich by grabbing land from locals and selling to Asians who have a lot of Money. We know the syndicate at City of Blantyre
Nanga nyumba zogulitsidwa mwachinyengo by Malawi Housing? Ndiponso a first lady zikukawakhudza bwanji zogulitsa land? Zinazinsotu just shows kuti corruption is rampant from the top otherwise nobody would believe kuti the first lady can be involved but she must have her name somewhere which makes people believe that she can be involved in this
This country needs an overhaul if we want to develop the likes of Tanzania, Kenya, Rwanda etc.
A Chakwera, syndicate imeneyi mudzayifinyefinye
Zonsezitu because we have no leader. Cadet alamula, Mulakho alamula. Mmesa malamulo a Land ownership alipo? Nanga what punishment will be meted on those implicating the 1st lady?
Malawi yawola kwabasi. Why? Because the so-called leader is busy proclaiming his stolen victory, if not globe trotting. Just you wait. Four years from now you will not hear anything more about Russia. If anything, it will Lhomwe children gone to study in Russia, just like China.
All this started long long time ago during one party government. Money was being syphoned from government to bogus Land Lords for whose houses were being occupied by bogus government employees. People have been acquiring land in this way all along. This spilled over to UDF, DPP, PP and now still in DPP. Cabinet Ministers and some top government officials including many clerks have been involved over these years. I have been around a long time to have witnessed this.
They didn’t bribe the president with K145 million.
A CRIME has been committed ….BUT it Needs The President to Direct …It means we Have Weak Laws ? It means we have Weak Institutions ? It means we have Cadets in Decision Making Positions ? Ndie Kuti Zina Zisakufufuzidwa Zija …Aliyense atoopa ….Let’s Put in Laws to Empower institutions like ACB -It must be Independent ……Kodi zija Akuti Anabweza Ndalama kwa Mmwenye Ziri Pati….?
too little too late
That is why Malawi will remain poor forever. You wait until the president “directs” an investigation? What if he does not direct an investigation into the multi billion-dollar scum involving his wife and his step-son?
What a shame!
When I started reading this story, I was surprised that the President now appears working and issuing instructions. I read while thinking, does he not have a personal interest in the matter? Until I came to the statement that the fraudsters stole land in the name of the First Lady. Hahahaaha! Now it adds up. If the trick anthu osawuka, it goes unnoticed, but because the smeared mud on the powers that be, then His Excellency works up. Komatu tonse ndife aMalawi.
This is where our ACB looks weak & weak coz it only react when the head of state directs it.
is it that the name of the first lady was involved that there is this crack on land gate? This corruption on land aquisition has been happening for a long time. The fight against corruption must be the way to go and a well planned policy not the unsustainable reactive and firefighting approach. However thanks for the crackdown.
Dziko la MALAWI LIKUSOWA CHILUNGAMO NDIKOVUTA KUTI MTENDERE UBWELEMO.
ngati ndalama zikubisa chilungamo kodi CHILUNGAMO CHIDZAONEKA LITI ?
kkkkk kutha ma plan tsopano.
kusosoka nthenga kwayamba kkkkk
In other words Wandidya is telling us that if APM had not directed Wandidya’s Ministry to attend to the complaints, him and his Ministry would have done nothing………………….!! Koma abakha awaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaa! By extension it means nobody in the civil service will do anything any the ills people are complaining of till APM will direct that respective offices should attend to the issues………………… my foot!! Wandidya is bringing in APM in this making any sense? Mukuchitaku nde kupempha chipongwe from Malawians……………………..!!
Why are these Asians all over our lands? Why cant they go back to their lands and do whatever they wish to do here in Malawi? Why is it that they find our land easy to do their monkey tricks on?
Pachipanda HRDC zambiri bwenzi zili zobisika olo Interim President Mutharika akuzibisa
Alomwe musiye kuba please mbava zonse is alomwe
Did this really require the directive for the President? What are the team in the relevant ministry do on day to day basis? My Malawi, my foot!!!
These issues are everywhere in Malawi and need thorough investigations. In our urban centres, there are three landlords:
1. Physical Planning
2. Malawi Housing Corporation
3. City/ Town Councils
These three public institution do not talk to each other on issues relating land allocation, ownership transfer, acquisition, etc.
