No funds for Malawi spy agency, Dausi told to ‘take care’

Cash-strapped Malawi government has cut the funding to the state spy agency – National Intelligence Bureau (NB) – in the month of May and that the bureau may not receive finances in this month.

According to a circular from acting director of administration and finance at NIB to all directors, regional officers and spy sectroal heads which is copied to Chief Spy Nicholas Dausi, Reference Number HO/SEJ8/13/29, NIB received “very little funding” for the month of May.

The letter said the funding cut was due to “financial constraints and economic challenges that Malawi is facing at the moment.”

“With May, 2015 allocation of inadequate funding amounting to MK9, 475,732 00 only, NIB will not be able to purchase /pay fuel, airtime, stationery, consumables, utility bills and other important commitments.

The letter appealed to spies to “take care of resources” that was provided in May.

“Please take not that NIB may not receive funding for the month of June,” reads the correspondence.

A sizeable number of spy agents, have confirmed that, the situation at the NIB “cannot hold” as some contracted officers, are earning peanuts, with no allowances such as fuel, housing .

There is also no funding for part time informers planted in what the NIB regards as “crucial sectors”.

Some critics have been calling for the country to scrap the country’s intelligence agency, accusing the spies of feeding misleading information to the President.

Others want “control mechanisms” to oversee the NIB finances.

The 2015/16 budget currently under debate in Parliament, has seen cuts of allocations to other departments such as the Local Government and Rural Development, Land and Housing, Youth Development and Sports, Agriculture, Irrigation and Water Development, Financial Intelligence Unit, Registrar General, Transport and Public Works, Human Rights Commission and the Anti- Corruption Bureau.

But offices connected to the presidency will be basking in the privilege of having their allocations increased instead.

Meanwhile, there are strong indications that Finance Minister Goodall Gondwe will be forced to make some significant modifications as it is being demanded by the lawmakers who have already described the financial blueprint as illegal in its current form.