LILONGWE –(MaraviPost)-The return of the Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) to power has come with some expensive homecomings.
Sources who chose to speak on strict condition of anonymity have told this publication that Dr Henry Mathanga, who voluntarily resigned as Deputy Governor of the Reserve Bank of Malawi in 2021 after being sent on special leave, has allegedly received a MK1.5 billion settlement.
The payment forms part of a consent order signed by Attorney General (AG) Frank Farouk Mbeta in January 2026.
The same arrangement has seen Mathanga reinstated to his former position at the central bank with effect from January 1, this year.
Mathanga, a respected technocrat who joined the RBM way back in 1984, cited “constructive dismissal” when he chose to walk out in March 2021.
He was not sacked outright. He resigned of his own accord after finding the working environment unbearable under the Tonse administration.
Now, with the DPP back in the saddle, that resignation has been handsomely rewarded.
This raises an uncomfortable question for all Malawians: Should we start compensating people who resigned at their own will?
If every senior official who feels politically uncomfortable and decides to resign can later claim billions when their preferred party returns to power, where does that leave the public purse?
And what message does it send to ordinary civil servants who endure difficult conditions without the luxury of a golden handshake?
This publication understands that the AG’s office had initially indicated that Mathanga would not be entitled to benefits for the full period he was away (2021–2025).
Yet the consent order appears to have delivered a different result.
In Malawi’s politics, the letter of the law often bends comfortably when power changes hands.
Mathanga has always been described as a man who speaks less but does more.
His reinstatement has been welcomed by those who value competence at the central bank, especially as the country continues to battle forex shortages and economic pressures.
But the size of the reported payout MK1.5 billion is hard for many taxpayers to swallow.
This is not an isolated case. Several officials associated with the previous DPP era have been brought back or had cases against them dropped since President Peter Mutharika returned to office.
The pattern is clear: what one government undoes, the next one tries to undo again often at considerable cost.
Whether this particular settlement is legally watertight or politically convenient will continue to be debated.
What cannot be debated is the optics. In a nation where many families are struggling to put food on the table and where the Reserve Bank itself is preaching fiscal discipline, paying out such large sums to individuals who chose to resign raises serious questions about priorities.
Mathanga, Reserve bank and Attorney General have maintained their usual silence on the matter.
But the conversation in offices, markets, restaurants and online platforms is loud: when does correcting past wrongs become rewarding political loyalty with public money especially to people who voluntarily resigned at their own will?
