Malawi Congress Party (MCP) president Lazarus Chakwera has proposed the hiring of a foreigner to head the Anti-Corruption Bureau (ACB) to ensure independence of the bureau.
Chakwera told supporters during a whistle-stop tour in Mzimba on Monday that foreigners should be allowed to apply for the post of director general of ACB saying the move would help in dealing with corruption in the country.
“We want people at the helm of dealing with corruption like ACB to be independent. We want that even in Sadc [Southern Africa Development Community] region, we should be sharing ideas. Any suitable person outside Malawi should be able to apply for the job of ACB director general, not just Malawians,” said Chakwera.
The MCP president who is also Leader of Opposition then urged Malawians to boot out the Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) government in the 2019 tripartite elections saying the Peter Mutharika administration is full of thieves who encourage corrupt acts.
Chakwera promised to step up efforts in the fight against corruption if he will be elected president of Malawi in next year’s elections.
In Malawi, the president appoints the director general of the ACB and Parliament confirms the appointment.
The arrangement leads to questions over the ACB boss’ willingness to pursue cases involving the president’s allies or family members.
Current ACB boss Reyneck Matemba recently argued that being appointed by the president does not matter but the integrity of the ACB director does.
200% right