President Lazarus Chakwera has been accused of delaying the progress of Malawi’s hard-won democracy and the fight against corruption in the country.
Ahmed Dassu, a Malawian activist based in the United Kingdom, has released an open letter in which he has expressed concern over levels of corruption under the Chakwera administration.
Dassu has put the blame on Chakwera, saying the president articulately and loudly proclaim support for Anti-Corruption Bureau (ACB) and its Director-General, Martha Chizuma but has not taken action against those impeding Chizuma’s work.
“The reality is that not only do officials in your government impede investigations and prosecutions by the ACB, but that the entire government and public sector procurement are being exploited to enrich a few well-placed people,” said Dassu.
He noted that when the UK’s elite crime-fighting agency, the National Crime Agency (NCA), and the ACB jointly carried out synchronized raids in the UK and in Malawi at the premises of a UK citizen Zuneth Sattar, it was taken to be a sign of the president’s commitment to fight corruption.
He argued that anyone committed to fighting corruption would have considered the co-operation between NCA and ACB to be a godsend in the fight against corruption and the recovery of assets corruptly acquired.
Dassu, however, expressed concern that following the raid, there have been frivolous cases against Chizuma and the Attorney General (AG) tried to introduce an amnesty for those involved in corruption which upon public outcry was rescinded.
He added that the AG also claimed that the report which the NCA had provided to ACB should procedurally have been provided to the AG while the Director of Public Prosecution (DPP) denied consent to the ACB to prosecute Sattar. He further noted that government went on to pay money to Sattar’s companies for contracts which are under investigations.
“The AG, whose conduct has been unprofessional, even suspect, continues to hold office. This further demonstrates a total lack of commitment on your part to supporting ACB in carrying out its work in fighting corruption. For, considering the unprofessional conduct of the AG and DPP, both should have been replaced long since,” Dassu said.
He added: “It is inconceivable that any Malawian loyal to the flag would want to impede the prosecution of Sattar and the recovery of assets corruptly acquired. It begs the question whose interests are being served if not those alleged to have been paid bribes by Sattar. Put simply, Sattar is being protected to protect those who received bribes from Sattar.”
In his letter, Dassu also claimed that Chakwera met prospective suppliers of some government procurement deals at State House and on his visits abroad despite the government having well laid out procedures that there should be no meetings between prospective suppliers the President.
Dassu added that on or around the 2nd April 2022, the president chaired a meeting at State House, which resulted in the renewal of existing fuel contracts at $4 million more per month than other bids submitted by reputable suppliers.
“The question is who benefits from paying the contracted fuel suppliers $48 million + more per annum?” asked Dassu.
Dassu then advised Chakwera that he has lost the trust and respect of most Malawians.
“Regrettably, your election as President of Malawi has in effect set back our hard-won democracy and the fight against corruption, and nepotism and tribalism are firmly entrenched in government and public appointments,” said Dassu.
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