Tag archives: Malawi Parliament

MPs blast Victoria Pharmaceuticals in medicines theft inquiry

By Nyasa Times News Desk

The Parliamentary Committee on Health sent Victoria Pharmaceuticals Industry Limited packing on Tuesday after its officials appeared before lawmakers without crucial information about the company’s operations, supply chain and regulatory status. The committee, which is probing allegations of drug theft, falsified medicines and substandard pharmaceutical products, expressed outrage that company representatives could not provide fundamental […]

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BWB Board dragged before MPs over governance storm

By Nyasa Times News Desk

The board of the Blantyre Water Board (BWB) has been summoned to appear before Parliament’s Public Appointments Committee (PAC) amid growing concerns over governance and management issues that have rocked the utility. PAC vice-chairperson Joshua Malango said the committee wants answers from the board over allegations of maladministration and to assess whether proper governance structures […]

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Drug theft scandal? Parliament launches probe as hospital medicine stocks crash to just 18%

By Nyasa Times News Desk

A shocking probe has been launched amid claims that life-saving medicines are being stolen from Malawi’s public hospitals while patients are left facing empty shelves and desperate shortages. Parliament’s Health Committee says it has uncovered evidence suggesting drugs meant for sick and vulnerable patients are disappearing from government hospitals, triggering a high-level investigation into who […]

Read full story — Drug theft scandal? Parliament launches probe as hospital medicine stocks crash to just 18%

‘Stranger’ in court: Speaker’s lawyer slams Attorney General Mbeta’s late move

By Nyasa Times News Desk

Speaker’s court fight takes new Attorney General Frank Mbeta has joined the High Court battle over Parliament’s 12 committees as an interested party, a case in which he was originally expected to stand by the Speaker. Speaker Sameer Suleman is challenging an injunction obtained by citizen Austin Mkoka, which blocks the formation of the committees […]

Read full story — ‘Stranger’ in court: Speaker’s lawyer slams Attorney General Mbeta’s late move

Who will defend the Speaker? Private lawyer hired as questions swirl over Attorney General’s role

By Nyasa Times News Desk

The legal battle over the Speaker’s 12 parliamentary committees is on the front pages of both major dailies as the case reaches the High Court today. The Daily Times leads with “Speaker fights on”, reporting that Speaker Sameer Suleman has hired private lawyer Bright Theu of Nicholls and Brookes to defend the committees. Its second […]

Read full story — Who will defend the Speaker? Private lawyer hired as questions swirl over Attorney General’s role

MPs push to bring Chichewa into the House as Parliament grills top officials over language shake-up

By Nyasa Times News Desk

Malawi’s Parliamentary Committee on Legal Affairs has descended on the Office of the Clerk of Parliament, grilling top officials over a bold proposal that could see Chichewa and other local languages finally take centre stage on the floor of the National Assembly. The high-level engagement, held at the Parliament Building in Lilongwe, saw MPs press […]

Read full story — MPs push to bring Chichewa into the House as Parliament grills top officials over language shake-up

‘Give us freedom from fear’: Malawi MPs demand financial independence

By Nyasa Times News Desk

Malawi’s MPs have launched a fierce push for financial freedom from the Executive, demanding both complete autonomy over Parliament’s purse strings and a dramatic hike in its share of the national budget to properly carry out its duties. The demand came from Vice Chairperson of the Legal Affairs Committee Gift Nankhuni, speaking Tuesday at Parliament […]

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MP Nyamilandu demands Malawi scrap ‘wasteful’ retirement age for pilots after crash inquiry hears expert quit flying at 65

By Nyasa Times News Desk

A Malawian MP has demanded an urgent shake-up of retirement rules for the country’s most critical professionals, warning Malawi is haemorrhaging vital expertise abroad — after the parliamentary inquiry into the crash that killed former vice-president Saulos Chilima heard a top aviation expert was forced to stop flying simply because he turned 65. Walter Nyamilandu, […]

Read full story — MP Nyamilandu demands Malawi scrap ‘wasteful’ retirement age for pilots after crash inquiry hears expert quit flying at 65

