Nnesa exposes Kasambara for lying in Malawi Parliament on hotel deal

Balaka South MP George Nnensa has exposed Minister of Justice Ralph Kasamabara that he lied in the National Assembly when he claimed the matter of awarding of a management contract to the newly constructed five-star hospitality complex in Lilongwe to South Africa’s Legacy Holdings, whose bid earlier failed to impress authorities , was being contested  in court, saying there is no such a case.

The complex also comprises the Bingu International Conference Centre. There are also Presidential Villas located along the Presidential Drive as part of the complex, albeit at a distance.

Recetly,  Nnesa querried Minister of Tourism and Culture Rachel Zulu to explain “why and how the contract with Peermont was cancelled and why Legacy, who were not recommended on two occasions, have been given this contract against professional advice from the tender evaluators?”

Nnensa demanded an explanation from government on whether the country’s taxpayers would not end up paying huge sums of money to compensate another South African firm, Peermont Global Propriety Limited, which earlier won the deal.

But Kasambara at the time said under standing orders subjudice rule the matter could not be discussed in the House because it’s in court.

However, on Thursday Nnensa told Palriament that lawyers checked that there was no court case on the deal.

“I have checked with the Solicitor General and Attorney General and they have all said there is no case in the courts on this matter and, therefore, the matter can be brought in the chamber,” said upfront lawmaker Nnesa.

“We want government to explain what has happened so that Malawians do not waste resources to compensate Peermont should the company demand damages for cancellation of their contract,” said Nnensa.

“I gave all the evidence to both Minister of Justice and Minister of Tourism that this matter is not in court, but they were not present in the chamber when I was asking the question.

“I think there is something very serious that they are hiding. Lawyers from Peermont have just written government to correct the situation within 90 days,” said Nnensa.

According to a letter from lawyers  Chisanga and Tomoka, dated June 25 reads: “We refer to your institutions herein and write to advise that after thorough searches at all the registries of the High Court, i.e. Mzuzu, Lilongwe and Blantyre, we have established that there is no case registered at the High Court of Malawi concerning a dispute on the management and lease of the above mentioned hotel.”

Said Nnesa: “We, as  Malawians, have invested in these structures as the money was a loan.

“Would the minister explain to the nation why and how the contract with Peermont was cancelled and why Legacy, who were not recommended on two occasions, have been given this contract against professional advice from tender evaluators?”

Nnesa is acclaimed  for exposing Finance Minister Ken Lipenga for  willfully misleading parliament over the state of the economy during the late Bingu wa Mutharika regime after Lipenga said the Malawi Revenue Authority (MRA) collected more than projected revenues of $60million yet it borrowed K15 billion from the banks to paint a rosy picture of revenue collection for the hastily-implemented zero-deficit budget (ZDB).

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