It could be better if land transactions could be automated so that each system becomes a mirror image to each other. There must be an easy system whereby an official from Physical Planning Department can easily access plot/land information from either MHC or City/ Town Council Quinquinial Valuation Rolls (QVRs) so that illegal plot/land allocation is curbed.
All public/govt systems must talk to each other. Plot Number ikapedzeka mu QVR ya City, official wa ku MHC or Physical Planning should also be able to access the same plot in their own system. Database automation is the way to go. We can’T live like this in age.
Ambiri malo awo analandidwa pogulitsidwa mwachinyengo and alibe poyambira kuti kodi ayambira pati nkhani yawoyo. Just imagine, plot yanu kuyambira kale-kale wina kungoyamba kubweretsa njerwa, mchenga ndi miyala, n’kukuonetsani mapepala amvekere “Musamuke pano ndikufuna ndiyambe project yanga”. Anthu mulibe ndalama, yemwe akuteryo ali ndi ndalama zankhani-nkhani.
Ndi zomwe zikuchitika m’matauni athuwa. Zomvetsa chisoni. Sizikuyenda.
In semi-urban areas, mafumu akuchitira umboni munthu wawo kugulitsa malo kwa anthu angapo, monsemo kumalandira ndalama. Land issue is very serious syndicate which must be condemned in the strongest terms.
Did it require presidential directive to sort out the land mess? The problem is that the civil service has been diluted into a playground for cadets who connive with Asians and other foreign nationals to be cashing in on our land. When patriotic officers want to bring sanity at Ministry of Lands, they are kicked out mercilessly . We have become such a wicked nation probably beyond redemption.
Very interesting. How did they use the First Lady’s name illegally in cases involving one plot in Area 47 and 5 plots in Are 43; 6 plots in all?. Usatchule pachabe dzina la Mai was Fuko..
Malawi Malawi Malawi mpaja Amwenye azikhala patsogolo pankhani zogulitsa mslo zowona????? What is wrong with our country kuti Amwenye atitore chonchi?? ??
Ma offesimu muli mbhuzzziiii, from village to university, to town. Kuganiza kwachimidzi. They travel just to stay in a hotel for three weeks, kumangosekerera akamaona dziko lakunja woyhout asking how anzathu ali chonchooo. Abale mmaofessimu eiishhhh muli mbhuzzi, Lilongwe City Council Director was once fired for Corruption, he was brought back and demoted. Now promoted back as Director..REASON HE IS THE MOST CORRUPT MAN AT LILONGWE CITY ASSEMBLY .HE ONLY APPROVES PROJECTS BY ASIANS AND NIGERIANS,BURUNDIANS, FOREIGN NATIONALS…..FOR MALAWIANS NO HE IS VERY RUTHLESS HE EVEN BRAGS MALAWIANS SAANYEMA NDIMAAKHAULITSA. He has 9 houses in Area 43, 16in Area 49 Shire, 4 in Area 12, 3 IN Area 17,he drives Brandnew 4 x 4 Twin Cab Toyota and Brand New FordRanger, plas 2 Saloon Cars, yet his salalry as Director of Planning at Lilongwe City aSSERMBLY IS LESS THAN MK400,000/mONTH. Glad that ACB has his file……mumva posachedwa
Doesn’t the journalists who wrote this article feel Dumb AF when they get their information THAT wrong? Upgrade your journalistic skills brother ! We don’t want to read stupid peoples uninformed writing . DO BETTER!!
Sincerely
THE PUBLIC
Start by arresting the resident of statehouse on this land and housing issue. Its a fish rotten from the head. Not fair to start arresting from the tail, it will still bite us. Kupha njoka umayambira ku mutu..so ACB u better know this mwambi very well or else stop wasting our Tax payers money.
kkkkk ,he has directed, kkkk the whole presdent kusowa cocita uku. batawalala uja!! kkkkkkkkkkkkkkk masanje ama accidental tippex ones.picking on small cases avoiding the real cases.kkkkkkk
wat a waste
directed indeed! Deal with corruption among your cronies first and maybe maybe you will earn some respect