Auditor General Stepheson Kamphasa has been summoned to appear again before the Parliament’s Public Accounts Committee (PAC) to explain his endorsement over a K567 million interest payout controversy involving Pioneer Investment and with Malawi Police Service (MPS). Pioneer Investment is a company linked to Zahir Karim, whose family is accused of corrupting state contracts. According to documents […]
Parliament’s Public Accounts Committee (PAC) will from Saturday start investing a a K567 million interest payout controversy involving food supplier Pioneer Investments and Malawi Police Service (MPS), suspecting fraud with an arrest impending on the suppliers. Nyasa Times first reported recently that the Auditor General Stevenson Kamphasa was “bulldozed” to authorise a payment to a company […]
Centre for Human Rights and Rehabilitation (CHRR) has condemned the nature in which the Electoral Reforms Bills have been handled. CHRR executive director, Timothy Mtambo, said that the way the members of Parliament (MPs) handled themselves on the issue of the bill was a disappointment. But CHRR highlighted that the Malawi Congress Party (MCP) acted […]
The news has just broken that Mangochi Monkey Bay legislator Ralph Jooma (People’s Party—PP)has resigned as Chief Whip. In a letter to the Speaker of Parliamentdated December 15, 2017 which is coped to leader of PP in the House as seen by Nyasa Times, Jooma said his resignation as PP chief whip uis with “immediate effect.” He […]
The 47th Session of Malawi Parliament adjourned sine die on Friday, December 15, 2017, without legislators concluding deliberations, tabling and passing of some major Bills, including the pieces of legislation which has the contentious 50-plus-one provision which seeks that a President be elected by over 50 percent of total voters. Main opposition Malawi Congress Party (MCP) has […]
Member of Parliament for Nkhata Bay Central, Ralph Mhone has called for a legal backing of set minimum prices for farm produce to protect local farmers from exploitation. Mhone made the call during his contribution to the Loan Authorisation Bill passed on Thursday which empowered government to borrow K69.4 billion from the International Development Association […]
Members of Parliament (MPs) from both sides of the House have unanimously agreed that trade mark protection is a must and passed the Trademarks Bill to protect Intellectual Property Rights. The Bill which will become law when President Peter Mutharika assents to it, will replace the Trademarks Act of 1957 and will accommodate current international […]
The week has ended with Electoral Reforms Bill dominating headlines with government legislators opposing the piece of legislation that would see the country implementing the 50+1 electoral system of choosing the country’s president from the First-Past-the-Post system, news that has attracted editorial comments in major Malawians dailies on Friday. “Malawians are the biggest losers,” screamed an editorial […]
Member of Parliament (MP) for Chitipa South Werani Chilenga told Minister of Information and Communications Technology Nicholas Dausi in Parliament that he is getting plagued by “please call me” SMS service from Airtel Malawi. Chilenga told the Minister that he is irritated by the ‘please call me messages’ generated by Airtel due to network failure when […]
Zomba City Central Constituency member of Parliament Patricia Kainga Nangozo (People’s Party-PP) has brought to the attention of Minister of Home Affairs and Internal Security, Cecilia Chazama of the “bad shape” of Zomba Police Station offices. She said in Parliament that Zomba Police Station office are in “a very dilapidated state” and warned that “any time anything […]
Malawi Parliament has rejected yet another adulterated Bill on Electoral Reform, the Transitional Arrangement (Assumption of Offfice by the President and Vice-President Bill) with opposition accusing President Peter Mutharika led administration of “betrayal” to the wishes of Malawians expressed through recommendations of the Special Law Commission report of Electoral Reforms. Government side also voted to […]
Minister of Finance, Economic Planning and Development Goodall Gondwe has rejected fears from economic commentators that Malawi government’s borrowing has reached a critical stage as the country’s debts have gone beyond the fiscal policy, saying although there is huge debt the country has not yet reached the threshold of the international standard which is 50 […]
Parliament on Wednesday deliberated two of the six Bills of the Electoral Reforms Bill which the Malawi Law Commission recommended but passed one and referred the other to Legal Affairs Committee for further scrutiny. The House passed the Referendum Bill which now is a legislation on how to conduct a referendum as there was not […]
Thyolo Thava member of Parliament (MP) Mary Thom Navicha (Democratic Progressive Party-DPP) has sing praises to President Peter Mutharika’s commitment to infrastructure development, particulary in Thyolo district. Making a constituency statement in Parliament, outspoken Navicha commended Mutharika for the “unprecedented development” which her constituents are enjoying. “On behalf of Thyolo Thava, I say, thank you Mr President and […]
Minister of Agriculture, Irrigation and Water Development Joseph Mwanamvekha has told Parliament that 58 people have since been arrested on allegations of fraud related to the 2017/18 Farm Input Subsidy Programme (Fisp). In the 2017/18 Fisp program, government is subsidising NPK and Urea fertilisers per 50 kilogramme (kg) bag for K15 000 and 5kg maize […]
Outspoken Rumphi East member of Parliament (MP) Kamlepo Kalua (People’s Party-PP) has accused the government of ambushing Malawians by circulating in Parliament pieces of legislation in the Electoral Reforms Bill which are not what Malawi Law Commission proposed. Government has rejected several recommendations of the Special Law Commission and introduced new provisions including extending the 50 plus one […]
Government has tweaked Malawi’s Law Commission recomendation to adopt a majority threshold (50 percent + 1) vote law that will see the country receding from the winner-takes-it-all scenario of electing the president by including provisions in the Electoral Reforms Bill that will see that being applied even to members of Parliament and Local Government elections. […]
Speaker of Malawi Parliament Richard Msowoya has announced that the House will dedicate Thursday which is normally reserved for Private Members’ Bill, to discuss the Electoral Reforms Bills. Msowoya announced that the whole Thursday and Friday will be dedicated to the Electoral Reforms Bills. “There will be no Private Members’ business and the whole day […]