Speaker and President in crunch talks: Parliament’s probes suspended

By Nyasa Times News Desk

Parliamentary investigations have been dramatically halted after a member of the public won a court injunction blocking them from going ahead. The Office of the Speaker, Sameer Suleman, has confirmed  that committees set up to probe a string of matters have been ordered to down tools with immediate effect. The bombshell move comes after Austin […]

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Malawi Law Society breaks silence: To join court battle over Speaker’s blocked ‘super committees’

By Nyasa Times News Desk

The Malawi Law Society has finally weighed in on the constitutional storm engulfing Parliament, announcing it will join the judicial review case over a court injunction that has blocked Speaker Sameer Suleiman from forming twelve joint ad-hoc committees tasked with probing government operations. MLS President Davis Njobvu revealed the society’s decision to step into the […]

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Retired judge’s chilling warning: Malawi facing ‘WAR’ between Parliament and the Presidency over constitutional row

By Nyasa Times News Desk

A retired judge has issued a stark warning that Malawi could be heading for an explosive constitutional showdown between Parliament and the Presidency, as the Malawi Law Society remains conspicuously silent on the growing crisis. Justice Dunstain Mwaungulu, a respected legal and political commentator, says the escalating dispute over the National Assembly’s power to set […]

Read full story — Retired judge’s chilling warning: Malawi facing ‘WAR’ between Parliament and the Presidency over constitutional row

PAC report names Zamba, others over K128.7bn Amaryllis hotel purchase

By Nyasa Times News Desk

Parliament’s Public Accounts Committee (PAC) has recommended further investigation, legislative reform, recovery of losses and individual accountability over the K128.7 billion Public Service Pension Trust Fund purchase of Amaryllis Hotel. The committee’s report was adopted on March 31, under committee chairperson Steven Malondera. PAC said the transaction represented serious lapses in fiduciary discipline, governance and […]

Read full story — PAC report names Zamba, others over K128.7bn Amaryllis hotel purchase

Malawi parliament report on Amaryllis hotel deal ‘ready’ for tabling

By Nyasa Times News Desk

A hotly-anticipated parliamentary report into the controversial purchase of Amaryllis Hotel is finally ready to be tabled — bringing to a head months of wrangling over a star witness who never testified. Parliament’s Public Accounts Committee (PAC) has wrapped up its probe into the Public Service Pension Trust Fund’s purchase of the hotel, Speaker of […]

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An ordinary citizen, an extraordinary court case: Austin Mkoka story

By Nyasa Times News Desk

There is something almost quaint about the idea that a single, unemployed man from Thyolo, acting entirely alone and on principle, might halt the machinery of a national parliament. And yet that, in essence, is the story of Austin Mkoka, who this month obtained a court injunction preventing Malawi’s Parliament from launching inquiries into several […]

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Court halts Malawi speaker’s inquiry into troubled state bodies

By Nyasa Times News Desk

The High Court has temporarily stopped Parliament from launching public inquiries into several troubled state institutions. The interim order, issued on 4 September 2026, bars Speaker Sameer Suleman and Parliament from establishing or operationalising joint ad hoc committees to probe the Immigration and Citizenship Services Department, ESCOM, EGENCO, Power Market Limited, Blantyre Water Board and […]

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Rights body warns over Parliament-Executive tensions amid inquiry row

By Nyasa Times News Desk

The Human Rights Consultative Committee (HRCC) has warned of growing tensions between Parliament and the Executive, urging both arms of government to prioritise dialogue and constitutional order amid concerns over a proposed parliamentary inquiry into 13 issues of national importance. Speaking at a press conference in Lilongwe on Tuesday, HRCC said that while the issues […]

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Advocacy platform backs plans for 13 separate parliamentary investigations

By Nyasa Times News Desk

A leading advocacy group has backed a proposal by the Speaker of Parliament to set up independent committees to investigate 13 separate issues of national concern. The National Advocacy Platform (NAP) said the issues raised by Speaker Sameer Suleman were not new and were supported by Malawi’s legal framework. NAP chairperson Benedicto Kondowe, a lawyer, […]

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