Pressure mounts on Malawi President to fire 7 cashgate ministers

Calls are resonating on Kamuzu Palace walls for President Peter Mutharika to fire the seven senior cabinet ministers involved in the K577 billion cashgate.

President Peter Mutharika with agriculture minister George Chaponda
President Peter Mutharika with agriculture minister George Chaponda

This foillows a vague and contradictory statement State House issued on Saturday defiantly saying Mutharika will not fire the seven cabinet ministers.

Sources in the civil society say civil society leaders are secretly meeting in Lilongwe to organise a large scale protest match in the capital similar to that of July 20, 2012.

Our sources said there is a possibility similar matches would be held in Blantyre and Mzuzu.

“We want to show the President and the cabinet ministers that the voice of the people is more powerful than the power they weild. We want to show them that the money stolen is ours and must be returned to the government,” he said.

He said Mutharika must not compromise his position as Head of State just because his brother, late president Bingu wa Mutharika is implicated in the cashgate.

It is most likely the opposition Malawi Congress Party and Peoples Party will support the deonstrations.

In his statement on Saturday, Mutharika says he highly appreciates the need to know the individuals, organisations or companies whose names have allegedly been mentioned in the misappropriation of the public money queried in the 2009 to 2014 forensic audit report.

“The President too is anxiously waiting for the names of such individuals and organisations so that necessary investigations and corrective measures can be taken,” says the statement in part.

However, Mutharika says in the statement that he is concerned that while everyone is waiting for the auditor general and other responsible state institutions to procedurally process and prepare the contents of the audit report for the public dissemination and subsquent investigative process, some individuals and media houses have chosen to hijack the audit reporting process so as to misinform Malawians on issues surrounding the audit.

The President says it is in public domain that the auditor general has revised downwards the audit query amount from K577 billion to K236 billion.

Mutharika therefore calls on the media to report the revised figure as opposed to clinging to the K577 billion figure thereby bringing unnecessary sensationalism.

The President said he cannot fire anyone because he has not received any name in connection with the audit query following a legal opinion given by the Attorney General.

“Consequently, in the absence of this information from the auditor general, the issue of names of seven cabinet ministers allegedly being implicated in the audit does not arise. It is therefore, pure misinformation and lack of sincerity for some individuals and media houses to be accusing the president of not acting on some ministers allegedly implicated in the K236 billion forensic audit when information on the individuals is not available,” says the State House statement.

The statement says the President should not be expected to make policy decisions based on rumours and speculation.

Vice chair of Parliament’s Public Accounts Committee  Kamlepo Kalua dismissed the State House statement as lies, saying the auditor general provided the names to both the committee and Anti Corruption Bureau.

He said after all, the auditor general gave 13 files to the ACB containing the names of the cabinet ministers and companies raised in the audit query.

Social media is awash with the names that include Mutharika’s strong man, Agriculture minister George Chaponda, Mutharika’s right handman, Finance minister Goodall Gondwe and Mutharika’s inner circle of Labour minister Henry Mussa as being amongst the seven.

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Winston Msowoya
Winston Msowoya
7 years ago

Malawians,wakeup!! Things are changing very fast in Zimbabwe and Uganda where the two nefarious despots Mugabe and Museveni are in deep hot water from their long suffering people.The people of these two nations,have thrown their timidity and confronting the monstrous leaders head on and the support of the international community is overwhelmingly on the side of the victims of corruption,dictatorship,tribalism and nepotism.Malawians,UNITE as we did in 1994 against Banda’s satanic regime,for this is the language the crooked leaders comprehend,otherwise we shall remain slaves of a few rich and corrupt maniacs.Let us not be divided because the more we are divided,the… Read more »

True Patriot
True Patriot
7 years ago

The press statement from State House about the President not being ready to fire the ministers mentioned in the Cashgate scandal is confusing, hushed, childish and embarrassing. It would appear that the press officer was forced to conjure up something in response to the calls on the president to act. The statement meanders between outright challenging and conciliatory tone. Now someone tell me. how would reliving a suspect of his duties be a policy matter? To me, this is the president’s duty as he is responsible for ensuring that his cabinet ministers don’t leave any iota of doubt about their… Read more »

Boss
Boss
7 years ago

Chaponda uja ankaletsa Khumbo Kachali kusegulira paliament pomunamizila kuti alimo mu cash gate and he could holier than evry body in the paliament yet panopa nawo dzina lawo lapezeka mu buku la cash pamene Khumbo mwalephera kumufufuza up to now simukumupeza koma inuyo ndende muyiwona basi paja wa cashgate sawina mulandu muno mu Malawi tawonela lawyer ovuta uja waluza mulandu

Mwalemba
Mwalemba
7 years ago

The Dirty Seven. Dirtying the DPP and the country as well. The core of the DPP is rotten. Petro is squeezed. Should I name them and shame the party?

Judge
Judge
7 years ago

Kamlepo ndiwe wabodzaaaa! with your phuma/kawefu you could be not silent with names had it been that you had a copy of the report. Leak the report Nyasa Times with all names than just making silly noise as if you know it all. Inunso a Nkata kutukwanana is very uncalled for. Vomit ideas from neutral point of view as all we hear and see remain mere speculation until proven guilty by the court. I hope you will agree with me that you have ever witnessed apolisi akugwira munthu akulakwa but akafunsidwa amati agwira wakuti pomuganidzira kuti wapanga …………… kudikira court… Read more »

Issa
Issa
7 years ago

We all have the names except Peter and his dpp government. That tells you a story. Shame to all backing this rubbish. Politics changed my dear friends that’s why Cameroon is no longer Prime minister of England, Dilma Rousseff is no longer president of Brazil, Nepal’s prime minister resigned even before the confidence vote. For Malawi to develop we need ordinary Malawians to rise above party politics and demand accountability from our political leaders. These leaders we are backing retire very rich while you and me struggle with poverty. Kamuzu, Bakili, Joyce and Peter are still very rich individuals after… Read more »

Eugene
Eugene
7 years ago

Mbava iwe Bwampini..bring back our 577 billion! Midnight Six politics eti?

Kanenani Zunuui
Kanenani Zunuui
7 years ago

Mr Kamulepo is just another kamulepo indeed that has no kaluwa, who does he want to appease with these lies? Just release the names that indeed you have to the press!!!!

The Patriot
The Patriot
7 years ago

Being a president is NOT for the fainthearted! APM is now between a rock and a hard place, doomed if he does something and still doomed if he doesnt! Tough luck sir, izi ndiye ndale za pa Nyasaland! The dirty seven should be named and shamed, then go to jail full stop! Malawi is more important than 7 dirty ministers!! Whether it is “only” 236 billion Kwacha or 577 billion that is immaterial, the issue is 7 cabinet ministers defrauded the government and they belong to the same group of fraudsters and plunderers like Lutepo. Let them join Lutepo at… Read more »

Mwana Mulanje
7 years ago

Kodi inu a DPP nthawi ya Joyce Banda sinalengeza maina ya anthu ndi ma Company a Cashgate pa radio yanu ya Galaxy – Gerald Viola – lero zavuta bwanji? Kodi nthawi imene ija kunalibe Attorney General? Zingatheke maina ambava zimenezi kukafika ku ACB, Head of State asanaone ndi kudziwa? Zayang’ana kungolo ng’ombe..Even if you delay the release of the names of these thieves, soon or later we still know them ….anthu opanda chifundo inu…..

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