LILONGWE (MaraviPost)—Sources within state house has confided to this reporter that the Chief Secretary in the Office of President and Cabinet (OPC), George Mkondiwa, has run into desperation to keep his job beyond his retirement age by offering Mutharika’s top Presidential Aide, Ben Phiri, an alleged K25 million so that the latter influences President Peter Mutharika to maintain him on this position.
Under the Public Sector Reforms, Mkondiwa was not supposed to be offered another five-year contract to pave way for younger Principal Secretaries to succeed him.
However, Mkondiwa is scared to face reality. He has been trying to influence the system to prolong his stay in the civil service. It is just last month when he finally decided to bribe Phiri with the K25 million token, a charm that seems to have worked.
In the aftermath of that bribe, President Mutharika held a meeting with Vice President, Saulos Chilima, who is the interface of the reforms in the public service. The Vice President was told to look the other way when Mkondiwa’s issue is raised in all meetings to do with reforms.
This illegal extension of Mkondiwa’s contract continues to raise fears that Mutharika is a puppet leader who has no control whatsoever in how the country is being managed.
The Chief Secretary’s contract has since been extended up to 2020.
Mkondiwa attained the post last year in June after succeeding Hawa Ndilowe who is Malawi’s ambassador to Tanzania.
Peter Mutharika as a puppet leader and Ben Phiri as puppet master
Renowned Anti-corruption and good governance crusader Z Allan Ntata, who is a breakaway official of the ruling Democratic Progressive Party (DPP), a year ago boldly submitted that Malawians should be ready to watch a puppetry show in Mutharika’s administration as Ben Phiri whom he dubbed a puppet master is the defacto prime minister in the current regime saying that he wields power to hire and fire individuals at will. This has been recently confirmed by state house press secretary Viola who was cornered and confirmed in a Times TV interview that Mutharika is indeed a puppet who is controlled by his aides in as far making decisions and appointments in his government is concerned.