Two principal secretaries, who have been given nine-month suspended sentence for contempt of court over Tractorgate scandal, say they will appeal against both the conviction and sentence. Lawyer Chancy Gondwe ,who represented Principal Secretary for Agriculture Gray Nyandule Phiri and Secretary to Treasury Cliff Chiunda, has confirmed that he will soon be knocking on the […]
The High Court in Lilongwe has handed a nine-month suspended sentence to Principal Secretary for Agriculture Gray Nyandule Phiri and Secretary to Treasury Cliff Chiunda, over snubbing a Malawi Supreme Court of Appeal order to publicly apologise for a flawed procurement and disposal of tractors bought with borrowed funds. The suspended sentence means that the […]
The High Court has convicted two principal secretaries (PSs) for contempt of court for failing to comply with a court order to issue public apologies for a flawed procurement and disposal of tractors bought with borrowed funds. Delivering a ruling on Thursday, judge Charles Mkandawire said he found PS for Agriculture, Irrigation and Water Development […]
Former vice-president Khumbo Kachali has backed the decision by the Joyce Banda administration dispose of farm equipment, including tractors, bought using a $50 million (about K37 billion) loan from India in 2011, saying it was not wrong and that he is also a beneficially and still using his tractor. There have been assertions that the […]
Secretary to the Treasury Cliff Chiunda says funds realized from the sale of tractors earmarked for the Green Belt Initiative are safe since they have been deposited into the government consolidated Account Number One. Tax payers are repaying the $50 million (about K37 billion) the Malawi Government borrowed from India in 2011 to mechanise agriculture […]
Government told a parliamentary committee that only K62 million has not been recovered from the controversial sale of tractors and other farm equipment infamously known as tractorgate. Ministry of Agriculture director of administration Maxwell Tsitsi said this on Wednesday when he appeared before the Public Accounts Committee of Parliament. He said so far, K360 million […]
Ombudsman Martha Chizuma says the Tractorgate case has stalled because the State has made an application to have the case struck off. The High Court had earlier ordered the arrests for Secretary to Treasury Cliff Chiunda and principal secretary for the ministry of Agriculture Gray Nyandule Phiri. However, the two could not be sent to […]
A conviction against two principal secretaries (PSs) has been rescinded by the High Court in Lilongwe following an application by their lawyer Chancy Gondwe to set aside proceedings for procedural irregularities. PS for Agriculture, Irrigation and Water Development Grey Nyandule Phiri and Secretary to the Treasury Cliff Chiunda were found guilty for disrespecting a Malawi Supreme […]
The two convicted principal secretaries (PSs) for Agriculture, Irrigation and Water Development Grey Nyandule Phiri and Secretary to the Treasury Cliff Chiunda have asked the High Court to consider heading their side before sentencing them to prison or fine. The two were convicted for failing to comply with a court order to issue public apologies for a […]
Top government officials have published court sanctioned public apologies in national newspapers over tractorgate, after the 21-deadline but it will be known on Tuesday whether this will save them from a jail term for contempt of court. Secretary to Treasury Cliff Chiunda and principal secretary for the ministry of Agriculture, Irrigation and Water Development Grey […]
Secretary to Treasury and his counterpart at the ministry of Agriculture risk arrest after the High Court in Lilongwe found them guilty of court contempt over tractorgate – the flawed procurement of tractors from India and their subsequent sale. High Court judge Charles Mkandawire found the secretary to Treasury Cliff Chiunda and the ministry of […]
UTM Party president Saulos Chilima has said beneficiaries of the flawed procurement and disposal of archaic farm equipment purchased using $50 million (about K37 billion) borrowed funds in 2012 christened as Tractorgate, be prosecuted and recover taxpayers’ money. Chilima said this at a political rally he addressed in Mangochi at St Augustine 3 Primary School […]
Governance commentator Makhumbo Munthali has said the Ministry of Agriculture, Irrigation and Water Development should go beyond issuing a public apology for the flawed procurement and disposal of archaic farm equipment initially purchased using $50 million (about K37 billion) borrowed funds in 2012 and ensure it recover loses. The published apology is in compliance with […]
The Malawi Supreme Court of Appeal says the Principal Secretaries (PSs) for Finance, Agriculture and legislatlators conducted themselves in a fashion that fell below the standards expected of reasonably competent public servants in the way they dealt with the US$50 million Parliament-approved loan that was used to procure 177 tractors and other farm implements from India. […]
The Malawi’s Supreme Court of Appeal has given government 60-days ultimatum to implement directives contained in a 48-page investigation report by the office of the Ombudsman on the infamous “tractorgate” saga on how the law was broken in the sale of some 177 tractors government had initially procured through a loan from India in 2012. […]
A landmark judgement delivered Monday has upheld the entire infamous controversial loan procurement of tractors from India and their subsequent resale to mostly influential politicians and government official in favour of the Ombudsman. The Ombudman’s Office released her investigation findings on the complaint that her office received over the manner in which the Malawi Government […]
The Supreme Court of Appeal has set June 2017 without specific dates in that month for hearings billed to either to dismantle or give more teeth to office of the Ombudsman in Malawi. Documents seen by Nyasa Times and corroborated by sources at the Supreme Court of Appeal confirm this development. The office of the […]
The office of the Ombudsman has filed 10 grounds of appeal to the Supreme Court of Appeal seeking to overturn the wholeruling by the High Court which made the office and its operations redundant following a controversial unpalatable Tractorgate scandal report which the office produced. According to a notice of appeal filed at the Supreme […]