Well-founded fear: 48-hour ultimatum expires with clear signs Covid funds plundered
At the expiry of 48- hour ultimatum Tuesday evening which President Lazarus Chakwera issued for clusters to account for K6.2 billion Covid-19 response funds allocated to then last August, it emerged that the public fear of money being misappropriate is “well-founded.”
Chakwera warned that he will fire any controlling officer or cluster heads who fail to account for the K6.2 billion. He gave the respective ministries and clusters 48 hours to account for the funds to the Presidential Task Force on Covid-19.
On Tuesday, the Task Force received reports from ministries of Health, Local Government, Education and Information, Malawi Prisons and Malawi Defence Force.
But the Task Force led by co-chairperson Dr John Phuka and Minister of Health Kandodo Chiponda rejected several presentations because they clearly could not make sense on their expenditure.
The Task Force asked for fresh reports as it was evident that the funds, which Treasury released in August last year for the Covid-19 fight, were indeed plundered by some public officers.
Other members of the Task Force who rejected the reports at Bingu International Conference Centre (BICC) included Leader of the Opposition in Parliament Kondwani Nankhumwa, Minister of Finance Felix Mlusu, Minister of Information Gospel Kazako., Minister of Education Agness Nyalonje.
Chiponda said the Task Force will submit a report to President Chakwera after reviewing all presentations while Kazako said they will update the nation “when everything is done.”
Kazako said the session was not a stunt but a serious process of accountability.
President Chakwera had initially presented an expenditure breakdown that, among other things, indicated allocations for meetings and other items critics felt were not a priority.
The opposition Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) has since demanded an immediate audit of how the Department of Disaster Management Affairs (Dodma) in the Office of President and Cabinet (OPC).
DPP spokesperson on finance Joseph Mwanamvekha said the opposition party wants the National Audit Office to conduct the audit and that a report on the same should be submitted to Parliament through the Public Accounts Committee.
“Without being overly speculative, the conduct of Dodma could just be a microcosm of a much larger rot happening in government regarding the use of funds meant for the fight against Covid-19,” said Mwanamvekha in a statement.
The Public Accounts Committee of Parliament has since written the office of the Auditor General to institute an audit of the K6.2 billion funds.
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Frankly speaking, i fail to understand why Malawians including Chakwera are requesting further reports on how the 6.2 billion was used. Chakwera came on Malawi TVs and radios to illustrate how the 6.2 billion was used. I remember, in his report he told Malawians of a certain amount of funds which were used to transport Malawians from RSA. We have that report everywhere. Neither the president (Chakwera) nor any Malawian need another report. What we need now is to hold Chakwera accountable on what he told us if it was true or it was just a blue lie. He should… Read more »
Kkkkkk Tonse kulephera uko
A Chirima alikuti?Paja amayambira Ku chalichi kubwetuka ndi akazi ama president akale aja.A KALIATI M’MBALIMU OSAIWALA USI PAMBALIPA
Eeeh.. koma dziko lathuli lili pa moto.
Everyone mbava. Mbava kubela mbava. Malawi tizangotseka basi.
Kumangoyankhula basi.. no action. Dzimbava dzokhadzokha.
Koma aMalawi taziona eeeh. Welesike Mbava, Kamuzu Mbava. Muluzi Mbava. Bingu Mbava. Joyce Banda, Mbava. APM Mbava, Chakwera Mbava. Chilima Mbava… oh one more, Bushiri Mbava! Hmm.
Upulezidenti ogula kukhothi la atumbuka wavuta!!! Uwu siulendo waku Kenani koma waku Kasiya via Nsundwe. Mbola za president. By the way, where are the 1 million jobs?
4 more years!! Muchila koma mochedwa
Simufika ndi ma stress ayambawa wina mzanu sakugona.Tsamalani, cardiac arrest imakonda mofewa new anthu olephera ngati awa.
Eeeeeeh…ufiti tu uwu.
Every life is sacred, iwe there you are busy wishing and imagining people dead. Lets disagree on issues but not wish harm to one another. We all have people we care for and care for us. Eish
Reevaluate your surroundings with this type of thinking. You are in a bad and dark place buddy.
CovidGate.
anayamba kutinamiza kuti foteleza azakhala k4,950, uyooo wasintha okuti ngwawanthu owerengeka okha poti tawavotera. ife onthu oKasiya takwiya nalo khalidwe lotere. pano ku state house mwantengana okubanja okhaokha upasana hito. vitsiru zedi, mwatikwiisa.
Actually there was no need to dillydally, just arrest them and interrogate them to explain at the prison. They can have access to laptops.
A whole HE asks you to submit a report on expenditure and you just sit phwii? Ufiti chani?
kodi anashopera getruda ndi chimweenji wife anaabweza?
Clueless government
Don’t worry treat the incompetents with kid gloves. Fire the errant cadets by all means but they should be arrested for embezzlement. K6.1b is misapropriation is no small matter.
Mwayi wochotsera ma cadet ujatu uwu
It’s the beginning and end of story.